Summer is knocking on the door and we are all in a rush to get our bodies ready for it. Not everyone is happy with what they see once the shirts are off and if you’ve pictured yourself on a beach with six pack abs on display, you should know it is definitely achievable. All you need is determination and the guide below:
- Lose fat
The biggest myth out there when it comes to abs is having to do hundreds and hundreds of crunches per day to get ripped. Dozens of gadgets have been invented and advertised on the TV, promising you the abs you have always dreamt of with little to no effort. The truth is it all non-sense. The six pack abs you are after are there already but they’re most likely covered by layers and layers of fat. Therefore, the first thing you need to do is burn that fat off. How? Just follow the next four steps:
- Go on a Low Carb Diet
To put it simply, your body starts burning fat off as soon as it doesn’t get enough energy from carbohydrates. Don’t go overboard and completely eliminate carbs off your diet as you still need a minimum intake of carbs per day to function properly but they should come in the form of green vegetables, brown rice, green leafs or whole grains. All these are slowly digested so the energy they release will be used by your body in a more effective manner.
- Start HIIT Training
High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is the best thing you can do for your body overall, abs included. These workout sessions consist of high intensity exercises repeated for a certain amount of time, such as planking for a minute or less, followed by low intensity moves such as jumping jacks for the same amount of time. You then start again and repeat the cycle 3-5 times, depending on the number of moves and reps that you do in one cycle. HIIT training has been proved to burn more fat than any other form of cardio and if that’s not enough, it continues to burn off fat once the workout has been completed. HIIT does not require any type of equipment as you are training using your bodyweight only and is therefore convenient to perform regardless of the location. And it will also save you loads of time as you will be spending 30 minutes training, rather than a 2 hour jog.
- Abs workouts
Yes, we did say that burning fat off is the main thing but that doesn’t mean that you can forget about abs workout altogether. One of the most efficient exercises out there is the hanging leg raise as it hits both the abs and the lower abs at the same time, whilst also creating the separation between the abs for better visibility. Another exercise with amazing results is the ab crunch on the stability ball as it also targets the obliques. Last but not least, give cable crunches a go as they are the perfect crunches to finish off.
Repeat sets of 15 reps of all three abs exercises mentioned above and start getting ripped.
- Allow Yourself Little Treats
It is important you don’t get frustrated with all the dieting and the intense workouts so the occasional treat here and there will help you feel satisfied whilst not ruining all the hard work you have put into. Be wary though, cheating is allowed but the keyword here is ‘occasional’.
