Six Pack Abs – How To Obtain Them

Whenever I go to the gym I frequently see people with those “to die for” six pack abs.  I find myself wishing my abs looked ripped and rock hard.  I also know that most people, myself included, would  love to have those washboard abs without slaving at the gym for hours upon hours.    It is possible to obtain the abs you fantasize about without spending your entire life in the gym and in the comfort of your home.

When creating a home gym it is imperative to choose the right equipment for your specific needs.  Be careful not to buy equipment on impulse without considering some important about home exercise units in general.  First and foremost do not buy equipment you really don’t need.  We all probably have unused machines sitting in our basement or garage collecting dust.  It is very easy to do some detective work online by researching abdominal exercise machines and other types of workout equipment to insure your money is well spent.

You might be asking yourself why in the world would I want to exercise at home and what type of abdominal exercise machines can I use effectively at home?  Working out at home not only saves you time it can also allow you to focus your mind and energy on on the target muscle group you are trying to strengthen and build.  Be fore warned that many of the ab exercise machines available today are made of shoddy  materials, are unstable and in the long run can hurt you in many ways other than the wallet.  The worst case scenario is a possible tear or strain an abdominal muscle (hello sports hernia).  Not only will you be in pain for quite a long time, you will loose all the positive benefits you obtained from the workouts prior to your injury.

I would like to dispel some of the common myths we all hear from friends infomercials and other so called “experts”  in the realm of exercise.  Did you ever think that the reason you are not getting results may be due to technique as well as quality of the abdominal exercise machines?  So if your goal is to get those “washboard abs” you need to be able to separate fact from fiction when it comes to abdominal exercises and equipment.

Six Pack Abs Myths:

Six Pack Ab Myth # 1:  Strong Abs Will Insure a Strong Back.

The key to a strong back is a balance in your core muscles which include your abs, pelvic and low back muscles.  In order to strengthen your back you must work all your core muscles so as to create balance in the strength from front to back.   It is common for infomercials and narrow minded exercise gurus to give that working out a particular muscle group is the key to an effective, healthy workout.  I am here to tell you that your workouts should be geared to overall muscular symmetry which will improve your overall fitness and health in general.

Six Pack Ab Myth #2:  Abdominal Muscle Tissue Is Quite Different From Regular Muscle Tissue.

What you need to know is muscle is muscle whether it is the biceps, triceps or oblique abdominals.  The only difference is the location and the support of the muscular tissue.  the majority of muscles in you body attach to bones at both ends.  The abdominal muscles however, do not lie entirely on bone. The majority of there surface lie against the the stomach and intestines.

Six Pack Myth 3:  The More You Exercise You Abs The Merrier.

Gurus often preach that you need to train your abs hard at least 4 to 5 times a week.  The key to exercising effectively  is to choose exercises that fatigue your abs, and then give them  needed recovery time.  So that will usually be about 3 effective exercise sessions per week. Make sure to include exercises that use the natural motions of you abdominal muscles.  In other words you want to mimic the natural everyday motion of your stomach muscles.  Since abs are used to stabilize the body, a very natural motion would be to hold a push up position without letting your body sag thus arching your back. Try it and increase the hold time gradually and you will really feel and more importantly strengthen and develop your abdominal muscles.

Six Pack Myth 4: High Reps Are Your Ticket To Building Muscles.

In any exercise the key to rally seeing results is FORM.  Yes you can do hundreds of crunches a day however if you do not focus on form and increasing muscle contraction time you will not see the results you are looking for. Focus on form and gradually increase the repetitions and it will go a long way towards reaching you goals.

Six Pack Myth 5:  It Mat Take Years To Properly Strengthen And Develop Six Pack Abs.

In order to get that “washboard ab look” exercise as well as proper nutrition geared towards fat mobilization and reduction Is the real key.  It is imperative to reduce the fat surrounding your abdominal region and a proper diet can be as important as choosing the right exercise program.  For some it will take shorter and others a longer period of time to reach their goals. Different body types respond at different rates to exercise and diet.

Six Pack Myth 6:  Sit Ups Are The Ultimate Abdominal Exercise.

Many exercise enthusiasts say that sit-ups and crunches are the ultimate ab exercises.  These type of exercises can create more harm than good.  A common problem wit sit ups and crunches is that people tend to put too much stress on their necks thereby throwing their neck out.  Crunches and sit-ups done incorrectly can cause spinal trauma and can lead to the reduction of thoracic extension which contributes to bad posture.  Research has shown that there are many more effective exercises available that can strengthen you abs without the risk of injury.

In future articles we will discuss types of ab exercises and effective abdominal exercise machines.  Remember to research exercise programs and equipment prior to embarking on you quest for those six pack abs.