Everyone wants those cut abdominal muscles; men and women, alike. You’ve probably even caught some late night commercials selling some gimmick product that promises flat abs in just 33 seconds per day. And the sad thing is that late night commercials usually tell the truth. Well, they are lying about the ease of scoring abs of steel, but they do give you a pretty good idea of what everyone wants. Whatever those commercials are selling is in high demand.
But you don’t need a gimmick product to develop rock solid ab muscles. Abs help us do just about everything when it comes to athletics. Without solid abs, you break the kinetic chain. That means you can’t translate the power that your legs create into power at your fingertips. That bodes poorly for just about every sport, especially baseball and softball.
But by following these simple tips, you might get that washboard after all:
1. Expand Your Definition Of The Core
Those washboard ab muscles are the beautiful benefit of working the entire core. And the core is a lot bigger than you think. Core muscles run from your armpit all the way down to the upper thigh. It is a large zone; much larger than what you might think when you look at someone’s toned abs. But this zone represents the athletic core zone that you need to develop in order to become more powerful. The abs are just a perk of doing a good job.
2. Lose Weight
The body loses weight where it wants to. It cannot be directed where to lose weight. So doing a bunch of crunches or using a late-night commercial’s gimmick workout device won’t necessarily give you a washboard. And even if you work your core until you have rock solid ab muscles, nobody will be able to see them if they are buried under fat. That means you need to eat right and to get on the treadmill for more low-intensity cardio work. This will help you lose more weight in general. At some point, your body will let go of its belly fat and you will have your abs.
3. Treat The Core Like Any Other Muscle Group
You probably don’t go into the gym on consecutive days to lift your chest muscles. You’d be foolish to do so because you need active recovery to heal, repair and build new muscle. Do the same for your core. Workout your core heavily one day, and then take the next day off from any heavy core activity. This will give your muscles a chance to recuperate, like any other muscle group in the body.
4. Prioritize
Most people don’t make abs a priority. Instead, most core workouts are done at the very end of a different workout. Most athletes make it a low priority. Why not switch that up? Devote entire days to the core or perform your core routine at the beginning of each workout. This ensures that you are fresh and focused on the core workout.
5. Trust Good Form
It is easy to get discouraged with a core workout, especially in the beginning. Your core muscles aren’t as powerful as other muscles. Just trust in good form. Good form is more important that quantity or doing abdominal work with a high amount of resistance.
6. Involve Your Core In Other Workouts
By doing body-weight lifts on a TRX rack or introducing a balance ball into free weight lifts, you activate your core. So you can focus on your core alongside other workout routines for a more full-bodied approach to strength training.