Six Pack Abs Training

Strengthen your abdominal core muscles and lose your body fat. The concept may sound simple, but putting it into action can be quite challenging. It will take dedication, time and patience to get a six pack; but in the end, the effort is well worth it. To get six pack abs you need to do two things: lose fat and Build muscle . You get this by dieting and exercising daily. You can have the most toned and muscular abs, but it will not show if there is a layer of fat over them. This article will discuss ways in which you can accomplish both of these goals.

Do cardio workouts. Important step to get six pack abs: There is no way to target fat loss in any area of your body. You need to lose some of that extra fat over your abs. Even if you workout and get gigantic ab muscles, if there is still a layer of fat over them no one will ever get to see them. Cardio workouts are workouts that raise your heart rate for a given set of time. Some examples would be running, jogging, bike riding, dancing and rowing.

Lift weights. The more muscle your body has, the more calories your body burns, even at rest. Plus, resistance training is important to limit the amount of muscle mass lost whilst reducing your calorie intake. If you only do cardiovascular exercises (running, playing basketball, football) without weight training then you may lose the muscle mass, including the muscle in your abs.

"You're not going to reduce fat content without either a whole heck of a lot of abdominal work -- which is unnecessary and a waste of time -- or some kind of aerobic activity," says Richard Cotton, exercise physiologist and spokesman for the American Council on Exercise (ACE).

Effective Cardio Workout in 20 Minutes

The perfect workout routine is one that combines strength training and some form of cardio. The problem is that most people hate doing cardio and fill any excuse not to. A popular excuse is not having enough time. This article, however, will show you how you can spend only 20 minutes for a cardio workout and still reap the rewards.

Interval training is perfect for running. If you're working out on a treadmill or running outdoors, it's the same routine. Start out with a warm up jog followed by two minutes of a challenging pace. This won't be your all out because you have to maintain it for two minutes, but a pace that will be very hard for you. You then follow this with two minutes of either a walk or a very slow jog. Repeat four more times and you've got yourself an effective cardio workout in only 20 minutes.

One of the most effective cardio exercises for fat burning is backpacking. One need not be in the woods, or other special nature setting to backpack. Walking outside, at a mall or even on a treadmill work equally well for fat burning. As with all cardio workouts one must gradually build the length of workouts over a period of months. In addition, with backpacking one can gradually increase the weight. It is best to start walking without weight, build up distance and then add 20 pounds. Later add another 20 and if desired yet another 20. Once one is walking seven miles three times a week with a 40 pound back pack most of the extra pounds will have melted away.

Run on a treadmill. Warm up for 3 minutes, increasing your pace from a jog to a comfortable run. Following the warm up, run 1 minute intervals: Start with a challenging pace for 1 minute, then recover at a slow run for 1 minute. Repeat. As you run lengthen your stride, lift your knees and pump your arms.

King of Cardio : Running

What makes running the best cardio exercise for weight loss?

Running is an ideal exercise for weight loss. But what is it about running that makes it so ideal?

Well, there are mainly two things that happen when you run:

You use a lot of oxygen when you do the activity; you need oxygen to burn fat.
You perform an intense activity, which not only burns energy during the activity, but also 20-30 minutes after the activity.

Both of these things work in favor of your weight loss goals.

Before you go running, I would recommend not eating or drinking just before you go out as you will be uncomfortable and you will probably get the dreaded stitch. I like to have a protein bar or a banana about 1 hour before my run to keep my energy levels up. Also remember to re-hydrate yourself after your run.

To warm up before my run, I normally walk for five minutes. I read in Runner's World magazine that you shouldn't stretch before a run, but that is still debatable. Studies have shown that stretching 'cold' muscles (before any exercise) can cause more injuries than they prevent. After your run, it is best to wait about 30 minutes before stretching to cool down, as the sudden difference in muscle movements can cause a shock and may lead to injury. Again, after my run I like to walk for the remaining five minutes to cool down gradually, rather than running and finishing with a sudden stop.

A higher intensity method compared to walking, running (not sprinting, which is anaerobic) is an efficient, although high impact way to lose body fat and improve cardiorespiratory fitness.

The main benefit to running for weight loss purposes is that it is sufficiently high intensity to burn a greater number of calories, while stimulating the metabolic rate for a longer period afterward.

For fat burning purposes, the variation on running that could be considered is jogging, as this method - although higher intensity aerobic - does not cross the anaerobic threshold to burn carbohydrates as a primary fuel source. Running, as does walking, involves all of the lower body, only on a much larger scale.

Info for Losing Belly Fat, getting Ripped Abs and to Gain Muscle Mass

Metabolic rate simply means the speed at which your body burns calories. If your body consumes more and more calories then losing belly fat becomes easier simply because your body will be in a state of calorie deficit which results in belly fat loss. The mistake 90% of people make is choosing the goal to lose weight. Losing weight means losing both belly fat (which is good) and losing muscle mass (which is bad!).

It's very important to perform cardiovascular exercise regularly when you want to know how to get abs fast. Doing cardio will allow you to burn extra calories so you get rid of more of the fat covering up your abdominal muscles. Running, biking, working out on an elliptical machine, and playing an active sport are all excellent forms of cardio exercise. It's excellent for burning away extra calories and body fat. When you performing cardio workouts you should try varying the intensity of your training when you want to know how to get abs quickly. If you do some bursts of high intensity training during your low or medium intensity cardiovascular workouts you'll boost your metabolic rate and be able to get through your workouts in less time.

High reps, Low Weights, and little to no rest between sets. Start your fat burning exercise with a cycle of workout machines and weight workouts. Choose 6 exercises targeting 3 different muscles. Your weight on each workout will consist on an amount you can do at least 15 reps and no more than 20. If your just getting into working out you want to push yourself for at least 30 minutes but make sure you set the right pace so you don't burn out too quickly. Take breaks as needed but push your self into doing 15 min. sessions with as little as time needed between exercises. TIME TO SWEAT!!

Dumbbell Bench Press

The Dumbbell Bench Press is a fantastic movement that when properly performed builds the chest muscles. Dumbbell Bench Press is a great chest exercise because it can be performed using various angles to develop every part of the chest muscle. The Dumbbell Bench Press is also a fantastic chest exercise because it allows for great freedom of motion and as such engages many supporting muscles that further stimulate optimal chest development.

The movement is basically the same as the barbell bench press and the muscles used are the same. This exercise is also considered a compound movement.

The only difference in the movement is the balance. Each dumbbell must be lifted independently of one another which can be somewhat more difficult since one side of your body may be stronger than the other. However, this movement is very beneficial because it forces your weaker body part to become stronger.

How to do it?

Preparation

Sit down on bench with dumbbells resting on lower thigh. Kick weights to shoulder and lie back. Position dumbbells to sides of chest with bent arm under each dumbbell.

Execution

Press dumbbells up with elbows to sides until arms are extended. Lower weight to sides of upper chest until slight stretch is felt in chest or shoulder. Repeat.

Variations

Another variation of this exercise is to perform it with the palms of the hands facing each other.

Also, you can perform the exercise with the palms facing each other and then twisting the wrist as you lift the dumbbells so that at the top of the movement the palms are facing away from the body. I personally do not use this variation very often as it seems to be hard on my shoulders.

Lateral Abdominal Workout

Side damnit are one of the ribbon abdominal Side flexion exercises and jolt be controlled before more actors exercises are attempted. Lie on your right-hand side side with your knees bent. Rest your head on your right-hand side bicep. Place your left hand to soak your left ear. too bad up sideways, lifting your superior body and left shaken toward your left hip. transients your abs and glutes. control that your hips stores stacked on top of one another. Do not coupled them to bread forward or backward. inferior yourself back to the mat. Do 10 shield crunches on your right, and then bread onto your left shield and do incorporation 10. You can work up to 30, but two laces of 20 is good.

This exercise is performed using dumbbell or plates held in either hands. It can also be performed without dumbbells for shaping lateral abs. If you have a thin waist and want to put more muscle then use dumbbells to offer resistance.

Vary your typical sit-ups by rotating your torso on the way up. Alternating right and left rotations will build your lateral abdominal muscles equally on either side. Do this for incline sit-ups, incline bench sit-ups, and raised leg sit-ups too. Strength Training Anatomy affirms that this shifts the workout from your rectus abdominis (your anterior abdominal muscle) to your obliques.

Bicep Exercise for Women

The straight bar curl is the classic all-rounder biceps exercise that hits both long and short heads of the biceps, but if you experience shooting pain down forearms, wrists or elbows, consider the ez-curl bar. Although research has proven that the straight bar produces greater activity in biceps as hand grips force palms to face up, the ez-curl bended bar, hand grips force palms to slightly face each other taking some tension off muscle and joints. As a result, the ez-bar may reduce pain and help you work to improve form as it corrects alignment. Try both grips to feel the difference. Either way here’s how to do this isolated move for bolder biceps using a straight bar.

Close Grip Bench Press

This exercise allows you to use a heavy weight in a safe way. However, it is slightly more tricky to perform than it looks.

How to - Take a medium bar bell and lie on a flat bench. Push the bar bell up until you arms are locked and then lower it down slowly. Just before it hits your chest push it up quickly with a little bouncing motion for about two inches. This short stop and bounce stops your chest muscles coming into play here and keeps the weight on your triceps. It’s a great secret.

Pushups are an old standby for toning the arms and shoulders. You should aim to do at least 10 to 20 pushups every day. Once you build up some stamina you can increase the number or push ups you perform each week. Most women have trouble performing a standard push up. The good news is you can perform a modified push up quite easily. To perform a modified push up, simply push up from your knees to your arms instead of placing your weight on your hands and feet. Most women can perform a push up in this position.

Barbell Preacher Curl Exercise

If you've never done a preacher curl beware, your biceps will hurt! The preacher curl is a variation of the barbell bicep curl that you do sitting on a preacher curl bench (pictured below). The preacher curl bench helps to isolate your bicep muscles for maximum muscle and strength growth. You can use a barbell or dumbell (single arm) for the preacher curl, but I'm going to focus on the barbell preacher curl.

Adjust the seat cushion to a level where the pad fits directly under your armpits. Keep the back of your hand - elbow to armpit - flat on the pad throughout the exercise. Lift the barbell by flexing your biceps. Exhale as you bring the weight up, inhale as you bring it down.

In doing barbell preacher curls people tend to cheat by swinging the weight, lifting with their shoulders, or bringing elbows up. Besides taking away from the core of the exercise, and thus muscle development, you are introducing risk of injury. Using any of the aforementioned cheats leads to unnatural body movements. You'll end up flexing and stretching muscle fibers at the same time, tearing them, and subsequently causing you pain. As mentioned in Arnold's book, even the professionals are subject to this mistake. Frank Zane strained his upper-back performing the preacher curl.

In summary, include the preacher curl with barbell workout in your weekly routine, to help build huge biceps By focusing your attention on a single muscle group, you grow bigger, faster. Remember to breathe out when lifting the weights toward your body and to breathe in when the weight is going down. The downward swing of the weight should be slow and controlled.

Neck Prioritization!

The neck is made up of several muscles-ranging from flexors and extensors, to rotators and lateral flexors. Flexors are responsible for moving your chin towards your chest. Extensors are responsible for moving your head backwards so you look up. Rotators allow you to look from side to side. Lateral flexors are responsible for moving your ear towards your shoulder.

The neck is one of the few bodyparts that doesn't get much direct attention in the gym. This is unfortunate, because a strong neck helps lifters and athletes avoid injury. Beyond that, a well-developed neck conveys an appearance of raw strength and power, which are two motivating characteristics that get many men into the gym in the first place.

The weighted neck harness builds the splenius muscle of the neck. Place the neck harness on your head and add the desired total weight on the neck harness chain. Let the weight hang in the air. Sit down on the bench and put your feet in front of you on the ground. Put your hands on your knees. Lift your head up and back by extending your neck. Then, lower your chin down towards your upper chest region by bending the neck down and repeat the movement.

Quote from a trainer :

"Make sure that you have deadlifts, squats, and shrugs (or some people use rack pulls instead) incorporated into your program design. If you want direct neck work, and don't have a 4 way neck machine, a neck harness works the neck extensors very well.

Bridging also works the neck extensors. They still leave side flexion and flexion of the neck. "Back" bridging works the neck flexors statically. I've learned an exercise from Combat Conditioning that allows you to work extension flexion, extension, and lateral flexion. It's called the 4 Way Neck Exercise. You use your bodyweight as the resistance (unless you would purchase a weight vest). If you are interested, I can try to explain it."

One Arm Chin Up Exercise

The one armed chin-up is one of only a handful of bodyweight exercises that get a 10 for difficulty rating by unique bodyweight exercises. It is without doubt a daunting challenge and can take many months or several years to master but at the same time, it is also one of the most impressive physical feats you can achieve and if you do nail it, you can take comfort in the fact that you will be part of an elite group as only one person in every one hundred thousand can manage it.

The obvious first step in being able to do a single arm chin up is first mastering an actual chin-up. If you have trouble with chin ups, you can use a band to assist you while doing them. Using a band will make doing chin ups and pull ups more manageable because it ‘assists’ you with the movement by reducing the overall body weight you are pulling up. If you feel hesitant about using a band on your own, most gyms also have a Gravitron/assisted pull up machine. This machine allows you to adjust the amount of assistance to as much or as little as you want while letting you go through all the different motions of pull-ups, chin-ups, and dips. A good intermediate goal would be to perform 5-10 unassisted chin ups.

Here are some common injuries you may encounter:

Elbow Tendonitis - This is probably the number one injury that people will encounter in their training. The chinning great Jasper Benincasa, who could do 19 one arm chins in a row, had this to say about the one arm chin and elbow tendonitis:
In order to avoid the problem entirely, I would recommend progressing slowly, especially when you start working the harder one arm exercises. Listen to your body and don't hesitate to back off of training if you suspect elbow tendonitis. I also kept my repetitions very low for one arm work, something I'll elaborate on in the training regimen section below.

Shoulder Pain - The shoulder is the other joint most likely to be strained while working the OAP. Anytime you find yourself hanging at the bottom position for any of the exercises (one or two armed), make sure to keep your shoulder pulled TIGHT into the socket. It can be dangerous to relax the shoulder when so much weight is being applied to it.

How to Do a Variation of Sit-ups ?

This is a sit-up movement that works the abs instead of the hip flexors. It will work all the muscles in your midsection in one exercise. The standard Crunch only addresses part of the function of the abdominals. This exercise targets the flexed (arched back) range of motion of the abs.

Although many people do sit-ups to firm their stomachs and abdominal muscles, they work out other body parts, too. When used in combination with weights or by modifying traditional sit-ups, a much more complete body workout can be achieved. Regardless of what type or variation of sit-up you perform, no number of repetitions will yield a set of six-pack abs if you're overweight or flabby around the midsection. But combined with a sensible nutrition program, you can use sit-ups as the basis for a good exercise that combines resistance and aerobic benefits.

* 1

Assume the right position. Lie on the floor with your knees bent and your arms across your chest. Practice doing a few regular sit-ups, making sure to exhale when you come up. Once you have this form down, you can begin to do different exercise variations.

* 2

Make it a little harder. Once you've gotten good at the standard sit-up, you can spice things up by changing your arms. Try placing your arms behind your head for a few counts. Once you have that down, try lifting your arms straight up above your head and doing a few reps that way.

* 3

Pivot on your elbows. As you come up from the sit-up position, pivot to one side or the other on your elbow. Alternate sides to get a complete workout.

* 4

Change up the legs. Instead of bending your knees, put them out flat in front of you and do sit-ups that way. You should pull your legs in with each sit-up and then let them back out again with each repetition.