They're the envy of pot-bellied sofa surfers across the country. They even serve as inspiration for those of us with enough drive and conviction to hit the gym and take-up workout programs. They're on the pages of GQ, Men's Health and late night fitness infomercials happily pumping-away on the latest exercise gadget- those super-fit ab models with seemingly impossible six packs.
For the multitudes of people spinning away or pumping-iron in gyms all over the world, attaining a well-defined midsection like those of underwear models' has been the Holy Grail of exercising. Contrary to what frustrated millions may think, getting ripped abs is actually not that hard.
The fitness ab models with those glorious six-packs didn't get them by slacking-off and logging-extended hours on the boob tube of course, but their workouts aren't as grueling as most folks yearning for a shredded midsection think. A combination of cardio and muscle building exercises that target and keep-off body fat as source for energy will do the trick.
Doing exercises that keep your heart rate within your anaerobic threshold (experts call it AT) are most effective in exposing the rectus abdominus by eliminating belly fat. Keeping your heart rate at 60%-70% of your maximum heart rate somehow causes the body to source body fat for most of the energy spent.
Another useful not-so-well-known fitness fact: the more muscle you have, the more fat you burn even while watching Letterman (without the bucket of chicken, of course). It's called metabolism and muscle tissue increases it by burning calories even with no movement.
Diet of course, plays a big part in our fight against The Flab. It's not as simple as just cutting back on food intake however. It's even possible to eat 3 meals a day with snacks in between and still get a tummy like a six pack ab models'. The technique is choosing what you stuff in your mouth and when to stuff it in. Eating foods rich in carbs an hour or two before a workout for example can provide you with the ample energy for a workout session.
Skipping meals actually induce us to gorge on the next meal and naturally, this stretches the abdominal muscles and over time will protrude and become unsightly. Also, our bodies have a tendency to slow down metabolism when we're hungry, resulting in less calories burned from body fat and extending the time it would take to get that coveted six pack.
It's ultimately better to eat 3 times a day with snacks in between to prevent ourselves from feeling deprived and simply pigging-out on the next meal. Overeating expands our stomach muscles to accommodate all the food we eat and this leads to a pot belly after a while. - 16492
For the multitudes of people spinning away or pumping-iron in gyms all over the world, attaining a well-defined midsection like those of underwear models' has been the Holy Grail of exercising. Contrary to what frustrated millions may think, getting ripped abs is actually not that hard.
The fitness ab models with those glorious six-packs didn't get them by slacking-off and logging-extended hours on the boob tube of course, but their workouts aren't as grueling as most folks yearning for a shredded midsection think. A combination of cardio and muscle building exercises that target and keep-off body fat as source for energy will do the trick.
Doing exercises that keep your heart rate within your anaerobic threshold (experts call it AT) are most effective in exposing the rectus abdominus by eliminating belly fat. Keeping your heart rate at 60%-70% of your maximum heart rate somehow causes the body to source body fat for most of the energy spent.
Another useful not-so-well-known fitness fact: the more muscle you have, the more fat you burn even while watching Letterman (without the bucket of chicken, of course). It's called metabolism and muscle tissue increases it by burning calories even with no movement.
Diet of course, plays a big part in our fight against The Flab. It's not as simple as just cutting back on food intake however. It's even possible to eat 3 meals a day with snacks in between and still get a tummy like a six pack ab models'. The technique is choosing what you stuff in your mouth and when to stuff it in. Eating foods rich in carbs an hour or two before a workout for example can provide you with the ample energy for a workout session.
Skipping meals actually induce us to gorge on the next meal and naturally, this stretches the abdominal muscles and over time will protrude and become unsightly. Also, our bodies have a tendency to slow down metabolism when we're hungry, resulting in less calories burned from body fat and extending the time it would take to get that coveted six pack.
It's ultimately better to eat 3 times a day with snacks in between to prevent ourselves from feeling deprived and simply pigging-out on the next meal. Overeating expands our stomach muscles to accommodate all the food we eat and this leads to a pot belly after a while. - 16492
