| Steve Hochman |
Are you constantly doing sit ups and yet seeing no results and you feel like you are fighting a losing battle? Well maybe you are! Sorry the truth sometimes hurts, but in order for exercises to work you need to maintain a low body fat level, eat a proper diet and have a healthy cardio regimen. These are essential to seeing that six-pack you crave.
Spot training won't do you any good, the only thing that you can get from that is muscle toned in the area being worked. The question here is, what good will that do you if you have an extra few pounds of fat covering it up?
In addition to a proper cardio vascular workout it is of the utmost importance that you work to target all 3 area of the abs; the upper abs (rectus absominius), the love handles (obliques) and lower abs (transverse abdominus). So here is how to quickly get chiseled and defined abs like a fitness model by doing these six top exercises
TIP: Keep the crunch motions slow and deliberate while focusing on your abdominal muscles. Drawing your navel in towards your spine as you do each abdominal exercise. It's not about getting your shoulders off the ground that you should be concentrating on.
1. Bicycle Crunch - Laying flat on your back just like doing crunches you will lift your legs so they are parallel with the floor. Now start like a normal crunch by lifting your shoulders off the floor, only you will do so in a twisting motion one shoulder at a time. So you will bring the right shoulder and left knee towards each other in a crunch and then as you straighten the left leg back out and lower the shoulder the left shoulder and right knee towards each other in another crunch, the motions is like riding a bicycle, hence the name.
2. Hanging Leg Raises - First you want to grab hold of a pull up bar or use ab slings and just hang there until your body is still. Now using all of your abs slowing raise your legs up by bringing your feet toward the ceiling, stop the motion when your feet can't go any higher and your abs are fully contracted (To make this exercise a bit more difficult then you can do it by keeping your legs straight.) Repeat 15 to 20 times
3. Crunch on Exercise Ball - Using an exercise ball you can do crunches that will allow you to get a better range of motion than normal crunches. Take a large exercise ball, lay with your lower back centered on top and your feet shoulder width apart. With your arms over your head, crunch your upper body up making sure that you contract your abs in towards the spine when your reach the top of the movement and hold for a count of one. Slowly return to the beginning and repeat 20 times. For extra benefit you can hold a medicine ball in your hands while doing the crunches.
4. Bench V ups - This is a great lower abdominal workout. First you sit at the end of a flat bench with your legs out in front of you straight with your feet just off the floor. With your hand holding the bench behind you, inhale and raise your legs into a V position just above your waist. Exhale and slowly lower legs to the start position and repeat. Repeat 10 to 15 times.
5. Standing cable twist - Using a cable crossover machine stand keeping arms straight hold the handle in front of your chest. Look straight ahead slowly turn your upper body to the right, using your abdominal muscles to pull with, you will feel the obliques working. Slowly release and repeat on the other side. (do not pull with your arms) Repeat 10 to 15 times on each side.
6. Plank Bridge - This is probably one of the most difficult yet one of the best abdominal exercises because not only does it work on your abs, it is also a great core strength exercise. Lay face down, place your forearms under your chest, use toes and forearms to push your body to form a bridge keeping your back flat and your navel pulled in. Start with 10 seconds (stop if you feel it in your low back) and build up until you can hold for 60 to 90 seconds. Return to start position and begin again. Repeat 5 sets.
Follow these steps and you will then understand how to quickly get chiseled and defined abs like a fitness model by doing these six top exercises.
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