Abdominal focus

[raidou]

Whats up sosuave! Its been a while but i need a little advice...

I've been weight training for about 6 months now mainly in order to improve my strength as well as to shape up the physique a little . Despite having a low BF% (below 10%) my abs are just BARELY visible (keep in mind i am 5'9" about 140lbs.) Is my BF% not low enough? What should i do to make them more visible? should i be cutting up?, bulking up? Honestly, i have no idea. Anything i've seen relating to improving your abdominal region has been targeted to people who are overweight. Nothing has been said for those in a similar situation as i.

I apologize if this post is redundant, but i need input from you guys so POST!

 

[[S]alvatore]

Do you squat, deadlift, train your abs? I would say either you're not 10% bodyfat, or your abs are undertrained.

 

[raidou]

I squat and deadlift sufficiently, but i can hardly say the same for my abs.

 

[spitkicker]

i've gotten my abs to look phenominal without doing a single crunch. I know people will disagree with me, and i dont care, but the key is early morning cardio.

People say "show me the science" and i'll say "I'll show you the results"

Do 45 minutes of AM cardio before breakfast for 2 weeks straight, and your abs will pop out.

 

[[S]alvatore]

i've gotten my abs to look phenominal without doing a single crunch. I know people will disagree with me, and i dont care, but the key is early morning cardio.

People say "show me the science" and i'll say "I'll show you the results"

Do 45 minutes of AM cardio before breakfast for 2 weeks straight, and your abs will pop out.

Yes, show me the science that any person who does this will see their abs within 2 weeks. Also keeping in mind that this involves no special diet or weight training, right?

 

[raidou]

So if my abs are just undertrained, what kind of training should i do?

 

[Rocko]

well, i don't think you should do cardio because you are already a skinny guy, and doing that will just burn more calories. I have a 6 pack and the cut, and its because i take 15 minutes out of my workout 2 times a week to work on my abs.

 

[Rocko]

if i could show you which exercises i do, i would, its kind of hard to explain

 

[RedPill]

Two words:

Guerilla cardio.

And with that, I'm starting a journal. There needs to be some accountability here.

 

[raidou]

G.Cardio

As good as G. Cardio sounds i also don't think i should be doing much cardio(but i could be wrong). I don't have much more weight to lose. Anyway, I'm trying to find some exercises targeting my abs that i can utilize. i think i should find some that can be used with weights and jus incorporate them in my workouts. thnx for inputs. Keep postin!

 

[Rocko]

http://www.extremefitness.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-4172.html

check out those forums, maybe they have more in there

 

[raidou]

I checked there, but unfortunately i didn't find anything that i could really use. Anyone else with a suggestion???

 

[Skilla_Staz]

Weighted ab exercises are a double bonus. Strong core, more visible abs.

 

[raidou]

I see. I presume the reps should be as low as any other lift would be?

 

[Skilla_Staz]

Yes. When I was making my own workouts, I was doing stuff in the 4-8 rep range. For example...on knee raises, I was putting a chain just above my knees and wrapping it so that it was taught when I lowered my legs. I would then string plates through them to add the weight.

 

[raidou]

I've found at least four exercises(all of them weighted) that i can use for an abdominal workout. I decided not to do ANY cardio for the purpose of showing my abs because I'm skinny enough already and my abs can be seen when I'm contracting them. With that said, I guess I'll be hitting the weights. Thnx for the input everyone.

P.S.- post up what u think is the most difficult ab exercise that can be done!

 

[[S]alvatore]

http://www.exrx.net/Lists/ExList/WaistWt.html#anchor172895

Ab exercises.

 

[Skilla_Staz]

P.S.- post up what u think is the most difficult ab exercise that can be done!

Difficult? Or effective? Bridges with hips tucked and glutes clenched make me want to collapse, but thats more endurance and less size/definition.

I'd probably recommend a routine with some upper, lower and entire wall exercises so that you can develop an overall strong core. I like my hanging leg raises and my cable crunches.