LEAN WOMEN W/ ABS! HOW DID YOU DO IT?
Replies
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Here's my personal method:
No clean eating
No cardio (none in the past six months, anyway)
No crunches or isolated ab work
Yes moderate calorie deficit (TDEE-15%)
Yes patience
Yes body fat reduction
Yes heavy lifting
That's all.
This.... 531 rocks
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This is what I do. Lift 3-4x/week, eat at a deficit, make sure I hit my protein. And it all depends on your body and how much fat you have how long it will take for your abs to show. I also do HIIT cardio 1-2x/week.Is lifting the best way to get abs then?
I can't afford the gym, I've been doing ab work at home, crunches etc...
Crunches are a great way to eff up your lower back.
A calorie deficit and heavy lifting are what you need. 531 is spot on.
I've been right down lean eating everything people on this site say will kill you: bread, pasta, ice cream, etc.
Get enough protein, sustain a moderate deficit, lift heavy *kitten*, be patient. It'll come.0 -
Lifting heavy + calories deficit + patience and hope the genetic fairy godmother was good to you.0
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You just need to reduce your body fat - I have washboard abs - my body fat percentage is low though, about 17% at the moment.
You may need to exercise to lower your body fat to get abs, but you do not need to exercise to have abs.0 -
avoid salt or bloat enducing foods
avoid processed foods
do HIIT
lift heavy weights
do compound movements
drink LOTS of water
I only train abs for 5-10 minutes 1-2 times a week.0 -
This is what I do. Lift 3-4x/week, eat at a deficit, make sure I hit my protein. And it all depends on your body and how much fat you have how long it will take for your abs to show. I also do HIIT cardio 1-2x/week.
Well, it's clearly worked for you! Great job.0 -
I've been going at this for about three years. I started out training for a half marathon Jan 2011 - so lots of cardio. I didn't watch what I ate, so I don't know what me calories were like, but I am pretty certain I had a mild deficit. (Guesstimation there... I didn't eat a lot more, but I had a bad doritos and sour cream habit) From Jan 2011 to Feb 2012, I saw a few dress sizes lost, and the start of a six pack - but that was over the span of a year.
In Feb 2012, I added boxing into the mix. High intensity training once a week. A lot of body weight exercises and the best workout I've done. The running dropped back a fair bit. Saw the muscles pop more, the abs emerged even further, but still not where I wanted them.
In July 2012 I started actively tracking my food on here. In the span of about 6 months eating at a mild deficit (around 1900 cals, + exercise), my full six pack came in. The only real exercise was my 1x week boxing habit, and an active lifestyle.
I am now starting to add weight into my program, and I'm maintaining.
So....
Can you get abs on a cardio only program? yes... by eating at a deficit
Can you get abs on a lifting program? yes... by eating at a deficit
Can you get abs on no program? yes... by eating at a deficit
what do I recommend?
- eat at a MILD deficit
- do a bit of cardio (yay happy heart)
- do a bit of strength (yay strong body)
- and have a LOT of patience!!!0 -
what do I recommend?
- eat at a MILD deficit
- do a bit of cardio (yay happy heart)
- do a bit of strength (yay strong body)
- and have a LOT of patience!!!
quit being all sensible and crap, sheesh. There's no place for that nonsense here.0 -
what do I recommend?
- eat at a MILD deficit
- do a bit of cardio (yay happy heart)
- do a bit of strength (yay strong body)
- and have a LOT of patience!!!
quit being all sensible and crap, sheesh. There's no place for that nonsense here.
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This thread is made of helpfulness and win. Thank you. I
you all!
:flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou:0 -
Here's my personal method:
No clean eating
No cardio (none in the past six months, anyway)
No crunches or isolated ab work
Yes moderate calorie deficit (TDEE-15%)
Yes patience
Yes body fat reduction
Yes heavy lifting
That's all.
That...except for the no cardio0 -
I didn't see this thread yesterday, but I wound up putting up a blog post about it...
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/summer8it/view/best-abs-of-my-life-at-39-5889770 -
I walk every day (okay, almost every day) during my lunch & do an hour-long Pilates class twice a week (athletic Pilates, with bands, weights, balls). I still need to reduce body fat to get really defined abs, but I noticed a big difference after upping the frequency of going to my Pilates class. This doesn't work for everyone, though0
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I've always had visible abs. I'm a contemporary dancer, and lean, and as others have mentioned I don't carry fat in my mid-section. And I am a mother of two and getting older, so I lift heavy weights now to retain and continue improving my fitness level (I need to work at it more now than I did before I had children). Also flow yoga really does make a huge difference in my core strength. Weights are enough for aesthetics, but as a dancer I need a stronger core for the body weight strength that is required in dance. That does not mean doing crunches. It means full body movements that use the core strength to maintain form, balance and grace. We do yoga as our warm up conditioning before dancing.0
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I am struggling with this. I am very active but my lower abs wont catch up to my obliques and upper abs. My stomach looks very unproportional! Im getting pretty depressed and am starting to think that it may just be loose skin from having back to back babies. I hope not!0
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OP, I see "abs" in one of your pictures. You are already pretty lean and you are young. I'm thinking that maybe the reason you are not seeing the definition you want is frankly because your muscles are too small. You might benefit from doing a bulking and cutting cycle.0
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I still have a lower belly pooch, but my upper abs are getting pretty good (although I still look forward to having abs like 531).
I lift heavy (btw, my gym membership is $10 a month, at a national chain, because I don't want the classes or tanning room or anything … so that may be more affordable
). Compound lifts work the core - squats, bench press (when done properly), rows, etc. I add in a few ab isolations - russian twist and plank mostly. 0 -
Mirey had a very good answer.
there are any number of ways to build abs. Virtually every form of excersize engages your core.
Are there some forms of excersize that will get you there faster? probably... but nothing will get you there so fast that patience won't be the key factor.
The 'best' way to get abs is going to depend on a lot of things including your personal perferences and what equipment you have access to.
that being said, i do personally believe this program is going to help a lot of people get where they want to be ab wise. It takes less then 5 min. theres like 9 progressive routines, i've been doing it for years and i'm on like level six. If you do want to do direct ab work, i highly recommend this, or at least the hanging leg raises.
http://www.equationsheets.com/LegendaryAbs.pdf0 -
Having patience is the hardest part....0
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Bump! Great info!!0
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Here's my personal method:
No clean eating
No cardio (none in the past six months, anyway)
No crunches or isolated ab work
Yes moderate calorie deficit (TDEE-15%)
Yes patience
Yes body fat reduction
Yes heavy lifting
That's all.
You're the man.
As for what "routine" will get you there... no routine will. Getting the body you want is all about building the muscle, but so much more about lowering the bodyfat %.
...and lowering bodyfat % is all about diet. Period. Keep in mind your boobs are made of fat too, and you don't get to choose where the weight comes off, that is due to genetics. So be ready to compromise or change your goals, and that's fine really, you need to adjust to suit yourself.0 -
^^^ Yep, I'm not interested in a completely flat lower tummy because my body says Bye to my boobs long before that fat comes off. It's not much fat when I'm slender, so I'll keep the boobs and the 'feminine' little pooch. I also get to eat more that way, lol. Incredibly low body fat is not for me, personally.0
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^^^ Yep, I'm not interested in a completely flat lower tummy because my body says Bye to my boobs long before that fat comes off. It's not much fat when I'm slender, so I'll keep the boobs and the 'feminine' little pooch. I also get to eat more that way, lol. Incredibly low body fat is not for me, personally.
And THAT is good with most men btw. We like some soft curves Just not sloppy curves. 0 -
bump0
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Here's my personal method:
No clean eating
No cardio (none in the past six months, anyway)
No crunches or isolated ab work
Yes moderate calorie deficit (TDEE-15%)
Yes patience
Yes body fat reduction
Yes heavy lifting
That's all.
This. This is exactly how I did it.0 -
I cleaned up my eating habits a bit, but firmly believe in moderation on occasion and lift heavy things and put them back down.0
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Here's my personal method:
No clean eating
No cardio (none in the past six months, anyway)
No crunches or isolated ab work
Yes moderate calorie deficit (TDEE-15%)
Yes patience
Yes body fat reduction
Yes heavy lifting
That's all.
You're the man.
As for what "routine" will get you there... no routine will. Getting the body you want is all about building the muscle, but so much more about lowering the bodyfat %.
...and lowering bodyfat % is all about diet. Period. Keep in mind your boobs are made of fat too, and you don't get to choose where the weight comes off, that is due to genetics. So be ready to compromise or change your goals, and that's fine really, you need to adjust to suit yourself.
Uhm, except fivethreeone is a WOman, not a MAN. A hot one, at that.0 -
Uhm, except fivethreeone is a WOman, not a MAN. A hot one, at that.
Believe me, I noticed. :drinker:0 -
table push aways
fork put downs
compound lifting at 50-90% of my 1 RMP0
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