Abs
gymmyhappyhr
Posts: 2 Member
Advice on how to get abs, I've been working out for years, eating healthy, about a month ago I started lifting heavy weights, I noticed my arms and legs a little more cut, but not much on my stomach, should I do a lot more cardio?
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Replies
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Develop a good muscle base and lose enough body fat. It takes way more than a month.4
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You have abs, everyone has abs!
If you want ab definition, you need to be lean enough to see them though.. Which means lowering your body fat through diet. (if you've not got decent ab muscles you may struggle to see them)
You can't spot reduce, your stomach may be the last place to lose fat. Keep being consistent with your deficit (presuming that's what you're doing if you're getting leaner in other areas)
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So should I continue lifting heavy? I was told to eat more calories since I've been lifting heavy and not to do much cardio, is this true?0
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gymmyhappyhr wrote: »So should I continue lifting heavy? I was told to eat more calories since I've been lifting heavy and do as much cardio, is this true?
You can lift heavy at any time. If you're trying to grow muscle, you need to be in a calorie surplus - this will lead to gaining both mys levels and fat. Getting abs/looking defined comes down to losing fat - completely separate goal. You need to eat at a deficit.1 -
Abs come from the kitchen1
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I think what people are saying is that wanting to have less fat (visible abs) and be stronger/more muscular are conflicting goals and it's tough to chase both at once. Most people seem to cut until they are at a low body fat, then slowly bulk to add muscle (and, unfortunately also some fat). Then they cut again They are lifting the whole time.
It's a drag because you can't really build much muscle size while cutting, and your strength gains are slower than when bulking.2 -
zachbonner_ wrote: »be less than 12% body fat
Not good enough. I'm 10.6% (hydrostatic) and I don't have abs.0 -
So, abs.....yes, those things. The things that others have and those things I have never had. But, gonna get them (at age 50 - or later). DANG IT!
So, there are two parts to your question.....
First and foremost, you have to have abdominal muscles. Just like traps and biceps and delts and quads and glutes (love me some nice glutes.....) and and and.
And, to do that you need to have 'abs" as a part of your training. Please note that it is not an accident that I use the word "training" and not lifting or working out or whatever. It is a mind set thing. You can do abs in about 10 minutes at the end of every training session. And, note that there is a specific way in which you best train your abs (well, generally speaking....it is challenging for me to make an all-inclusive statement like that since WE ARE ALL DIFFERENT).....
But, once you have the muscle you need to make the body fat away. It does no good to have the one (abs) with out the other (making the body fat go away).
One way that I have really improved my abs is with squats and dead lifts. Huh? Yes! Yes! Yes! Bracing is a HUGE part of those two lifts. And, just by being crazy and doing squats and dead lifts way more often and way heavier than I should my abs - specifically, via the bracing that I do for both - got strong af. That really helps. I do not do ab exercises (yet....that is going to happen once I get back in the freaking gym......ARGH! This is driving me insane!!!!....Okay, feel better now). I have just a bit too much body fat to have abs, but one day. The muscle is there....just covered.
Does that make sense?0 -
Cardio burn calories, a calorie deficit burns fat.
That said, someone told you to eat more because you are lifting heavy and doing cardio.. is this to eat more so you build mass? If so you want to cut after your bulking phase.
You can add volume to your abs but in the end genetics are at play.. genetics play role in determining the shape of the abs and they way they look, if you have genetics working against you, cutting will be an uphill battle. Just keep in mind for us ladies we need to get down to an amount of leanness that will show your abs, and in some cases this may cause you to dip into a body fat% that is hard to maintain once you get there. Good luck!0 -
zachbonner_ wrote: »be less than 12% body fat
Not good enough. I'm 10.6% (hydrostatic) and I don't have abs.
Than most likely you do not have enough mass or have developed abs.
Too often people think you just need low body fat. But in reality, a person needs adequate muscle and low body fat. If both arent there, you wont have abs.2 -
zachbonner_ wrote: »be less than 12% body fat
Not good enough. I'm 10.6% (hydrostatic) and I don't have abs.
Really? That's usually enough but there are individual differences.
Among men,15% is usually when you can just start to see them and 10% is usually when you can see them w/o flexing; they're not chiseled but they are visible 24/7 whether relaxed or flexed. Abs get chiseled at around 5% are usually only seen in competitions; 5% is the essential fat level.
I'm at 10% (hydrostatic) and 13% (DXA) and I've got visible abs.0 -
I was responding to a claim that "less than 12% body fat" was by itself sufficient to have visible abs. I wasn't looking for a diagnosis.zachbonner_ wrote: »be less than 12% body fat
Not good enough. I'm 10.6% (hydrostatic) and I don't have abs.
Than most likely you do not have enough mass or have developed abs.
Too often people think you just need low body fat. But in reality, a person needs adequate muscle and low body fat. If both arent there, you wont have abs.
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I'm 67.
Very muscular. Have some annoying belly skin when I flex. None when I don't.
We're all different but there are some generalizable trends.0 -
I'm 67.
Very muscular. Have some annoying belly skin when I flex. None when I don't.
We're all different but there are some generalizable trends.
I have that too! Kind of strange that my stomach looks better relaxed than flexed.0 -
mom23mangos wrote: »
I'm 67.
Very muscular. Have some annoying belly skin when I flex. None when I don't.
We're all different but there are some generalizable trends.
I have that too! Kind of strange that my stomach looks better relaxed than flexed.
Yeah, I've got some in my butt too but there it's there whether flexed or not. Fortunately, my compression shorts covers it all.
Old age is a b*tch!
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zachbonner_ wrote: »be less than 12% body fat
Disagree. I have abs at 18.3% BF. Train core with weighted exercises. The only way I was able to transform any sort of abdomen muscle, and I've been 16% BF with NO ab definition. Oblique twists, trunk twists, cable crunches, weighted double crunches, incline crunches, weighted v-ups, scissor kicks, crunch burn outs, oblique planks...the list goes on. A lot of it is nutrition, but you have to have defined ab muscles or else you are cutting down fat to reveal less-than-ideal abs.1 -
Everyone gets visible abs at different body fat %. Not everyone is the same, BUT in the end if you want to be super chiseled you need to cut.0
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peaceout_aly wrote: »zachbonner_ wrote: »be less than 12% body fat
Disagree. I have abs at 18.3% BF. Train core with weighted exercises. The only way I was able to transform any sort of abdomen muscle, and I've been 16% BF with NO ab definition. Oblique twists, trunk twists, cable crunches, weighted double crunches, incline crunches, weighted v-ups, scissor kicks, crunch burn outs, oblique planks...the list goes on. A lot of it is nutrition, but you have to have defined ab muscles or else you are cutting down fat to reveal less-than-ideal abs.
How did/do you measure your BF?
FWIW, I first got my visible abs at about 12% as measured hydrostatically just doing the 4 basic compound lifts - DL, SQT, BP & OHP.
Didn't do any ab specific exercises whatsoever. The only other thing I needed to do was control my diet and lose weight (along w/fat).0 -
I got there by eating my maintenance calories only. I used the TDEE tool here and did not account for activity in the formula. Very repetitive diet too. All the best on your quest. Nothing like getting there.1
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peaceout_aly wrote: »zachbonner_ wrote: »be less than 12% body fat
Disagree. I have abs at 18.3% BF. Train core with weighted exercises. The only way I was able to transform any sort of abdomen muscle, and I've been 16% BF with NO ab definition. Oblique twists, trunk twists, cable crunches, weighted double crunches, incline crunches, weighted v-ups, scissor kicks, crunch burn outs, oblique planks...the list goes on. A lot of it is nutrition, but you have to have defined ab muscles or else you are cutting down fat to reveal less-than-ideal abs.
I think he means 12% for a male. For a female it's a whole different ballgame2
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