For most women, a man with a six pack is incredibly sexy. If a guy has ripped abs, he’s about to have ripped jeans. So then why do so few men have washboard abs? It’s not because they’re lazy. And it’s not because they need to do more sit-ups. It’s a combination of two things: strict diet and exercise.
Most men carry their body fat around their stomach and “love handles.” So even if you have rock hard abs, they’re probably hidden by stomach fat. You can do situps all morning, and your abs will be in great shape, but no one is going to see them until you lose your gut… even if it’s only a tiny gut. There’s an old saying, “Abs are made in the kitchen.” That means diet. And the first three letters of diet are “DIE” because it’s friggin hard! You have to be really dedicated to get your body fat below 12% before your ab muscles even have a chance of showing.
So how do you lose that kind of weight? Obviously, your “calories in” has to be less than your “calories out.” I’m a 6 foot man in my forties. I do an intense home workout every morning, and yet my body only requires approximately 1800 calories a day. That’s not a lot of food! So if I want to lose weight, I need to limit my calorie intake to approximately 1500 a day. It doesn’t matter if I get all those calories from cake and pasta, or vegetables and fish. As far as losing weight is concerned, a calorie is a calorie. That’s why you see articles about people eating nothing but McDonald’s every day for a year, and losing weight. Well, sure! As long as their total calorie intake is lower than their expenditures, they’ll lose weight. They enjoy a half a Big Mac in the morning, then swallow air all day to make their stomachs feel full.
Personally, I would never subscribe to such a diet. Your body won’t get the nutrients it needs, your blood sugar levels will go crazy, and you’ll always feel hungry. I’m all about eating healthy and clean. If I’m only allowed 1500 calories a day, I’m going to make sure each and every calorie counts! That means eating healthy food that leaves me feeling full, and keeps my energy levels nice and steady. So what are the foods that don’t make the cut? Dry carbs! No bread, no pasta, no rice, no cookies, no crackers, no potatoes, no corn, and no beer. (If you want a six pack, you can’t drink one!) These foods spike your blood sugar, don’t fill you up, and leave you feeling hungry. What can you eat? Lots of vegetables. Steamed, stir fried, and saladed. (When you eat enough salad, you’re entitled to use it as an adjective.) Sometimes I dump a can of anchovies on top. Why anchovies? First, because these fish are amongst the lowest in mercury contamination. And secondly, it’s impossible to eat a can of anchovies and say, “Umm, yummy! I think I’ll have another can!”
So this addresses the diet part. Now let’s talk exercise. The abs are divided into several muscular groups: the rectus abdominis, which is the muscle that bends your upper body bend. The external obliques, which twists your torso so you can play tennis, or turn around to check out the hot girl or guy you just walked past. The internal obliques are used for similar motions, and they also help you breathe deeply. You do that after checking out the hot girl or guy. And finally, there’s the transverse abdominis, which is the thin muscle which runs around your abs. It’s like a girdle. Ha-ha! You wear a girdle!
If you want killer abs, you have to attack all those muscles, not just a few. Sit-ups won’t do the trick. You need hanging leg raises, pulse ups, russian twists, planks, scissors, oblique crunches… the list goes on and on. The good news is, you don’t have to work your ab muscles every day to get them in great shape. In fact, you shouldn’t. You need to give them a day off, so that they can recuperate and grow bigger. So 3 times a week is plenty. Personally, I pop in Ab Ripper X from P90x a few times a week. It’s only 16 minutes long. On days when I’m super busy and don’t have time for a full workout, I always have 16 minutes.
Okay, so now you know how hard your journey is going to be. The next question is, is being a stud worth it? If you’re a single guy, probably. There’s a reason why women are attracted to abs… they’re genetically programed to. If they can see those muscles, that means you’re both strong and lean. In other words, you’re a perfect candidate to breed with. Even if they say they like a guy with some cushion, on a cellular level, their body is telling them to get with you. It’s engrained in their DNA, so they can’t help it. I hate it break it to you, but that’s why they use the word “stud.” Studs are horses that are meant to be bred, so shut up and let them go for a ride.
