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One of the hallmarks of complete physical development is having perfect abs. You can hit the weights, but if you have weak abdominal development or a layer of fat around you, you won’t win a bodybuilding contest any time soon.
The ability to “get in shape” is primarily a function of diet, with some aerobic training generally included, but that is not the focus of this article. We are going to focus on what it takes to build the muscle necessary to show great abs development.
If you remember gym class in elementary or high school, you may remember doing dozens of sit-ups in an effort to “burn fat” and strengthen your stomach muscles. Unfortunately, these old-school methods are wrong in many ways.
First, since the abdominal region is made up of one of the smallest muscle groups in the body, doing endless sets and reps of sit-ups and crunches will burn insufficient calories to lose weight. It is much better to use a routine that consists of compound exercises, especially those in which the legs are the main muscle used. The reason for this is that the legs require much more energy during training because they are the largest muscle in the body. Therefore, they burn more fat.
More muscle = less fat
The more muscle you have in your body, the less fat you tend to have. Muscle burns a lot of calories both when it is working and when it is at rest. Even while muscle relaxes, many more calories are burned than other tissues. Therefore, a good strategy is to build as much muscle as possible when you are younger and to keep as much muscle as possible as you age. If you start bodybuilding when you’re older, it’s still possible to add a fair amount of muscle to your build, so don’t feel like you’re late to the game. Train hard, get plenty of rest, and have good nutrition and you will succeed.
Misconceptions about the abdominal muscles
A common misconception regarding abs is that they are endurance muscles and as such should be trained with high sets and reps to grow bigger and stronger. This is not correct, in fact, they must be trained in the same way as other muscles. All muscles grow as a result of the correct amount of stress or stimulus applied to them during a training session and respond during rest periods. This requires the use of moderate weights and repetitions. A good rep range to use is 12-20. Vary your reps with different exercises as each rep affects your abs in a different way.
Keep in mind that you don’t want to add too much bulk to your abs because that will give you a thicker waist look, something to avoid if you want the much sought-after v-taper. Train the entire abdominal area, including upper and lower abs, serratus, and obliques so that you end up with full development.
Abdominal workout routines
Beginner
Ab abs-1×20
Leg Raise-1×20
Finish all sets 1-2 reps before muscle failure. Rest one minute between sets.
Intermediate
Ab abs-1×20
Leg Raise-1×20
Ab wheel-1×10
Finish all sets 1 rep before muscle failure. Take a 20-30 second break between sets, depending on conditioning.
Advanced
Reverse Crunch-1×20
Lie on your back on the floor with your legs stretched out in front of you. Place your hands on the sides of the floor for support. Slowly bend your legs at the knees bringing them closer to your chest. Once your knees are next to your chest, lift your shoulders and torso as far off the ground as possible in a curving motion without lifting your back off the ground. Return your legs to the starting position and bring your torso to the floor.
Hanging Leg Raise-1×12
Do this while hanging from a chin-up bar, preferably using abdominal straps for support.
Weighted Dumbbell Side Curves: 1×20 each side
Hold a dumbbell in each hand at your side. Lean as far to your left side as possible. Reverse direction and lean as far to the right as possible. Repeat until you can’t complete another rep.
Training details
All sets must lead to total muscle failure; that is until no more reps can be completed. Do these exercises as a giant set – as soon as you complete one exercise, move on to the next without resting. Since you are at an advanced level of high intensity training, all you will need to develop and strengthen all muscles in this region is one set of each exercise performed until muscle exhaustion.
As you can see, there is a natural progression from beginner to advanced. The beginner finishes sets of 1 to 2 reps before failing because the main focus is learning the proper form of exercise. The intermediate bodybuilder finishes his sets just before failing, continuing to emphasize proper form and adding additional resistance to exercises to facilitate gains in strength and development.
The advanced learner is ready to push himself to the limit safely and has gained the ability to focus resistance on the muscle. Due to a higher level of strength and ability to apply greater intensity to the abs, all that is needed is three sets.
The usual time frame from beginner to advanced bodybuilder is: progression from beginner to intermediate three months of training, intermediate to advanced an additional 3 to 6 months of training.
Keep in mind that there are other great exercises to train this area, I’ve outlined some of the most common ones to get you started.