Your Genetics and Abdominals
Right now some of you can see a perfectly set of staggered abs that are wide and
thick and separated by a line down the middle. Some of you have the classic four-pack
which is four big abs with a smooth lower section. Some of you have tiny cubicle
boxes sitting high on your abdominal wall. Some of you have the picture perfect
eight-pack that makes people's jaws drop.
>Like every muscle group, all you can do is train them as heavy and hard as possible
and hope your genetics take care of the rest. You can't change the shape or alignment
or separation of your abs. You can't move them around and place them where you want
them. Your genetics will affect to which degree they "pop" out and to
which degree they stay smoother or flatter.
The good news is that abdominals are abdominals and when your body fat levels are
around 5-7% you are guaranteed to impress people, including yourself, with a set
of hot-looking abs. Even though genetics play a huge role in how they look, it's
important to know how to train them to make them look their best.
Divide Your Abdominals into Two Separate Workouts for Best Results
To train your abdominals safely and effectively you must know the basic movement
patterns of your abs and train them within all sub-categories:
• Truck Flexion (upper abs)
• Hip Flexion (lower abs)
• Rotation (obliques)
• Lateral Flexion (obliques)
The majority of books and articles you have read revolve the bulk of the ab exercises
around the trunk flexion that is better known as 'upper ab' exercises. A full sit
up is a perfect example of this.
Bill Starr in his 1976 classic 'The Strongest Shall Survive' wrote that the abdominals
"...can be strengthened in a wide variety of ways. Sit-ups of all types, leg
raises, truck rotation movements all involve the abdominal muscles to a different
degree..."
I wouldn't be surprised if the abdominal program you are following right now is
based on one movement - trunk flexion. I am guessing that your primary goal is actually
to have a well-defined and sculpted six-pack, so I have provided a sample abdominal
program to break it up into a four day program:
A
|
B
|
C
|
D
|
Trunk Flexion
|
Rotation
|
Trunk Flexion
|
Rotation
|
Hip Flexion
|
Lateral Flexion
|
Hip Flexion
|
Lateral Flexion
|
Even though you are training each movement twice per week, you will perform different
exercises for each workout.
Use a Variety Of Functional Exercises
The Top 3 Hip Flexion Exercises:
1. Lying Hip Raise
2. Incline Hip Raise
3. Hanging Hip Raise
The Top 3 Trunk Flexion Exercises:
1. Swiss Ball Crunch
2. Weighted Swiss Ball Crunches
3. Weighted Cable Crunches
The Top 3 Rotation Exercises:
1. Russian Twist
2. Weighted Russian Twist
3. Weighted Cable Crossover
The Top 3 Lateral Flexion Exercises:
1. Lateral Flexion on back extension machine
2. Lateral Flexion with medicine ball over head
Lateral Flexion with medicine ball and twist
Each of these exercises progresses from basic to intermediate to advanced. I suggest
you master the first exercise of each before commencing to the next.
Razor Sharp Abdominal Workout 1:
Hip Flexion and Trunk Flexion
Perform this workout at least two times a week separated by at least 48 hours rest.
You should experience a deep muscle soreness after each one of these workouts. Focus
on using a load that causes failure within 8-12 reps and then move to the next exercise.
This is a non-stop circuit. Rest 1-2 minutes and repeat until you reach 4 sets total.
Exercise
|
Sets
|
Reps
|
Tempo
|
Rest
|
Hanging Leg Raises
|
1-4
|
8-12
|
311
|
-
|
Rope Crunch
|
1-4
|
8-12
|
311
|
-
|
Reverse Crunch
|
1-4
|
8-12
|
311
|
-
|
Weighted Ball Crunch
|
1-4
|
8-12
|
311
|
1-2 minutes
|