Anyone have any tips? I workout and play basketball many times in a week. Overall I would say that I'm pretty skinny looking. 5-9 and about 148 lbs. I dont have a beer belly or anything, but its not a 6-pack either. TIPS anyone?
yes...help! i'm pretty much same situation. 5-10 and 155 pounds...i've thought about using those ab machines...cuz that's the lazy way out - but do they work? Otherwise, i'd be willing to do whatever i've gotta to get my abs lookin good.
Go on a diet. If you want to see your abs definition, then you need to lose the fat covering them up. Notice how you only see really trim, muscular types with the six packs? You also need to do sit-ups and ab crunches three to four times a week with several sets(3-4) a day. Working out your ab muscles will only get them in better shape and to grow larger. There are all kinds of exercises which work out your abs. Find a mix of the best ones and change up your routine every 8 weeks. If your still sporting a layer of fat over them even though your working them, then your stomach size will appear to grow but the six packs still can't shine through. That's why the healthy diet and working out is important. That is my understanding of it....anyhoo. That is how I would approach it if I were in a position to approach it .
I've started using some ab machines again and do some crunches and stuff. Sometimes I do it till the point where I feel sick. But it still is not going as quickly as I would like. I try to eat healthy. I haven't had a pizza and burgers in God knows how long. I am not the healthiest eater, but nor am I Thomas Hamilton.
Do crunches (on an incline bench preferably). Start out doing sets of 30 - you should be able to do at least 3-4 sets. Do this at least every other day. After you get more comfortable, you can increase number of sets, start working out daily, and incorporate different variations of the crunch, ie. reverse crunches where only your legs move. Here's a link for further review.... http://www.flexonline.com/flex/abs/crunch.html
If the crunches don't work all I can think of are swimming and/or cycling - these two burn fat much better than basketball, which relies more on glycogen reserves. If in the end you are still don't have the six-pack I wouldn't stress too much. Everyone has different genetic predispositions to where fat is stored/accumulated so for some its just not that easy to attain a six-pack. Just be glad you aint got fat biceps or a fat chin!
30? I usually do about 50 in one set without a problem. I do like 50-30-20. I do it on a decline, I do that one where you stand up and pull your legs up, that twisting machine thingy to work out the sides and numerous others.
man nothing has worked for me. i'm 6'1" and 160 lbs. but all of my fat is in my gut! my diet is pretty much impeccable. i don't eat meat, pasta, cheese, etc. i never eat at restaurants, and on the occaision that i'm forced to (business-wise, usually once every few months)... i eat salads w/o dressing no fastfood. i only eat bread, fruits, vegetables, cereal, soup, popcorn, peanut butter and jelly, and healthy choice ice cream. in the past i've done an hour of ab work per day for months on end. NOTHING HAS WORKED!!!! Maybe its my genes, b/c i was always a fat kid and teenager. But its annoying as hell!
but i only eat 2-4 slices a day... just for homemade veggie sandwiches. I can't give up bread, b/c then i'll just be eating raw vegetables for dinner every day! ugh, i hate my genes!
is it white or wheat bread? I'm a bit pudgy myself, but it's my own fault. I can't cook and I don't like fast food salads.
its either wheat or sourdough bread. but i buy the nonfat (well 0.5g) and 40 calorie per slice type only. Everything I buy is fat-free, low-fat, low calorie stuff. man do i feel like an anorexic-like whiny teenage girl right now!
The Great-1 is right, it could be the bread. Try not to get your carbohydrates from processed/refined flour foods such as pasta and most breads. Rice, potatoes, sweet potatoes, beans, lentils are all much less likely to end up as fat in your gut.
but i would think running 10-12 miles a day for 7 days a week and 365 days a year would take care of that!
Maybe you should lift weights? Your body needs rest to grow. I think your body is going into conservation mode. You're putting alot of strain on your body. That's why your metabolism is slowing down, imo. Also, how many marathon runners have good bodies? Not many.
i know i need to lift weights. only problem is i can't afford a gym membership until i start working again! i don't necessarily want a bulky muscle-bound body... most marthon runners are svelte and have no belly... i'm perfectly happy with my small frame (after 20+ years of being overweight, its a refreshing change), but i just want a 6-pack dammit!!! or at least no belly!
I remember last year how my coach would have us do ab workouts the last 5 or so minutes of class. We did grinders, little-big body crunches, and other things. We did this for a while, but I didn't think it was doing anything. However, one day I glanced in the mirror and saw something on my stomach. ABS! I had gotten some muscle doing that! It wasn't very hard either. I kind of slacken off since then, and haven't done abs exercises, so its not quite as defined. However, I can eat pretty much anything I want at my age and not gain much weight, so its a little easier for me.
