The Best Exercises For 6-Pack Abs By: Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS Turbulence Training
Men's Health expert Craig Ballantyne believes that men and women can lose their belly fat and get flat lower abs with fast fat loss workouts. He even believes you can spot reduce and lose your tummy fat with a specific type of exercise - and no, it's not ab crunches. Plus, he knows specific abdominal exercises that can flatten your lower abs. "The classic ab crunch is generally a waste of time because the ab crunch doesn't work the entire main ab muscle (rectus abdominis). There are other better, unique ab exercises that men and women can do to flatten their lower abs," Ballantyne advises. "And if you want to lose belly fat, forget about doing long, slow boring cardio for fat loss," Ballantyne insists. "You'll get more results in less time in your fat burning workouts by using interval training for fat loss." This was proven by a research study from Australia, who found that only interval training helped women lose belly fat, while doing cardio for twice as long did not! Some of Ballantyne's favorite abdominal exercises can be done with just your bodyweight or need only a common exercise ball. Here's a list of just a few of his favorite total body ab exercises that will help you get a flat stomach (provided you combine these exercises with interval training for fat loss): Exercise Ball Ab Rollouts - Kneel on a mat and place your clasped hands on the top of a medium sized ball. - Brace your abs and slowly lean forward and roll your hands over the ball while the ball moves away from your body. - Keep your body in a straight line and go as far as you can with perfect form. - Contract your abs and reverse the motion to return to the upright position. Hanging Leg Raise - Hang from a chin-up bar using an underhand grip. Brace your abs. - With a slight bend in your knees, curl your hips back and raise your legs up in front of you until they are parallel to the floor. Don't use momentum. - Go slow and controlled both ways.
Side Planks - Raise your body in a straight line so that your body hovers over the mat. - Keep your back straight and your hips up. Hold your abs tight. - Contract your abs as if someone was about to punch you in the stomach, but breath normally. Plank with Your Arms on the Ball - Place your clasped hands on the top of a medium sized ball. - Keep your body in a straight line from shoulders to toes and keep your abs braced. Plus, if you have access to a commercial gym, his favorite resistance exercises for your abs - to help you build a set of 6-pack abs - include: Cable Chops - Stand sideways beside a cable stack with your right shoulder closest to the stack. -Attach a handle to the highest pulley position. Grasp the handle over your right shoulder with arms extended and a slight bend at the elbow. - Your knees should be slightly bent and your hips slightly pushed back. - Prepare for the exercise by bracing (contracting) your abdominals from top to bottom. - Without bending at the elbows any further, bring your arms down and across the body using your abs to initiate the movement. - Focus on working your abs and obliques. Bring your hands across to your left hip pocket and then slowly return to the start. - Perform all reps for one side and then switch. Kneeling Cable Ab Crunches - Attach a rope handle to the top of a cable pulley system. - Kneel in front of the pulley and hold the rope behind your head. - Brace your abs, and curl your torso forward. Your arms should remain above your head during the crunch. - Slowly return to the start position. Do two exercises twice per week, and do intervals 3 times per week for best results. Discover the 5 fat loss myths stopping you from getting flat abs at Turbulence Training where Men's Health expert Craig Ballantyne shows you how you never have to do slow boring cardio again!
The Truth About Fat Loss I went to go meet Bill Phillips - the creator of the Body for Life Fat Loss Transformation Challenge... And I came back with a set of 100 guidelines for my business and your fat loss program. Here's the story... Last November, I traveled to Mesa, Arizona, to hear Bill Phillips speak at a seminar. But at the end of the conference, it wasn't Phillips who I remembered hearing, nor was it Richard Branson, who spoke to us via satellite...but it was a man named Dave Kekich. Mr. Kekich has written something called, "The Kekich Credo's", a set of 100 success secrets, and I review one secret everyday. In fact, each morning I have a routine. After walking the dog, eating breakfast, and completing one major task for the day, I then review one of the 100 Kekich Credo's and relate it to my business and to your fat loss goals. Yesterday, after a 2-hour walk with the dog in the Toronto Beaches (yes, we have beaches in Canada!), it was... Kekich Credo #4... "Real regrets only come from not doing your best. All else is out of your control. You're measured by results only. Trade excuses and "trying" for results, and expect half-hearted results from half-hearted efforts. Do more than is expected of you. Life's easy when you live it the hard way...and hard if you try to live it the easy way." **** And here's my interpretation of how this success secret applies to your fat loss program... -> Who are the ones on the cardio confessional every Monday? The people who did not do their best on the weekend with their diet. -> Most people fail to control themselves, and end up only with regrets. They trade minutes of pleasure (i.e. fast food) for days, weeks, months, and years of regret. Do not be like everyone else! -> Focus on quality workouts, not quantity. Focus on planning ahead to overcome obstacles, rather than trying to "out-cardio" your bad diet. You'll never succeed that way. -> Always hit a personal best in each workout. This guarantees progress for both fat burning and muscle building.
-> Fat loss is easy once you understand how hard it is...and it's hard if you think it is easy. That's the Truth About Fat Loss. If you accept that in order to lose fat, you must... 1) Plan and prepare your nutrition in advance. That means spending some time on the weekend, planning what you need, going to the grocery store, and coming back home and preparing that food into meals for the rest of the week. Cook a lot of chicken at once. Cut up all of your vegetables. Wash all your fruit. Package up your nuts in snack sized containers. Take the "boy scout" approach to your nutrition and always be prepared. 2) Follow a professionally designed, structured workout routine that is more intense than anything you'd put together for yourself 3) Get social support from others who have gone through the same trials and tribulations that you face ...then you will succeed. About the Author Craig Ballantyne is a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist and writes for Men's Health, Men's Fitness, Maximum Fitness, Muscle and Fitness Hers, and Oxygen magazines. His trademarked Turbulence Training fat loss workouts have been featured multiple times in Men’s Fitness and Maximum Fitness magazines, and have helped thousands of men and women around the world lose fat, gain muscle, and get lean in less than 45 minutes three times per week. For more information on the Turbulence Training workouts that will help you burn fat without long, slow cardio sessions or fancy equipment, visit Turbulence Training
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