Since we all want to have those elusive 6 pack abs it seems as though we will fall for anything that we hear.

If someone says to buy this ab gadget or that ab gadget and then we think that by way of a miracle we can sit on the couch while our ab gadget goes to work and in a few weeks we will have rock hard abs. Well we all know that this is a bunch of crap yet, we fall for it since we want to believe that it really is that easy.

I’m sorry to have reality hit i you in the face but it isn’t that easy. Getting a 6 pack is going to be hard work.  Yes, you will actually have to work at it. However, if you avoid listening to all the myths and just follow advice that it true & honest you won’t waste your time or money in your quest for a nice six or eight pack.

Right below is one of my favorite videos ( and no I don’t get anything for saying that or showing you this video – I have no relationship at all with the video creator I just happen to really like it) that discusses the myths surrounding six-pack abs. What I particularly like is that as you go through the myths you learn the correct information and understand why the myth is false information. Some videos just tell you the myths but don’t explain why it is a myth and if you don’t understand the underlying information you’ll be apt to fall for similar half-truths or totally incorrect information.

I know that you will enjoy this video and that you will get a lot from it.

Now wasn’t that well worth you time & I know that you got a bit more insight into what it really takes to get six-pack abs. Now that you know more about it, you’ll be less likely to be tempted by gadgets and poor information. Now when someone asks you how to get six-pack abs you can tell them both the right information and which six-pack ab myths to stay away from.

Now in order to get rid of this squishy belly you are going to have to watch what you eat and do cardio in order to burn off that layer of fat. Otherwise you could tone and tighten these muscles all day and you would never see then beneath your layer of fat. But today we are not going to talk about the diet and cardio portion but will take a look at an effective exercise to firm and tighten your lower abdomen.

There are many exercises that can be done to help firm your belly pouch and we will be taking a look at several of them over the next few weeks, but for today here is one exercise that although you may not have seen before it is a very effective one.

Like with all exercises always check with your doctor first to see if you are healthy enough to exercise and take it slowly when you start. While the exercise may seem very simple to do it does take control and concentration. Once you do a few you will begin to see why it is such an effective exercise for your lower belly pouch area.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Acquiring a fabulous six pack is not just about exercising. Healthier and stronger abs also calls for a good diet. The exercise plan to have great looking abs must be complemented with a healthy diet plan. The best diet will vary from one person to another, depending on height, weight, and age. There are diets for people with diabetes and there are diets for people who are involved in strenuous activities, such as the athletes. And then there are also abs diet recipes, which are geared towards having well developed abs.

To collect and stack abs diet recipes, the place to start is breakfast. Of all meals that a person must take, breakfast is the most crucial. This is essentially the first meal after many hours of fasting … while sleeping, of course. Therefore, whatever is taken by the body will have considerable effects. For great abs, here are recommended recipes to fire up the body’s metabolism.

Eggs, Oatmeal, Blueberries, and Milk

A person may cook or order the combination of 3 eggs, ½ cup oatmeal, 1 cup blueberries, and 1 cup fat-free milk. Together with a multivitamin, this power breakfast can provide enough energy to take on the whole day. The eggs and the milk provide the best proteins for body building. The oatmeal provides energy and fiber.  And the blueberries provide antioxidants that help the body repair the damages it sustained from pollution and stress. If eggs don’t attract the palate, low-fat turkey sausages or cottage cheese can be good substitutes. And if the oatmeal and blueberries are unattractive as well, they can be replaced by cereal with raisins and one orange fruit.

Banana Split Smoothie

On weekends when the day is slow, a more elaborate breakfast can be prepared. The needed ingredients are the following: one ripe banana, ½ cup vanilla flavored yoghurt (low fat, of course), 1/8 cup orange juice concentrate (originally frozen), ½ cup milk (1% fat only), 2 teaspoons of whey powder, and 6 pieces of crushed ice cubes.

To prepare this special treat for the taste buds and the abs, the procedure is simple. Just place all ingredients in a blender and switch on. Make a really smooth blend before serving these to friends.

Breakfast Bacon Burger

If bananas and smoothies is not really the breakfast style, then perhaps the bacon burger recipe will be more attractive. The ingredients needed are the following: 1 pack of English Muffin, ½ teaspoon of margarine (make sure that there is no trans-fat), 1 egg, 1 slice of American cheese (low fat), 1 slice of Canadian bacon, and vegetable that might be added.

To prepare this bacon burger, the muffin must first be split into two and then toasted. Spread the margarine on the insides and set aside. Break open the egg and place it in a microwavable dish. Prick the yolk so that it will slowly spill out. Cover the dish and microwave the egg at the highest power level for 30 seconds. Let it cool down for another 30 seconds before placing it in the muffin. Add the cheese and bacon to the muffin and then microwave again for 20 seconds. Garnish with vegetables and prepare to eat this breakfast.

Ladies want to get those sexy six-pack abs that you see on many celebrities?  Always wanted a slim, sculpted mid-section?
Sure men and women can do the same exact six-pack exercises but many women are afraid that they will bulk up to much. Don’t worry you won’t – unless you try extremely hard and I mean extremely hard.

However, many women prefer to see exercises just for them so that is why this page was created.

The female body is capable of developing the much-desired “six pack” abs. But many women stay away from the thought of becoming the female version of Incredible Hulk.

And so they never perform the exercises that are meant to develop the muscle abs. As time goes by, the once sexy female figure slowly becomes pear-shaped. They begin to realize that the development of the abdominal muscles is not just about having a sleek body but also a strong and healthy one.

Strong abdominal muscles meant more energy to perform everyday tasks. But it’s never too late to work out the muscle abs. There won’t be waves of muscles on the abdomen, but there would certainly be flat female abs.

The key to having great flat female abs is to do the abdominal exercises right. A wrongly performed exercise would not work out the targeted group of muscles. Worse, wrongly performed exercises may lead to injury and lots of pain. To illustrate the right way of doing the abdominal exercises, here are tips for five of the most popular ones: hanging leg raise, hanging bent-knee raise, hanging side raise, bent-knee crunch, and alternating crunch.

In the Hanging Leg Raise, the cardinal rule is to never swing the body. When the body swings, its momentum is directed towards raising the legs, which defeats the whole purpose of the exercise. The legs should be raised by the efforts of the abdominal muscles. Thus, the legs are raised while the hips are being flexed until the knees reach the nearest point towards the shoulders. To avoid swinging, this exercise should be carried out slowly.

In the Hanging Bent-Knee Raise, the same restrictions about momentum and swinging are applied. These should never be used, especially in this particular exercise. The greatest benefit of the hanging bent-knee raise is the strengthening of the lower abdominal muscles. To carry this out while hanging on a pull bar, the legs must be pulled up using the power of the abs. To add force, rotate the pelvis forward, but keep the legs together. Then slowly release to the original position.

In the Hanging Side Raise, the aim is to exercise the sides of the abdomen together with the lower abdominal muscles. Starting from the position similar to the hanging leg raise, the knees are together lifted to one side. The knees should be lifted as high as possible. It can be done by curling the spine. Then hold and squeeze the abs before slowly releasing to the starting position. As usual, swinging is not allowed.

In the Bent-Knee Crunch, the starting position is lying flat on the floor, with the back resting comfortably. Bend the knees to about 60 degrees and outstretch the hands to the sides. Using the power of the abs, slowly move the pelvis back, raise the hips off the floor, and bring the knees close to the chest. Hold this position and squeeze the abs before slowly straightening up to the original position. To add challenge to this exercise, the ankle may have weights.

And in the Alternating Crunch, the body starts in the same position as the bent-knee crunch. This time, the hands are not outstretched. Instead, these are placed over the ears. Then, the upper body is raised and rolled towards the right, with the left elbow touching the right knee. After holding this position for a few seconds, the body goes back to its lying position. Then, the upper body is rolled again, but this time to the left side. The right elbow touches the left knee.

Most exercises can work wonders on female abs, even when the abs cannot be seen. The exercises need only to be done right and the burning of calories begins.

Now that you have lost the extra fat around your middle you are looking to tone up and firm up your mid-section.
Here you will find the top 10 exercises to get those rock hard abs that you have been waiting for. Just remember that before you start any exercise routine you should check with your medical adviser to make sure that you are healthy enough for fitness. And also remember that exercise should not hurt. You muscles should get tired and a bit achy but if you feel pain you are completing an exercise incorrectly – stop immediately.

The American Council on Exercise (ACE), an organization that claims to be America’s authority on fitness, conducted a study of various exercises for the abdominal muscles. This study revealed the ten most effective ways of developing the abs.  One of the criteria is the extent with which the exercise can strengthen the target muscles, such as the rectus abdominis and the obliques. So here is the scoop on the best abs exercises and how they should be done.
1. Pedal Exercise (also called the bicycle)  – the top of the list of best abs exercises
•    Lie flat on your back with the hands behind the head; fingers interlocking.
•    Pull and bend the knees towards the upper body and raise the shoulders off the floor. The neck should not be pulled.
•    Stretch out the left leg but keep it at a 45-degree angle from the floor. At the same time, turn the upper body to face the right. The left elbow should almost touch the right knee.
•    The above step should be done again but using the other side of the body. The right leg is straight while the right elbow touches the left knee.
•    The above two steps are done alternately, with the legs resembling the pedaling motion of riding a bike.

2. Gym’s Captain’s Chair – the second best abs exercise which is popular in gyms.
•    While standing on the chair, the back is pressed towards the pad. Be sure to grab the handholds to prevent falling off.
•    By using force from the abdominal area, raise the legs and bring the knees towards the upper body. Breathe deeply and keep the back pressed to the pad.
•    Go back to the original position and repeat the above step.

3. Exercise Ball Crunch – the third best abs exercise using the exercise ball
•    Bring the ball under the mid to lower back area and lie on it. Make sure that the ball is stable and will not roll off.
•    With hands behind the head, lift the upper body off the ball by contracting the muscles in the abdomen.
•    Lower the body to have the torso lie again on the ball. Repeat the previous step.

4. Upright Leg Crunch – the fourth best abs exercise with nothing needed but the good old floor
•    While lying on the floor, bring the legs straight up into the air making right angles to the body. The hands are resting on the sides.
•    Cross the knees and lift the upper body with the chest moving towards the general direction of the feet. Maintain the position of the legs.
•    Lift as high as possible and then lower the shoulders. Repeat the above step.

5. Torso Track – the fifth best abs exercise but the toughest to accomplish. It can injure the back if not done right.
•    Firmly hold the Torso Track handles and, while inhaling, pull in the abs.
•    Slowly exhale as you move smoothly forward. Do not collapse for this will hurt the back
•    Go back to the first position while slowly contracting the abs. Repeat all three steps.

6. Long Arm Crunch – the sixth best abs exercise that focused on the upper abdominal muscles
•    While lying on your back, stretch out the arms beyond the hand and lace together the fingers. The upper arms should be near the ears.
•    Using the abs, lift the upper body, especially the shoulders, off the floor.
•    Hold and then go back to the first position.

7. Reverse Crunch – the seventh best abs exercise that works out the whole abdominal area
•    While lying on the floor with hands lying flat on the sides and ankles crossed, lift the knees and legs and move them towards the chest. The upper leg and the lower leg should form a right angle.
•    Then, using the abs, lift the hips and bring the legs straight up.
•    Lower the hips and legs and then repeat the lifting the above steps. Avoid swinging the legs.

8. Full Vertical Crunch – the eighth best abs exercise that engages the whole body
•    While lying on your back, lift the legs straight up.
•    Using the hands to support the head, lift the upper body off the floor. Keep the legs in its position. And the whole body would resemble a letter “J”
•    Release and lower the shoulders and leg. Then repeat the above steps.

9. Ab Rocker – the ninth best abs exercise that targets the six pack muscles
•    Sit comfortably on the Ab Rocker and firmly hold the bars or handles.
•    Move forward, making sure that the force is being supplied by the abdomen. Concentrate on the abdominal muscles and not the arms.
•    Slowly release and repeat the above steps.

10. Plank on Elbows and Toes – this tenth best abs exercise is also great in developing endurance.
•    While lying on the floor, face down and hands close to the body, spread out the hands against the floor.
•    Raise the upper body by pushing against the floor. Raise the toes and then rest on the elbows. The upper arm and the lower arm should create a right angle, with the lower arm parallel to the floor.
•    Contract the abs by keeping the line of the back straight from head to ankles. If needed, adjust the position of the pelvis downwards to achieve this straight line.
•    Hold the above position for at least 20 seconds and then slowly go back to the original position
All these abs exercises cannot guarantee the appearance of the six pack muscles. But these muscles will be developed, even though hidden by layers of fat. The key thing to remember is to keep working out to achieve the desired results.

Men and women alike now are striving to get 6 pack abs – it looks just like a washboard, and it’s something everyone wants, but few know how to achieve it.  6  pack abs are muscles that go from your chest to your pelvic region and do not have any layers of fat covering or hiding them.

The muscle runs flat and there are some tendons that crisscross over the muscle, which make it all separate and appear as a washboard effect.
The muscle helps with any movement in your body that’s associated with your core, so it pays to strengthen the muscle for more than just aesthetic reasons.

You also have some oblique muscles that are both external and internal and attached to your ribs.  The external ones are diagonal in your body and the internal ones appear at a right angle to them.  They are there to provide extra support for your body.

The abdomin  is another muscle hiding under the layers of belly fat that you may currently be holding.  It helps support the abdominal wall and helps with your core strength.

Knowing what your ab muscles are helps you to train them more efficiently. You can first work on burning the layers of fat off of your torso so that your ab muscles have the potential to show up.

Then work on defining your abs so that they evolve into a 6 pack, washboard tummy.
Start with simple exercise.  You may believe that standard crunches or sit-ups are the exercises to do to get six pack abs, but you would be incorrect. Crunches and sit-up only work one set of muscles you need to vary your routine to hit the full range of ab muscles.

Try the twisting crunch, the plank, swimmers backstroke, the towel roll, the bridge and the best exercise of this group – the bicycle. If you are not sure how to do these exercises pick up an exercise book like The Truth About Six Pack Abs .

Over time, you’ll see your abs become stronger and you won’t be afraid to take off your shirt and let others see what you’ve worked so hard to achieve.

How To Get Razor Sharp Abs Abdominal Exercise Program

By Vince DelMonte

If you could sculpt one body part to perfection for next summer, what would it be? Let me guess – six pack abs! I don’t know anybody who does not want to shrink their waistline, lose body fat, eliminate lower back pain and develop a jaw-dropping set of rock-hard six-pack abs. Building eye-popping abdominals is not the hardest thing to achieve in the world but it’s definitely not the easiest either.

Before you can start learning how to get six-pack abs and discover the truth about what it really takes to build a beach-worthy abdominal section, you must first expose the lies, myths and rumors. Before we talk about how to get six-pack abs, the right way, we must re-program your hard drive and empty the trash can of garbage you have been fed.

Because of all this hyped-up and misguided information – even among so-called ‘fitness experts’ – you should be skeptical of all abdominal training equimpment and programs. Let’s first eliminate the top four ways not to get a six-pack:

Learning how to get a six-pack does not require expensive workout equipment promoted through obnoxious infomercials. You can’t flick on the TV anymore without seeing two new abdominal exercise machines being promoted at once. There are so many of them that if you get suckered into these ‘ab workout’ gimmicks, you will be broke quicker than Ben Johnson sprints the 100 meter dash! And get this: Of the $520 million dollars a year spent on exercise equipment, abdominal machines get a $208 million dollar piece of the pie!

Learning how to get a six-pack does not require thousands or even hundreds of crunches a day. So much for the Brittany Spears ab workout! Crunches are decent but totally overused and associated with more being better. Crunches are a very general exercise, and general exercises get general results. Excessive floor crunches shorten the abdominal wall, pull your head forward and emphasize poor posture. They also involve a very low level of stimulation which neglects adequate muscle-fiber recruitment.

Learning how to get a six-pack does not involve starvation diets. Starvation diets starve the muscle when you should be feeding the muscle instead. Guess what happens when you starve your body? Your metabolism shuts down out of survival and causes your body to store fat. Your body must get energy from somewhere, so guess what gets sacrificed? That’s right, your precious muscle which is, in fact, responsible for maintaining a high metabolism. Starve your muscle – great logic!

Learning how to get a six-pack does not require fat-burning pills. What did the last weight loss pill you bought do for you? The same thing the next one is going to do – nothing! Except give you a thinner wallet but not a thinner waist line. The entire concept of taking pills to ‘burn fat’ is built on a sandy foundation and misleading because diet pills only treat the symptoms and not the root cause. Without focusing on the root problems of a flabby mid-section, like poor nutrition, a crazy lifestyle and improper training, you will just end up where you started – farther away from having a six-pack for summer instead of closer.

Just Because You’re Skinny Does Not Mean You Will Have A Six-Pack

The volume of interest I receive from skinny guys who wish to build their mid-sections is more than enough evidence to disprove the false reality of “I should be able to ‘see’ my abs if I have low body fat.” I’m sure you know of a friend who is completely scrawny, yet, without a shirt on he, has zero abdominal definition! To me that would be salt on an open wound.

Abdominals Are A Muscle, Too!

You want your arms to be bigger, your shoulders to be broader and your chest to be fuller, correct? And what is the solution to making these muscle groups increase in size? High intensity weight training, overload, consistency and a healthy surplus of calories. Starting to sound familiar?

The same goes for your abdominals. Your abdominals are a muscle group that requires the same formula and attention and are not any different from other muscle groups. For some reason many consider abdominals to be a ‘special’ body part that requires a different set of rules and a completely different formula for training. Abdominals were not given a ‘secret code’ to crack. To get thick, dense abs – the ones that ‘pop’ out – you must train them with intensity and overload. Here are some practical tips you can apply to your program so that you can be the ‘man’ or ‘gal’ at your gym with a ripped and muscular six-pack. Then I will provide a sample program!

Prioritize By Sequence

If your abs are your worse body part, then why do you keep training them last, at the end of your workout? Which muscles group will receive the highest priority when you train? The ones done at the start of your workout or the ones done at the end of the workout? Of course, the exercises done at the start of the workout while you have the most energy and focus. If abdominals are the muscle group you wish to prioritize, then don’t be afraid to disagree with the ‘experts’ who say “Never train your abdominals first because you’ll weaken your core muscles for the rest of your workout…”. I completely disagree with this and often reply, “Show me the evidence.” The typical response is “Nobody does abdominals first…”. That is pure BS. This just supports the notion that many people who work out don’t ever question what they hear or do. They want to be spoon-fed answers and follow the trends of others without thinking for themselves. I ALWAYS train abdominals first in a workout if they need the highest attention.

Prioritize By Frequency

What’s going to receive better results? A muscle group that is trained one time a week or two times a week (assuming you recovered prior to the second workout commencing)? Of course, the muscle that is trained 2x a week. The more stimulus on a muscle, the more growth. That is why professional athletes are professional athletes. They have conditioned their bodies to such a high amount of stress that they are able to train more frequently.

How often you train your abdominals is based on the inverse relationship of intensity and volume. The harder you train your abs, the more rest they need. The less intense you train your abs, the more frequently you can train them! If your goal is rehab or injury prevention, then you will be able to train them often with more frequent and lower loads. If your goal is to make your abs more muscular and dense, then a higher load and less frequency would be ideal. If your goal is maintenance, then a medium load and frequency would be ideal. Refer to this table:

If building a sexy six-pack is on your ‘to do’ list for 2008, then start training abdominals 2-4x a week. I will teach you in a moment how to split your abdominals up into two different days based on movement.

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:

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.

Razor Sharp Abdominal Workout 2:

Trunk Rotation and Lateral 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.

Conclusion

As said earlier, buiding razor sharp abs is not the easiest task in the work but nor is it the hardest. The above abdominal exercises will help you build a deeply separated and evenly placed set of abs in little time. The truth is that if you can’t see your abs, then the best exercise for your abs will be better diet.

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About the Author:

Vince DelMonte is the author of No Nonsense Muscle Building : Skinny Guy Secrets To Insane Muscle Gain found at http://www.VinceDelMonteFitness.com/

He specializes in teaching skinny guys how to get a six-pack and build muscle, without drugs, supplements and training less than before.

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I hope that you take advantage of the information in this article and learn from the best.

Unique Lean-Body Workouts for the Time-Crunched Individual

by Mike Geary -CPT, Founder – Truth About Abs .com
Warning: this style of workout is WAY different than anything you’ve ever tried before and may result in a dramatically leaner, stronger body so that your friends no longer recognize you in a matter of weeks!

Alright, I exaggerated about your friends recognizing you, but this workout is still great for busy people that always use the excuse that they don’t have time to go to the gym, or even for the normal gym rat to try out for a few weeks to break out of a plateau.

Please keep an open-mind and don’t worry so much about what other people think, because this is quite different and you may get some funny looks, but you’ll get the last laugh with your new rock hard body! To be honest, most people are too self conscious to try something like this. If that’s the case for you, then that’s your loss.

Here’s how it works:

Instead of doing your traditional workouts of going to the gym 3-4 times a week and doing your normal weight training and cardio routines for an hour at a shot, with this program, you will be working out for just a couple minutes at a time, several times throughout each day, 5 days/week.

The program will consist of only bodyweight exercises done for about 2-3 minutes, 6-8 times per day, throughout each day. Now obviously if you work a normal office job, you are going to have to not be shy about doing a few exercises in your office and having your cube-mates watch you. Actually, I’ve found that some people that have tried this have actually gotten their co-workers to join them!

If you have a private office, then you don’t have to worry about anybody watching you. If you work from home, or are a stay at home mom, there’s no reason you can’t fit these in throughout the day while at home. If you end up having a busy day with meetings and so forth, and can only fit a couple of these 2-minute workouts in, then so be it, but try to get as many done each day as you can.

If you’re on a normal 9-5 office schedule, I recommend doing your 2-minute workouts every hour, on the hour, with the exception of lunch. For example, you could try 9 am, 10 am, 11 am, 1 pm, 2 pm, 3 pm, and 4 pm.

Some of the exercises that are the best to focus on are:

• bodyweight squats (and variations)
• pushups (and variations)
• forward, reverse, or walking lunges
• up & down a staircase if one is available
• floor planks (holding plank position from forearms and feet)
• floor abs exercises such as lying leg thrusts, ab bicycles, etc.
• one-legged bodyweight Romanian deadlifts

This list is not fully comprehensive, but I wanted to keep it relatively simple. If you know other good bodyweight exercises, you can add those to your routine also. If you want to keep it real simple and don’t want to get down on the floor for anything, you can stick to squats, lunges, and pushups and still get great results.

The good thing about these workouts is that you do enough in 2-3 minutes to get your blood pumping, heart rate up a bit, a large portion of your body’s muscles worked, and body temperature raised. However, it’s usually not enough to break a sweat in only 2 or 3 minutes, so you don’t have to worry about sweating in the office or where ever you may be. At most, you might just get a little moist on the skin.

Here’s an example routine (adjust the reps up or down based on your capabilities):

Mon/Wed/Fri
9 am – 10 pushups/15 bodyweight squats, repeat 1X for 2 sets
10 am – plank holds (hold the planks as long as you can taking short rest breaks for a total of 3 minutes)
11 am – 5 pushups/10 bodyweight squats, repeat for 4 sets
1 pm – plank holds (hold as long as possible in 3 minutes)
2 pm – 8 pushups/12 bodyweight squats, repeat for 3 sets
3 pm – plank holds (hold as long as possible in 3 minutes)
4 pm – max pushups/max bodyweight squats in one set (no repeat)

Tues/Thurs
9 am – 6 fwd lunges each leg/6 rev lunges, repeat 1X for 2 sets
10 am – one legged bw Romanian deadlifts (RDL) 6 each leg/floor abs for 20 sec, repeat 1X for 2 sets
11 am – 3 fwd lunges each leg/3 rev lunges, repeat for 4 sets
1 pm – one legged bw RDL 3 each leg/floor abs for 20 sec, repeat for 4 sets
2 pm – 5 fwd lunges each leg/5 rev lunges, repeat for 3 sets
3 pm – one legged bw RDL 10 each leg/floor abs for 30 sec (no repeat)
4 pm – max fwd lunges each leg/max rev lunges in one set (no repeat)

In order to progress on these workouts, you could either add 1 or 2 reps to each set per week, or you could progress to more difficult versions of each exercise each week (for example, close grip pushups, one leg raised pushups, squats with arms raised straight over head, etc.).

The above routines are just a couple examples of how you can use this very unique style of training. Use your creativity and come up with your own. Think about what you’ve accomplished with these “mini” workouts completed throughout each day… You’ve increased your heart rate and pumped up your muscles 6-8 different times throughout each day, burning a lot of extra calories and stimulating your metabolism.

Even though each “mini” workout was a very short duration, you’ve accumulated lots of repetitions for almost every muscle throughout your entire body, and you didn’t even have to break a sweat during any of the “mini” workouts. And there’s hardly any excuse for not being able to take a 2-minute break once per hour and do a couple of exercises.

Another benefit of this style of training is that now you don’t have to devote any time before or after work to going to the gym because you already got your workouts little by little throughout the day. You’ve now got some extra free time on your hands!

Try this type of routine out for 3-4 weeks and then go back to your normal gym routines. I think you’ll find that it was a great way to break out of a plateau and stimulate new results in your body. You can try mixing in a cycle of these “mini” workouts every couple of months to keep things fresh.

Keep in mind that this is only one method of training and doesn’t mean that you should only stick to this method for eternity. You will hit a plateau on any given training method, so I’d recommend just rotating it into your arsenal of various training methods. And by all means, don’t worry so much about what other people think…have the courage to try something a little different. In the end, you’ll be the one laughing back at all of the “blubber-bellies” that are giving you funny looks while they eat their donuts!

If you liked these training ideas, my internationally popular ebook The Truth about Six Pack Abs contains gobs and gobs more innovative training ideas to lose stubborn body fat and carve out a rock hard set of abs.

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So many people believe that you must spend 2-3 hours a day working your abs in order to see good 6 pack ab results. However, that is not necessarily true.

By doing the most efficient ab exercises you can accomplish more in less time.

First off, instead of doing 300 crunches and boring yourself learn to experiment with different exercises. Probably the best ab exercise to get a nice set of abs is the bicycle. What works best with this exercise is that you are working your abs while crunching them when your leg is close to your body and you are also working your abs when you leg is extended. This doubles your workout. Now when you also add the fact that you are moving your torso during this time the ab muscles are again working from the left side, middle and right side, so you are tripling your workout.

With the bicycle you are actually working your abs five times more than crunches alone. Can you begin to see the benefits here?

When starting out don’t get carried away and complete hundreds of reps–it’s not necessary. Complete 2 sets or 25 reps each then work up to where your muscles get tired but not achy. Usually 100 should be good.

Then add in 100 reverse crunches.

If you have rested between sets the time used so far should only be 5-6 minutes. With the last minute you can choose an exercise of your choice. While push-aways would be a great option you can also do V-ups or side crunches to work the obliques.

There you have it. You have now given your abs a great workout in only 7 minutes. That is how you can get 6 pack abs in 7 minutes a day.

Technorati Tags: how to get 6 pack abs in 7 minutes a day

Although it’s the best way not many people are familiar with it, so here is a video that will show you what it’s all about.