abs mass routine

[DimebagDarrell]

so now that im bulking at 4200 cals/day, ive got all my workouts down except for abs. ive never been one to do abs, but i am going to start. and i dont believe any of that "do 100 crunches 6 times" crap. what do you suggest for a good abs routine for building mass?

 

[CowPimp]

Try weighted ab exercises. I just started. The lifts that I do are decline situps, long arm crunches, and vertical knee crunches. Decline situps are by far my favorite.

By the way, you have the best avatar on this site. That girl's got an amazing ass. There's really no other way to put it.

 

[Du]

Yea, what he said. I like weighted cable crunches and decline bench sit-ups with a plate. They work em good.

 

[Tom_B]

what if you didn't want to gain any mass around your stomach, you just wanted a firm flat stomach, what exercises would be best then? This is what I've bee doing and haven't really seen any results
30x Advanced Twisting legs-up crunch
30x jacknife or this weird one where you use you hip and lift your but off the floor.
30x The accordian
30x Oblique sit-ups (15x each side)
30x Dumbbell side bend (15x each side)
30x Crunches or a lower abs exercise (forgot the name of it)

I do those 2 days in a row, 1 days rest then repeat.

 

[Duncans Donuts]

that's way way too much stuff

 

[Tom_B]

should I do it 3-4x a week then instead of 5x?
Forgot to mention I do Pilates 3x a week too, which is an ab workout on it's on since I have to use my stomach to stabalize every move

 

[CowPimp]

Having a flat stomach is all about diet. As well, I don't think targeted ab work would be beneficial to getting a flat stomach. Additional muscle mass would make the abdomen protrude outwards. Don't do any direct ab work for a flat stomach, or very little. The rectus abdominus and obliques get plenty of work stabilizing your body in so many lifts.

 

[Tom_B]

Well i still want a little defintion, enough to the point I can walk without it flabbing up and down lol, just i don't want a a huge six pack stomach that sticks out.

 

[CowPimp]

Well i still want a little defintion, enough to the point I can walk without it flabbing up and down lol, just i don't want a a huge six pack stomach that sticks out.

Then you need to get to a very low bodyfat. That's just the way it is. Definition is about lower bodyfat percentage.

 

[Tom_B]

lol but my problem is according to my pics someone told me I'm at 8% BF or Lower, that's why i can't understand why i don't have visible abs, espically if I'm constantly training them, my theory is I have alot of water under my skin, I need to look into some good direutics or my body fat % just isn't that low

 

[DeadBolt]

lol but my problem is according to my pics someone told me I'm at 8% BF or Lower, that's why i can't understand why i don't have visible abs, espically if I'm constantly training them, my theory is I have alot of water under my skin, I need to look into some good direutics or my body fat % just isn't that low

Have you ever had it tested?

 

[Du]

Personally, I think you need to build. Bulk. Eat.

 

[pmech]

Agreed. You need to put some muslce on before you can see it.

 

[Tom_B]

I'm in the middle of a bulk right now, still haven't found a amount of calories good for me, I did have my body fat% tested before and they said it was at 5% but I don't think it was that accurate, so that would mean that I would have enven the most little defintion but I don't, and I can grab alot of skin off my lower abs, I'm pretty sure I'm holding alot of water under my skin I feel bloated all the time, and I have this "puffy" look to me, there no defintion

 

[babylon]

weeks 1-4 power/mass, weeks 4-8 defenition.
Power/mass: weighted 12-15 reps, 3-4 sets.
Defenition: 30-50 reps without weights, 3 sets.

Doing a million crunches is completely pointless as it will train muscle endurance, not strength/defenition. also simple crunches/leg raises wont do, you need to blast the muscles from every possible angle. If you wish you may want to break your workout into muscle groups (lower, upper, obliques,etc). Treat your abs as you would any other muscle group, train your abs every other day max. And, focus on diet, thats the most important part.

 

[Tom_B]

ok that sounds alot better I'll try it out, but how many times per week shoudl I do it? 2x, 3x? I'm willing to try any routine out, I'm sick of doing all those ab workouts without seeing any results.

 

[Du]

Defenition: 30-50 reps without weights, 3 sets.

Tell me youre not serious.....

 

[DeadBolt]

Look for now b/c your on a bulk you have alot of extra cals coming in. Stick to heavy weight ab lifts-cable crunches, machines, weighted crunches, weighted leg lifts, weighted knee raises. Keep them heavy and lower reps. Build them bastards up until they just get massive. Once you get the thickness you want stop doing so much weighted ab work and stick to non weighted reps 15-20reps. You wont see your abs unless you focus on dropping your bf% but without a solid set of them you will almost never see them. I was down to 9% bf and never saw abs simply b/c I never trained them(well defined abs that is).

If you would like I have a 3 week session of ab workouts that follow the theory of power/rep range/shock and it has been working great for me. Its done twice a week and my abs have gotten stronger, my core is much stronger which in turn helps with other lifts, and they are bulging like crazy. I'm couting the days till I start to cut so I can see them bad boys. If you would like visit my journal and I have em all layed out there.

Also the theory of working your lower or upper abs is garbage....they are one set of muscles and you can't target them seperatly. No matter what all the abs will get hit, sometimes it feels like there is more stress on one portion or the other but regardless you can't target just the upper or lower abs.

Just to further prove my point:

No such thing as lower abs. The rectus abdominus is one muscle that contract two way (top to bottom and bottom to top). No matter what there is no such thing as targeting the lower portion of that muscle (it be like saying you could work on the part of your bicep near your elbow one day and the part by your shoulder the next). The upper portion of the rectus is more superficial (bigger muscles, closer to the skin). The lower portion is less superficial (deep inside and far from the skin) which is why it is usually the last part you see and almost always has a small layer of fat hanging over it. Strict Strct dieting will expose that. As far as core strength goes do either leg lifts or situps (weighted). The only reason to do abs is to make them stronger and increase your core strength. To see them you need to diet for it. No such thing as targeting one area or the other.

 

[DeadBolt]

Defenition: 30-50 reps without weights, 3 sets.

Wrong!
Defenition=low body fat

 

[PreMier]

Some people just dont have abs.. you may be one of them.

 

[madden player]

Some people just dont have abs.. you may be one of them.

Do you mean like Boyer Coe??.. I can't find a single pic of a Boyer with a "6 pack", IMO his abs or lack of abs made him one of the strangest built pro's of all time.

 

[DeadBolt]

Some people just dont have abs.. you may be one of them.

I use to think that for the longest then I trained the hell out of them and realized things were growing, now I'm just trying to make them as thick as possible.

But yes it is true gentics do play a large role in ab development but don't use that as a crutch to not train em. Train em good and diet down nice before you come to that conclusion.

 

[DimebagDarrell]

kewl, thanks for the help guys, time to incorporate these. i have like zero abs mass compared to the rest of my body, i definitely need some mass in my abdominals

 

[Tom_B]

I'd follow your ab workout deadbolt but alot of the ab work you do i don't have access to, all I can do is anything I hold the weight in my hands (or maybe I could use a dumbbel and lift it off the floor with my feet) I can't do leg raises and pulley stuff, don't have the equipment for it. I'll probably have to go out a get a medicine ball and maybe some ankle straps with weights on em, for my lower part of my abs.
Thanks for explaining that all exercises work all the abs, I always thought I didn't have a good ab exercises that really targeted the lower abs cause I could always feel it working my upper to.
I think I'm just gonna train my abs like any other muscle group training my obliques 2x a week and my rectus adominis 2x, with 2 exercises each time.

lol How can someone not be able to have abs? Like said before their just another muscle group, so as long as you train em right and have a good diet it is possible to have them right? I don't think I have good genetics for my abs, all my uncles and my dad has beer bellies, O well it's said I'm the only only one in my household that dosen't have that bad of a flabby stomach (except for my sisters but there 8 and 9...damn kids and their extremly high metabolsims)

 

[madden player]

Beer bellies...don't ya know that in Canada we call that Molson muscle..Your right everyone has to have abs, but some folks can diet down to anorexia like porportions and never have much in the way of a "six pack"

 

[DeadBolt]

I'd follow your ab workout deadbolt but alot of the ab work you do i don't have access to, all I can do is anything I hold the weight in my hands (or maybe I could use a dumbbel and lift it off the floor with my feet) I can't do leg raises and pulley stuff, don't have the equipment for it. I'll probably have to go out a get a medicine ball and maybe some ankle straps with weights on em, for my lower part of my abs.
Thats not a problem, just as long as you hve a bench and some weight you can do weighted ab work. If need be we can make a routine for ya basing it on what equipment you have.

Thanks for explaining that all exercises work all the abs, I always thought I didn't have a good ab exercises that really targeted the lower abs cause I could always feel it working my upper to.
It justy feels that way b/c they get most of the load of lifting and are the larger portion of the muscle. All the abs are hit don't worry about it....its a common mistake and one I use to make in the past as well.

I think I'm just gonna train my abs like any other muscle group training my obliques 2x a week and my rectus adominis 2x, with 2 exercises each time.

lol How can someone not be able to have abs? Like said before their just another muscle group, so as long as you train em right and have a good diet it is possible to have them right?
Yes you have abs but geneticly sometimes they just don't grow and cannot be seen. Just like for some people no matter what they do certain muscles just don't grow...same goes for abs

I don't think I have good genetics for my abs, all my uncles and my dad has beer bellies, O well it's said I'm the only only one in my household that dosen't have that bad of a flabby stomach (except for my sisters but there 8 and 9...damn kids and their extremly high metabolsims)

I'm the same way, I'm the only person who cares about nutrition and exercise...everyone else in my family is fat. And just b/c all the guys in your family have beer guts doesn't mean you have bad gentics...it just means you have to work harder to keep yourself from looking like them lol. dgn

 

[Du]

kewl, thanks for the help guys, time to incorporate these. i have like zero abs mass compared to the rest of my body, i definitely need some mass in my abdominals

Your answer is called synthol.









Just kiddin.

 

[CowPimp]

I'm the same way, I'm the only person who cares about nutrition and exercise...everyone else in my family is fat. And just b/c all the guys in your family have beer guts doesn't mean you have bad gentics...it just means you have to work harder to keep yourself from looking like them lol. dgn

Haha, me too. Oddly enough, all the children of my generation are different though.

My brother started to get chubby, but my good habits wore off on him. He began exercising and eating better. He lost something like 20 pounds. Granted, he doesn't go to the extreme that I do, but I think he does a good job of keeping himself in shape and eating fairly healthy. He also skateboards a lot, which can be very tiring if anyone here has ever skated a 4 hour session before.

My other brother is really funny. He's 12, and he is dead set on getting 6 pack abs. I told him he has to wait until he hits puberty fully to really start putting on mass. He was talking about dieting to get visible abs. I had to explain to him that #1 he is 12 and needs food to make sure he grows to his full potential, and #2 you need to eat big to get big.

 

[BulkMeUp]

Then you need to get to a very low bodyfat. That's just the way it is. Definition is about lower bodyfat percentage.

Agreed. You need to put some muslce on before you can see it. .

I use to think that for the longest then I trained the hell out of them and realized things were growing, now I'm just trying to make them as thick as possible..

Firstly, In order to have a 'showy' muscular abs or a flat firm abs, you need to have good ab muscles.
Secondly, for them to show you need to have a low body fat %age.

Having weak/small ab muscle and very low bf will not really make any kind of abs show. All you might end up with is a concave tummy and enough ribs showing to play the xylophone on!

You are doing a bulk now, so dont worry about your abs being visible for now. Simply work those abs and they will show up after you cut. Winter is approaching. Do things right and you should be closer to your goal by summer.

 

[BulkMeUp]

My other brother is really funny. He's 12, and he is dead set on getting 6 pack abs.

I can never understand ppl that have a one dimentional focus on bodyparts and fail to see the rest of the body that they lack. e.g. "i want great abs" ... "I want big arms"...

ps. am not poking fun at your brother, CowPimp. And that was some good advice you gave him.