Top 10 Myths of 6pack Abs

Top 10 Myths about 6pack Abs

Do a search on the internet for six pack abs, 6pack, abdominals, 6 pack abs, abdominals, or washboard stomach and you will get millions and millions of results. You can immediately qualify 90% of these articles as myths by taking a scientific approach.
Here are the top 10 myths that are used against you in advertising for abdominal products and dietary supplements.

1. You need to do a lot of abdominal exercises to get 6pack abs.

If you have fat surrounding your mid section, you should spend most of your time doing high intensity cardio and full body weight training. Increased metabolism from high intensity exercise will help you uncover your abdominal muscles. Doing abdominal exercises does absolutely nothing for the fat. You must consume a low calorie diet and exercise regularly.

2. You just don't have any muscle in your abdominal region.

Everybody has an anatomy chart defined 6pack, but the problem is there is usually a layer of fat covering the muscle. Losing body fat cannot be accomplished by doing crunches.

3. If you take a diet pill you will get a 6pack.

Diet pills are a short term solution. If you take a fat burner it is most likely to be laced with caffeine which will cause you to develop a dependency and crash. Some pills cause your body to expel nutrients such as fat which cause unpleasant effects such as diarrhea and nutrient deficiencies.

4. You should NOT be eating carbohydrates in order to get 6pack abs.

Carbohydrates are your body's primary source of fuel for the intense exercise you need to increase your metabolism to burn fat efficiently. Sticking to complex carbohydrates with fiber such as vegetables, sweet potatoes, oatmeal and brown rice will satisfy your hunger as well as give you long lasting energy with comparatively small amounts of food compared to processed foods.

5. Exercising long and slow is the best method of getting 6pack abs.

Long cardio sessions cause your body to produce excess cortisol which is a hormone which causes excess muscle tissue breakdown. Short duration (20-30 minutes) high intensity cardio could burn almost twice as many calories during the time you are exercising. It continues to accelerate your calorie burning for hours after exercise as well as preserves your muscle mass.

6. Getting 6pack abs requires hours of exercise every single day.

If you eat a fast food or "see food" diet, this may be the case. If you use self discipline with your diet, short bouts of intense exercise in the gym or doing the activities you like will help you burn fat without becoming a gym rat. One of the best ways to get better results in any fitness program is doing something you enjoy for exercise, which will keep you motivated to exercise longer and more intense.

7. Taking steroids you will get a 6pack.

Steroids are an anabolic hormone. Anabolic means building. Steroids are used for building muscle, not burning fat. People that take steroids and have 6pack abs are following a strict training and diet regimen which does not require steroids to get the same results.

8. Using products on TV are the best way to get a 6pack.

These products are most likely gimmicks that will be there a few months, make a few hundred million dollars and disappear only to reappear at garage sales across the country. They are largely ineffective and usually copying an existing exercise and repackaging it to make it look better.

9. You will never be able to have a 6pack, because of poor genetics.

6pack abdominals requires a low percentage of body fat. The 6pack is always there, but unfortunately so is the fat.

10. Having a personal trainer will guarantee you a 6pack.

Having a personal trainer is great, but unless you are training 5-7 times per week with them, you won't get a 6pack. You have to put in the time and effort, get good instruction and use self discipline and your effort will pay off with 6pack abs. When working with a trainer, ALWAYS perform extra cardio so your trainer can focus on intense resistance training during the training sessions.

San Francisco Personal Trainer Michael Behnken, MS, NASM-CPT-PES, CSCS AskTheTrainer.com