[marty]

Any of you guys n galls know of a good abs routine.

The rest of me i'm quite happy with, but the old abs need some work.

[bigheartkindsoul]

Tae Bo - Abs & Glutes DVD - I've just done it, my god do my abs ache

[Trialbyfire]

In order for your abs to show clearly, you need to reduce body fat. No matter how much you strengthen them, they will not show as cut, if you have a thicker layer over them.

[bigheartkindsoul]

But all exercise burns calories, burn more calories, burn more calories than you consume, means lose weight.

Plus if your body is more musclular thenyou burn more calories doing nothing, more so than a less muscular person .

[Trialbyfire]

Very true, as long as the amount burned is more than the amount consumed. The difficulty some people have is that as the appetite increases due to increased exercising, so does the amount they consume, without ensuring that the quality of food is changed. Eat healthy, heart-smart meals and snacks. Have a piece of celery, over an energy bar.

[get.mos]

abs is not just doing thousands of crunches; that will only work your external abdominals. the harder workout is to do the internal abdominals. whenever you see any move that works on your "core," this typically references the internal abs for a strong torso.

off the top of my head, here are a few moves i love doing (and i do them ~5-6 days/week):

• the prone jacknife.
• reverse wood chop (i think is what it's called): get a medicine ball in hand, bend your knees, and bring the ball down just next to your right knee. straighten your legs, extend your torse, and straighten your arms to above your left shoulder. (going from lower right to upper left) return to original position (bent knees, ball next to your right knee). repeat 10x, then do other side (bent knees, ball next to your left knee, move up to above your right shoulder). do 2 sets of 10 on each side. this is great for the inner obliques.
• get a bosu and stand on the flat side, so the round side is on the floor. get a weighted bar (sorry, not sure what they're called) and place your arms in the middle of the bar close together. (your hands will create the fulcrum.) while on the bosu, raise the weighted bar until your arms are straight or slightly bent above your head. repeat. do 10x/2 sets. this is great for strengthening your core.
• lower obliques: get a weighted bar and lay on the floor. lift your legs and place the weighted bar just behind your knees. let your bent knees hold the weighted bar. move your bent legs such that your thighs are knees are perpendicular to the floor and your feet could touch the floor if your let them rest (but don't let them rest). twist your lower torso so that one side of the bar touches the floor, then return to the starting position, then twist your lower torso so that the other side of the bar touches the floor. do 10x/2 sets.
• obliques: get some dumbbells in each hand and stand with your legs hip width apart. raise your arms so that your hands and dumbbells are straight above your shoulders. now bend as far over to the right without twisting your torso or bending your arms. return to start. bend as far over to the left without twisting / bending. do 10x/2 sets.

there are a couple of other moves i do but can't think of how best to describe. i hope this wasn't too muddy.

obviously, there are also the regular ab machines. one machine i love to use but people don't think it'd help your abs at all is the ergometer. i'm a little biased, though, since i'm kinda also into sculling. this machine is my fave aerobic machine because it's no impact to the joints and it works muscle groups from all over your body: legs, arms, upper and lower back, torso. and how it helps your abs is that your torso must remain upright during the entire time. so you engage your abs. this won't get you a six pack, but it strengthens your core.

hope this helps.

[Debs202]

Yuk, my New Year's resolution is to make my tummy flat so better get started. Thanks for all the tips.

[thepulse27]

the main thing is just make sure you keep the fat off you enough for your abs to show. if your thin now then keep it that way. otherwise do some cardio and eat lots of good food and it'l start to show.
then just make sure you work every little bit of your trunk at least a bit - upper and lower abs and never forget your obliques, definately try anything that says it will improve your transverse abs too. theyre inside, dont help with the show factor of your abs but you need to keep them in shape to give you a nice figure.

the problem with abs is trying to be happy with just good ones, because you can get the rest of your body to almost perfect shape with a healthy exercise plan and some weights, but to do that with your stomach you need to live a ****ing boring life!

[Trialbyfire]

lower obliques: get a weighted bar and lay on the floor. lift your legs and place the weighted bar just behind your knees. let your bent knees hold the weighted bar. move your bent legs such that your thighs are knees are perpendicular to the floor and your feet could touch the floor if your let them rest (but don't let them rest). twist your lower torso so that one side of the bar touches the floor, then return to the starting position, then twist your lower torso so that the other side of the bar touches the floor. do 10x/2 sets.

I wouldn't recommend anything that requires twisting, when incorporating weights of any kind. It's an easy way to damage some part of your body. Your back can't take much.

[Jilly Bean]

Originally Posted by Trialbyfire

I wouldn't recommend anything that requires twisting, when incorporating weights of any kind. It's an easy way to damage some part of your body. Your back can't take much.

I disagree 100%. There is a reason why pro and elite level athletes train with medicine balls for their ab routine.

OP - if you already have a decent amount of core strength, then adding weight to an ab routine is totally fine, if not recommended.

(FYI - I train with a guy who is an IFBB pro and this is what he recommends. I have to think with a 35 year career in body building, the man knows what he's talking about...)

Good luck, and when you get your abs in shape, then post the pic as your new avatar!

[Trialbyfire]

Originally Posted by Jilly Bean

I disagree 100%. There is a reason why pro and elite level athletes train with medicine balls for their ab routine.

OP - if you already have a decent amount of core strength, then adding weight to an ab routine is totally fine, if not recommended.

(FYI - I train with a guy who is an IFBB pro and this is what he recommends. I have to think with a 35 year career in body building, the man knows what he's talking about...)

Good luck, and when you get your abs in shape, then post the pic as your new avatar!

Pro-athletes already have a strong core built. Your average person is sadly lacking in core strength.

[Jilly Bean]

Originally Posted by Trialbyfire

Pro-athletes already have a strong core built. Your average person is sadly lacking in core strength.

I believe I said quite plainly, "if you already have a decent amount of core strength, then adding weight to an ab routine is totally fine, if not recommended."

*sigh*

[Trialbyfire]

Originally Posted by Jilly Bean

I believe I said quite plainly, "if you already have a decent amount of core strength, then adding weight to an ab routine is totally fine, if not recommended."

*sigh*

So you disagreed with me 100% and then quasi-qualified it to the OP in another statement. Clear as mud...

[StartFresh]

Look under the "waist" section for a full list of excersizes: http://www.exrx.net/Lists/Directory.html

I personally split my ab workouts into 3 days. Lower abs one day, upper abs another, and obliques the other. Usually something like a tuesday/thursday/saturday split. As someone stated above, you can work your abs to kingdom come and it won't "make your tummy flat." That comes with dieting.