Abs 101 - The Basics of Building Your Six-Pack

By Rick Morris

A lean, ripped mid-section is without a doubt the most highly pursued and sought after body image today. Just look around at the various fitness and health magazines on the newsstands. Most of them have a cover model showing a lean, bare midriff with prominent ab muscles. I have been a personal trainer and a running coach for many years. Early in my career most clients were interested in toning their legs and arms, building strength, increasing their endurance or improving their sports performance. I still have those types of clients, but the question I now hear most is "How can I get those six pack abs?"

Many people are under the impression that if they do a lot of sit ups or crunches they will develop nice abs. While crunches will help build strength in your abdominal muscles it takes much more to acquire the tight, lean look that you are striving for. The best place to start in understanding the process of gaining lean abs is with a brief ab anatomy lesson.

Muscle Power

Your four primary abdominal muscles are the rectus abdominis (RA), transversus abdominis (TA), external obliques (EO) and internal obliques (IO). The "six-pack" muscle is the rectus abdominis. This is the most visible muscle of the four. It originates on the cartilage of your fifth, sixth and seventh ribs. It travels down the front of your abdomen and attaches to the lower part of your pubic bone. Some people believe that the RA is six different muscles because of the "six-pack" look of a well developed muscle. In reality it is one muscle that is divided by three fibrous bands called tendinous inscriptions. The term "six-pack" is really a misnomer. Since the RA muscle is divided by three bands, the proper term would be an "eight-pack." If you look carefully at a bodybuilder with low body fat and highly developed abs you will see eight defined muscle ridges. But the term will never change. Who want's to go around bragging about their "eight-pack". The primary job of this muscle is to flex your trunk as when you do a crunch or sit up.

Your transverse abdominis attaches to your ribs and pelvic bone. It is located under your RA and oblique muscles so it cannot be seen nor felt. This muscle has a bit of an inferiority complex because if feels under appreciated. Since it cannot be seen or felt it gets very little credit. But, you should give this muscle its just due. One of its chief responsibilities is to hold your abdomen flat, giving you that flat tummy look that you desire.

Your external obliques start on the side of your lower eight ribs and travel diagonally down to the top of your hip bone. These muscles can be felt on both sides of your abdomen. If you were standing with your hand in your jacket pockets, your lower arms and hand would be pointing in the same direction as your external obliques. These muscles work to rotate your trunk and flex your trunk laterally when they are used independently. When they work together, they assist your rectus abdominis in flexing your trunk. They become visible just above your hips when your body fat is reduced enough to get rid of your "love handles".

Your internal obliques run in the opposite direction as your external obliques. They also work to rotate your trunk and assist in trunk flexion.

Finding your six-pack

Now that you know what your ab muscles are, how do you get that "six pack"? I have a nice surprise for you. You already have a six pack. That's right, it is already there. As I mentioned above, your six pack muscle - the rectus abdominis - is one muscle that is divided by three bands. Those three bands make the muscle look like six (actually eight) individual muscles. You already have that. The problem for most of us is that the muscle is covered by a layer of body fat. You can do ab exercises 24/7. You will never see your six pack until you decrease your body fat low enough that those fibrous bands that divide your rectus abdominis become visible.
Combine low body fat with highly developed abdominal muscles and the result is great abs and a fabulous six pack.

In theory, that sounds really easy, but in practice it can be very difficult. If you really want great looking abs there are a couple of things you need to do:

Decrease your body fat through a program of sensible eating, cardiovascular exercise and strength training.
Develop all of your abdominal muscles with targeted strength training exercises

Decreasing your body fat

Competitive athletes and bodybuilders know the secret to lowering their body fat. There is a reason these individuals are able to maintain a lean, toned body. They work at it. They know there are no shortcuts. They are aware that they must feed their body, not starve it. They don't put junk in their bodies. They eat the proper quantities of the right foods. They neither starve themselves nor overeat. Exercise is part of their everyday life, just like brushing their teeth.

The formula for decreasing body fat is really quite simple. It takes me about 15 minutes to explain it to my clients. Here it is in a nutshell;

• Eat well balanced meals composed of complex carbs, lean protein and essential fatty acids.
• Avoid sugar, simple carbohydrates, refined carbs and saturated fats.
• Eat the proper portion sizes. Most of us eat portion sizes that are out of control.
• Eat 4 to 5 small meals per day. Do not skip meals but watch your portion sizes.
• Build muscle mass through a consistent strength training program. More metabolically active muscle means you will burn more calories every day.
• Engage in cardiovascular exercise at least 5 days per week. Cardio exercise will burn calories and make your body more efficient at burning fat.
• Get at least 7 to 8 hours of quality sleep every night.

That's it. If you follow those guidelines on a consistent basis, you will decrease your body fat.

Develop your abdominal muscles with targeted strength training exercises

Rectus abdominis

As you know, this muscle flexes your trunk. The most common exercise to develop this muscle is a standard crunch in which you curl your upper body off the floor. Doing crunches on a stability ball will help provide support to your lower back and will also give you more extension during the exercise. Some think that using a stability ball is more effective at strengthening your RA muscles, but a recent study dispelled that theory . The researchers found that performing crunches on a stability ball did not elicit greater activity in the RA than doing crunches on the floor. Even though the stability ball does not increase the load on your RA, the support for your lower back and the increased extension makes its use worthwhile.

Another highly effective exercise for developing your RA is a reverse crunch. You perform a reverse crunch by lying on an exercise mat in the same starting position as a standard crunch. Instead of curling your shoulders off the mat, you keep your upper body stationary and curl your hips off the mat. This exercise has been proven to be even more effective that a standard crunch. Researchers at California State University measured the activity of RA, EO and IO muscles during both a standard crunch and a reverse crunch.  They found that a reverse crunch resulted in significantly greater activity in all of the tested muscles, when compared to a standard crunch.

Obliques

Common sense would tell you that the best way to develop your oblique muscles is by performing trunk rotation exercises. In the past most trainers would agree with that assumption. Your obliques are set up to work hard when rotating your trunk, so it stands to reason that rotational exercises would be the best way to strengthen them. However, some current research makes us question that idea. A group at the University of Nebraska measured muscle activity in the RA, IO and EO muscles when performing standard crunches, reverse crunches, v-crunches (curling both your shoulders and hips at the same time) and ab-hollowing.  The rather surprising results of their investigation showed that the reverse crunch and v-crunch produced the greatest amount of muscle activation in the obliques, not rotational exercises.

Transverse abdominis

Now we are back to that under appreciated muscle, your transverse abdominis. Remember that your TA is most responsible for producing the much sought after "flat belly" look. Since this muscle is out of sight, it is also out of mind. We rarely think about strengthening this muscle. We have made great advances in strengthening and body building techniques over the years. But in many ways the fitness enthusiasts of the past were better informed. Body builders in years past used a technique that very few use today. It was called ab-hollowing. This is an exercise in which you "suck" your abdominal muscles in and hold that pose. You visualize trying to suck your belly button back to your spine. This hollowing exercise is very good at developing the strength of your TA. The University of Nebraska study also pointed out that ab hollowing is an effective exercise for your EO and IO muscles.

The Best Exercises

So, what are the best exercises for developing your six pack? Current studies conclude that standard crunches on a stability ball, reverse crunches, v-crunches and ab-hollowing are the most effective exercises at strengthening your RA, EO, IO and TA muscles. The best exercise should not only be effective, but also safe for long term use. Research shows that there is not advantage to performing standard crunches on a stability ball. However, the lower back support makes the use of a stability ball a good choice for most of us. Reverse crunches and v-crunches should be performed on a mat. Do your ab-hollowing exercises in a standing position.

Abdominal exercises can and should be performed at least every other day. Combine your ab strengthening exercises with a healthy, balanced diet and cardiovascular workouts and you will find that six pack that has been in hiding.