Six pack abs require work, dedication, and attention. Even when you already have it, you’ll still need to perform ab workout routinesregularly to maintain muscle definition. I know I do.

True enough, washboard abs are attained by continuous training and conditioning. It’s not something that happens overnight nor is it something that will stay that way without working out.

I find myself wanting to improve or at least maintain how my abs look. That’s why I keep a constant exercise regimen for my whole body and my abdominals, and so should you.

The secret is to start and follow up your ab workout routines with exercises that work your entire abdominal muscle group. That way, your upper abdominals, lower abdominals, and obliques get the attention they need.

Here are some of the most basic yet highly effective abdominal exercises you can do whether you’re just starting your fitness program or maintaining your washboard abs.

1. Ball Crunches. These types of crunches are really good for a long-term abs fitness program because they provide support while working your abdominal muscles. The exercise ball absorbs some of that pressure and, in turn, isolates your core muscles so that your abdominals do most of the work, not your back or neck. Regular floor crunches are OK, too, but I strongly suggest that ball crunches should be part of your permanent ab workout routines.

2. Bicycles. This exercise never gets old simply because it’s very dynamic and really fun to do. Not only that; compared to its simpler counterparts, doing bicycles require a wider range of motion and involve other parts of your body as well. It works your upper and lower abdominals, your obliques, shoulders, arms, lower back, and legs.

Talk about a full body workout.

Bicycles, when done properly and efficiently, will certainly get your entire abdominal muscles toned and buffed. Who knew cycling upside down and in the air could do your abs so much good in the long haul.

3. Weighted Sit Ups. To add resistance in your ab workout routines, weighted sit ups are your best bet. You can start off by using small weight, like water bottles and hardbound books, and then gradually increase their heaviness through time by switching to bigger loads, like a bag of flour or your baby.

Performing three different abs exercises every other day at 3-5 sets each should help build AND maintain six pack abs. Just to give you an idea how to go about it, you can start off with 1 set of ball crunches, followed by 1 set of bicycles, then another set of weighted sit ups. Complete this cycle 3-5 times to work all areas of your abs without straining them.

There are many ways to develop ab workout routines. Just always remember to execute each exercise with care and precision. That should help you get and maintain a great body.

What other exercises should be included as part of your abs routine? Add your own below.

One of the biggest exercise tips abs exercises is this: Exercise is just one facet of any fitness program. Diet plays just as important a role as any exercise regimen.

Using the two together, you’ll make twice the progress.

Exercise tips abs will definitely improve your muscle tone, but to really make a difference you need more. Exercise needs fuel to burn and to develop muscle mass. Before you begin exercising, make sure that you’ve got a workout and a diet plan in place. Exercise is an important component, but real results require a healthy diet and cardio workout, as well.

You may be on some kind of diet anyway, but it may not be the right kind for serious exercise. Protein is requisite for building muscle mass. To make sure that you get lean muscles, you should follow strict exercise tips abs by reducing fats and sugars, and consuming a moderate amount of carbohydrates.

For a lot of people, this can be a big change from their normal eating routines. For others, such as vegetarians, it may be de rigour. If you eat out a lot, you probably eat a lot of stuff that’s got more fats, sugars, and calories than anything that you prepare for yourself.

Gourmet French cuisine may be a joy, but it may not be the best idea for improving your abs. Try sushi, or a vegetarian restaurant. Both of these routinely have less fat and calories, while still maintaining proper protein levels.

When executing exercise tips abs, safety should always come first.

Get an exercise mat, or use a carpeted floor. Make sure that your room’s temperature is comfortable, and make sure that you stay well hydrated.

Burning or tingling can be signs of overworking your muscles, which can lead to injuries and strains. If you feel any burning or tingling after exercising, perform less repetitions at one time.

Start off slow and work your way up as you become ready. Exercising once every other day is a good starting point. Start with only 5-10 repetitions of each exercise and take a short rest between exercises. When you feel ready, try increasing up to 3 sets of 20 repetitions, and don’t forget to pause between them.

The best exercise tips abs don’t require any pricey equipment. A study at San Diego State University put 13 abdominal exercises against each other to find out which ones were the best, scientifically. Some of the top performers can be done in your own home easily.

• Weighted Sit Ups
• Ball Crunches
• Full Body Crunches
• Bicycles

Exercise on a regular schedule, and follow these exercise tips, and great abs will soon follow. Proper development takes time, but you will feel a difference quickly. The longer you practice your regimen, the longer you will keep the results.

If you follow these exercise tips abs, your dreams will become a waking reality.

• The Crunch
• Healthy Diet
• Cardiovascular exercises

The crunch movement can be broken down into a series of distinct phases:

1. Preparation

Warm up before you start doing crunches. A brisk walk will do the trick well. Make sure that you exercise on a comfortable surface, like an exercise mat.

Lie on the floor, with you back and feet planted firmly. Your knees should be bent. Place both of your hands behind your head.

Locate and isolate your lower abdominal muscles. Contract them – they should move up and in. This will help to stabilize your back as you lift. Don’t tense your neck, and try not to bend your lower back.

Now take a deep breath. Don’t forget to breathe using your diaphragm.

2. Lift (Stomach Crunch)

Slowly lift your upper back, shoulders and neck off of the floor. Keep your head supported with your hands, but don’t pull on it. Get to an angle of about 30 degrees off of the floor.

You need to restrict the lifting to the abdomen only. Don’t use your hands, or arms, to lift yourself up. Don’t tense your neck either – use your hands to support your head.

Make sure that you look ahead, almost at the ceiling. This will help you keep your neck and back in line. Keep your chin off of your chest, pretend there is an orange under your chin.

While lifting, keep your abdominals tensed, and breath out slowly. Exhale, until you come to the end of your breath. This will help you keep proper tension in your abdominals while you incline in a safe manner.

3. Return

Breathe in as you descend. Don’t forget to support your head just as before. Don’t use your arms, and keep your chin off of your chest. You should breathe at a rate that will finish when you reach the floor.

Additional Advice:

If you still aren’t seeing results, you may have to reexamine your diet. Crunches only tone your abs, they won’t strip the fat off of them. With a proper diet, you can melt that fat away. Avoid fatty foods, get lots of protein, and moderate carbs.

Cardiovascular workouts are an important base for any exercise program and diet. Go running, walking, or swimming. This will make your exercises more effective, and help burn off fat.

Stomach crunches help to tone abs, but only when properly performed. Now, you should know what has been holding your abs back.

Learned something that I have missed here? Feel free to add them by leaving your comments below.

Every time I go into a gym, no matter where it is, there’s always a “cardio” section.

And when I look around, I see many people doing many different things:

* Some are listening to their MP3 players
* Some are watching the little TV screens attached to the machine
* Some are reading a magazine, while they go through the motions
* Some look utterly bored and ready to go home

The one thing that I rarely see in the “cardio” area: LEAN bodies!

This is because most of what we have learned about cardio and fat burning is just NOT true.

In fact, study after study is showing that, while popular and preached by most gym teachers and personal trainers, traditional cardio is just not producing phenomenal results.

There is a “cardio 2.0″ that has been around for a number of years and used secretly by some of the leanest bodies out there…

The ones you see on magazines but their secrets rarely shared with the public. Until now…

Craig Ballantyne is one of the few fitness experts that shares the insider secrets to leaning up fast…even without a gym.

I call it the “gym-free abs” workout and gives you an impressive lean body in just eight weeks right in the comfort of your home…or even outside (if you’re feeling adventurous)

But the best part is that you’ll be doing “real” fat-burning movements that your body will love – not the conveyor-belt training, one-dimensional movement you get on the typical cardio machine.

So run on over to turbulence training, pick up your copy and start sculpting your body this evening.

To a LEAN you,

PS. I forgot to tell you, the basics of this program is also included as a $0 bonus when you get the truth about abs.

Ready. Get set. Go!…

I was just reading an interesting article on one of my favorite Science News sites and found some very encouraging news…

Whether you’re in your 20s, 30s, 50s or 60s, aging is “happening” to all of us…BUT does it have to mean inevitable decline?

I’m in my thirties and I find myself arguing with some of my friends about aging.

They think getting older means having an out-of-shape, weak, injury-prone body with lots of new problems…

And I flat out disagree and point to my fitness and health and that of many folks way older than me as an example.

Unfortunately, I don’t always persuade them successfully…It’s as if we’ve been brainwashed into believing that aging equals sick, fragile and weak…

But…

The article I just read proved scientifically what I’ve believed and experienced in my own life.

You don’t have to give in to a life filled with disease, sickness and low energy just because you’re getting older.

Why not have the body of a 30 year old even if you’re 50…

Here are the 2 main points of the article I just read:

1) Staying fit helps you to stay young

but here’s what many people miss…

2) Intensity is more important than duration

Slowly walking or jogging for 2 hours at the same low-intensity rate just won’t cut it. You need to have INTENSITY. That again is where interval training stands out.

Age-proof your abs and your body and find out how to perform interval training from a true master:

To your ageless ABS!

P.S. Learning how to properly perform interval training improves your health, keeps you young and turns you into a fat-burning furnace.

…It also takes FAR less time than the traditional, long boring workouts.

Run (with intensity) over there now…

How about you? How do you defy ageing? Share your success story through the comment form below.

Okay. Here’s a short quiz I think you will find very interesting…

Craig Ballantyne, a fitness trainer from Toronto along with Mike Zimmerman of Men’s Fitness designed a very unique abs experiment.

It go something like this:

Three identical triplets, Craig, Chris and Curt Kuhn set out to build great abs in 8 weeks.

Each had the same height, weight and genetics but each had a different approach:

1) Craig was only able to do ONE set of a few weight training exercises and several short sprint burst each lasting only 30 seconds each.

2) Chris got right to it and decided to do as many as 300 crunches EACH day and one set of several weight training exercises 3 times a week.

3) Curt chose to totally focus on cardio, running between 30 and 45 min. three times a week.

So, here’s your test question:

At the end of eight weeks which identical triplet will build the best, most ripped abs?

Well…

If you’ve been following me for any length of time, you probably guessed Craig (#1) and you’d be right.

Chris and Curt fell into two common mistakes people make when trying to get a flat belly:

- doing too much cardio or

- doing too many crunches or situps

And even though Craig one this challenge (and the bragging rights), he could’ve had even better results in less time.

Fitness guru Craig Ballantyne proved AGAIN with this simple experiment the power and effectiveness of his best-selling program, turbulence training.

No longer do you have to follow some complicated diet and exercise program only to end up with little to no results.

Keep it simple and work with your body’s natural fat-burning, metabolism-boosting processes and start getting lean abs the easy way: by letting nature do the sculpting work for you.

All the best,

P.S. Here’s what Alwyn Cosgrove, CSCS, Men’s Health Training Adviser says about Turbulence Training:

“The single most effective fat loss training system in the world today. I’ve used it. I’ve studied it. It works faster and more effectively than any other method.”

What are you waiting for…Go get your LEAN Abs…

What’s your biggest flat belly mistake? Share your experience by adding your comments below.