ABS, THE ILLUSIVE DREAM
ABS…what are they? Where are they? I see them on thousands fo BODYSPACERS but I’ve never had them. They seem to elude me at all cost no matter what I do. I’ve witnessed guys join here totally out of shape and in a matter of months…POOF, ABS! I’ve been bustin’ it in the GYm for over 7 yrs. and have seen many positive changes in my physique and muscularity…but NO ABS!
I was a FAT kid so I never had this lean midsection to remember "what it was like when". I got SKINNY by high school but always carried this layer of flab aroung my middle. I’ve weighted as little as 124 lbs. in my adult life but still, no ABS. Since working out, my bodyfat has often been in the single digits but never more thatn a shadow of a 4 pak has appeared. I’ve tried working ABS everyday and I’ve followed workouts that are suppesed to strengthen the core without crunches…NOTHING! I gave up being very lean & vascular to try and achieve more size adn bigger muscles.
So, I’m not giving up, BUT I will no longer KILL mysel & worry to death over trying to get ABS. I continue to eat cleaner than anyone I know and drink almost 2 gallons of water everyday. I’m open to suggestions. Maybe someone out there has experienced the same thing and finally came up with the right combination of exercise, diet & supplementation to achieve ABS. If so, let me know. Until then, the DREAM continiues.
May 27, 2009 at 3:58 pm
silly rabbit….abs don’t exist….only photoshop
May 27, 2009 at 4:02 pm
Its all diet. I can get mine to show without cardio as in my pic when I eat really clean and lower my carbs. Currently cutting now and added cardio to AM before breakfast to see what happens. So far I am dropping weight probably to fast (7 lbs since sat) but feel pretty good. we will see. Best of luck!
May 27, 2009 at 4:08 pm
I’ve been battling for years too with onlya faint hint of a mid-section ripple - This summer I am trying to get sorted but you have got to be so disciplined. If other guys in their 40s can do it then it IS possible - There are 100s of cutting hints and routines out there but you have got to get the bodyfat right down..!
By the way - its grest to see there are other musicians out there doing body building .I am a pianist and teacher, but most of my musician friends think I am weird going to the gym every day!
May 30, 2009 at 9:00 pm
As we pass our teen’s, most get into a fat storing syndrome. The firat time you ever noticed any tummy youwere already in trouble because that indicated the body already had more fat coming in than it needed so it was being stored everywhere. Even you internal organs have fat on them. A tummy means all internal organs including the entire epidermis is saturated with fat already when you’re still a kid.!
Now… How many years have you been storing even more fat? You think anything you do is going to correct the problen in a few weeks, months?… more like a few years!
Enough!… Here’s my plan: The word is out that "You can’t lose weoght and gain muscle at the same time". Now consider this…
1. Always keep your protein up.
2. Eat only three meals a day: Oatmeal, Meat and Tuna or Eggs in that order. Eat heaviest meal for lunch.
3. Intersperse 4 protein drinks with meals as follows: One immediately upon rising, another after a workout, another after lunch and the last just before bed (the idea here is to keep a styeady supply of protein available in the stomach, you balance out the details for that.)
4. Take a good fat burner just as religiously as you workout. From experience I recommend TwinLab "Acetyl L-Carnitine" exactly as spelled out here. I saw results within 12 months. I expect it will take two years to complete the process.
5. Get some mechanical "Fat calipers" and be particular how you use them. You want to go down in body fat to 8-10 range (when cheek bones start to become more prominent you are close to 10). Reaching 8-10% itwill be time to reverse the process by adding protein and other foods to achieve the desired bodyweight. You must keep taking the fat burner to control the fat in the food you eat. At this time youmay wish to take a good clean fat "Olive OIl"… "Extra Virgin Olive Oil", none other!
I weighed 170 and climbing when I noticed a fat belly. I was taking a protein drink for about 138 gm protein/day (plus 3 meals with about 30-40 gms./day for a grand total of around 170 gm/day. I dropped the drink to 108 gm/day and kept the 30-40 from the three meals… total close to 135 gms. protein/day. This worked but my energy level went south so I supplemented with TwinLab "ZMA Fuel" and that solved the problem (lots of magnesium etc.).
This should give you the general idea of how to finally cut back that fat… Good luck if you try it.
Tom
May 30, 2009 at 9:05 pm
I need to add to my post that manipulating the protein is a necessary trick to remember for that fat loss!
June 17, 2009 at 6:25 pm
Dave-
The abs are there indeed, you just need to bring them out. Look at my early pictures…I’ve got a bigger tire around the middle than the Micheline Man! As others have said, it’s all about diet. I learned a lot by following the suggestions here…http://bodybuilding.com/fun/hugo_newyear5.htm
The calculators were helpful for me to determine what my daily caloric/protein/carb/fat intake needed to be. If you follow that, I guarantee you will get results.