HOW TO DEVELOP THE ABDOMINALS?
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Do you want to develop your abs and don't know how? Your workouts do not give results? Let's see next, trenbolone acetate a series of tips and basic concepts that you must know to achieve tone and develop your abs.
One of the main goals of those who train in a gym is to achieve a midsection with good muscles and a small waist.
Despite how hard it is, we all want to show off a flat abdomen, right?
But as you progress through your abdominal workout, the number of repetitions required for muscle development can be draining.
And taking into account many "fashions" that have emerged lately, largely promoted by videos on social networks or even in applications, from your mobile, at this point a series of questions arise:
Should we do more crunches to burn fat? belly? By doing sit-ups, are we going to reduce some sizes? All myths that won't get you anywhere.
The most real question you should ask yourself isShould we increase the number of repetitions or do fewer repetitions and increase the load to develop and tone the abdominal muscles? Let's look at the answer to this and many more questions.
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW TO DEVELOP YOUR ABDOMINALS
In terms of strength training and muscle development, the real secret of abdominal development comes down to simply moving the rib cage from one position to another and at a certain angle.
And since the abdominal muscles are no different than other skeletal muscles, the same principles that are used for the development of other muscles can be used to develop a strong midsection.
This applies to both the number of repetitions and the training frequency.
So when it comes to abdominal training, we must follow common sense and basic techniques to use them with some appropriate development methods. Knowing the basics you will not be fooled by anyone.
WHY IS IT SO DIFFICULT TO FIND A WORKING ROUTINE FOR ABDOMINALS?
Some will recommend training your abs every day, while others will tell you that it is useless to train more than once a week. And in the middle we can find everything ...
If in general, a moderate number of repetitions is so important for muscle development, why are some bodybuilders doing sets of 30, 50, or even 100 abdominal repetitions?
Should the rest time be a few seconds to just catch our breath or should we allow 30 to 60 seconds for the muscles to regain their strength?
Is the weight of the body a sufficient resistance to exercise the abs or should we use weights / weight?
All this complicates the problem of obtaining real results, right?
Let's see point by point how to develop the abs correctly, debunking the myths and bad advice that others can give us.
ARE THERE UPPER AND LOWER ABDOMINALS?
Ugh, a topic of debate that never ends. Are there upper and lower abdominal muscles? Well, no.
If we analyze a little the anatomy of the abdominal muscles we will see that the abdominal rectum is considered as a single muscle, but this is innervated by different nerves.
Which in a way allows us to differentiate a little the training on an upper and lower zone, which will depend, as I said, on the specific innervation.
To concentrate the effort on the "upper abdominals" or rather the "upper area", the lower body must be held steady and a muscular contraction must be carried out by raising the rib cage.
On the contrary, when the upper body does not move and what is contracted is the pelvis towards the rib cage, more emphasis is placed on the sub-umbilical area, in this case we would be focusing on the lower region of the rectus abdominis.
DOING ABDOMINALS ALLOW US TO ELIMINATE THE WAIST FAT?
Many believe that localized fat loss is possible in the abdomen.
That is, there are people who still think that training the abs can burn fat from that part of the body: but this is a misconception and very harmful to those who believe in this myth and train on their own.
Abdominal muscle training consists of stimulating muscle development, to shape them and make them more evident.
But this is going to happen once the fat is gone.
And abdominal training alone does not eliminate "the little rolls" around the waist.
Only when there are calorie deficits, the body begins to metabolize fat for energy and this process is genetically programmed.
Aerobic activity and eating a healthy diet are the two basic ways to tip the scales in your favor and stimulate fat loss and therefore favor the appearance of the abs.
DIET AND CARDIOVASCULAR EXERCISE ARE VERY IMPORTANT IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF ABDOMINALS
As I said before, you will never achieve good muscle definition if your abs are covered in a layer of fat.
Unless they have a genetic predisposition, need to combine a POWER FOCUSED ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ABDOMINAL , with some good cardiovascular exercise and weight training. Again, localized weight loss is a myth and abdominal exercises are practically ineffective in removing those inches of fat around the waist.
HOW MUCH DO YOU HAVE TO TRAIN ABDOMINALS?
Most bodybuilding practitioners say they see an improvement in abdominal strength and volume by training them every other day.
However, as mentioned at the beginning of the article, what is very effective for someone may not be for someone else.
If you want to train the abdominal muscles every day, try to vary the areas: one day train the upper area, another the lower one, another the obliques and do not forget the lumbar. To avoid imbalance.
You can put together a weekly 4-day routine; For example: Monday-Tuesday and Thursday-Friday, focusing on Cardio training on rest days.
If you adopt this abdominal training scheme you should take into account doing more than one exercise in each daily session.
In other words, do not just do the crunch when it comes to developing the upper area, incorporate other exercises on the bar, with ballast or even irons.
THE VARIANTS IN THE EXERCISES FOR ABDOMINALS
Once you have mastered the basic exercises and already have a solid training base, you should start incorporating different exercises.
Doing this has two functions: you will manage to shock the muscles so that they do not get used to always doing the same abdominal exercise. And in turn it allows you to work from different angles, which optimizes muscle development by increasing the recruitment of different muscle fibers.
For example, by varying the position of the hands and feet, and using different types of benches, the degree of difficulty can be varied, for example classic crunch.
By adding a rotational movement, the oblique muscles on either side of the bust can be trained.
And if you turn on your stomach and perform the opposite movement, you will exercise your lumbar muscles.
The anatomy of the abdominal area is very complex and it is necessary to stimulate the abdominals in different degrees of rotation and angles, for optimal training.
DOES THE ORDER OF THE ABDOMINAL EXERCISES INFLUENCE TRAINING AND RESULTS?
Regardless of the exercise variants, and although the order of these is secondary to the development of the abdominals, the lower rectus abdominis is the weakest, therefore requiring greater coordination.
That is why we must start with the exercises that develop the lower abdominals, such as leg elevation for example.
And why this? And because this way we avoid getting fatigued when training the lower abdominals where the participation of more complementary muscles is required
THE CORRECT ALIGNMENT OF THE COLUMN IS ESSENTIAL
Although we tend to perform some curvature of the spine in most abdominal exercises (especially when training the upper ones), we should focus on minimizing it and keeping the neck, head and shoulders aligned during the effort .
A correct position of the spine when training the abdominals will decrease the risk of injury and prevent neck pain.
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How we place our hands also plays a vital role in maintaining this alignment.
If you cross your fingers behind your head, you are likely to pull forward and lose that alignment. Instead, you should place your fingers behind the ears or resting them on the hundred.
HOW MANY REPETITIONS NEED TO BE DONE?
Along with the muscles of the lower back, the abdominals act as postural muscles when standing or walking.
So they are prepared to contract frequently and for long periods of time.
This "resistance" factor justifies the fact that abdominal training requires slightly longer sets than the typical 8, 10, or 12 repetitions per set.
Doing 15 or even 20 repetitions of a certain exercise is acceptable.
Now, if you are looking to improve your posture, it is time to increase resistance so you can do a little more.
On the other hand, if what you are looking for is strength, then use a ballast such as a weight or chain, for example, and try to reach approximately 10 repetitions.
WITHOUT PAIN THERE IS NO GAIN?
Following the previous point, if you are looking to gain strength and muscle mass in the abdominal area, we agree that the tension must be increased forcing the muscle to work a limited number of repetitions.
Take the bicep curl as an example, you could do 50 reps with a light load, and this would translate to a toned muscle with good endurance qualities, but it would be neither stronger nor have a significant volume enhancement.
It is the same for the abs. To develop muscle mass and strength, extra weight must be used to stimulate the muscle properly and boost its development.
However, to get started and do a proper progressive workout , you can try first slowing down and pausing at the end to maintain maximum muscle contraction. This will develop the necessary strength so that you can add more weight.
THE TRAINING OF THE OBLIQUE ABDOMINALS
Everything we mentioned so far, also applies to the oblique abs, so you can incorporate the same strategies to promote their development.
Of course, if you are looking for a small waist, you should be careful when you focus on performing development exercises for the obliques, the idea is to avoid too excessive development, which overshadows fat loss.
NEVER FORGET TO TRAIN THE LUMBAR MUSCLES
Virtually any muscle group has an antagonistic group that you must train to ensure symmetry and balance, for example we have the following combinations: the biceps / triceps, the quadriceps / hamstrings, etc.
For the abdominal muscles, the muscles of the lower back are the antagonists. The lumbar extensions or the dead weight must be included in your routine to avoid any imbalance in muscle development.
BREATHING IS A VERY IMPORTANT FACTOR
If you want to achieve great abdominal development, at the same time that you focus on doing the exercises you should also focus on getting a correct breath.
And if we don't instinctively succeed, we have to learn to breathe properly.
When training the abs, we must inhale during the relaxation phase and exhale vigorously during contraction .
In this way the emptying of the lungs favors a wider and deeper contraction.
CONCLUSION ON ABDOMINAL DEVELOPMENT
A toned and muscular midsection is paramount to show a shapely physique, a symmetrical physique.
So; Whatever you do, do n't abandon the basic principles of body training just because you are focusing on your abdominal muscles.
The same muscle development techniques that you apply to the biceps or legs will allow you to build a powerful and harmonious midsection.
And remember that abdominal training alone is not enough to,worth the redundancy, have marked abs.
Never forget to incorporate a good load of cardiovascular exercise and proper nutrition, with the right time and effort you will have the opportunity to show off your super-marked abs.