The Best Ab Workout Works Many Segments At Once
The best ab workout is not about the abs. The media always bombards us, that in order to have ripped abs, we need to do endless crunches or use a machine that will target the abs. In fact, the best ab workout is doing overall body exercises that focus on increasing our metabolism, through resistance training, interval training, watching our diet and reducing our stress levels.
Training the abs is good to help increase the strength and stability of the abdominal and lumbar area. However, spot reduction is not effective to achieve six pack abs. By training many segments at once, we force the body to burn fat, which will help expose the underlying abs in the stomach area.
Resistance training has been effective in increasing the body’s metabolism as well as sculpt and define the body. The increased lean body mass that results from resistance training demands more energy to function. When this occurs, the body must find other sources of energy, it utilizes the excess stomach fat as a fuel source and converts that into energy.
Training with intervals also helps the body increase its metabolism. By adapting to the high intensity sets of the activity, the body must increase its metabolic activity. The increased metabolic activity causes the body to seek out and convert excess fat from the body into a consumable fuel. The increased metabolic activity has been shown to continue its fat burning well after the exercise session has ended.
Watching our diet is another effective way to help our metabolism. By eating quality food made of lean protein and complex carbohydrates, we can effectively provide our body with the calories to fuel our physical activity. Avoiding sugar, sodas and fatty foods will help us control our caloric intake and keep from taking in too many calories. When we take in too many calories, our body will convert the excess calories into fat.
Instead of eating 3 large meals per day, we should eat 5-6 smaller portioned meals throughout the day to help us maintain our energy level for our daily activities and to keep our blood sugar levels from fluctuating up or down.
Decreasing the stress in our lives is an effective way to prevent further fat storage in our belly area. When we experience stress, our body releases Cortisol, a hormone that causes fat to be stored in the abdominal area. This fat is stored there to be used during a time of emergency.
By understanding that exercising with resistance and intervals, watching our diet and reducing the stress in our lives is much more of an effective ab workout than ab exercises alone.
