Think you’ve done everything possible to achieve a six-pack? Stepped up your training, changed your nutrition, taken supplements…the list goes on. But still, nothing. Wondering why? Why the hell do some people have abs clear as day, when yours aren’t showing the slightest sign of making an appearance? Then it’s time to find out. Here are a few reasons you don’t have a six-pack…yet.
Too much core
We know this might sound crazy, but if you’re going to the gym every day, spending hours doing crunches and situps alone, this is your first mistake. Don’t get us wrong, these exercises are effective, but if you really want to see those abs, your training plan requires much more variety.
Burn body fat with running and bodyweight, strengthen the abdominals with weight training, incorporate some core exercises and you’ve got yourself an effective six-pack training plan.
Not enough technique
Rule number 1: quality before quantity. Always. In order to gain definition, the muscle must be worked correctly. Proper technique during core exercises strengthens smaller stabilising muscles as well as isolates the specific muscle group you are aiming to work, resulting in a fully worked set of abdominal muscles.
Look at it this way: if your abs don’t feel like they are being worked during training, chances are they probably aren’t. Remember to always research technique thoroughly. Head over to our YouTube channel or ask a friend to video your movement so you can see how it really looks.
Too much training
Did you know your six-pack is not just made in the gym, but also during your rest? That’s why it’s essential that you pay as much attention to your rest day as you do your workout. And when we say rest, we also mean sleep.
Do you get 7-8 hours of good quality sleep per night? No? Then this could be another reason for your absent six-pack. The body naturally produces the most muscle during sleep as well as builds muscle fibre. Trained hard today? Then kick back, relax and allow your body to rest up.
Not enough good nutrition
Ever heard that abs are made in the kitchen? That’s right, ignoring your nutrition is like ignoring your six-pack. The most important point people seem to miss is that a six-pack only becomes visible when the body’s fat level is low enough: something achieved mainly through diet. Stomach fat is the body’s main reserve for tough times, which is why it seeks to hold on to it for as long as possible and therefore breaks down this fat last.
Discover more about a healthy method of weight loss or get the Freeletics Nutrition Coach and receive weekly meal plans tailored to your goal of losing weight.
Too much sticking to what you know
How often do you increase the intensity of your ab exercises? Not very often right? Strange, because in weight training once you can lift a certain weight, over time you increase that weight. Same as in running: once you can run a certain distance in a certain time, you either increase the speed or you increase the distance.
With this in mind, it’s about time you challenged those abs. Progress from situps to jackknives, leg levers to toes to bars, increase the weight for your next Nott workout or try adding 30 seconds to your plank. #NoChallengeNoChange
A six-pack is a good goal. But one you’re going to have to work for. No more rookie mistakes. Now you know what you’ve been doing wrong, the rest comes down to your damn hard work. And that starts now.
