How to build abs if you don't have them by nature?

Author: Olha Frolova - fitness enthusiast.
2017-06-21

In every gym, you can find two types of people: those who can achieve an amazing six-pack with just basic exercises and the rest who quietly resent them for it.

They say that abs are "made in the kitchen," but before you start cutting, it’s important to develop those muscles! Unfortunately, like any other muscles that help maintain posture, abdominal muscles can sometimes be quite unresponsive to training.

Different people have very different ratios of fast-twitch and slow-twitch muscle fibers (the former are great for lifting weights and grow quickly but tire quickly; the latter don’t grow much but are good at performing monotonous light work). Most likely, we will never know our exact ratio, so let’s act according to the good old medieval principle of "hit them all – the Lord will sort them out." This means using heavy weights for the fast fibers and higher volume and frequency for the slow ones.

While all isolating exercises for the abs require minimal energy expenditure, they can subjectively feel extremely tiring. It often comes to the point where people place ab exercises at the beginning of their workouts or even allocate separate workout days for them, especially if they are used to doing a lot of repetitions with their body weight (30 or even significantly more in one set). There is no need for that.

The best stimulus for the growth of slow-twitch fibers is not mechanical stress, but fatigue itself accompanied by the corresponding chemical environment inside the cell. The onset of fatigue can be accelerated by alternating exercises for the abs with weights and bodyweight in a superset. The optimal frequency of abdominal workouts is personal and typically falls somewhere between 2 and 4 times a week. It’s likely worth considering how often you perform heavy compound exercises. The more compound training you do, the less frequently you should isolate for the abs.

I would like to point out that the role of different exercises in activating the "lower" and "upper" abs is greatly exaggerated. They are essentially one muscle. However, there is a slight difference; and this is true not only for the rectus abdominis but also for any other two-joint muscle (for example, if you work the hamstrings with only one leg extension, the lower portion will end up thicker than if you performed hip extension). Therefore, it’s better to alternate between both types of exercises (with a fixed pelvis and lifting the torso and vice versa). Just in case.

Best Exercises for the Abs

The coolest exercise in terms of peak activation among isolating exercises. But you would never guess which of the basic exercises loads the rectus abdominis the most. It's pull-ups! And this is not just the author's personal opinion, but a fact established through electromyography. So there’s no reason not to do pull-ups. For the abs, only pull-ups without overextending the torso back, “soldier-style,” are acceptable. However, you don’t need to do them often or on dedicated abdominal workout days.

Now, here's an example of a two-day abdominal workout that you can incorporate into your regular program. Just don’t schedule abdominal exercises two days in a row. The number of repetitions for bodyweight exercises should be to failure. Ideally, you should aim for 10-20 repetitions (or fewer); otherwise, add weight to the exercise or the one before it.

Day 1

Day 2

In this order, you can perform these exercises 3 to 4 times a week.

Given that our plans clearly do not include a hernia from either the front or back, it’s wise to do a few warm-up repetitions without weights at the beginning of the first superset.

Beginners can substitute all weighted exercises with leg raises while hanging — this is the hardest among the "easy" options. Any form of crunches can then serve as the second exercise in the superset.

More experienced athletes will likely find that one plate for crunches on a Roman chair is not enough, but adding more can be inconvenient. Moreover, using excessively heavy weights in this exercise is dangerous, as the spine ends up in a very vulnerable position. You also won’t be able to endlessly increase resistance on the cable machines, as you will start to “fly” with a load of 80-90% of your body weight.

In this case, you can try training your abs in trisets, using static holds for the first set. This can be a tried-and-true method or a more isolating option using a barbell. In a standing position, hold the bar behind the elbows. Keep your arms lowered and bent, with elbows not touching the body, and the torso slightly rounded. You should hold this position for about 30 seconds without relaxing.

If you opted for a plank, move your elbows slightly further forward and place them a bit closer together than usual. Strongly contract your quadriceps so your knees extend "to a snap." Now, with the same contraction of your glutes, tilt your pelvis. You should feel somewhat uncomfortable right from the start. Decided to try with a barbell? Exactly.

In general, during any abdominal exercises, it's good to maintain controlled tension in the abs. Ideally, you should be able to pause for a few seconds at any point in the range of motion. This is impossible if your crunch resembles more of a jerk while folding in half. Try to visualize that as you contract the rectus abdominis, you are essentially hitting your ribcage against your pelvis, rather than just bending in half.

You may have your own arsenal of "favorite" exercises for the abs, which differs from the ones suggested. The author sincerely regrets if that’s the case; it's nothing personal.

Exercises on a ball are also quite effective, and there are simply no perfect exercises. The best training program is the one that you won’t abandon after just a week. In the long run, consistency always outperforms various exercise deficiencies. The main thing is to not do them too rarely, too frequently, too hard, too easily, too little, or too much. Good luck!