Do you have any band aids..for all of my cuts? I know that was lame, but what do you expect that is my gym humor:) Razor cut abs..the lifelong dream! To achieve the ultimate dream of having the ripped tight abdomen you must combine proper nutrition and have the correct core program. This article will have follow up articles featuring the correct nutrition program to achieve the lifelong dream that thousands fail to do! Number one reason is they are not willing to make the sacrifices in order to reach this goal!
When approaching the core we can assume there are 9 elements that can prevent you from ever achieving the ripped 6 pack. Of course there are more than 9 but I think these are the most important.
- Quit stressing out!. The hormone Cortisol is one of main contributors of high levels of body fat storage in the abdomen. When an individual controls the production of this hormone they notice major decreases in the umbilical body fat measurement. Cortisol is released throughout the body when we have one of the following conditions. Stress from your daily life, lack of sleep, overtraining from your program, and skipped meals causes the body to release this hormone. The cortisol hormone has been linked in many major studies of causing body fat storage throughout our body. These are common factors that many have with high abdominal body fat.
- Quit drinking soda…yes even diet:). I can almost guarantee that people that have a ripped stomach do not even touch soda. Regular or diet no matter how you look at it will never allow this ultimate dream. The carbonation in the diet soda and of course the sugar in regular soda will prohibit the abdomen from leaning and flattening out. Really make it a goal to increase your water! Our muscle consists of over 80% water. Our lower abdomen has over 21ft of intestine. When our body senses a low water level our body will go into survival mode and start storing water for digestion of our food and to keep us regular in the bathroom. When people are dehydrated we notice significant high millimeter readings in the lower back and lower abdominal areas. By increasing your water intake to a minimal of 8 glasses per day you will notice the difference in appearance and also the way your abdomen feels. This alleviates bloating and you will not feel like a camel retaining a ton of water storage.
- Quit eating salty foods. When we ingest more sodium than our body needs we notice an increase of fluid retention. The reason that we feel like a water buffalo after eating pizza or high sodium foods is because our body has to balance out the amount of sodium in our bodies by storing water. So to make this happen our body must hold onto water to counter balance the high amounts of sodium. I recommend that we should keep a log of our sodium intake for 3 days per week. The goal for the razor cut abs is not to exceed 2800mg of sodium per day. Food such as marinara sauce, soy sauce, lunch meat, processed foods, frozen foods, soda, and fast food are to be avoided.
- Increase your fiber intake. Let’s face it..fiber is huge for leaning out the abdomen. Fiber has many important factors such as reducing the odds of colon cancer but to lean out your stomach you much increase your fiber to make us visit the bathroom frequently. Without getting to personal studies show we should visit the bathroom at least 2-3 times per day! Wow, that is alot but it is very important to help us rid our bodies of an excess of 10# of waste stored in the colon. I highly recommend that we do at least 3 days of monitoring your fiber intake. A great daily goal is 35 grams per day.
- High intensity exercise. We have covered this topic before but again to lower our body fat levels we must do activities that burn big major calories. Interval cardio workouts that vary intensity levels such as sprints, jump roping, plyometrics, kickboxing, and of course N-10sive Boot Camps:) cause major calorie burning for a short amount of time. Kick up the intensity of your workouts!
- Forget about the spaghetti feeds. With current trends jumping around about this subject I am still a firm believer that you must be super careful of consuming foods that have a high glycemic index. Basically what this means is that certain foods will convert to sugar faster than others. You ask why is this important? Well two major reasons. Food that converts to sugar faster has shown significant increases in cancer, diabetes, heart disease, and obesity! The second reason is your performance as an athlete. Yes you are an athlete if you exercise:) I do believe high glycemic carbs are important pre and post workout to help replenish your glycogen but that’s it. So here is simple way to be careful without looking at a chart for the glycemic index. Any food that is white, fluffy, and sweet to taste is more than likely a high glycemic carbohydrate. If you are looking at the chart stay with the foods under under 80.
- No alcohol! I bet you are shocked! I know we have all heard that clear alchohol’s or the low carb beers are the healthier choice. Yes they are but if you want the cuts then you should avoid them all together. I also can guarantee the guy or girl with the razor cut abs is not out boozing it up on the weekends! Yes we have heard that alcohol impairs our ability and yes it impairs our will power. You are more tempted to cheat on your diet with bad choices. How do you think the name beer gut or the freshman 15 # was named. Yes fast food and alcohol! I count alcohol as drinking liquid fat.
- Train your back and abs. When you design an effective program for your abs you must include the posterior side of your body. If you do 4 exercises for the front then you must do the same for the lower erector spinae or back. Abdominal exercises that incorporate the back and abdomen at the same time are the key to the ripped 6 pack. These exercises include the frontal and side planks, standing oblique twists, russian medicine ball twists, mary janes, flutter kicks, bicycles, supermans, swimmers, low back hyperextensions are just a few to mention.
- Wow what a bump on a log! I bet after reading this you are thinking wow I will have zero social life, no friends, and eat nothing that tastes good! This is not true! You must develop consistant habits that includes these 8 tips in order to have the ultimate dream. I highly recommend that you experiment with different recipes. Healthy food does not have to be boring or blah. Yes your social life might be effected but I ask you one question? How committed are you to achieving your dream? How bad do you REALLY want it? Are you willing to sacrifice? Remember no food tastes as good as having the body of your dreams!
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