Tone Your Abs

Many of the theories on sculpting and toning abdominal muscles have changed in recent years. Instead of doing repetitive crunches on the floor, trainers suggest a combination of diet, cardiovascular exercise and dynamic ab exercises. Learn more about how to tone your abs by trying the workout below.

Steps

Abdominal Workout Tips

1. Plan to do a 15 to 20 minute abdominal workout in addition to other exercises 3 to 4 times a week. Rest for 1 day between ab workouts.
2. Focus on your deep ab muscles, such as your transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis and internal/external obliques. Doing exercises that work your pelvic floor are a good place to start controlling the important abdominal muscles that most people skip during an ab workout.
3. Aim to work your abs until they fail. Just like strength training with weights, the best way to sculpt muscles is to work them hard enough so that they have to rebuild during your rest days.
4. Choose standing ab exercises over laying down exercises. If you only have time to do a limited number of exercises, remember that standing or extended exercises work your entire core, instead of the top muscles.
5. Add weights to your crunches. When you do ab exercises laying down, hold 5 to 10 lb. (2.2 to 4.5kg) weights for added toning. Your body has to try harder to keep your shoulders above the ground.
6. Breathe properly. Inhale on the easiest part of the exercise, then breathe out when it is harder. This will also keep your ab muscles from popping out.
7. Lift your abs in and up. In order to tone abs, you must lift both deep and surface muscles in toward your rib cage. Many people let their ab muscles bunch out, like a loaf of bread, which can add bulk, rather than definition.
   • As you do each exercise, visualize your stomach muscles lifting upward and inward. Look down at the abs occasionally and try to make your stomach look skinnier as you do the move.
8. Warm up with 5 minutes of cardio before any ab exercise. You need to loosen your lower back to minimize strain on it. Back and stomach muscles are closely linked, and any good ab workout will strengthen the back as well.
9. Keep a fist's distance between your chin and your chest. Don't look down all the time, or you will strain your neck. Lead with your abs, not your chin.
10. Move slowly through each move. Taking 2 to 5 more seconds with each exercise will tone your body faster in the long run. People often use too much momentum to complete ab movements.

Best Ab Exercises

1. Do the plank. Get into a push up position, with feet hip width apart and arms shoulder width apart. Look slightly forward on your mat while you hold the position.
   • Keep a timer nearby. Start with 2 periods of 15 seconds with a rest in between. Work up to 2 periods of 1 minute. Do not hold your breath. Focus on controlled breathing as you complete the time.
   • The plank is 1 of the best core building exercises you can do, because it requires a lot of strength throughout your mid-section to remain static.
2. Do side planks. Get into a push up position. Rotate your body until your weight is held up by your left foot and left arm.
   • Keep your form straight and hips up, just as you did with a plank. Hold for 15 to 60 seconds. The side plank targets your obliques and core extremely well.
3. Do squats. Hold small hand weights. Stand with feet hip width apart and sit down like you are trying to sit in a chair.
   • Make sure your knees never go further forward than your toes. Pause and return to standing. The squat works the pillar muscles, like quads, hamstrings, buttocks, hips, back muscles and abdominal muscles.
4. Do standing crunches. Get into a squat position, with your arms behind your head in a crunch position. Squat, and as you rise bring your left knee to meet your right elbow.
   • Make sure your abs are always pulled in during this exercise. Keep your elbow to the side of your head and twist to get your knee and elbow near to each other. They do not need to touch, but the main movement in the standing crunch should come from your stomach. Repeat 10 to 20 times.
5. Do bicycle crunches. Lay on your back with your knees in a table top position. Lift your abdominals until your shoulders are off the ground.
   • Keep your hands bent behind your head in a crunch position. Extend your right foot while you twist. Try to make your right elbow touch your left knee. Return to the original position and extend your left foot while you twist your left elbow to touch your right knee. Repeat 10 times on each side.
6. Do lower leg lifts. Place your arms behind your head in a crunch position. Hold your legs straight, like you are trying to walk on the ceiling.
   • Lower your legs as far as you can to the ground without forcing your abdominals out. Flex deeply in to bring your legs to the original position. Done properly, this exercise works your transverse abdominis, the underlying muscle that wraps around your abdomen to your back. Repeat 12 to 20 times.
7. Introduce variations of the exercises, or new exercises, every 2 weeks. There are dozens of variations on planks, squats, standing crunches and lower abdominal crunches that will help tone the muscles in new ways.
8. Try pilates or barre classes. If you get tired of your ab workout and need new ideas, a pilates or pilates barre class is a great place to find them. Since most of the work is focused on the core, these classes tone abs quickly.

Lifestyle Changes

1. Do high intensity interval training. Cardio exercise 3 to 5 times per week for more than 30 minutes is essential to burn the fat on your abs. You will not get a toned look without burning all over body fat.
2. Do strength training 3 times a week. You will burn body fat more quickly if you do 30 minutes of free weights or weight machines 3 times per week.
   • Make sure your abs are tucked during all weightlifting activities. As an added bonus, strength training usually requires you to hold your core in a static position while you do them, so you will tone your abs even faster.
3. Watch what you eat. Many trainers believe "abs are made in the kitchen." Make your meals a combination of whole grains, produce and lean proteins.
   • If you have a large layer of fat between your abs and your epidermis, you may need to do calorie restriction in addition to working out. Cut your calories between 15 and 25 percent for up to 11 weeks. Then, go on a maintenance diet of the calories you need to maintain your new weight.
4. Get plenty of sleep. People who sleep less tend to develop fat in their mid-section. This may be because your body doesn't rest and handle stress hormones as well.
5. Reduce stress in your life. When you are stressed, your body releases hormones that tell you to store fat in your mid-section. Channeling stress better leads to better abs.

Warnings

• Beware that abdominal work can cause strain to the lower back. Stop the exercise at any sign of lower back pain. Focus extra hard on keeping your lower back steady. Take pilates classes to learn better ways to build lower back muscles.

Things You'll Need

• Warm up
• Standing ab exercises
• Free weights
• Planks
• Squats
• Bicycle crunches
• Pilates classes
• Cardio (interval) training
• Strength training
• Sleep
• Healthy diet
• Stress reduction

Sources and Citations

• http://www.shape.com/fitness/20-tricks-get-tight-toned-abs-faster
• http://www.chalenejohnson.com/fitness/top-tips-to-tighten-and-tone-your-abs/
• http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2011/08/12/ab-toning-exercises_n_925285.html#s365858title=Plank
• http://www.cosmopolitan.com/advice/health/how-to-get-toned-tight-abs#slide-1

See also

• Get Bigger Chest Muscles (Pecs)
• Floor Press
• Tighten Stomach Skin
• Get Bigger Biceps
• Perform Arnold Presses
• Strengthen Your Wrists
• Do a Bench Dip
• Get Six Pack Abs
• Get Toned Arms
• Punch a Speed Bag

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