!#8# Easy Six Pack Abs: How I Lost 10 Percent Body Fat In 2 Months

!±8± Easy Six Pack Abs: How I Lost 10 Percent Body Fat In 2 Months

The biggest challenge for developing easy six pack abs isn't building the abdominal muscles, it's shedding the layer of body fat that sits right on top of your stomach - even if you are in otherwise great shape, that tiny little layer can make the difference between six pack abs or a keg.

Not too long ago I found myself severely out of shape. Actually, let me rephrase that: I was fat. My body fat percentage was into the twenties and I looked and felt horrible. I knew I needed to do something, and my background in exercise physiology kicked in and I said to myself:

"If I want to look good, I need to build muscle tone since that will also ignite my metabolism, which will shred my body fat."

I've been around the block enough to know that endless amounts of cardio (stair masters, elliptical trainers, treadmills, exercise bikes... whatever) wasn't going to do much of anything. In fact, if you're trying to drop body fat - regardless of if you're trying to show off your six pack abs or just lose weight - stay away from cardio. It isn't bad per se, but it is the most inefficient path to sexy six pack abs and a killer body.

I knew that best way to achieve my goals was to focus on resistance training. As building muscle does several important things for anyone looking to get in better shape, regardless of their current condition:

Increased Metabolism. Muscle burns more calories than fat, which means with a higher muscle density you'll burn more calories even when you're sitting in front of the TV. Fat Shredding Hormones. Muscle stress (i.e. resistance training or weight lifting) causes your body to release crazy amounts of hormones that help metabolize stored fats. A Tighter Body. What good is losing mad amounts of body fat if you don't have a killer body underneath it? My goal was to look better, not just lose weight and get that "scrawny" look. Cardio will make you look scrawny (i.e. marathon runners), resistance training will make you look athletic (i.e. sprinters).

My Easy Six Pack Abs Workout

When I first started this routine, I was focusing on burning body fat. But a funny thing happened, I also build some great muscle. By the end of two months my body fat percentage was 10 percent lower than it was, and my muscles were solid and defined (including my six pack abs).

Here's What I Did:

Bench Presses: 3 sets of 8 reps each Squats: 3 sets of 8 reps each Rows: 3 sets of 8 reps each Overhead Press: 3 sets of 10 reps each Leg Curls: 3 sets of 10 reps each Pull Downs: 3 sets of 10 reps each

I kept track of the weight I used for each set, and if I performed the full 8 or 10 reps of any set, the next workout I'd up the weight. In many instances I failed to reach the rep goal, but that meant my muscles were stressed to the max, which is good - that's what forces them to grow.

Speaking of muscle growth, don't forget to get plenty of rest. Resist the temptation to perform this workout every day, instead give yourself a day off between every workout (two if you're really beat). Remember that stressing your body before it has completely recovered will actually have a negative effect, which will limit your body fat losses and reduce your likelihood of developing easy six pack abs.