Have you ever gotten out of bed, looked at the mirror and wished you had a great set of six pack abs? You’re not alone! There is no limit to what I’ve seen people do to discover how to build abs and really firm and tone their midsection. From fad diets to weight loss pills to crash workouts to hours upon hours of steam and sauna therapy; the list goes on and on, name it and I’ve bet someone has tried it.

The lure of perfect six pack abs is just too tempting

The unsettling fact that people need to realize is that there is no overnight cure. Learning how to build abs and a great looking six pack takes time, dedication and perseverance. It means putting restrictions on what you can eat, how you exercise and how you live your life. Sounds serious doesn’t it?

Don’t let me scare you away, even though it sound like a lot of work, it really isn’t. And the main reason for that is that by setting out to achieve a brilliant six pack stomach, you are also setting your life on a healthy and vibrant path.

As you start to really watch your daily intake of food and maintain a healthy balance of good quality food in, you will begin to feel healthier and more energetic. As your nutritional requirements are met adequately, now you have your foundation for six pack abs set, you can begin to focus on effective whole body and targeted abdominal exercises to really strip away the layers of fat sitting on top of your abdominal muscles.

Okay, so now that we’ve established that learning how to build abs takes effort (but that it will make you feel fantastic!) let’s cover some six pack basics:

• Nutrition is your foundation. This is where everything MUST start. Make sure you feed your body a healthy, balanced diet of healthy fats, protein and carbohydrates. Take the time to do a rough calculation of your daily calorie intake. Now make sure that you are always meeting or exceeding that calorie intake with calorie burn from exercise.
• Yes, they are your usual sit-ups and abdominal crunches. Boring, repetitive but yes, when done properly, these basic exercises can at least get you started! Try to utilize a stability or swiss ball when performing crunches or situps as you can dramatically reduce the impact these actions have on your lower back.
• You also have to do full-body exercises and pay attention to your lower body. Cardio exercises are to uncovering how to build abs in the fastest time possible. Try jogging, exercising, cycling or skipping rope. All of theses workouts really help to trim down the layers of fat covering your beautiful abdominal muscles.
• Cardio exercises may help your overall physique, but you should also try to lift weights. Many women are afraid to do this because they believe weight lifting can make their body appear bulky and muscular. The key is to learn how to lift weights properly and in turn discover how to build abs without looking manly.
• Try doing variations of abdominal exercises and full body exercises so your body doesn’t get used to any one activity. Also, you can easily get bored doing the same thing every time so it is better to create many variations of exercises to keep both your mind and body engaged and guessing at what you are going to throw at them next!