Zac Smith Fitness - Ab

Routine

ABS ROUTINE # 1

SET 1 SET 2 SET 3 SET 4 SET 5

Routine

30 x Crunches 40 x Bicycle kicks 20 x Double leg lifts 50 x Right oblique side Hover until failure
raise (kettle bell)
30 x Flutter kicks 30 x R Oblique crunch 20 x Flutter kicks 45 second rest period
50 x Left oblique side
30 x Bicycle kicks 30 x L Oblique crunch 60 x Ankle taps raise Repeat x 3

10 x Crunches 45 second rest period 45 second rest period   45 second rest period  

45 second rest period

Routine

ABS ROUTINE # 2

SET 1 SET 2 SET 3 SET 4 SET 5

Routine

30 crunches 30 oblique crunches L 30 second hover 50 x R side raise (kettle Hover until failure
bell)
30 bicycle kicks 30 oblique crunches R 30 mountain climbers 45 second rest period
50 x L side raise
10 crunches 30 mountain climbers 30 bicycle kicks Repeat x 3
45 second rest period  
30 second plank 10 crunches 10 double leg lifts

45 second rest period  

Routine

ABS ROUTINE # 3

SET 1 SET 2 SET 3 SET 4 SET 5

Routine

50 Russian twists 30 oblique crunches L 30 second hover 30 criss-cross Hover until failure

10 double leg lifts 30 oblique crunches R 30 mountain climbers 20 flutter kicks 45 second rest period

30 second plank 10 double leg lifts 30 second hover 10 crunches Repeat x 3

45 second rest period 10 crunches 10 double leg lifts 45 second rest period  

45 second rest period  

Routine

Tips on how to build stronger, harder and more defined abs!

Fast carbs spike insulin, which halts fat-burning and boosts fat storage, particularly on top of your abs. Carbs to avoid are white
bread, white potatoes, regular sodas, sports drinks, table sugar, etc. Instead, choose whole-wheat, rye or sourdough breads,
oatmeal, sweet potatoes, fruits, vegetables, quinoa, legumes and brown rice. One exception here: You can eat fast-digesting carbs
right after workouts when they’ll be put to work boosting muscle recovery and growth.
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2) Don't Neglect Isometrics!

This means flexing a body part, such as the abs, and holding that position (much like bodybuilders do when posing). To do this,
tense each muscle for 6–10 seconds, then relax for 6–10 seconds. Repeat for 10–20 sets. This is a great way to hit your abs while
sitting in your car, on your couch or at your desk.

3) Don't forget about your breathing..

When you perform an ab exercise such as the crunch, exhale when you reach the finish or top position. This is important because it
helps you better contract your abs. Holding the position for a second or two will maximize muscle-fiber involvement.
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4) Don't stop when it hurts!

You typically train in specific rep ranges, such as 8–10 or 12–15 reps per set. Yet when doing bodyweight ab exercises, you can’t
alter the weight to match a predetermined number of reps. Therefore, rather than doing crunches or hanging leg raises for a set
number of reps, do as many reps as possible until you come close to failure.

5) Weighted ab exercises.. YES or NO?

Routine

Many guys worry that if they do weighted ab exercises, their abs will become thick and blocky. Yet abs are muscles just like biceps,
so they need definition and separation to stand out. Do some weighted movements in the 8–10-rep range for optimal ab
development in conjunction with many body weight ab exercises.

6) Don't train abs first

Some trainers recommend that you begin your workout with ab training to make sure you don’t skip it. We disagree. A recent study
found that when trained lifters did abs before legs in a squat workout, they completed fewer reps of squats than when they trained
abs after the squat workout. This is because the abs, obliques and transverse abdominis work together to stabilize the core, which
allows you to produce greater force. Training abs first fatigues them, which lessens your core stability and weakens your base, as
well as your ability to generate force.
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7) Don't always train abs at the same speed..

I recommend changing up your rep speed from slow and controlled to fast and explosive every now and then, allowing you to utilize
more fast-twitch muscle fibers to build more power, strength and size. According to new research from Spain, scientists tested the
muscle activity of subjects’ rectus abdominis (abs), external and internal obliques (side abs), and spinal erectors while they did
crunches at rep speeds of 4 seconds, 2 seconds, 1.5 seconds, 1 second or as fast as possible. They that as the rep speed
increased, so did the activity of all four muscles. The greatest boost occurred in subjects’ external obliques, which were hardly
involved in the crunch at slower speeds but increased by more than six times at the fastest speed.

Moral of the story here is don’t fail to vary your rep speed. The fast reps will help recruit more muscle fibers in the midsection
and turn the crunch, which targets the rectus abdominis, into an effective oblique exercise.
Zac Smith Fitness - Ab

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 Zac Smith Fitness - Ab

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My most important tricks to achieve the best midsection possible.

1. Consistency

I have found that to achieve well defined, rock hard abs, a major part is being consistent with training them. I try and train abs every
second day at the end of my workouts. I know it might seem like a drag once you have already finished your major muscle group,
but what’s the point in having a huge chest, back, shoulders, legs or arms when you have a belly!

2. Diet
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Working your butt off in the gym is a great start to getting the midsection you want, but no matter how hard you work them, if your
diet isn’t clean and healthy, you won’t achieve that amazing stomach! Eating clean all the time and being strict on your diet will see
the most results, faster than you can imagine. The diet plans that I can offer you are tailored to your lifestyle, availability to eat, time
you have to prepare, your fitness goals and current physique.

3. Variety

Over the years, I have found that changing my routine every couple of weeks is essential in keeping my body changing in a positive
way. Your body will adapt to the exercises you are doing and discontinue to make changes if there is no need for it. So to keep
seeing changes in your abs, keep a variety of exercises at your arsenal and change them up, at least every 4 weeks.
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4. Focus

I often see people come in and out of the gym with no purpose. They do the same exercises and the same number of reps, sets
and do them at the same angle. If you are serious about making positive changes in your body, you must focus on the muscles
you are working at any given time in the gym. Every set, every rep, concentrate your focus into the muscle. I have found that the
mind to muscle connection is a great way to accelerate progress and also to get the most out of each rep, achieving a full
contraction and stretch.

5. Effort

Abs aren’t easy to get, we all know that.. So don’t expect them to just magically appear overnight. As I spoke about in point number
1, consistency is key but it also comes down to how hard you train. Please do not just stop your set when it starts to hurt! That is
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when the set begins. As an experiment next time you train abs, try doing your repititions until you cannot possibly do 1 more. That
is how you will achieve rock hard abs the fastest. Do not just tip toe around your workouts.

Hard work breeds success.