From a young age, we are constantly exposed to Images of men with god-like physiques and we wonder how would it feel to have a 6 pack, let alone 8 pack abs, just like them. These images are everywhere: in movies, magazines, social media, and advertisements, constantly shaping our perception of beauty and success.
The truth is that these physiques are not just for the most special among us and with a proper plan we could be just like them.
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Understanding the Anatomy of 8 Pack Abs
Let’s explore the world of the abdominal muscle group. First and foremost, what exactly are we talking about? When we refer to “8 pack abs,” we’re talking about the visible definition of eight distinct muscle sections in the abdominal area. Unfortunately, not everyone is genetically predisposed to have them. Genetics plays a crucial role in determining whether an individual can have 8 pack abs; only 20% of people are born with them. The remaining percentage of the population will have to settle for 6 pack abs. Tough luck!
Here’s the catch: You can never know if you actually have 8 pack abs unless you put in the necessary work to reveal them. Abs typically become visible at around 15% body fat. This means that if a person has never reached this level of body fat, they may never know whether they have genetics for 8 pack abs or not. It’s possible that they do, but have never put in the effort to bring them out.
The Role of Nutrition in 8 pack abs journey
They say abs are made in the kitchen and not in the gym. This is true! Since the presence of the abdominal muscles depends on your body fat percentage it is fair to say that how you design your macronutrient intake is the number 1 factor for your abs.
This means that somebody who wants to lower their body fat needs a macronutrient guide to navigate the world of caloric deficit.
Don’t forget to hydrate!
8 Pack abs| Workout Routine
Of course, the abs are muscles, and as muscles, we can grow them. If you take two people as samples with the same genetics and the same body fat percentage, the one who trains his abs will have a better ab formation.
There are hundreds of ab exercises, each with numerous variations. Success comes from finding what works for you and dedicating yourself to surpassing your personal records.
Which are these exercises?
- Crunches
- Flutter kicks
- Sitting twists
- Knee to elbow
- Cross crunches
- Plank
My personal favorite is the conventional controlled crunches.
The secret lies in the breathing. Take a deep breath on the way down, feel your abs stretching, and blow all the air out on the way up. You need to think about the muscles you are trying to hit. Abs, like other muscle groups, need your attention. If you don’t build that mind-muscle connection you could be going up and down wasting your time without getting any work done.
Be one with the flow, that TV series you are so fond of doesn’t matter here.
Cardio Strategies for Unveiling Your 8 Pack abs
As we mentioned, for abs to unveil you need to get rid of excess body fat. The only way that can happen is by putting yourself through a caloric deficit. This means that you burn more calories than you consume. This can happen in 3 ways:
- Eating less caloric-dense foods
- Burning more calories in your workout
- A combination of these two
It is well-established that cardio training burns more calories per hour than weightlifting. If you struggle to put yourself in caloric deficit through food, you should consider adding to your training routine some type of cardiovascular movement
- Running
- Swimming
- Jump Roping
- Bicycling
- Boxing
It really doesn’t matter which one you pick, as long as you feel well doing that type of exercise and you are consistent with it.
Conclusion
Children see top athletes with well-developed abs and dream of one day having physiques like these themselves. We adults differ not!
8 pack abs, some are born with them, some are not, and many people have the genetics for them and don’t even know it.
If you want to see whether you have them or not, or build better ab aesthetics you should take into consideration optimizing your nutrition, your lifestyle, and your training routine.
Regardless, if you put energy in, something beautiful will come out and before all, you will be proud of your achievements. That’s what matters after all.
