Abs: Heavy Twice a Week, One Light Session

Bigger Stronger Leaner Competitive Bodybuilding
1

Hi Guys,

I’m trying to tweek my AB training routine. This is what I’ve come up with:

Monday and Friday - heavy abs (3 excercises, 4 sets each - around 10 reps)
Wednesday - light session. (3 excercises, 2 sets each - around 20 reps)

…
Basic Routine:

Monday (heavy): Leg raisers (4 sets); Cable crunch (4 sets); Lying feet over bench, side crunch (4 sets)

Wednesday (light, no resting between sets): Lying on back leg raisers, twisting on execution (2 sets), Decline side and middle crunch (2 sets), Side twist holding dumbells (tageting obliques) (2 sets)

Friday (heavy): Hanging leg raisers (4 sets), side cable crunch (4 sets), lying two arm dumbbell crunch (lying on your back with knees up and feet placed on the bround. Hands extended backwards holding two light dumbells, perform crunch while keeping hands extended behind you. This is similar to a cable crunch, but it soley focuses on upper abs, and it hurts! (4 sets)

What do you guys think of my routine? I will vary excercises - what do you think of training two heavy sessions a week, and one light session?

2

I like training abs.

Wouldnt like doing it your way though. 34 sets a week lol.

Is that ur entire training day or do you do anything besides abs?

3

Routines are made in the gym, not on paper.

Experiment. Start from the beginning (minimums) then add more only if needed.

5

Advice please???

So would you cut down on this - maybe just a heavy session on Monday and Friday?

Also, I dont follow my routine to the T, if I’m still sore, I don’t train again, and I don’t stick to the exact sets, reps etc, this is just an example weekly routine. I’m looking for some pointers and advice :slight_smile: Thanks!

Oh, here is my full routine - I dont only train abs:)

But I’m just looking for advice on how to get the best results on AB training

DAY 1 BACK

Bent over row (2-4) sets (6 â?? 8 rep range)
Pull-ups (2-4) sets (as many as you can)

  • Do a total of 6 sets between rows and pull ups
    Deadlift (3 - 4) sets
    Seated cable row (handle or ropes) (2-3) sets
    Pull down (machine with wide bar or handle) - 2 sets
    Super fast and light (seated rope pulls or one arm pulls on flyer machine ) - 2 sets
    ABS â?? Heavy session to failure
    Cardio â?? HIT (5-8 intervals; 30 seconds hard, 30 seconds medium recovery)

DAY 2 BICEPS & SHRUGS

Standing straight bar curl OR EZ-Bar â?? 4/5 sets (6 â?? 8 rep range)
Preacher curl 21â??s style â?? 3 sets (6,8,10)
Concentration curl (seated or standing and bent over) OR ladder pulls OR close grip concentration curl (see glossary) â?? 2 sets (12) OR
Hammer curl â?? 3 sets (10,10,8)
Shrugs â?? 3/4 sets of straight bar lift & 3 sets Haney dumbbell lift & 2 sets behind head
Cardio â?? HIT (4-6 intervals; 30 seconds hard, 30 seconds medium recovery)

DAY 3 CHEST AND SHOULDERS

  1. CHEST
    Incline bench OR Incline dumbbell â?? 4 sets (6 â?? 8 rap range)
    Flat bench OR flat dumbbell â?? 3 sets (8,8,10)
    Incline dumbbell flyers OR Decline bench or dumbbell OR push-ups OR combo style dumbbell press â?? 3 sets (10,10,10)
    Cable machine OR seated flyer machine (tree hug) â?? 3/4 sets (12,12,12,12)

  2. SHOULDERS
    Push Press or Straight bar shoulder press OR machine press OR Smith machineâ?? 4 sets (6-8 rep range)
    Side laterals â?? 3 sets (10,10,10)
    Unwinding Press (see glossary) or Front raisers OR Arnold press OR Overhead lateral raisers(do these after bent over raisers) â?? 3 sets (10,10,10)
    Bent over raisersâ?? 3sets (10,10,10)
    Cardio & ABS â?? light mini abs session; 5 minute jog

DAY 4 LEGS (day 3 and 4 can be switched)

Squats â?? 4 sets (8-10)
Leg press â?? 4 sets (12-15)
Leg curl â?? 3 sets (12-15)
Leg raisers â?? 4 sets (12-15)
Calves â?? 5 sets (smith or machine & single foot with dumbell â?? push them hard)
Cardio â?? HIT

DAY 5 TRICEPS & FOREARMS

Close grip bench press â?? 4 sets (6-8 rep range)
Bench Dips â?? 3 sets (10,10,10)
Lying French press OR push downsâ?? 3 sets (10,10,10)
Rope press OR reverse triceps OR double arm kickbacksâ?? 3 sets (10,10,10)
Forearms â?? 4 sets reverse bicep forearm curls; 4 sets seated curl (15-20 rep range)
ABS â?? Heavy session to failure
Cardio â?? HIT

Advice for abs??

6

lol@chest and shoulders in the same workout, while bis and tris get their own day…

7

[quote]jskrabac wrote:
lol@chest and shoulders in the same workout, while bis and tris get their own day…[/quote]

I tore my rotatory cuff - I can only hit that region once a week now:(

8

Abs A: 5x12 Rope Crunches. 5x12 Hanging leg lifts.
Abs B: 5X15 Medicine ball crunches. 5x12 Alternating hanging side crunches.

I hit abs 5 days a week before every workout. Like calves, you can’t over train them. You don’t need anything fancy or awkward to train them either. Abs are made in the kitchen. If you want to train them with a lot of weighted movements and bulk up you midsection, go for it. You’ll make them pop through at a higher bodyfat, but you’ll hurt your V-taper.

Currently, I only have 53" shoulders at 6’1", but since I have a 30" waist (29" @ contest) it makes me look a lot bigger than I am. This is a big advantage if you ever step on stage.

9

[quote]23278 wrote:
Abs A: 5x12 Rope Crunches. 5x12 Hanging leg lifts.
Abs B: 5X15 Medicine ball crunches. 5x12 Alternating hanging side crunches.

I hit abs 5 days a week before every workout. Like calves, you can’t over train them. You don’t need anything fancy or awkward to train them either. Abs are made in the kitchen. If you want to train them with a lot of weighted movements and bulk up you midsection, go for it. You’ll make them pop through at a higher bodyfat, but you’ll hurt your V-taper. Currently, I only have 53" shoulders at 6’1", but since I have a 30" waist (29" @ contest) it makes me look a lot bigger than I am. This is a big advantage if you ever step on stage.[/quote]

Thanks for the advice - I was worried that the third (mid week ab session was overkill), I will stick to it and see how my body responds. I’m currently on the AD diet and dropping BF% quickly, so they should start to show nicely soon. Do you not do many oblique training other than the hanging side crunches? Is this to protect the V-taper.

Thanks for the advice!

cheers

Shot for the

10

I wouldn’t get overly hung up about Abs. Like has been mentioned, bodyfat is what really makes them stand out or not. To me, training them is like the “finishing/supplemental part” (i.e. you indirectly train them really well on other good compound movements, then put the finishing touches on them with “direct” movements).

At the end of the day, they are mostly genetic. Some people don’t even directly train them, and others get obsessed with them only to be disappointed. Not saying give up (lol), just mean keep it in perspective.

As for your routine; keep in mind the fundamental principles of muscle growth. IMO, too many people don’t make the most out of the exercises that they do (just go through the motions, and don’t focus on progression/intensity/good tension), which means they have to add more to compensate. Take arms for example; if you were really pushing hard enough on all your pushing/pulling exercises, you really don’t need that many more direct exercises for arms (not 8 anyway lol). Maybe if you were really advanced and knew that you definitely needed to hit a certain bodypart from several different angles, stick to less rather than more (prioritise load progression/tension on the muscle).

[quote]bushidobadboy wrote:

[quote]its_just_me wrote:
Routines are made in the gym, not on paper.

[/quote]

Nice!

BBB[/quote]

Thanks :slight_smile: Sooo, hows life over there (you know, just across the road lol), prep going well? Got to respect ones like yourself who step up and put it all out there like that, takes guts!

11

@its_just_me

Thanks for the advice! I agree with you on everything you said. I like to keep my plan on paper, but when I’m in the gym, I push myself to failure and I listen to my body (took 7 years to learn how to do this properly, and this has been the most crucial lesson learned). I’m going to take your advice and switch my training around a bit - to do arms as a secondary on Chest and Back days. And I will look to hit abs on Monday and Friday, and possibly Wed depending on how my body feels…

Also, for the first time I am following a ‘strict’ diet. I followed the seafood diet - eating as much as I could for 5 years, moving from 110 lbs to 205lbs (keeping fat in check). I was a skinny Mother ****. Now I am ‘happy’ with my size, so I am focusing on quality training - listening to my body, and I have been on the AD diet for the last 5 weeks, and I will use this with an increased cardio routine to drop the BF% down to 10% - that should give me the abs I’m looking for, and a nice basis to make slow, lean gains.

Anyway, shot for the advice