Although I am not afraid to lose the muscels in my stomach, I have always wondered why everyone suggests to drop the ab work for now. If you are trying to bulk, whats the matter with an ab exercise at the end of your workout? Can someone explain? Also is it possible to maintain your abs while gaining weight?
Thanks.
If your doing enough core lifts that work the abs, it only takes a couple sets of weighted situps maybe once or twice a week to get them growing good. Ive worked mine since I started training and now I can do 30 reps with an 80lb dumbell.
Their going to really give my physique an impressive look when I get my bf down a little lower in the future. I want mine to look like bricks of muscle for the girls and what not. Also you can maintain your abs for a long time if you keep your diet in check.
Shoot for eating 500 calories more than your body needs to stay the same weight. You will prob keep them for a year that way if you didn’t ever cheat. Do expect some increase but hope for just 1% of bf per 3 or 4 months increase.
You may be misinterpreting the advice given.
Often beginners will work abs multiple times weekly while neglecting the best core exercises (squats and dead lifts of course). There is no point in doing 10000 swiss ball crunches per week while cutting kcals.
The end result will be someone who is generally still weak, but has some moderate strength-endurance in their abs.
And for how much time invested?
A much more effective routine will incorporate some ab work but never to the point of hindering progress on the more important core lifts (squats and deads and all their variants).
Train abs at the end of a workout, but only when you won’t be doing anything that needs abs for the next day or so (squats, deads, overhead press, etc).
abs recovery super fast, i wouldn’t worry to much about what tenken said, they are like the fucking calves, resilient.
Well I guess it varies from person to person then. My abs are usually sore as hell after a day of squats, presses, and deads. Doesn’t last as long as say chest soreness but it does last a good day or so.
I train abs 4x a week at the beginning of my training sessions. That includes heavy Squat and DL days.
I don’t do a ton of volume in a session. I think if I did too much volume it would have a detrimental effect on my heavy lifting (btw, sore abs affects my bench more than anything else).
I think the advice you have been given is probably a reaction to the 4-bazillion crunches Joe Q Public thinks he has to do each day to get hot abz despite the fact that he can’t squat his bw or even do a plank for a minute.
There is nothing wrong with working your abs. Just understand that the ab workout is not going to make a difference as to whether or not you will be able to see your abs during a bulk. Being able to see your abs is a function of bodyfat, nothing more. I work my abs for a single set at the end of 3/4 of my workouts per week. I usually do something like 3 x 20 standing cable crunches or similar.
i work my abs on a separate day once a week (flame away, you’re a noob, blah blah) with weighted incline situps, decline weighted leg raises and some other high rep work afterwards, i definitely get DOMS a day or two later but i also notice more stability in my squatting, DL and overhead pressing
i use to do some high rep ab work a few times a week before lifting previously and i noticed it was detrimental towards progress compared to a separate day
[quote]RMorrison wrote:
There is nothing wrong with working your abs. Just understand that the ab workout is not going to make a difference as to whether or not you will be able to see your abs during a bulk. Being able to see your abs is a function of bodyfat, nothing more. I work my abs for a single set at the end of 3/4 of my workouts per week. I usually do something like 3 x 20 standing cable crunches or similar. [/quote]
yeah… everyone has abs, its just how much fat we have covering it ;D
[quote]JCUNN wrote:
I have always wondered why everyone suggests to drop the ab work for now.[/quote]
In your other thread ( http://www.T-Nation.com/free_online_forum/sports_body_training_performance_bodybuilding_beginner/rate_it_2 ) I did suggest that you drop the ab training in one workout and add squats or deadlifts on that day (among other advice).
Full disclosure for everyone, this is the workout he asked for a critique of:
[quote]Day One:
Bench Press 2-3 x 6-8
Incline Press, or incline Fly 2 x 10-12
Military Press, Or Hammer Shoulder Press 2-3 x 6-8
Tricep (skull crushers) Extensions or Tricep Pushdowns 2-3 x 10-12
Heavy Abs 3 x 10
Day Two:
weighted Pull-Up 3 sets to failure
Barbell Row 2-3 x 8
EZ-Bar Or Dumbell Curl 1-2 x 10
Squats 2-3 x 10
Deadlifts, or Stiff-Legged Deadlift 2 x 10[/quote]
First, if it’s “heavy abs”, I wouldn’t do them for 3x10. I’d go 4x4 or something actually heavy. Second, it was only later that you said you’re doing these workouts three or four days a week (which is a whole 'nother issue).
If want to train abs multiple times each week, I like to target the different qualities of the abs/core in each session. One for flexion (crunch variations), one for twisting (rotating ab variations), and one for static strength (plank variations.)
There’s nothing wrong with training your abs, especially when you’re training for strength. But in the context you provided, I felt there were other modifications that were more important to rearranging your workouts.
I mean, dude, you were basically giving the abs more attention than you were giving deadlifts. If you’re trying to get big and strong, that’s a ginormous mistake.
Alright and I understand what you are saying. I wasnt trying to disprove your advice or anything of that nature. Also what is wrong with doing that three to four times a week?
[quote]JCUNN wrote:
Alright and I understand what you are saying. I wasnt trying to disprove your advice or anything of that nature. Also what is wrong with doing that three to four times a week?[/quote]
No problem at all, man. I didn’t think you were trying to disprove whatever. Just wanted to clarify my advice.
Doing those workouts, just as they were, for four sessions a week wouldn’t be very well balanced. For one thing, you’d be working arms every session, which would quickly get you burned out.
Another thing would be the lower body training. Doing four sessions a week and working legs in two of those sessions wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing, but the issue is tacking on squats and deads at the end of the workout, instead of giving them more proper attention.
As a general template, I’d suggest shooting for three training sessions a week, alternating the workout each time. One week it’s workout one on Monday and Friday, with workout two on Wednesday. The next week it’s workout two on Monday and Friday, with workout one on Wednesday.
I’d also consider tweaking the program like I suggested in the other thread (have a lower body exercise in each day, including a unilateral movement).
To condense the workouts a little more, you could drop the incline press. Hitting the flat bench and incline press and overhead press twice a week might get to be a bit much. But you can play it by ear.
Side note - The important thing is that you can adjust things as you go. You started this thread a few days ago. I’m hoping you got a workout in there somewhere, even though we’re all still discussing it.
Oh, well I guess it was a mistake on my part. I actually am doing what your advising me to do. “As a general template, I’d suggest shooting for three training sessions a week, alternating the workout each time.”
Sorry I didnt make that clear. I had thought you understood what I was doing and whenever you said it was an issue that I was doing that, well, thats when I got really confused.
That might not even make sense, but, yes I am alternating workouts.