There are a wide variety of myths, misconceptions and misnomers around getting six pack abs even though the motivation to achieve six pack abs may be vanity, having strong abdominal muscles is actually a safeguard against injury. Protecting your lower back is an important priority as you age, and without core strength, many tasks are much more complex and difficult as well.
Here are 3 major mistakes people make when trying to get lean enough to see abs.
1. Doing too much cardio
Cardio is a great tool for fat loss but it is important to understand it is not the only tool. To put it simply when trying to get lean you are not trying to do as much cardio as possible or trying to burn as much calories as possible. You are trying to maintain as much muscle as possible whilst cutting calories via nutrition and exercise. To get the ‘ripped’ look you need to have a solid base of muscle on your body! If not you won’t get the desired look you want instead you will end of looking more ‘skinny’ than ripped.
2. Not eating enough
Of course it is important to be in a calorie deficit to lose fat but you must understand that cutting your calories to low will cause your body to shut down fat loss hormones and increase muscle wastage. Decrease your calories by small amounts (200kcal) every so often depending on how your progress is going avoid just cutting loads of calories at once!
3. Impatience
As I stated before getting to see your abs can be a long drawn out process it does not happen over night! it will take loads of commitment and hard work along the way some people may get there quicker but it is important to keep in mind everybody’s is different and some people may be genetically predisposed to losing fat in certain areas quicker. Trust the process and the results will come.
What is your why?
This is a simple concept that may not work for everyone but everyone will be able to relate to, it is really straightforward realise and understand your why. Your why is the reason you started on your fitness journey, why did you decide to sign up to a gym or a personal trainer? What was the motivation?
The reason it is important to understand this is because during the hard times or the times when you are not losing weight for whatever reason, you will feel like giving up but as I am sure you know giving up is never the answer! The reason you started is what will get you through the tough times. The most painful reasons are the most motivating e.g partner not attracted to you anymore, family and friends telling you to lose weight, clothes not fitting anymore. Use these as driving factors to get you where you want to be! Think of 3 and write them down and keep reminding yourself of them every month this will keep you focused on your goal and stop you from giving up or ruining your diet for no reason!
Remember that this is your fitness journey and you need to take control and be the driving force behind your success.