Diet Plan for a Six Pack

Many people believe that doing hundreds of crunches will bring them a flat, toned abdomen ready for the cover of fitness magazines. While abdominal exercises help you develop the ridges and separations of the muscles of the rectus abdominus that appear as a “six pack,” if you have a layer of fat over those muscles they will remain hidden. Proper diet will help you drop body fat and extra pounds to reveal the six-pack abs you work hard to achieve at the gym.

Strategy

To reveal your six pack, a man generally needs to reach a body fat of 10 percent or less and a woman 14 percent or less, reports Lara McGlashan in the August 2010 issue of Oxygen Magazine. You must first diet your way down to this body fat percentage by eating fewer calories than you burn in a day. Aim for a modest rate of weight loss, only ½ to 1 lb. per week, to preserve lean muscle mass and focus on fat loss. If you go on a starvation diet, your body will likely cannibalize lean muscle--including your potential six pack--and you will feel too weak to exercise.

Features

Whole, unprocessed foods such as lean proteins, whole grains, fruits, vegetables and low-fat dairy make up a diet for a six-pack abdomen. These foods offer lots of nutrition without excessive calories, which helps you feel satisfied without overconsuming and gaining weight. Do not shun all fats in an attempt to reduce your body fat. Your body needs healthy fats, found in plant oils, nuts and fatty fish, to regulate hormones, feel satisfied and absorb vitamins. Reduce fat below about 25 percent of total daily calories and you will be more hungry and may be vulnerable to binging, warns Joanne Larson, R.D. on the Ask the Dietitian website.

Foods to Exclude

Limit your intake of saturated fats found in animal products such as meat and full-fat dairy. Eliminate trans fats found in processed snacks and commercially fried foods. Researchers from Wake Forest University reported in a 2007 issue of the journal Obesity that when monkeys were fed trans fats as part of a low-calorie diet, they gained belly fat when compared to monkeys who followed a low-calorie diet without the trans fats. Refined grains such as white flour and rice, excessive added sugars and sodium all hinder your goals of achieving a six pack.

Sample Meals

A diet plan for a six pack will feature five to six small meals throughout the day so you are constantly revving your metabolism and never feeling overly hungry. The exact serving amounts in each meal depend on your daily caloric needs, but generally, each meal should contain between 250 and 500 calories. For breakfast, think steel cut oats with berries, almonds and low-fat cow or soy milk. Your mid-morning or pre-workout snack might be a smoothie made with fresh fruit and whey protein powder. At lunchtime, go for four to six ounces of baked skinless chicken breast, a serving of brown rice and steamed asparagus. For a mid-afternoon boost, try hummus on a whole grain English muffin and a few grapes. At dinner, go for steamed salmon with a sweet potato and large green salad dressed with a teaspoon of olive oil and lemon juice. If your calorie intake permits, an evening snack of cottage cheese and sliced apple may round out your six-pack abs daily diet plan.

Considerations

The ability to reveal a perfect six pack is genetic. Some people can only manage a four pack while others can show off an impressive eight pack, notes McGlashan in Oxygen magazine. If you suffer from constant bloating that masks your six pack, consider talking with your doctor about a possible food intolerance. The body’s inability to digest foods such as lactose, soy and wheat can cause bloating and discomfort in the stomach--covering up what would otherwise be great abs.