In order to build great abs, there is more to it than doing thousands of crunches every day of the week. You can have the strongest abs in the world from doing this, but you will never know because they will be hidden under several layers of fat. The real way to get great abs and lose weight fast is through a holistic approach that involves a diet and specific exercises.
Step 1
Cut back on your caloric intake. In order to lose weight fast, you need to eat less calories than usual. This is called a "caloric deficit." If you reduce your daily intake by 500 calories, you can lose a pound of weight a week because it takes a 3,500 calorie reduction to lose a pound. If you cut your calories by 1,000, you can lose 2 lbs. a week. Do not go any lower than that and make sure to eat at least 1,200 calories a day.
Step 2
Eat foods that are high in nutrient value. Eliminate foods that are high in saturated fat, sugar and sodium from your diet. Fast food, deep fried foods, refined carbs, processed meats and commercial baked goods are all examples of these. Eat nutrient-dense foods instead like lean meats, low-fat dairy products, fruits, vegetables, fish, whole grains and beans.
Step 3
Eat more often. Eating small, frequent meals throughout the day is known as "grazing." Eating like this can help increase your metabolism, it can give you sustained energy levels, and it can also help prevent you from overeating. Have a meal every 2 to 3 hours and make them a balance of protein and complex carbs. An egg white scrambled with whole wheat toast is an example of a meal you can eat for breakfast.
Step 4
Drink less calories. Calories in the form of beverages can still add up to weight gain, and if you want to have great abs, drink nothing but water. Aim for 8 to 10 glasses a day, and to help further keep your appetite under control, drink a glass of water with your meals.
Step 5
Do high intensity interval training (HIIT). This type of cardiovascular training is intense, it is fast, and it does not need to do done for long periods of time. The reason why it is beneficial is because it can crank up your metabolism for hours when you have finished. Sprint intervals are an effective exercise to do in this format. Start with a 5-minute warm-up jog at a light intensity. Sprint as hard as you can for 20 seconds then jog lightly for 40 seconds. Perform 12 to 15 sprints and finish with a 5-minute light cool-down jog. Do HIIT three times a week on alternating days.
Step 6
Increase your muscle mass. Muscle is metabolically active tissue, and if you build it, you can increase your weight loss efforts. Perform exercises that target all the major muscle groups like bench presses, shoulder presses, back rows, triceps extensions, biceps curls and squats. Do 10 to 12 reps and 3 to 4 sets. Perform weight training three times a week on the alternating days of your cardio.
Step 7
Perform ab exercises. The last part of the program is doing ab exercises to create definition. Perform hanging knee raises, reverse crunches, side bends, oblique twists, bicycle maneuvers and stability ball crunches. Do 15 to 20 reps and 3 to 4 sets of each exercise. Do these right after you do your cardio routines.
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