# Top 2 abs coming through..



## IrishRaver (Feb 4, 2010)

So for the first time in my life (apart from a kid i probably had a 6pac as I was quite skinny until age 8ish) I can see the top 2 abs when I'm tensed.

Should I pursue this and try to shed more BF or just stick at what I'm doing? All my lifts are going up but I'm pretty sure muscle memory is coming into play from my last injury.

What would you do?

btw you can just about see them...i still have a little pot belly. Not concerned about that though I'm very comfortable at this BF, still walk about shirtless a lot of the time if the suns out.


----------



## barsnack (Mar 12, 2011)

shed bodyfat, its the only way, as someone has on their profile for a quote 'abs are made in the kitchen not the gym'


----------



## IrishRaver (Feb 4, 2010)

barsnack said:


> shed bodyfat, its the only way, as someone has on their profile for a quote 'abs are made in the kitchen not the gym'


hmmm, and to think I had a kit kat last night!?

I might just clean up my diet completely. No chippys or treats...see if I'm still leaning out. I only do cardio twice a week & hate it lol.


----------



## barsnack (Mar 12, 2011)

IrishRaver said:


> hmmm, and to think I had a kit kat last night!?
> 
> I might just clean up my diet completely. No chippys or treats...see if I'm still leaning out. I only do cardio twice a week & hate it lol.


hate cardio like running or any gym machine but i go swimming, cardio is an absolute must for the other abs to come through, just gotta roll witht he cardio if you want full abs...and yeah stay outa mannys for 20minutes that'll help


----------



## IrishRaver (Feb 4, 2010)

barsnack said:


> hate cardio like running or any gym machine but i go swimming, cardio is an absolute must for the other abs to come through, just gotta roll witht he cardio if you want full abs...and yeah stay outa mannys for 20minutes that'll help


Brights actually, mannys chicken burgers are battered. Stankin 

I swim once a week and climb the cave hill once a week. Or if it's raining all week 2x swim. I get nasty headaches from swimming though, prob from dehydration and sweating out stored toxins.


----------



## barsnack (Mar 12, 2011)

IrishRaver said:


> Brights actually, mannys chicken burgers are battered. *Stankin *
> 
> I swim once a week and climb the cave hill once a week. Or if it's raining all week 2x swim. I get nasty headaches from swimming though, prob from dehydration and sweating out stored toxins.


haha you spell your accent...worth doing since your close to having full abs, all about dropping that few bf%, clean diet and cardio (try fasted cardio) and in 10days you'll be good


----------



## joe.b (Sep 26, 2009)

IrishRaver said:


> So for the first time in my life (apart from a kid i probably had a 6pac as I was quite skinny until age 8ish) I can see the top 2 abs when I'm tensed.
> 
> Should I pursue this and try to shed more BF or just stick at what I'm doing? All my lifts are going up but I'm pretty sure muscle memory is coming into play from my last injury.
> 
> ...


 did you photo shop your avi or just breathing in then? 

well im on a major cut this year,ive lost around 2 and a half stone so abs have become a bit of a mission for me now,if i was you id personally continue what your doing now and wait til eary next year to do a cut,so by the time next summer comes you should be nicely 'toned'(for want of a better word)


----------



## IrishRaver (Feb 4, 2010)

joe.b said:


> did you photo shop your avi or just breathing in then?
> 
> well im on a major cut this year,ive lost around 2 and a half stone so abs have become a bit of a mission for me now,if i was you id personally continue what your doing now and wait til eary next year to do a cut,so by the time next summer comes you should be nicely 'toned'(for want of a better word)


Just tensed mate. Chest out makes the stomach go in.

Yeah man I only started my cut due to being out of work/gym for 5 weeks, I upped the cardio but lost a lot of strength. It worked out good though cause summer just came out of nowhere lol.

I'm gonna clean up my diet as close to 100% as I can humanly get. Cheat meal once a week. Gonna try and cut back on the booze too.. needa stay focussed though, it's not easy.

TBH I can't wait for summer to end so I can watch my lifts fly up again


----------



## -AC- (Jul 9, 2011)

IrishRaver said:


> btw you can just about see them...i still have a little pot belly. Not concerned about that though I'm very comfortable at this BF, still walk about shirtless a lot of the time if the suns out.


dont forget your can of stella and burbury cap ;P

nah in all seriousness mate its totally down to your goals. if you are going to try and get a full 6 pack its very hard. especially the bottom 2 as most people on here will probably agree. i recently managed it (just) to go on holiday but my strength fell quite a bit, i was knackered all the time and within 1 week of drinking they had watered over and pretty much gone again (not entirely but not cut) so its very hard to sustain.

If however you arent all that fussed then you will see great gains in training hard, lifting heavy, being full of energy and not worrying about your abs (which lets be fair arent as awesome as big arms).

In my opinion i would go on a really lean bulk if i were you. no crap except one **** meal per week and really hammer the training. my plan for the next 12 weeks is a lean bulk to try and keep my abs, maybe even lower my bf% a bit (very hard to do if trying to gain size but hey ho). Have you planned a diet to help with your goals. if you want to know what im doing its this:

7:00AM - 2 scoops myofusion + 100g myprotein oats + 20ml olive oil - 60g protein, 80g carbs, 30g fats, 900 cals

9:00AM - 200g sweet potato + 150g chicken - 40g protein, 40g carbs, 320 cals

11:00AM - 2 x CNP flapjack Bars - 36g protein, 70g carbs, 14g fat, 550 cals

12:30PM - 250g rice + tin tuna - 40g protein, 70g carbs, 5g fats, 485 cals

2:30PM - 2 scoops myofusion + 100g myprotein oats + 20ml olive oil - 60g protein, 80g carbs, 30g fats, 900 cals

4:30PM - 200g sweet potato + 150g chicken - 40g protein, 40g carbs, 320 cals

5:30PM - train - 20g BCAA's + 100g Maltodextrin - 400 cals

7:30PM - evening meal (will differ day to day) - aim for 500 cals

10:00PM - 2 scoops myofusion + 100g myprotein oats + 20ml olive oil - 60g protein, 80g carbs, 30g fats, 900 cals

totals -

protein - 395g

carbs - 640g

fats - 105g

calories - 5000 roughly

I will attempt this diet from august 1st to run for 3 months. I will increase portion sizes (2 seet potatos, 120g oats in shakes etc) as the weeks go on to make sure my body doesnt level out with these cals.

weekends are the hardest part for me to gain size as my diet completely goes to pot. however i will be making serious conscious effort to keep up the diet on the weekend.

Sunday is the only day where the diet can be deviated from. there will be absolutely no crap during the week. no fizzy drinks, no sweets, no chocolate. these are calories that i dont need and will simply fill me up. plus if i feel like im on a diet where im not allowed to eat certain things it makes me hungrier. On sunday i can eat whatever i want as long as i have 3 mega shakes to make sure im definitely above maintenance calorie level and getting enough protein. other than that i can eat crap. Obviously if you are wanting to gain purely lean muscle and avoid fat gain entirely this isnt the best of ideas but i dont really care and i struggle to gain fat.

now for the good bit... training!!

my training plan will be as such:

monday - legs and abs

calf raises - 10 x 10

squats - 5 x 5

leg extensions - 3 x 8

stiff leg deadlift - 5 x 5

cable crunches - 3 x 10

leg raises - 3 x 15

tuesday - chest + triceps

bench press - 5 x 5

incline smith machine press - 5 x 5

flat flyes - 5 x 5

decline close grip smith press - 5 x 5

cable pushdowns - 3 x 8

wednesday - boxing

thursday - Back + Biceps

Deadlift - 5 x 5 (want to get good at these again)

weighted chins - 5 x 5

Seated dumbell curls - 5 x 5

preacher curl machine - 5 x 10

friday - shoulders + calfs

calf raises - 10 x 10

seated smith machine press - 5 x 5

1 arm hammer strnght press - 5 x 5

lat raises - 3 x 10

saturday + sunday - off

My goal is increased strength

my best lifts are - 140kg bench, 150kg squat, 220kg deadlift (did 3 reps but off the stand so didnt count)

i aim to beat all of these.

also im sorry if this seems like im hijacking your thread. ive gone off on one a bit so i apologise lol.

i hope at least some of this is useful and not toal bollocks rambling.


----------



## Xdge (May 26, 2011)

right, i would say abs are 80% of the time made in the kitchen as well on the streets where you walk through bunch of crap daily.. but having your abs goal perfectly shaped in your head will keep you motivated enough to refuse all this s..*%!!  takes time master abs workout sets, precision, right intesity and focus on exercising its 20% of the game for me.. the way you hit the muscle + a good nutrition plan "Plus" a clear fixed mindset about your goals will delivery you the results and yo're gonna be surprised before than you imagine.. Discipline and knowledge are the Key!! :smartass:


----------



## barsnack (Mar 12, 2011)

Regarding AC's information which was quality by the way, id make one suggestion regarding the 5,000 calories, Irish Raver you should consume nowere near this to lean gain, just add 500calories or slightly more to your maintenance level and you'll be fine, AC is likely alot bigger (going by lifts and avi)


----------



## Ramrod (Jun 15, 2008)

I disagree with some people saying cardio is a must for abs. I have visible abs year round and do no cardio, purely diet manipulation and supplements. Granted this year I have been on GH ED but still believe its attainable without.


----------



## IrishRaver (Feb 4, 2010)

barsnack said:


> Regarding AC's information which was quality by the way, id make one suggestion regarding the 5,000 calories, Irish Raver you should consume nowere near this to lean gain, just add 500calories or slightly more to your maintenance level and you'll be fine, AC is likely alot bigger (going by lifts and avi)


Yeah man. Infact I would seriously recommend he dops some carbs and ups the fat to 150 at least, the primary focus being increase strength. Most of it was good info though.

I'm on 2100 cals, my metabolism couldn't handle any where near 5k. I'm still growing on this and if anything I'll drop it to 1900-1700 if the poundage loss stalls.


----------



## IrishRaver (Feb 4, 2010)

Ramrod said:


> I disagree with some people saying cardio is a must for abs. I have visible abs year round and do no cardio, purely diet manipulation and supplements. Granted this year I have been on GH ED but still believe its attainable without.


For a slice of the population cardio is a must. Obviously it's depending on genetics, diet & supplements (including aas/gh).

I don't have good fat burning genes and don't supplement anything that will aid it.


----------



## Xdge (May 26, 2011)

do more, less or zero cardio differs completely by individual.. surely to learn as much as you can how to keep your body on a anabolic state throughout the day as well what exactly you eat is the key that will make the difference, i believe cardio for cutting is a must mainly when u got a low metabolism rate or thyroid issues or when you don't know how to train and eat properly. just a matter of discipline, self-knowledge and balance with nutrition..

learn about your metabolism, depending of your goals or not go to an endo if you can, take blood, urine, thyroid tests etc.. know how your metabolism is doing right now is very important to plan how you're gonna speed or lower it if its necessary... which kind aas to use as well.. no God given genes works better than knowledge and self-discipline!! has a wealth of info on this category about nutrition and meal plans.. look for aas for cutting too, how to manage them, water retention etc.. blood tests are very important in my point of view at least twices a year...


----------



## IrishRaver (Feb 4, 2010)

Xdge said:


> right, i would say abs are 80% of the time made in the kitchen as well on the streets where you walk through bunch of crap daily.. but having your abs goal perfectly shaped in your head will keep you motivated enough to refuse all this s..*%!!  takes time master abs workout sets, precision, right intesity and focus on exercising its 20% of the game for me.. the way you hit the muscle + a good nutrition plan "Plus" a clear fixed mindset about your goals will delivery you the results and yo're gonna be surprised before than you imagine.. Discipline and knowledge are the Key!! :smartass:


Yeah dude the mindset is a big factor in bodybuilding for me. It's just getting into the right frame of mind is the hard part, but over time it becomes second nature if I'm really focussed.

If my abs are becoming clearer it also means I'm leaning up a bit everywhere else, more definition & vascularity are always good.


----------



## IrishRaver (Feb 4, 2010)

Xdge said:


> do more, less or zero cardio differs completely by individual.. surely to learn as much as you can how to keep your body on a anabolic state throughout the day as well what exactly you eat is the key that will make the difference, i believe cardio for cutting is a must mainly when u got a low metabolism rate or thyroid issues or when you don't know how to train and eat properly. just a matter of discipline, self-knowledge and balance with nutrition..
> 
> learn about your metabolism, depending of your goals or not go to an endo if you can, take blood, urine, thyroid tests etc.. know how your metabolism is doing right now is very important to plan how you're gonna speed or lower it if its necessary... which kind aas to use as well.. no God given genes works better than knowledge and self-discipline!! has a wealth of info on this category about nutrition and meal plans.. look for aas for cutting too, how to manage them, water retention etc.. blood tests are very important in my point of view at least twices a year...


Just like to say I'm 19 & natural. Will be until I'm about 25-27 and the natural test isn't as vibrant.

but yeah, learning about how your body responds is key, took me a while to realise this but once i started with different rep ranges & different macros I quickly coped on.


----------



## progress 25 (Feb 20, 2011)

hi mate i as in the exact position as u i started gettin my abbs then that was it i just tried my best to get the full 6pack however it failed lol i fort i was goin about it the rite way but obviously done somthin wrong i got the weight down but still had a 4pack n feel skinny now, so if i was u id keep ur size goin and lose the fat slowly but correctly, gd luck


----------



## IrishRaver (Feb 4, 2010)

progress 25 said:


> hi mate i as in the exact position as u i started gettin my abbs then that was it i just tried my best to get the full 6pack however it failed lol i fort i was goin about it the rite way but obviously done somthin wrong i got the weight down but still had a 4pack n feel skinny now, so if i was u id keep ur size goin and lose the fat slowly but correctly, gd luck


Yeah I'll keep goin the way I am as I'm obviously still leaning out, cutting out all the crap (well trying to lol) and see how I get along.


----------



## -AC- (Jul 9, 2011)

im really sorry i totally forgot to say ignore the volume of food. it was more or less just an example of types of food i would go for when trying to gain lean mass. im a serious ectomorph and struggle to gain weight on lower calories than that.


----------

