YOUR AB-BUSTING WORKOUT PLAN

Get a stomach flatter than a week-old glass of Prosecco by heeding our words on how to turn that flab into rock

- Matt Kollat

It is a mystery why having a six pack is such a popular idea. If you think about it, there aren’t many occasions when you can display your abs without looking like an absolute egomaniac, apart from on the beach – and who knows when we’ll be able to go there again. Nevertheless, having great abs and a strong core are worthwhile goals when building out your dream fitness plan.

One difficulty working the abs is that they are high load-bearing muscles, meaning you will need to bomb them properly for them to take notice. We use our abs very often during everyday life, unlike – let’s say – the lats, so while lats can be worked relatively easily, you’ll need to do longer sets and more reps to build an exceptional six pack.

Most of the best abs exercises for beginners overleaf don’t require much equipment and can be done at home. Saying that, you will be down on the floor for all of them, so a yoga mat could come in handy, especially if your abode has hard flooring. Also, for one of the these exercises, you will need a resistance band and something to attach it to, which doesn’t have to be a pull-up bar: a coat hook might do.

YOUR TIMETABLE FOR BUILDING FAB ABS

AB CRUNCHES

30 seconds x 3

Crunches are not the best abs exercises, as has been proved in recent years. Yet, done correctly, ab crunches can get your abdominal muscles used to contraction, priming them for ‘proper’ abs exercises.