One of the most asked questions I get is how can i get abs or how can I get my abs to pop up. Although the answer to the question is quite simple, I’ll still be discussing with you the ways that will help you get as close to it as possible, regardless of your weight or size.

Be Positive but Stay Realistic

Are you someone skinny or someone overweight? The time it would take for you to get abs completely depends on you being realistic. If your question is , how can I get abs in two weeks when you are extremely overweight? That is not being realistic. That time limit that you have put on yourself is an unrealistic expectation. Yes, you can lose weight and have abs or be extremely close to it based on your genetics, as you have more fat cells in your body. Which makes your hunger spike more than it would for someone skinny. This doesn’t mean its impossible, just harder.

If you are skinny and don’t already have abs, then you have one of the two conditions, which are that you  either have skinny belly fat or just don’t have enough muscle on your frame at all. You need to be realistic about the fact that if you have skinny belly fat, no amount of crunches or abs exercises will get you abs. If your just skinny and have no fat or muscle. Incorporating some ab workouts will be beneficial in such a case.

Training

You can skip this part if you don’t want to lift free weights at home or at the gym. In short, any resistance-based training, but know how important it is and how it helps facilitate weight loss and ultimately get you the abs that you want. Like every other muscle, your abs need to be trained as well. When you train your abs for hypotrophy using time under tension. They will grow just like every other muscle.

Now there is a question I get all the time “what if my abs get bulky?” truth is they can’t as the abs are not that huge of a muscle as compared to your quads, back or biceps. Train your abs with exercises you enjoy and you can better feel your core. Some examples of core exercises: crunches, incline reverse crunch, decline crunches and Russian twists. These exercises can be done at the gym or at home and are easier for beginners. If your too strong for them. Here are some harder exercises that will be better for you.

• Get an ab roller and do wheel crunches with proper form, as that is an excellent way to engage your core and build abs. Mind you, if done properly, wheel crunches are quite difficult as they engage your entire core.
• Get a pull-up bar if at home and do hanging crunches on it. The effect on your core in this exercise is maximum as well. The force of gravity from the ground up acts as resistance for your abs, allowing you to progressively overload your abs just like you would any other muscle.
• Get a dumbbell and do dumbbell crunches to add more resistance to your crunches to progressively overload your abs.

If you are not going to join the gym, make these little investments and train effectively.

Get in a caloric deficit

You need to burn more calories than you consume. Eat lower calorie foods, incorporate cardio in your routine such as jogging, walking, hiking, biking etc. Anything that is not HIIT cardio and can be done with ease and for longer periods of time will help you lose weight without exhausting you. Try to start doing a 30 min jog or walk and build up to an hour of it. That is going to be a good start to you losing weight and will boost your metabolism, allowing you to burn more calories throughout the day.

You also need to realize you cannot severely restrict your calories whether you are skinny or overweight. Drastically restricting your calories will lower your energy levels and you will lose muscle as well. Severe dieting can also lead to anorexia (fear of gaining weight), which is not good for your mental or physical health as it can lead to starvation. The two week or three week time limits people put on them most of the time result in a short-lived result or a mental health concern. That is why it’s always advised to take it slow and steady.

The Diet

Eating healthy foods that have too many calories or eating less foods that are calorically dense will not allow you to lose weight. You need to eat low-calorie clean foods . Things that satiate hunger while being low in calories. Most clean food protein sources like chicken, eggs etc. are fewer calories and more filling. Adding vegetables to your diet is another healthier and lower calorie choice which satiates hunger as well.

Add fiber to your diet and try to eat more fiber-rich snacks if your goal is to get abs. An example would be popcorn. Do not make your popcorn in butter and oils and make it calorically dense. Air fry them. If you don’t have an air fryer, you can microwave them and save yourself hundreds of calories.

Few good choices to snack on are a banana and a pear. Both of which are high in fiber and fulfilling. But a pear is an excellent source of fiber even compared to a banana which does have some carbs. A pear is not only healthy for your heart and gut health. It is a fibrous fruit that will not only satisfy your sweet tooth but help you stay full longer. When your goals are to have visible abs choices like these, not only are more sustainable. They are more appetizing as you cannot stay on a diet you won’t like for a long term. You need to find what foods, whether fruits or vegetables, you find palatable and are lower in calories to add them to your diet.

When can you expect to see changes

The time it would take for you to see visible abs is entirely based on these fundamental things.

• Your weight. If you’re on a skinnier side, the progress will be faster than if you were overweight. That should not discourage you as it’s just as possible for you to build up to it just with more time.
• Your diet is the biggest factor in getting visible abs and has to be on point. If you end up eating too much one day, it’s fine. Try to do better the next day. Remember weight loss or building muscle are both a marathon not a race.
• One of the things that will determine how fast you get your abs to be visible is genetics. Some people store more fat in their arms and less in their stomach. Some store more in their quads and faces. Some just in their stomach. Based on how your genetics are, it might take you less or more time to achieve your goal. Nevertheless, it should not discourage you as long as you stay realistic about it. You can achieve it or be as close to it as possible for you.
• No amount of 10-minute ab burning workout or tricks will get you the results you need unless you understand how weight loss actually works for you. It won’t happen.

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