The Abs Initiative

If Abs are the most popular of all vanity muscles the world over, why did it take an aging superstar to show us that Indians can develop chiselled six-packs as well? The answer is simple: vanity thrives on compliments, and up until recently, only those muscles that were easily noticeable through our T-shirts (read: arms and chest) got all the attention!

Today’s column feeds the newfound respect every gym-goer has found for Vanity Muscle #1: abs! To some extent, Men’s Health may be the one to blame, for we started advertising six-pack abs on our covers almost a year before Shah Rukh Khan underwent his transformation. It’s a good thing, too, for a solid core is the foundation for a strong body and healthy mind. Here’s a myth-busting session that hopes to set you on the right track…

MYTH #1: Indians can’t have abs!
Bosnia-born, Delhi-based fitness expert and regular Men’s Health contributor Vesna P. Jacob says: “In the land of curries, paranthas and ghee, where the potbelly was once a symbol of prosperity, this is the king of fitness myths. By this logic, shouldn’t the beer-swilling Germans—think Oktoberfest—be absolutely unable to develop a six-pack?” The truth is that all of us have abdominal muscles; we just need to figure out a way to lower our body fat percentage, get rid of the fat that covers them, and then enjoy the results.

MYTH #2: 500 crunches a day will get you a six-pack!
Over-training your abs is one of the most common gym mistakes. Like any other muscle group, your abdominals can take X amount of exertion, and any training after that is rendered useless. Stick to three sets of 25 crunches, do them right after a heavy cardio workout, and alternate these with leg raises every other day. For the average person, this is quite enough.

MYTH #3: Exercise alone will get me the six-pack
Sorry, but for abs, proper nutrition is crucial. Small, high-protein, lowfat meals through the day work best. Rule of the thumb: divide your stomach into three compartments, keep one portion full with solid food, the second with liquid (mostly water), and leave the third portion empty.

MYTH #4: Working out your abs can harm your back
Leave alone abs, if you do not stick to proper form while doing any exercise, you stand to harm yourself. A bigger problem here is that in all their enthusiasm, people tend to overtrain, expecting the abs to pop quicker. The solution: correct the form and take help from a trainer for the first few times. Also see ‘Perfect your hanging leg raise’ below.

MYTH #5: Six-packs are the ultimate symbol of fitness
Sadly, this is not true. All a chiselled six-pack, or eight-pack, shows is that you’ve got terribly low body fat percentage! It is, however, a great ego-booster, and the ultimate tool to impress anyone!

Ask the MH guy…

Q. Is it better to do cardio after my weights workout or before? Anil Vaish, Mumbai
A. Ideally, you should do your cardio right after your lifting, never prior to that. Cardio fatigues muscles, leaving them too tired to do strength training to the best of your ability. Doing cardio with a fatigued body, on the other hand, doesn’t matter because you’re going for heart-rate response, not speed. If, however, you are training for a marathon, looking at building running speed and stamina, or simply looking to kick off your metabolism in the morning, do cardio first, and keep the weight-training for the evening,
or the next day!

Perfect your hanging leg raise
Grab a chin-up bar with an overhand grip with your hands slightly wider than shoulder width. Simultaneously, bend your knees, raise your hips, and curl your lower back underneath you as you lift your thighs towards your chest. Pause for a second when the fronts of your thighs reach your chest, then lower your legs and repeat again.

Three most common mistakes:
Mistake:1
a) Using momentum. Try staring straight ahead at all times -it will help your body stay upright.

Mistake:2
b) Simply bending your knees and lifting your legs up. Instead, imagine scooping your hips up and forward.

Mistake:3
c) Leaning backward. Your shoulders should remain in place or round forward slightly.

Jamal Shaikh is Editor, Men’s Health.
Got a question or a comment? Write in to jamal.shaikh@intoday.com