An Interview by Geovanni Derice
Fitness Coach Reveals Fat Loss Secrets for Flat Six Pack Abs
By Mike Geary
Founder, TruthAboutAbs.comGD: Welcome Mike Geary to 4everToned's Fitness Journal. For those who don't know you, please tell us a few things about yourself.
MG: Thanks, Geo. Well, as a little personal history, I've been deeply involved with fitness and sports for almost 15 years. Sports in high school sparked my interest in strength training and conditioning and that's when I gained more energy, started getting stronger, and ended up looking better. In fact, I was then hooked for life on exercise. I'm 30 now and still committed to living a healthy and maintaining a fitness level that keeps me energetic, confident, strong, and young.
I decided in my 20's to commit to helping other people experience the benefits of being fit and getting in the best shape of their lives. I get a lot of satisfaction from helping others who have struggled to get in good shape. I really enjoy showing them that it can be done and that it can be fun to do it.
GD: Mike, what are the top three ways to build six-pack abs?
MG: First, you have to clean up your diet. Exercise is important, too, but diet is critical for losing body fat. Remember, you can't see your abs without losing body fat first.
There's a lot of confusion regarding the relationship between a healthy diet and fat loss. There's so much contradictory information, that the average Joe or Jane doesn't have a clue as where to start when it comes to eating and fat loss.
The second most important thing for building six-lack abs involves focusing on workout intensity. You have to work the whole body to boost metabolism to get rid of that stubborn stomach fat. The leanest body will come from high intensity workouts with short rest periods. And you'll focus on the body's largest mucles groups reather than isolating smaller muscles like tricepts, biceps, or calves.
Thirdly, you have to focus on your abs specifically. Forget about crunches and situps if you want fantastic abs. Those exercises are acceptable for someone in really bad shape, but crunches won't cut the mustard for most men and women who are already serious about fitness. Crunches just don't provide much resistance; and resistance is key to developing and toning muscles..
I provide a multitude of great abs exercises in my book, but here I'll recommended hanging leg raises. The key to properly doing hanging leg raises (unlike the way they're done at the typical gym) to actually work the tar out of your abs involves curling your pelvis up as you raise your legs. To be honest, themost people can't properly do hanging leg raises at first, but I provide strategies in my book on how to do them correctly.
GD: What the main mistake people make when it comes to developing "6 pack abs"?
MG: This'll probably sound funny, but the MAIN thing is that most people spend way too much time focusing on ab training!
Don't forget the key point: to have flat, six pack abs you must also have a low body fat percentage. Consequently, workouts have to focus on generating a fat-burning hormonal environment in your body which will increase your metabolism. And that won't happen if you're mainly focused on training a small muscle group like the abs.
Instead, concentrate on workouts involving the large muscle groups of the body -- legs, back, and chest. Exercising these groups will fire up your metabolism and generate fat-burning hormones that lead to a lean body as well as a flat six pack of abdominal muscles!
GD: Which exercises do you recommend for gaining maximum abs defintion?
MG: Simple. Several kinds of hanging abs exercises, and a variety of good floor abs exercises like lying leg thrusts (all described and illustrated in my book).
But keep this in mind: maximum abs and midsection definition comes from losing body fat. The best exercises for that goal include swings and snatches (unique dumb bell or kettlebell exercises rarely seen in typical gyms), deadlifts, mountain climbers, squats, step-ups, clean & presses, lunges, sprinting, as well as other body weight exercises and calisthenics. If you want flat six-pack abs, focus on the above exercises instead of concentrating so much on training the abs specifically!
GD: Mike, what diet recommendations do you use with your clients so they can lose fat and keep it off?
MG: My flat abs book features a comprehensive discussion of diet - almost half the content, in fact - but let me share here a few generalizations. The most important thing regarding diet is to eat as naturally as possible. Concentrate on whole, unprocessed foods. You can't build a lean body with flat abs on processed foods because they wreck your metabolism and upset the natural hormone balance in your body.
For example, eat whole grains instead of dead, processed, refined grains. Why eat white sugar when whole fruits provide the natural sweetness of sugar along with a high nutrient and mineral content? Avoid highly processed and hydrogenated vegetable oils, which are absolutely THE worst thing in the modern diet. Instead, consume natural sources of healthy fats like nuts, avocados, sardines, free-range eggs, coconut milk, grass-fed beef, free-range chicken, and so on.
And for Pete's sake, don't fall for the gimmick diets like low carbs, low fat, high protein, or any other combination that zeroes in on one macronutrient vs. another.
Your body needs a full range of whole foods from both plant and animal kingdoms to thrive in maximum health. Avoiding an entire food group doesn't make any sense, does it?
GD: Thanks, Mike.
Note from Chet: I trust you enjoyed this interview. I know if you put to work the exercises Mike mentioned above, you'll have six pack abs in no time. If you don't already own a copy, you should rush to Mike's website to buy his Truth about Six Pack Abs book because in it he lays out an entire system you can use to rid yourself of extra abs fat for good!
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