The abdominal area is the core of everyone's physique and is one of the most difficult groups of muscles to develop. It is an area that can contribute to ones whole body strength as well as put the exclamation point on your physique.

Training:

I played competitive soccer for the majority of my life and didn’t start training consistently in the gym until a few years ago. My main goal was to use the gym as an outlet for everyday stressors, but has become a vital part of my everyday routine. I began reading more, learning new exercises, and just becoming a student of lifting. With my majority of my day now consisting of class at OHSU School of Medicine, my lifting routine is compact and intense due to the rigid schedule I now live by. I work out 5 days a week as follows:

Thursday: Back and Abs

Friday: Chest, Shoulders, and 45 min cardio

Saturday: Quads and Hams and Abs

Sunday: Chest, Calves, and 30 min cardio

Monday: Biceps, Triceps, Abs

My sets consist of 4 sets with both of the last two as supersets. This keeps the heart rate up and allows for a bit of cardio while lifting heavy. I pyramid my sets to start at 14 and then to 12, 10, and then as many as I can do on the last set. The only difference in my workout when preparing for a show is I up my rep range to 18 and all else stays the same.

Cardio:

My cardio is very straight forward, consisting of the stationary bike, stair climber, or treadmill. The timing ranges from 40-45 min with variable speeds during that time.

Diet:

I have to say that diet is key to building muscle and reaping the benefits of your hard work. Working out tends to be the easy part and the diet is more difficult. I tend to eat about 6 meals a day with each consisting of some veggies, protein, and carbs. Protein tends to come from chicken, ham, or turkey. Carbs come from baked potatoes or brown rice. I have to say that I eat more for function rather than for pleasure. Also, drink a lot of water!
 

ABS:

In order to obtain a good set of abs you have to check your ego at the door and pay attention to the exercises you do. I hear a lot of people saying that they do 500 crunches everyday and I think that is crazy. If you do them correctly and hit upper, middle, lower abs, and obliques, you should walk away with a solid core. I work out abs 3 times a week with each session consisting of 3 exercises. Each exercise is made up of 4 sets of 15. I pay close attention to the top contraction, breath out during this time to get a tight squeeze, and return back to the starting position. In addition to ab exercises, cardio and diet are just as important. If you combine those three, you will see results. Just stick with it and you will have a six-pack before you now it.