Wherever you look these days, there are numerous types of ab exercises being touted as the next best thing.
And most of them are wrong.
Sit ups, for example, are often discussed as a great way to work on your stomach and develop your six pack.
But in fact they are a horrible ab exercise compared with other, far more effective ab exercises.
There are no easy shortcuts to getting six pack abs, you will have to work hard and put in some time at the gym.
But there are several exercises that you can do to stand out from the rest.
Assuming you're already in decent shape (since nobody will notice your abs if you have a layer of fat on top of your stomach), the gym exercise that activates your ab muscles the most is a simple weighted squat.
Challenge yourself by lifting heavy and as much as you can for 4-6 reps.
Your abs will need to contract very hard to stabilize your body.
It does not matter if you do a front squat or a back squat (holding the bar in front of you or behind you).
The most important aspect of this gym workout from an abs perspective is to lift heavy weight.
Another old fashioned exercise that works is the plank.
This is a simple exercise that also targets other aspects of your core like your obliques and lower back.
There is virtually no risk for injury with this exercise so you can do it several days in a row.
Work up to 3-5 sets of 1-2 minutes.
For added difficulty you can do side planks.
When you really want to take it to the next level, lift one arm or leg off the ground in the plank position.
My personal favorite ab exercise is called the V-Up and it requires a medicine ball.
You don't need an especially heavy med ball because this is a difficult exercise.
Lay on your back holding the med ball on the ground behind your head.
Lift your feet and your arms while holding the med ball until they touch above your torso.
You will be doing a reverse crunch with your arms straight up in the air holding the med ball.
I like to do three sets of ten reps.
By using these exercises in a high quality ab workout, you will sculpt your abs and be on your way to getting ripped.
And most of them are wrong.
Sit ups, for example, are often discussed as a great way to work on your stomach and develop your six pack.
But in fact they are a horrible ab exercise compared with other, far more effective ab exercises.
There are no easy shortcuts to getting six pack abs, you will have to work hard and put in some time at the gym.
But there are several exercises that you can do to stand out from the rest.
Assuming you're already in decent shape (since nobody will notice your abs if you have a layer of fat on top of your stomach), the gym exercise that activates your ab muscles the most is a simple weighted squat.
Challenge yourself by lifting heavy and as much as you can for 4-6 reps.
Your abs will need to contract very hard to stabilize your body.
It does not matter if you do a front squat or a back squat (holding the bar in front of you or behind you).
The most important aspect of this gym workout from an abs perspective is to lift heavy weight.
Another old fashioned exercise that works is the plank.
This is a simple exercise that also targets other aspects of your core like your obliques and lower back.
There is virtually no risk for injury with this exercise so you can do it several days in a row.
Work up to 3-5 sets of 1-2 minutes.
For added difficulty you can do side planks.
When you really want to take it to the next level, lift one arm or leg off the ground in the plank position.
My personal favorite ab exercise is called the V-Up and it requires a medicine ball.
You don't need an especially heavy med ball because this is a difficult exercise.
Lay on your back holding the med ball on the ground behind your head.
Lift your feet and your arms while holding the med ball until they touch above your torso.
You will be doing a reverse crunch with your arms straight up in the air holding the med ball.
I like to do three sets of ten reps.
By using these exercises in a high quality ab workout, you will sculpt your abs and be on your way to getting ripped.