I want really sharp abs

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neoabraxas

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I've been eating clean for about six months and started going to the gym on a regular basis. Prior to 2008 I was very undisciplined over the last 15 years or so. I used to practise martial arts as a teenager but I emigrated at around 18 yo and never stepped into the gym until I turned 32 :(.

I go to the gym once a day and always do the same thing. 20 minutes of cardio on the treadmill followed by about 30 minutes of weights followed by additional 20 minutes of exercise with my bod mass alone (i.e. push-ups, squats, ab crunches etc)

I eat a fairly low carb diet (I use something called the caveman's diet) which includes only unprocessed foods and no grains, beans, diary, eggs or any other foods invented after the agricultural revolution some 10,000 years ago.

I supplement aggressively but not for body sculpture. I take supplements to stay youthful and stave off aging. I take the following once/twice daily: Resveratrol, Triple Fish Oil, Green Tea extract, Multivitamin and sometimes B-Complex.

I'm not particularly interested in having large muscle mass but I do want less body fat and better defined abs. Always wanted a "six pack" but never managed to achieve it. I do think I have strong abs (I used to do 1,000+ ab crunches as a teen) but they are barely showing from the excess body fat. I lost some weight already thanks to my caveman diet but the progress is very slow (I lost about 5kg over six months). I'm tempted to start restricting calories (so far I have not) but I'm worried that if I eat less than I crave I'll get really grumpy, start binging and eventually yo-yo back to my starting weight or even worse.

Another thing I do want to build up is my chest. I'm not naturally wide in my chest (I'm flexing a bit in that picture) and I'm not sure what to do to make progress there. I do bench press and really try to give it my best at the gym but the results are slow in the making (IMHO).

Here's where I'm at now:
32.5 years old, 179cm height, 80.5kg weight no idea about %bf

Thoughts?
 
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You really only have 2 choices if you want to lower body fat. You either got to lengthen your 20 minute cardio sessions until you start seeing results, or go on a slight calorie deficit for several weeks.

Another tip, if you want to make your chest look better. Shave the hair. I just shaved my chest hair recently before vacationing and it made a huge difference once i could see the pec seperation.
 
Thanks Phate89,
I'll shave the chest hair for the next picture (I've started taking them weekly now - so far I have 3 pics).

In order to develop my chest (make myself more trapezoid) will I have to bulk? I'm quite scared of the idea of bulking because for me packing on pounds has always been far easier than losing them and losing fat has always been a chore and a lengthy process.
 
You'd have to eat more, yea. But if you are going to "bulk" don't eat too much more, and if you see yourself gaining un necessary fat, increase cardio.
 
Update one month later

I've been going to the gym less frequently (due to vacation trips) but kept my weight in check by watching what I eat. This is the latest pic. I think there is less fat overall but it might be just wishful thinking:
 
I think the abs look a little bit more defined, but that may just be the lighting.

How much weight have you lost?
 
About 1kg which is just over 2lbs

EDIT. Actually less than 1kg. The scales showed 79.8 this morning down from 80.5 a month ago.
 
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Yea not much progress if your goal is to lose body fat.

Are you counting calories?
Are you eating in a deficit?
Are you training consistently?
Are you watching the carb intake? Especially in the evenings?
 
Are you counting calories?

Kinda. But I eat a lot of self made meals so I can't just check the package label. It's all very rough.

Are you eating in a deficit?

I'm probably just under my burn rate.

Are you training consistently?

Last couple of weeks have been crap. I was on vacation the week before and hellishly busy at the office last week (the usual post-vacation pileup). Hope to get back to my routine next week.

Are you watching the carb intake? Especially in the evenings?

I do avoid carbs. Again I slipped a bit while on vacations but I'm generally disciplined about avoiding carbs.
 
You look less hairy.

I would say keep going at it, but turn up the dedication to 150% to what you're doing now, it'll come quicker. Count those calories, burn that fat and most of all continue wearing only black clothing.
 
neoabraxas said:
I eat a fairly low carb diet (I use something called the caveman's diet) which includes only unprocessed foods and no grains, beans, diary, eggs or any other foods invented after the agricultural revolution some 10,000 years ago.
Click to expand...

In what way does cutting out things like eggs, dairy and grains sound like a good idea?!?! For a start, people living 10,000 years ago were lucky to live past their teen years, why do people assume their diet was healthier?

Cut the fad diet, eat properly and just stick to a calorie deficit if you want abs that badly
 
"For a start, people living 10,000 years ago were lucky to live past their teen years, why do people assume their diet was healthier?"

That's what I always wondered about the caveman diet. In fact a quick search on wikipedia (Paleolithic diet - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) shows that's the #1 criticism of it.

I see how it would work though - it's low carb, involves a lot of protein and healthy fat - no wonder people see results. Also, while the logic of this diet is clearly simplistic, it's also what gives it its charm - ie it's very easy to follow (ie, at the market, no need wonder 'should I buy this or not' for hours and look at labels).
 
For what it's worth, I think you look really good considering you haven't been doing this for very long.

I'd take Phate's advice and keep working at it. Eventually the fat will come off.
 
A quick search on wikipedia shows that much of what's on wikipedia is made up. That paleolithic stuff is pretty silly, though.

Re: the OP, you are doing just fine. As others have said, less bodyfat = more abs showing. The way to decrease your bodyfat = be in a caloric deficit. The way to know you're in a caloric deficit = track your intake. The way to track your intake = or similar.

Okay, good talk.
 
[Focus] said:
A quick search on wikipedia shows that much of what's on wikipedia is made up. That paleolithic stuff is pretty silly, though.

Re: the OP, you are doing just fine. As others have said, less bodyfat = more abs showing. The way to decrease your bodyfat = be in a caloric deficit. The way to know you're in a caloric deficit = track your intake. The way to track your intake = or similar.

Okay, good talk.
Click to expand...

You forgot the man to man ass slap while saying see you out there.
 
[Focus] said:
A quick search on wikipedia shows that much of what's on wikipedia is made up. That paleolithic stuff is pretty silly, though.
Click to expand...

I've actually changed Wikipedia information with insane stuff. Eventually it gets changed back, though, much to my dismay. But I have been known to wreak havoc on there :D

I think I was born with my stars ill-placed.
 
Typhon said:
In what way does cutting out things like eggs, dairy and grains sound like a good idea?!?! For a start, people living 10,000 years ago were lucky to live past their teen years, why do people assume their diet was healthier?

Cut the fad diet, eat properly and just stick to a calorie deficit if you want abs that badly
Click to expand...

People living 10,000 years ago didn't have the medicine we have today guys. Simple to cure things today were huge back then, that's why people didn't live long. A small cut, a simple infection and you were dead in a month. Things have changed since then for the better but can we trully say the same thing for our diet? Refined sugars, obesity, type 2 diabetes...have you seen the conditions chickens live in before they reach our table? Believe me you're gonna throw up. Don't dismiss diets so fast; dig deeper
 
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I`m gonna go against the grain here....to the OP bulk up man.

As for 10,00 years ago the diet was spot on ,(nuts, grains ,veg ,lean meat fish)

As for their fitness ...eat to live not live to eat.

So what if thy died at 25.....it`s better to burn out than fade away***




























*** QUOTE the Kurgan/Clancey Brown......Highlander
 
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