What is The Best Abdominal Exercise to Get Six Pack Abs?

I often get asked what the best abdominal exercise is to get six pack abs. Here is my answer every time…

There isn't an abdominal exercise that can be considered the best!

Having a ripped midsection is much more a result of having a low body fat level…not about working your abs with a particular lift. What kills me is that I see personal trainers taking their clients through all sorts of crunching exercises to "really hit their midsection".

Let's take a look at a diagram…

The main part of the ab muscle is the rectus abdominis. It is actually one big muscle that is segmented by tendons. The definition you see in someone with six pack abs, is a result of the tendons crossing over the main ab muscle. All of us have these tendons that crisscross the ab muscle. If you were to get below 10% body fat, you will see the effect of these tendons…which creates that washboard look. You would be able to see this, even if you didn't do a single ab exercise!

I would say that 90% of having six pack abs is being at a low enough body fat percentage. Maybe 10% is by working the ab muscle directly with various types of crunches and leg lifts. My advice is to hit cardio hard and watch your diet if you want great abs.

I will reveal my detailed ab workout in another post…I just wanted to make sure everyone understood the big picture of what it takes to get nice six pack abs. If I HAD to give an answer to the question of…the best abdominal exercise, I would have to say all the various cardio machines in the gym.

Tags: Six Pack Abs, abdominal exercise, best abdominal exercise, burn stomach fat, cardio, flat stomach, low body fat, muscle definition, six pack abs