Why exercise first thing in the morning? You burn 300% more body fat if you exercise (this applies to both cardio and weight training) first thing in the morning than opposed to exercising at any other time.

Drink only water before, during and after the training sessions. If you want to burn more fat, do not eat anything until an hour after the training session has ended.

#2 - You Need To Shape Up Your Abdominal Muscles

You shape up your abdominals by doing abdominal exercises such as crunches (for the upper abdomen) and leg raises (for the lower abdomen).

Now that we know what the rules to getting nice abs are, lets see how to put all of the information above together in a plan that would suit well for a beginner and a person whose goal is to be toned and in shape.

The Workouts

Weeks 1-4 

Monday, Wednesday, Friday 

Weight Training 

Equipment Needed: A pair of dumbbells and a lot of determination

1.       Pushups (Against the wall if cannot be performed yet on the floor) 2 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

2.       Two Arm Dumbbell Rows 2 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

3.       Flat Dumbbell Bench Press on the Floor 2 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

4.       One Arm Row 2 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

5.       Shoulder Overhead Press 2 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

6.       Bent Over Laterals 2 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

7.       Dumbbell Curls 2 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

8.       Overhead Triceps Extensions 2 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

9.       Dumbbell Squats 2 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

10.    Stiff Legged Dead lifts 2 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest) (Skip if you have lower back problems)

11.    Lunges 2 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

12.    Calf Raises 2 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday 

Abs 

1.       Crunches 3 sets of Maximum amount of reps that you can perform in good form (30 seconds)

2.       Leg Raises 3 sets of Maximum amount of reps that you can perform in good form (30 seconds)

Cardio 

1.       10 minutes of cardio in the fat burning zone (fast walking, bike riding, stair stepper etc..)

Weeks 5-8 

Monday, Wednesday, Friday 

Weight Training 

Equipment Needed: A pair of dumbbells and a lot of determination

• Superset:

1.       Pushups (Against the wall if cannot be performed yet on the floor) 2 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest)

2.       Two Arm Dumbbell Rows 2 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

• Superset:

1.       Flat Dumbbell Bench Press on the Floor 2 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest)

2.       One Arm Row 2 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

• Superset:

1.       Shoulder Overhead Press 2 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest)

2.       Bent Over Laterals 2 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

• Superset:

1.       Dumbbell Curls 2 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest)

2.       Overhead Triceps Extensions 2 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

• Triset:

1.       Dumbbell Squats 2 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest)

2.       Stiff Legged Dead lifts 2 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest) (Skip if you have lower back problems)

3.       Lunges 2 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest) (Single Set)

4.       Calf Raises 2 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday 

Abs 

• Superset:

1.       Crunches 3 sets of Maximum amount of reps that you can perform in good form (30 second rest)

2.       Leg Raises 3 sets of Maximum amount of reps that you can perform in good form (30 second rest)

Cardio 

1.       15 minutes of cardio in the fat burning zone (fast walking, bike riding, cardio video, etc..)

Weeks 9-12 

Monday, Wednesday, Friday 

Weight Training 

Equipment Needed: A pair of dumbbells and a lot of determination

• Superset:

1.       Pushups (Against the wall if cannot be performed yet on the floor) 3 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest)

2.       Two Arm Dumbbell Rows 3 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

• Superset:

1.       Flat Dumbbell Bench Press on the Floor 3 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest)

2.       One Arm Row 3 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

• Superset:

1.       Shoulder Overhead Press 3 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest)

2.       Bent Over Laterals 3 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

• Superset:

1.       Dumbbell Curls 3 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest)

2.       Overhead Triceps Extensions 3 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

• Giant set:

1.       Dumbbell Squats 3 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest)

2.       Stiff Legged Dead lifts 3 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest) (Skip if you have lower back problems)

3.       Lunges 3 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest)

4.       Calf Raises 3 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday 

Abs 

• Superset:

1.       Crunches 4 sets of Maximum amount of reps that you can perform in good form (no rest)

2.       Leg Raises 4 sets of Maximum amount of reps that you can perform in good form (30 second rest)

Cardio 

1.       20 minutes of cardio in the fat burning zone (fast walking, bike riding, cardio video, etc..)

The routine above will improve the shape of your body and your abdominal muscles dramatically. If you notice, all routines are very fast paced which is something that saves time, improves cardiovascular conditioning, increases the metabolism and burns fat.

It also assumes that you have never exercised before in your life and that is why it starts out at a lower intensity in the first four weeks and then it starts to build up from there.

What if you are an intermediate trainer and want to use this program. If this is your case you can adapt the program to your fitness level by using the routine from weeks 9-12 for your first 4 weeks, Weeks 1-4.

For weeks 5-8 you can do everything as giant sets. For instance

Weeks 5-8 

Monday, Wednesday, Friday 

Weight Training 

Equipment Needed: A pair of dumbbells and a lot of determination

• Giant set:

1.       Pushups (Against the wall if cannot be performed yet on the floor) 3 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest)

2.       Two Arm Dumbbell Rows 3 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest)

3.       Flat Dumbbell Bench Press on the Floor 3 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest)

4.       One Arm Row 3 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

• Giant set:

1.       Shoulder Overhead Press 3 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest)

2.       Bent Over Laterals 3 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest)

3.       Dumbbell Curls 3 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest)

4.       Overhead Triceps Extensions 3 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

• Giant set:

1.       Dumbbell Squats 3 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest)

2.       Stiff Legged Dead lifts 3 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest) (Skip if you have lower back problems)

3.       Lunges 3 sets of 10-15 reps (no rest)

4.       Calf Raises 3 sets of 10-15 reps (30 second rest)

For Cardio and Abs day, just add 5 more minutes to the Cardio (making it 25 minutes long now) and for Abs add a third exercise (your favorite ab exercise; other than crunches and leg raises).

For example:

Frock Kicks 2 sets of Maximum amount of reps that you can perform in good form (30 second rest)

Superset:

Crunches 4 sets of Maximum amount of reps that you can perform in good form (no rest)

Leg Raises 4 sets of Maximum amount of reps that you can perform in good form (30 second rest)

Finally for weeks 9-12, you can add 1 more set to each exercise of your weight training routine. Also 5 more minutes of cardio and finally 2 more sets to the new abdominal exercise (and optionally do all ab exercises as a triset).

Questions And Answers On The Routines Above

Will I get my Abs in 12 weeks? 

That depends on the amount of body fat that you need to lose. If you need to lose an appreciable amount it may take longer than that. Shoot for a 2 pound fat loss per week. Don't be disappointed is this is your case.

Think about it, you will look the same or worse in 12 weeks if you don't do anything about it. By following the programs above you are guaranteed to look better (provided you also follow the nutrition portion; Go to the nutrition articles for nutrition advice)

Can I discontinue the program after 12 weeks and go back to my old habit? 

Sorry. It does not work that way. Do that and you will go back to your old looks.

What should I do after 12 weeks? 

If you performed the beginner program then jump onto the Intermediate one. If you performed the Intermediate one, you may go back to weeks 1-4 and start again. You have the option of substituting exercises if you have the equipment available.

The routine above is for people that just want to tone up. I am an advanced bodybuilder. What should I do? 

Basically adapt the principles presented above to your own training scheme. Introduce supersets and Giant sets in a gradual manner to your own routine, increase the repetitions to a 10-12 rep range, introduce cardiovascular exercise to your routine (no more than 30 minutes 3 times a week as in my opinion, any more than this and you risk losing muscle), and of course, train your abs hard and follow your diet.

Well, I hope this answers the "how do I get nice abs" question once and for all. Remember, don't let anybody fool you. Nice abs are a result of diet, weight training and cardiovascular exercise all put together in a sensible and practical program. Now that you have such program go ahead and get your Abs.

Take Care and Train Hard!