So if you recall, last week I wrote and article which mentioned 5 solid reasons why you need amazing abs. I got a pretty good email response from that one. A few guys were trying to be sneaky little bastards and asking for the promised ab routine before the masses could lay their eyes on it. Pfft… nice try doods. I don’t break that easy.

But fear not, because today the wait is over. I’ll be giving you one solid ab workout that will kick your panties into a world of burnanation. This workout is not easy, but it is scalable according to your difficulty so don’t scurry off and dip your head in shame if you’re a beginner. Also, since this is a big stand-alone ab routine, I suggest you do it on a day other than your normal training day… or you’ll be dying by the end. Let’s begin!

The Jerkdominal Blast

The first thing you need to know is that I don’t do abs conventionally… which is why I have abs that are extraordinary. There is a time and place for doing fast, quick reps but in this routine we will be focusing heavily on a) resistance and b) tempo of the exercise… where appropriate. The rest periods are 15 seconds between exercises.

* – The rep range if you aren’t using any form of extra resistance

Leg Scissors

Lie down on the floor, keeping your hands placed by your side and lift both legs into the starting position. You will then “scissor” your legs without ever letting them touch the floor. Each “scissor” of the legs should take 2 seconds. Just to clarify the motion… say your right leg is down and left leg is up as shown in the pic. If you “scissor”, then your left leg will drop while your right leg goes up… you never hit the starting position again during the exercise.

To make this harder, attach ankle weights to your legs.

Reps: 20 or 30*
Tempo: 2 sec

© Health.com

Decline Crunches With Weight Plate

Lie down on a decline bench, and get yourself a 5, 10 or 25lbs plate. Grab the plate evenly on both sides and tuck it behind your head. A lot of people like putting the plate on their chest… this is complete bullshit. The further away you put the load from the hips (the fulcrum) the higher the resistance is going to be… and the head is as far out as you can go unless you feel like extending your arms out.

Now perform a crunch with a tempo of 211. This means you crunch up for a 1 second count, hold it for a second, then lower yourself for a 2 second count. This will BURN.

Alternatively, you can ditch the plate if you don’t think you can manage but make sure you do-not change the tempo of the exercise.

Reps: 15 or 20*
Tempo: 211

image: chickmagnetstuff.com

Pulse Ups With Ankle Weights

Begin in the same starting position as the Leg Scissors but this time, you are going to keep the legs together and thrust your hips into the air. Ideally, a good “pulse up” leaves you balancing on your shoulders for a split second, after which you come down in a controlled manner. The tempo is 211 which means you pulse up for a 1 second count, hold for 1 second (work that balance) and then lower yourself for a 2 second count.

The images below are actually a really wimpy demonstration of the pulse up. Notice how in the second picture you can barely see any elevation of the hips? Yeah you should be able to see a huge gap between the floor and his hips. This shows you what NOT to do.

Attach ankle weights for added resistance… or if you just think you’re tough enough.

Reps: 30
Tempo: 211

© Men’s Health

Power Wheel

Don’t worry if you don’t own the PowerWheel. You can grab a barbell, attach 2 round 10lbs plates at each end and still perform this exercise. The only downside is that a long-ass barbell is pretty stable, where as the PowerWheel requires  you to work extra hard to keep it stable since the surface area it covers is minimal – resulting in a more challenging workout.

There is not much to this one… just rest on your knees, keep your body alignment as straight as possible (no bending at the hips) and roll yourself out as far as possible. Ideally you should be able to roll out till your upper body, thighs and arms are completely parallel to the floor, but that is difficult to do. What I want you to worry about more than anything is the tempo: 312. You will roll out for a 2 second count, hold it for a second, then roll back for a 3 second count.

Reps: 20
Tempo: 312

V-Snaps (Or V-Ups)

One of my favorites. Lie down on floor keeping your body and arms completely straight. Arms should be extended so they cover your ears from the side. Then do a leg raise while simultaneously reaching up with your arms and try and touch your toes. If you cannot touch your toes, then try for the shins at the minimum. Use a tempo of 211. This means you snap up for a 1 second count, hold the Vsit position for 1 second, then lower yourself back to starting position for a 2 second count.

For added resistance you should either use ankle weights or hold a dumbbell using both hands BUT NOT BOTH. The reason is that if you add an equal amount of weight to both sides, it’s not as challenging than if you keep things a little un-balanced, un-predictable and downright naughty. Oh wait, were talking about working out… yeah skip the naughty. For now.

Reps: 15 or 25*
Tempo: 211

© Bestlifeonline.com

Oblique V Snaps

This is just like the above exercise, accept you are lying down on your side. Now if you keep your body completely straight, this gets difficult because you are resting on your hip bone. This is NOT what you want. Lie down sideways, but keep a slight bend at the hips. You should be balancing yourself on the side of your ass. It’s a little tricky to explain but the rule of thumb is that if it’s uncomfortable, then you are doing it wrong. The only uncomfortable thing about this exercise should be the insane burn you feel… that’s it.

The idea is simple, keep on hand by the ears and the other resting palm down on the floor. Raise your legs up while simultaneously crunching off the floor. Try and touch your elbows to your knees. Make sure you do the required reps for both sides… duh!

(To the generally intelligent reader, I apologize… but over the months I’ve realized that I need to keep my posts as stupid-proof as possible or I’ll get emails asking the most obvious of questions. I don’t mind emails.. but I do mind when it’s sent without applying an ounce of intelligence. Thank you)

The tempo is the same as normal V-Snaps – 211. For added resistance, I suggest a great pair of ankle weights.

Reps: 15 or 20*
Tempo: 211

© Womenshealthmag.com

Conclusion

And there you have it… a kick-ass ab routine that will keep your core strong and elicit some growth in the abdominal muscles – a pretty hard thing to do if you only train your abs in the normal, spastic way. Another thing I should add is that this routine shouldn’t be done everyday, specially if you are using extra resistance. Give your self a day in between. Ideally, if you do it right, 3x a week is plenty. Keep your eating habits decent and your abs will POP.

For those that consider themselves “advanced”… vary the resistance. If you feel that with the given tempo you are shooting wayy past the desired rep range, step your shit up. Add more weight to make it challenging. If that still doesn’t work, INCREASE the tempo.

Cheers… don’t puke now.

- FitJerk