Dr. Bradley Evsich - 6 Weeks to 6-Pack Abs

6 Weeks to 6-Pack Abs

Dr. Bradley Evsich, PT, DPT, ACSM-CPT, CSCS

Palmetto Publishing Group

www.PalmettoPublishingGroup.com

Copyright 2015 Dr. Bradley Evsich, PT, DPT, ACSM-CPT, CSCS

All rights reserved.

Cover Photo by: Tyson Arts at

Instructional Photos & Author Photo by: John Mitchell of BBPics.com

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The mid-section and core of one's body can be divided into muscle groups; the rectus abdominus, the obliques, and the transversus abdominus. The most superficial areas are the rectus abdominus and the obliques (the areas we can see) while the transversus abdominus is a deeper muscle that lies beneath.

The rectus abdominus is the one everyone is most familiar with, it creates the "6-pack" abs. The rectus abdominus runs from the bottom of your sternum and inner portions of ribs 5-7 all the way down to the pelvis at the pubic crest/symphysis. This muscle helps to flex the trunk (bend the spine down and forward in a crunching motion). It can also be "divided" into the upper and lower abdominals. The upper abdominals are near the sternum and aid in bringing the sternum/ribs closer to your pelvis. The lower abdominals are near the pelvis and aid in bringing the pelvis closer to the sternum/ribs. While training the rectus abdominus, you will engage the upper and lower abdominals no matter what but certain exercises can emphasis these portions of the core.

The obliques can be separated into the interior and external obliques. The external obliques run from the front portions of your lower ribs down to the top side of the pelvis (iliac crest) while the internal obliques run from the same areas but lie underneath. The external obliques have fibers that run in the same direction as placing your hands into your pockets while the internal obliques have fibers running in the opposite direction underneath. Both muscles aid in rotation and side bending of the trunk.

The transversus abdominus is the deepest of the core muscles. It acts as a corset around the spine, helping to pull the abdominal wall closer to the spine for stabilization. This muscle is very important in keeping the vertebral column in-line and keeps the core "tight". It also helps develop the "V" lines near the waist line.

In these workouts, you will be working ALL of these muscles together to fully strengthen, develop, and define your mid-section!

There will be 2 different workout selections that will be used totaling 8 exercises for the entire program (8 of my favorite abdominal exercises).

Each workout will include 1 upper abdominal, 1 lower abdominal, 1 oblique, and 1 transversus abdominus exercise for a total of 4 exercises per session.

You will perform 3 abdominal sessions per week, with at least 1 day off between sessions. You can perform them at the end of your workout or as a workout of their own.

Each session will have the same exercises BUT the number of reps, rest periods, and sequences of exercises will be different to keep challenging your abdominals and eliminating a plateau.

There will be 3 phases to this program, each 2 weeks in length for a total of 6 weeks:

• Weeks 1&2 will be the Strength phase, where we will try to strengthen the abdominals to allow you to lift more weight in the future phases. The reps here will be 8-10.
• Weeks 3&4 will be the Hypertrophy phase, where we will try to build up the density and size of the abdominal blocks. The reps here will be 12-15.
• Weeks 5&6 will be the Definition phase, where we will try to etch in detail to the abdominals and obliques. The reps here will be 20-25.

The first session of each phase will have you performing each exercise with 60 seconds rest between sets and 120 seconds rest between exercises. (Here you will perform all the sets for the lower abdominals, then all the sets for obliques, then all the sets for upper abdominals, etc.)

The second session of each phase will have you performing each exercise with 30 seconds rest between sets and 60 seconds rest between exercises. (Here you will perform all the sets for the lower abdominals, then all the sets for obliques, then all the sets for upper abdominals, etc.)

The third session of each phase will have you perform the exercises in a circuit fashion, performing one set of each exercise right after the other and resting 60 seconds between rounds. (Here you will perform 1 set for lower abs, 1 set for obliques, 1 set for upper abs then rest before repeating.)

During each phase, you will try to reach failure at each rep range. If you are supposed to do 8-10 reps, choose a weight or angle that will challenge you and ONLY allow you to perform 8-10 reps with proper form. This is very important. Make note of the weight and angle you used in each session so you can match the weight/angle and try to perform more reps or increase the weight/angle and try to perform the same reps during the next session (this is called progressive overload and forces the muscle to adapt by growing which is what we want!).

The exercises will be explained in the following pages. If you need more information about the exercises, visit