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This e-book has been specially created for CSX customers who have purchased a CSX

Dual Ab Roller Wheel with Knee Mat. We would like to help all of our customers get the

most from their Ab Roller no matter what their fitness level.

Patrick Dale, renowned fitness writer, ex-marine, fitness trainer and author of three

fitness books has created this simple step by step programme which you can follow to

provide the best core exercises to strengthen, tone, flatten your belly and develop your

six pack.

This book doesn’t make extreme promises like getting ripped abs in 6 days, doesn’t

recommend crazy diets that you’re dying to stop within a week, and there isn’t a lot of

technical mumbo-jumbo. Follow the book through step by step and don’t be tempted to

skip ahead, each section builds on the previous skills and strength developed and will

set you up for optimum success towards a six pack in a healthy way.

Please feel free to share this e-book with anyone you think would enjoy it!

To find out more about our CSX products please visit: www.csxpro.com

If you have any questions or have any support issues please do not hesitate to contact

us at: www.csxprosupport.com

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5

Safety – Please Read Before Exercising

IMPORTANT – Before starting any form of exercise program, consult your doctor or

therapist. If at any time during your exercise you experience discomfort or pain, stop the

exercise immediately and consult your doctor.

Always Warm up – Cool down and stretch before and after exercising. This will help

prevent straining muscles.


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Contents

1) Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 9

2) Anatomy and Functionality ........................................................................................... 12

Key terminology in this e-book ...................................................................................... 12

What is the core? ........................................................................................................... 13

The deep layer ............................................................................................................... 13

The middle layer ............................................................................................................ 13

How to brace ................................................................................................................. 14

Muscles of the inner unit ............................................................................................... 14

The outer layer .............................................................................................................. 15

Muscle Actions ............................................................................................................... 16

3) Considerations, Myths and Mistakes of Core Training ................................................. 17

4) How to Use Your Ab Roller ............................................................................................ 22

1. Kneeling plank............................................................................................................ 22

2. Regular plank ............................................................................................................. 23

3. Hard style plank ......................................................................................................... 23

4. Press-up plank ........................................................................................................... 24

5. Extended plank .......................................................................................................... 24

Kneeling rollout ............................................................................................................. 25

Adaptations.................................................................................................................... 25

Using a wall .................................................................................................................... 25

Negatives ....................................................................................................................... 25

Static holds .................................................................................................................... 25

Uphill .............................................................................................................................. 26

Downhill ......................................................................................................................... 26

Weighted ....................................................................................................................... 26

Multi-directional rollouts .............................................................................................. 26

Standing ab wheel rollouts ............................................................................................ 26


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Training volume and intensity ....................................................................................... 27

5) Introductory Programme – Mastering Your Ab Roller .................................................. 28

Warming up ................................................................................................................... 28

Your four week introductory program .......................................................................... 38

Exercise instructions ...................................................................................................... 39

Programme notes .......................................................................................................... 41

6) Fat Burning Workouts ................................................................................................... 48

1. 50-meter sprints ........................................................................................................ 48

2. 5/10/15/20 AMLAP circuit ......................................................................................... 49

3. 10-1 burpee plus 50 jump rope turns descending pyramid ...................................... 50

4. 30/30 intervals ........................................................................................................... 51

5. Double under challenge............................................................................................. 51

6. Broken hundreds ....................................................................................................... 51

7. Tabata quadrathon .................................................................................................... 52

8. 50/40/30/20/10 countdown circuit .......................................................................... 54

9. The Doubler ............................................................................................................... 55

10. Out and Back ............................................................................................................ 55

7) 12 Week Six-Pack Abs Workout (combining the above workouts with ab and ab roller

workouts) ........................................................................................................................... 57

Weeks 1 to 4 .................................................................................................................. 57

Core workout 1 .............................................................................................................. 57

Core workout 2 .............................................................................................................. 58

Core workout 3 .............................................................................................................. 58

Weeks 5 to 8 .................................................................................................................. 59

Core workout 4 .............................................................................................................. 59

Core workout 5 .............................................................................................................. 61

Core workout 6 .............................................................................................................. 62

Weeks 9 to 12 ................................................................................................................ 63


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Core workout 7 .............................................................................................................. 63

Core workout 8 .............................................................................................................. 65

8) Eating for Six-Pack Abs .................................................................................................. 67

What is a fad diet? ......................................................................................................... 67

No need to starve yourself to lose weight... ................................................................. 68

Simple fat loss rule number one – eat protein at every meal....................................... 70

Simple fat loss rule number two – earn your carbs ...................................................... 71

Simple fat loss rule number three – eat your veggies................................................... 71

Simple fat loss rule number four – don’t drink your calories ....................................... 72

Simple fat loss rule number five – be more active ........................................................ 72

Simple fat loss rule number six – minimize stress ........................................................ 73

Simple fat loss rule number seven – treat but don’t cheat! ......................................... 73

9) Dos and Don’ts for Optimum Success ........................................................................... 77

10) About the Author ........................................................................................................ 81


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1) Introduction If you ask everyone who exercises what their ultimate fitness goal is, a large percentage

will tell you they want a six-pack and those that don’t are either a) fibbing or b) just

want a flat, toned abdomen rather than fully-fledged six-pack abs.

Pick up any glossy celebrity magazine, watch a music video or movie and you’ll

inevitably see six-pack abs all over the place. Any media star worth his or her salt will, at

one time or another, sport a six-pack, much to the delight of photographers and

journalists alike although the number who can sustain such a look for long periods of

time seems to be relatively low.

Our appreciation of six-pack abs goes beyond media pressure, although that has at least

something to do with it. A six-pack is a non-too subtle sign that says the owner is fit,

healthy and of good breeding stock! At a very primitive level, we are all genetically

programmed to appreciate a lean midsection even if we aren’t aware of the reasons

why.

Six-pack abs have more than just simple genetic

or aesthetic appeal – the amount of body fat you

carry around your midsection has a direct impact

on your health. In fact, medical professionals

often call belly fat “heart attack fat” as fat stored

around your abdomen can significantly increase

your risk of suffering coronary heart disease or

CHD for short. Along with CHD, diabetes, high

blood pressure and elevated cholesterol levels

are also often associated with abdominal fat and

what can laughingly be called a beer belly is

actually a health time-bomb waiting to go off.

There is more to the health of your midsection

than just fat – you should also consider the

function of the muscles in that region of your

body. Your abdominals (we’ll differentiate

between the many muscles, their names and locations in the next chapter) play an

important part in spine health. A very large number of adults will suffer back pain at

Heart attack fat


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some point in their lives – back pain often being caused by muscle weakness. Your

abdominal muscles work together to provide your spine with support and stiffness and

weak abdominals mean your lower back is much more prone to injury. Back pain is no-

one’s idea of a good time so it pays to look after your soon to be marvellous midsection.

Next, consider that your abdominal muscles bridge the gap between your legs and your

arms. If you are holding a heavy weight in your hands and then have to walk up a few

stairs, your midsection must be strong enough to transfer the force generated by your

legs into the load you are carrying. If it cannot do this you will a) not be able to lift and

carry the load irrespective of how strong your arms or legs are and b) probably end up

hurting yourself if you try. Your midsection is essentially your natural weight lifting belt

without the buckle at the front!

Finally, it is important to remember that your abdominal muscles actually initiate or

contribute very strongly to a great many everyday tasks and sporting activities. Try

sitting up in bed, pushing open a heavy door, throwing a cricket ball, kicking a soccer ball

or manhandling a member of the opposing rugby team without using your abs. If you

can do it at all it’s fair to say your efforts will be quite inefficient.

Because firm, flat, defined abs are at the top of just about everyone’s fitness wish list,

there is a plethora of exercise and diet advice doing the rounds on how to achieve this

holy of holies. Unfortunately, a great deal of this information fails to conform to even

the most basic exercise and anatomical principles. Ab-centric workouts often focus

solely on rectus abdominus (the muscle at the front of your abdomen) and all but ignore

the rest of the muscles that make up your midsection. The exercises promoted are often

limited, non-progressive, only work if you do a very high number of repetitions and do

not take into account nutrition or the fact that you need to consider the rest of the

muscles in your body when pursuing the evasive six-pack.

If I had to sum up my approach to ab training in just a few words, I’d say it is holistic

because, ultimately, your abs are just one muscle in your wonderfully complex muscular

system that consists of over 600 individual muscles that must work together in synergy

and harmony. Trying to develop your abs without addressing the muscles in the rest of

your body is like putting a formula one tyre on a Ford Focus and hoping it will win the

next Grand Prix!


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You simply will not get a six-pack if you ignore the rest of your body – contrary to what

you might have heard on the shopping channel. There are no six-minute solutions or

electronic machines that will magically sculpt your abs while you sit and watch TV; while

most of us can develop a lean, defined midsection you will, as cheesy aerobics teachers

shout out to their classes, have to pay for it in sweat.

Speaking of ab training tools, the only one I am comfortable recommending is also one

of the cheapest midsection strengtheners around – the ab roller. Sometimes called an

ab wheel or exercise wheel, this simple device is also one of the most effective ways to

build a cast-iron midsection. If you haven’t got one yet you really should get one – it’ll

cost you less than a typical day pass gym membership. If you have already got one, well

done and prepare to put it to good use in the programme that follows.

Whether you are interested in simply looking better or you care about your health and

performance, you should try to develop a strong lean midsection. Use the information

herein to help you reach the World Cup of fitness goals – a genuine six-pack!


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2) Anatomy and Functionality While you could (and many of you reading this

probably will) want to jump forward to the diet and

exercise section of this book, it’s worth spending a

few minutes reading this section because it will help

explain the rationale behind the following

programme. By gaining a basic understanding of the

underlying muscles and exercises principles on which

the workouts are designed, you’ll see why this

approach to creating a solid, lean midsection makes

perfect sense and why other programmes and

workouts are doomed to failure. Once you have read

this section, you’ll be able to understand the whys

and wherefores of the programme and also be able to

dazzle your friends with your newfound knowledge of

anatomy and physiology!

Key terminology in this e-book

Core – collective term for muscles of the abdomen, waist and lower back

Spine – your back bone consisting of 33 individual bones

Vertebra – the individual bones of the spine (plural: vertebrae)

Intervertebral disks – pads of shock-absorbing cartilage between each vertebra

Ligament – non-elastic tissue that connects bone to bone

Tendon – non-elastic tissue that connects muscle to bone

Lumbar spine – lower back consisting of 5 vertebrae

Thoracic spine – middle/upper back consisting of 12 vertebrae to which your ribs

are attached

Cervical spine – neck consisting of 7 vertebrae

There are a number of terms used in conjunction with the muscles of your midsection

and this can lead to a lot of unnecessary confusion. The term abdominals or abs is used

and often misused when describing the muscles that make up your middle. For

simplicity and clarity, from now on you will see the term core used to collectively

describe the muscles that surround your midsection. Anything else e.g. abdominals or

Abs


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abs, is referring to an individual muscle (rectus abdominus) within the complex of

muscles making up your midsection.

What is the core?

The core is the collective term used to describe the muscles that control the movements

of your spine. These muscles are capable of working alone but are often required to

work together in synergy when supporting your spine. There are three distinct layers of

core musculature.

The deep layer

The deep layer consists of tiny muscles that connect each of your vertebrae and control

the movement of the individual bones that make up your spine. Also referred to as

“position sense” muscles, these vertically, diagonally and horizontally arranged muscles

connect each vertebra to its neighbour. Although you won’t be directly or specifically

targeting these micro-muscles during any of your core workouts, you can be assured

that the inerspinalis, rotatores and intertransverserii will be doing all they can to keep

each of your vertebrae properly aligned.

The middle layer

Sometimes referred to as the inner unit, the middle layer plays a vital part in spine

stability. Whilst not responsible for any large spinal movements, the inner unit is made

up of four major muscles that contract inwardly to create intra abdominal pressure.

Intra abdominal pressure or IAP for short supports your spine from the inside in much

the same way that pumping air into a football gives it shape and makes it solid. These

muscles “brace” our midsections when we move. Bracing and the ability to brace

strongly is vital for all physical performance, midsection appearance and spinal health,

and is something you need to do during every exercise within this plan.

Back in the days when man was roaming the savannahs and hunting for food, we braced

automatically whenever we needed to perform any kind of dynamic movement.

Nowadays, because of our predominately sedentary lifestyles and the supportive

environment in which we live i.e. chair backs, car seats, seated exercise machines etc,

many of us have lost the ability to brace automatically and need to re-learn this vital

skill.


14

How to brace

1. Tense your abdominals for a “gut punch”. Don’t pull your belly in but, rather,

squeeze your midsection tight. Avoid leaning forwards.

2. “Pull up” your pelvic floor by pretending you are trying to stop the flow of urine.

3. Take a shallow in-breath.

Congratulations! You are now braced and

creating lots of intra abdominal pressure to

support your spine. As you inhale, you should

feel the whole of your midsection solidify and

become extremely strong. Exhale and you’ll

feel the pressure in the abdominal cavity

dissipate. The idea of bracing is that you time

your inhalations so that IAP is highest when

you need it e.g. as you push your ab roller

away from you, and least when you are

between repetitions and the weight is over

your base of support e.g. when the roller is

closest to your knees. As a general rule, to

maximise IAP when you most need it, inhale

into the hardest part of an exercise and

exhale out of it.

Muscles of the inner unit

The inner unit or middle layer is, as mentioned, made up of four muscles. Just like the

position sense muscles, these muscles are worked during every core exercise.

Additionally, you will also be targeting these muscles with a variety of specific bracing

exercises over the coming weeks. A strong inner unit will a) enhance spinal health, b)

improve your midsection performance and c) contribute to your appearance by creating

a much tighter waist line. The four muscles of the inner unit are the diaphragm—your

primary breathing muscle, your transverse abdominus which encircles your abdominal

contents, the multifidis which runs up your spine and the muscles of the pelvic floor

which supports your internal organs from below. These muscles form a cylinder with the

Bracing is like using your core as a

natural weight training belt


15

diaphragm at the top, the pelvic floor at the bottom and transverse abdominus and

multifidis providing the sides.

The outer layer

Responsible for major spinal movements, the outer layer of muscles are the ones that

will be targeted directly during your core workouts and are the large muscles that are

generally thought of as the “show” muscles. There are three main outer layer muscles.

Rectus abdominus: Rectus abdominus is the muscle located on the front of your

abdomen and is responsible for that elusive six-pack appearance. The rectus abdominus

or abs for short is a long muscle that starts on the front of your pelvis and extends all

the way up to your lower ribs and sternum. The six-pack appearance comes from the

ligaments that criss-cross the abs dividing it vertically and horizontally. These ligaments,

called linea alba or white lines, become more visible as you get leaner but more on that

later. The rectus abdominus is responsible for flexing your spine forwards e.g. when

performing crunches and also works when you bend to the side in an action called

lateral flexion e.g. dumbbell side bends.

Erector spinae: Running up either side the rear of your spine, the erector spinae is

actually eight individual muscles that overlap one another and extend from the base of

your pelvis to the nape of your neck and base of your skull. These muscles are

responsible for extending your spine backwards and also lateral flexion. Interestingly,

the erector spinae, although not really an abdominal muscle, makes a big contribution

to the appearance of your core by holding you upright in good posture. Lean forwards

and your abdominals will bow outwards. Stand up straight and your abdominals flatten

out. In addition, strong erector spinae muscles also help promote spine health,

especially in your lower or lumbar vertebrae.

Obliques: These muscles make up the sides of your midsection and are best thought of

as your waist muscles. You have three sets of oblique muscles—external, internal and

transverse— on each side of your waist which start on your spine and curve around to

meet your ribs and pelvis. The obliques work together to rotate your spine and to flex

your spine laterally i.e. sideways and also contribute to forward flexion by assisting your

rectus abdominus.

Now you know the names of the muscles that make up your wondrous core, it’s time

to move on to seeing how they work.


16

Muscle Actions

The primary job of your muscles is to generate force for movement or prevent

unnecessary movement by holding your limbs in a certain position. You may be pushing

a shopping trolley, dragging an opponent off the ball in a game of rugby or running up a

flight of stairs but it’s always your muscles that are the engine for movement. Your

muscles can generate force in three different ways which are collectively referred to as

the muscle actions.

Concentric Contractions – a concentric contraction occurs when your muscles shorten

to generate force e.g. lifting your shoulders off the floor when performing crunches.

Concentric contractions are probably the most familiar type of muscle action but are

also the weakest.

Eccentric Contractions – an eccentric contraction occurs when your muscles lengthen

under tension e.g. when descending into a squat or lowering the weight when

performing leg curls. You are around 33% stronger eccentrically than you are

concentrically. For example, perform a set of chin ups to exhaustion—the point at which

you can no longer pull your chin up to the bar. On reaching exhaustion, use your legs

and jump up so your chin is over the bar. Use your muscles to lower yourself slowly

down to full extension. Amazingly, even though you were unable to pull yourself up, you

can still control your descent.

Isometric Contractions – if concentric contractions involve muscles shortening and

eccentric contractions involve muscles lengthening what can isometric contractions be?

An isometric contraction describes how your muscles can also generate force without

any change in length e.g. holding your spine in an extended position when performing

planks. Isometric contractions are the strongest of the three muscle actions.

Whenever you exercise, your muscles will be producing force concentrically,

eccentrically and/or isometrically. When you use an ab roller, you get all three

whereas a plank is mostly isometric. To fully develop your muscles, you need to

ensure you include all three types of muscle action which is why you need to perform

a variety of exercises in addition to using your ab roller if you want a six-pack that not

only looks good but is also functionally strong too.


17

3) Considerations, Myths and Mistakes of Core

Training

Improving the condition of your core muscles requires that you adhere to certain

exercise principles. You can think of these as being “signposts for success”. If you fail

to observe these principles, it’s very unlikely you will see any noticeable

improvements in the strength and function of your core muscles. Familiarity with

these principles will also help explain why some of the most common approaches to

core training are so ineffectual...

Specificity – specificity basically means you are fit for what you do so if you have a

particular goal in mind e.g. improving the functionality of your core muscles, your

training must match that goal. This means that, for the next 12-weeks at least, you need

to put as much effort as possible into this programme and not dilute your efforts by

performing extra ab work above and beyond what is included in the programme. This

may mean that you have to “opt out” of any ab training that takes place at the end of

group exercise classes or avoid Pilates classes for a while because if you try and do too

much work for your core, you’ll end up over training these muscles and make little or no

progress.

Overload – overload means challenging your body. No overload means no adaptations

which, in the case of this programme, means no improvements in core strength,

performance and appearance. Overload means working hard—there is no getting away

from that fact and overload will probably result in sore and tired muscles. Tired muscles

recover with rest. Muscle soreness is often referred to as DOMS or Delayed Onset

Muscle Soreness. No one has ever died of DOMS but it can still be quite uncomfortable!

You can minimize DOMS by making sure you always warm up before your workouts,

make gradual rather than drastic increases in workout intensity, cool off and stretch on

completion of your workouts and eat and rest properly. If you are suffering from DOMS,

spend an extra few minutes warming up and take it easy for the first couple of sets of

each exercise.

Progression – despite your best intentions, your body is pretty lazy when it comes to

getting stronger and fitter—it would really rather not bother! You are going to have to

bully, badger, cajole, trick and force your muscles into getting stronger. You MUST try to


18

increase the intensity of your workouts on a week by week basis. Think about this: if you

only performed 10 repetitions of crunches, what would happen to your abdominal

strength? It’s unlikely you would develop the ability to lift greater amounts of weight

because there is insufficient stimulus. Strive to increase your workout intensity on a

week-by-week basis.

Recovery – so, if three core workouts a week are good, six workouts a week must be

twice as good, right? Sadly this is not the case. Exercise is a catabolic process that

actually breaks your muscles down. Your muscles respond to this attack by becoming

fitter and stronger which is an anabolic process called hypertrophy. This rebuilding

process can only happen when you are resting. This means that for every hard workout,

you’ll need a couple of days rest. Remember, you aren’t being lazy by taking time off

between workouts; you are giving your body chance to adapt and improve.

Rest


19

Reversibility – you can’t store fitness indefinitely. Your strong core muscles or ability to

run for miles and miles can only be maintained if you keep training regularly. It’s a case

of use it or lose it. Just as training too frequently can result in poor training results, so

too can training infrequently. If you remove the stimulus, your body will begin to revert

to its pre-training state and you’ll soon lose your hard-won fitness. This means that

skipping workouts is counterproductive and will reduce the effectiveness of your

training. If you just “give up”, you’ll lose everything you gained over the preceding three

months.

Individuality – each one of us is different—different blood groups, height, weight, eye

colour, hair colour, muscle fibre make up, limb length...it’s a long list! Because of

individuality, we all respond differently to exercise. Some people, called mesomorphs,

develop muscle very easily whilst others, called ectomorphs, are naturally lighter and

find gaining muscle much more challenging. A third group, endomorphs gain muscle and

fat in equal measure. The point is that, although this programme will improve your core

strength and appearance, it is impossible to say by how much as individuality governs

your adaptation to exercise. Follow the workouts, eat well and get sufficient sleep to

maximize your results but remember; you cannot compare your results to anyone else’s

as they won’t share your unique physical characteristics.

Now you have a good understanding of the principles of exercise, you should

understand why some common core training approaches are so ineffectual...

1. Too little exercise – a couple of sets of crunches and back extensions at the end of a

group exercise class or weights workout is not sufficient stimulus to improve the

condition of your core muscles. Fitness improvements are the result of an adaptation

to a threat – your body is literally trying to ensure its survival after a challenging

event. Too little exercise means no threat and that means no adaptation.

2. Too much exercise – doing an hour of ab training is pretty pointless as there is only

so much punishment your muscles can soak up. If you can do an hour of ab training,

your workout is lacking in intensity or you are taking such long rests between sets

and exercises that you are wasting a whole lot of time. There is balance to be had

between cause and effect and you want to do the least amount of exercise to deliver

the greatest results possible. It’s not enough to train long or hard – you also need to


20

train hard and smart.

3. No progression – using your ab wheel for five-minutes three-times a week is a good

start BUT if that’s all you ever do, your muscles will soon become accustomed to

your workout. Without continual progression, your fitness will not improve. As the

fitness saying goes, if you only do what you have always done, you will only get what

you have always got. The bottom line is that the best workout ever designed only

works for so long and you’ll need to periodically increase exercise frequency,

duration or intensity if you want to see continual fitness progress.

4. Not enough intensity – easy workouts don’t result in much in the way of fitness

benefits. That means you need to overload your muscles to make them stronger. You

don’t need to go all out 100-percent of the time but you’ll certainly need to go to 8

or 9 out of 10 on the intensity scale if you want to see some progress. While the old

adage “no pain, no gain” isn’t 100-accurate, some exercise discomfort is inevitable if

you want to see benefits from your workouts.

5. Too much intensity – at the risk of contradicting myself, you can’t flog yourself

mercilessly and expect to see results from your training. There is a difference

between maximal effort and high intensity effort – although they are only separated

by degrees. Maximal effort is hard to recover from and can lead to injury as you are

likely to break good form when you are working that hard. However, you should

have no issues recovering from high intensity efforts and your chances of injury is

much lower. Shoot for level 8 or 9 on the intensity scale and you’ll be working hard

enough to get results but not so hard you risk hurting yourself.

6. Trying to “spot reduce” – the myth that spot reduction works is like a zombie that

just won’t die! Endless sets of sit-ups and crunches or any other ab exercise for that

matter won’t magically make the fat covering your abdomen melt away. Fat is simply

stored energy that needs to be burnt off and as important as ab exercises are, they

don’t use a whole lot of calories. Burn fat globally with cardio and other multi-muscle

workouts while strengthening the underlying musculature with targeted core

exercises. Lose fat, build muscle and reveal your abs.


21

7. Isolating rectus abdominus – doing nothing but sit-ups and crunches may seem like

you are observing the principle of specificity but is likely to cause you more harm

than good. Muscle imbalances and postural issues are going to be the likely result of

such an ab-centric approach. Successful six-pack programmes are holistic in that they

address all of the muscles in your midsection – not just the one at the front.

8. Ignoring diet – it doesn’t matter how well-developed your abs are, if they are

covered in a thick layer of fat, you won’t be able to feel them let alone see them. Just

about everyone has a six-pack already – it’s just obscured by fat. Taking notice of

what you eat is a vital part of developing six-pack abs; you are going to have to eat

clean if you want to be lean enough to show your six-pack. Remember, you can’t out

run a bad diet!

9. Neglecting cardio – for the same reason diet is important, so too is cardio. Cardio

burns fat and also ensures you are fit and healthy enough to do the other workouts

in this programme. I’ve provided you with TEN fat burning workouts elsewhere in

this e-book.

10. Not following a plan – failing to plan means planning to fail and if you just do

whatever workout you feel like doing on a given day, chances are you’ll make little or

no progress. As Zig Ziglar says – if you hit what you aim at and you don’t have a

target, you’ll hit it every time! Follow this plan for the next 12-weeks and while,

because of what level you are starting from or other individual circumstances, you

might not get your six-pack first time around, I guarantee you’ll be a lot closer to

your target than if you tried to “wing it”.


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4) How to Use Your Ab Roller Like any exercise, you’ll get more from your ab roller if you use it properly. Not only will

good technique make your workouts more productive and effective, it will significantly

reduce your risk of injury. But, and before you dive into using your ab roller, you need to

ensure you have sufficient core strength to support your weight in a kneeling plank,

regular plank, hard style plank, press-up plank and extended plank position as, after all,

an ab wheel rollout is nothing more than a plank with movement. Note: all plank

variations target your entire core with an extra emphasis on your rectus abdominus.

Only move onto the next exercise when you have mastered the one preceding it.

General plank performance tips

Do not hold your breath – your blood pressure may increase as a result

Do not let your hips drop – it places too much strain on your lumbar spine

Do not lift your hips – you reduce the effectiveness of the exercise

Do keep your shoulders, hips, knees and feet properly aligned

Do not forget to brace as hard as you can to maximise IAP and spinal support

Tuck your chin in and make your neck long – do not look forward or upward

Planks are a dynamic exercise – don’t do them mindlessly; focus on creating

tension in your core

Rest your elbows on an exercise mat for comfort

Build up gradually – add five seconds per workout

Work on your planks three to four times a week on non-consecutive days

1. Kneeling plank

Lie on your front and then rest on your elbows with your hands clasped lightly together

and upper arms vertical, elbows directly beneath your shoulders. Lift your hips up off

the floor but keep your knees down so you do not have to support your entire weight on

your elbows and toes but, instead, it is spread between your elbows, knees and toes.

Brace your abs hard but do not hold your breath. Maintain this position for 30 seconds.

If you cannot manage 30 seconds, keep practicing until you can.


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2. Regular plank

Set up as before but this time lift your hips and knees off the floor. There should be a

straight line from your heels to your shoulders via your knees and hips. Brace your abs

hard but do not hold your breath. Maintain this position for 30 seconds. If you cannot

manage 30 seconds, keep practicing until you can.

3. Hard style plank

In the regular plank position, make a conscious effort to tense your thighs, glutes, core,

chest, lats and abs as hard as you possibly can. Also imagine trying to push your elbows

and toes through the ground without lifting your hips and try to shorten the distance

between your shoulders and hips but without actually moving. Hold this peak

contraction for 10 seconds, relax for 10 seconds (without coming out of the plank) and

repeat three times to total 60 seconds. If you cannot manage 60 seconds, keep

practicing until you can.

Plank


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4. Press-up plank

Perform the regular plank and work up to the hard style plank but this time rest on

extended arms as though you were performing press ups. Your hands should be

shoulder-width apart and your elbows just shy of lock out. Work up to 30 seconds in the

regular version and then 60 seconds (3 x 10 seconds plus 10 seconds rest) in the hard

style version.

5. Extended plank

In either the regular plank or press-up plank position, move your feet further back (15 to

30 centimetres/6 to 12 inches). This lengthened base of support will make the exercise

more demanding. Monitor your lower back for tension – if you feel the arch in your back

increasing then shorten your base of support. Maintain your position for 30 seconds. If

you cannot manage 30 seconds, keep practicing until you can.

Press up plank


25

You now have sufficient static strength and are ready for the ab roller – a much more

dynamic movement!

Kneeling rollout

Kneel down and grasp your ab roller. With straight arms, place your roller on the floor

directly in front of your knees. Your hands should be facing toward you, your chest

should be up and your shoulders down and back. Inhale, brace hard and push your ab

wheel away from you by extending your hips, knees and shoulders. Push the wheel as

far away from you as possible while lowering your chest toward the floor. Do not lose

your natural lower back arch so no rounding or hollowing allowed. Pause briefly in the

most outstretched position you can manage and then, using your abs and upper

back/arms, pull the roller back in to your legs. Exhale as you do so. Providing your last

rep went well and you feel you can do more repetitions in PERFECT form, roll out again.

Adaptations

There are several ways you can progress or regress kneeling ab wheel roll outs...

Using a wall

If you find you are unable to control how far the roller moves away from you, do your

roll outs in front of a wall. Position yourself so that the wheel will hit the wall rather

than roll completely away from you. Touch the wall lightly, don’t just crash into it. As

you get stronger, inch back from the wall until you are able to perform them

unrestricted.

Negatives

As you are stronger eccentrically than you are concentrically, make the most of this by

only rolling your ab wheel away from you. Once you are stretched out, drop carefully to

the floor, use your hands, elbows and knees to get back up, return to the starting

position and repeat. After a few weeks of negative-only roll outs you will be strong

enough to do the return movement also.

Static holds

If you can only do one roll out or are looking to increase your strength, do static holds at

the end of each rep. Roll out as normal but then, and without holding your breath,

pause for a slow count of ten. Do one static hold and then rest on the floor or pull back

to the starting position and repeat.


26

Uphill

To make ab wheel rollouts less challenging, do them up a slight, moderate or steep

incline – the steeper the incline the easier the exercise will be. You can roll up an

inclined sit-up bench if you need a readily adjustable and quantifiable incline or just use

any conveniently inclined and located stretch of pathway. Progress to a less severe

incline as you get stronger.

Downhill

To make ab wheel roll outs more challenging, do them down a decline. Any slope will

suffice providing it is smooth.

Weighted

Wearing a loaded back pack or weighted vest will make ab wheel rollouts considerably

more demanding. Start off with an additional five to ten percent of bodyweight and

increase gradually from there. Do not sacrifice weight for form as you may end up

injuring yourself.

Multi-directional rollouts

From the kneeling or standing position (described next) roll out but slightly sideways to

around the 10 o’clock position. Return to the start position and then roll out to the 2

o’clock position. Continue alternating sides for the duration of your set. This variation

places a slight emphasis on your obliques.

Standing ab wheel rollouts

With your roller in your hands, bend your knees slightly and lean forward to place the

roller on the floor just in front of your feet. Brace your core, inhale and then push the

roller away from you. Roll it as far away from you as you comfortably can letting your

lower back tell you if you have gone too far; remember – the arch in your back should

not increase. Using your abs, pull the roller back toward your feet and simultaneously

push your hips up into the air. Use a wall to limit your range of movement as explained

earlier. In a perfect standing roll out, your arms and legs will be completely extended,

your chest and nose an inch/three centimetres from the floor and you will have a

neutral lumbar arch.


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Training volume and intensity

I am a firm believer in stopping any exercise while you still have a rep or two in hand

and stopping any workout while you still have a set or two in hand. For example, if you

can do five standing roll outs but that last rep is pretty much do or die, it is going to

take longer for you to recover before you can safely do your next workout. This will have

a negative effect on subsequent training volume and frequency or, in other words, you

won’t get to exercise as often.

However, if you do a slightly more conservative set of three, you won’t be as tired, you

will recover quicker and you’ll be able to train again sooner. Remember the rule of RPE

8 to 9 – stop every set and workout before you are exhausted and while you still have a

couple of repetitions and sets left in you. This is a marathon and not a sprint! It’s better

to do one less rep/set today and be able to train again in 24 to 48 hours than do that

extra rep and then have to wait 48 to 96 hours to recover. As you get stronger and fitter

you’ll soon be able to do more repetitions and sets naturally so don’t force it by going

flat out too soon!


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5) Introductory Programme – Mastering Your Ab

Roller Even if you have an ab roller, you probably haven’t been using it with any degree of

regularity or structure. This is a four-week workout plan designed to get you used to

following a programme and ensure you are ready for the more demanding programme

outlined in chapter seven.

Warming up

Before you start any kind of workout, you should spend a few minutes preparing your

body and mind for what is to come; a good warm up can make or break your workout. A

good warm up will ensure your workout is as safe and productive as possible and is

broken down into three main parts...

Pulse raiser

Joint mobility

Dynamic stretches

To raise your pulse, do some form of light cardio for five to ten minutes. Walk briskly,

jog on the spot, head out for a brief run or grab your jump rope and do some skipping.

Given the choice, I’d use a jump rope every time but do whatever works for you.

Increase your speed over several minutes so that you finish this warm up component

feeling warm (obviously!), slightly out of breath and ready to exercise.

To mobilize your joints, take each of your major joints through a progressively larger

range of movement. Do 10 to 20 repetitions of the following...


29

1. Ankle circles


30

2. Shallow progressing to deeper knee bends


31

3. Hip circles


32

4. Side bends


33

5. Shoulder shrugs


34

6. Arm circles

7. Overhead arm raises


35

Finally you are ready for some stretching but not the typical stretches you may be used

to. Dynamic stretches involve movement which will ensure your heart rate stays

elevated, you stay warm and you “wake up” your muscles rather than put them to

sleep. Do 10 to 20 repetitions of the following…

1. Leg swings


36

2. Squats with a five-second hold every fifth rep


37

3. Reverse lunges with pull back arms


38

Your four week introductory program

This introductory programme is designed to “break you in” to more demanding

workouts and assumes you have a basic level of core strength and are able to do the

plank progressions described in the previous chapter. If you are still struggling with

planks, stick with them until you have mastered at least the hard style plank and

preferably the extended plank exercise.

For this workout you are going to combine ab wheel roll outs with several other

exercises designed to develop your core as a whole. The ab wheel is going to be your

main exercise but the additional exercises will provide structural balance and improve

your roll out performance.

Work out three times a week on non-consecutive days to give your muscles chance to

rest and recover.

Day 1 e.g. Monday Day 2 e.g. Wednesday Day 3 e.g. Friday

Week 1

Rollouts 3 mins @RPE 6 Side planks 3x30 seconds

Rollouts 4 minutes@ RPE 6 Supine hip bridges 3x10

Rollouts 5 minutes @ RPE 6 Bird dogs 3x6

Week 2


Rollouts 5 minutes@ RPE 7 Supine hip bridges 4x12


Week 3


Rollouts 6 mins @RPE 8 Supine hip bridges 3x12


Week 4


Rollouts 7 mins @RPE 9 Supine hip bridges 4x12

Rollouts 8 mins @RPE 9 Bird dogs 4x8

Four week introductory program – Read below for instructions and programme notes


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Exercise instructions

Rollouts

How to perform: See chapter four. Choose the difficulty level that best suits your

current core strength.

Side planks

How to perform: Lie on your side with your hips and shoulders perpendicular to the

floor and resting on your bent elbow. Lift your hips so your body is straight. Hold this

position (but not your breath!) for the prescribed duration. Roll over and repeat the

exercise on the opposite side.

Side planks


40

Supine hip bridges

How to perform: Lie on your back with your legs bent and feet flat on the floor. Place

your hands on the floor next to your hips with your palms turned upwards. Push your

feet down into the floor and lift your hips up so your knees, hips and shoulders form a

straight line. Lower your butt back to the floor and repeat.

Bird dogs

How to perform: Kneel down on all fours so your knees are directly under your hips and

your hands are directly under your shoulders. Brace your abs and then extend your left

leg and right arm – try and reach out as far in front and behind you as possible. Hold this

extended position for the count of one and then return your hand and leg to the floor.

Do an identical repetition on the opposite side. Continue alternating sides for the

duration of your set.

Hip bridges


41

Programme notes

Each workout and each week is slightly more difficult that the one preceding it. This

ensures that the overload is progressive which will make certain your fitness and

strength increase from one week to the next. Adjust the volume and intensity of the

workouts down or up as required but remember to change ALL the workouts by around

the same amount i.e. if you only do 20 second side planks on day one, take 10 seconds

off all the remaining side plank workouts.

For the rollouts, you will see that time and Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE) is

prescribed rather than the usual sets and repetitions e.g. 3 minutes @ RPE six. This

simply means do as many repetitions as you can in three minutes but stop doing

rollouts when you feel you are working at level six out of ten. Assuming you could do an

all-out set of ten, this means you stop at around rep number six, rest a moment and

then do more repetitions up to that same level of intensity. This will probably be fewer

repetitions than your first effort. Continue this format until your time runs out. As you

work though the four-week programme, you’ll do more rollouts and also work closer to

your maximum capability.

For the secondary exercises, the first number prescribes how many sets you are to

perform and the second number denotes how many repetitions or how long you do per

set. For example, 3x10 means do ten, rest a moment, do another ten, take another rest

and then do a final set of ten. Rest as long as you need to to ensure you can do the next

set of ten – one to two minutes should be sufficient.

Cool down

On completion of your workout, you may well want to just stop and crash out or head

off for a shower. As attractive as these may sound, you’d be better served by doing a

little more exercise to gradually return your body to its pre-exercise state and then

stretching your major muscles. That means there are two components to a typical cool

down...

Pulse lowerer

Static stretches

To lower your pulse do a couple of minutes more of light cardio but this time reduce

gradually the intensity so you finish up breathing normally. More skipping, walking or


42

jogging is the order of the day. On completion, perform the following stretches – hold

each position for 10 to 30 seconds. If your muscles feel tight then hold them for longer

but if your muscles feel loose, hold them for less time.

1. Standing calf stretch


43

2. Standing quad stretch


44

3. Standing hamstring stretch


45

4. Kneeling hip flexor stretch

5. Lying ab stretch


46

6. Standing chest stretch


47

7. Standing lat stretch


48

6) Fat Burning Workouts If you want to be able to see your six-pack and not just feel it you’ll need to burn some

fat and that means doing some fat burning workouts. Yes, you could do a whole lot of

cardio or go to a gym but who has got time for that?! Firstly, traditional cardio is low

intensity which means although you’ll be in your fat burning zone, you won’t actually

burn much fat. Secondly, going to a gym is great but also can be a major obstacle to

getting in shape if home, family and work commitments make it hard to actually get

there. For that reason I have designed TEN fat burning workouts you can do at home

that require nothing more than a jump rope, an exercise mat or folded towel and

around 20-minutes of your time. Remember though, always warm up before and cool

down after each workout.

1. 50-meter sprints

Mark out 50 meters either by using a tape measure, going to a running track or sports

ground or pacing out around 50-steps. No need to be super accurate – this isn’t the

Olympics!

3 x 50 meters at RPE 8 – walk back recovery

Rest three minutes


Rest four minutes


When sprinting, use a rolling start (build up your speed as you approach your start line

and then maintain it over 50 meters). Get up on your toes, pump your arms but stay

relaxed.


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2. 5/10/15/20 AMLAP circuit

Do as many laps as possible (AMLAP) of the following exercises. Try to do more laps

whenever you repeat this workout.

5 burpees – with your feet together, squat down and place your hands on the floor.

Jump your feet out and back and do a perfect chest to the floor press up, jump your feet

back up to your hands and then leap into the air. Land on slightly bent knees and repeat.

10 press ups – either on your toes or knees, place your hands on the floor so your body

is straight. Bend your arms and lower your chest to the floor. Push back up to full arm

extension and repeat.

15 squats – with your feet shoulder-width apart, bend your knees and sit down until

your thighs are roughly parallel to the floor. Stand back up and repeat. Try not to round

your lower back.

20 jump rope turns – as fast as you can, do 20 jump rope turns. If you are more

advanced, do double unders (two rope turns per jump). If you are not a proficient

skipper, do jumping jacks instead.

Sprinting


50

3. 10-1 burpee plus 50 jump rope turns descending pyramid

Do ten burpees, as described above, and then 50 turns with your jump rope.

Immediately do nine burpees followed by another 50 turns of your rope. Do eight

burpees next and so on. The workout is done when you are down to a single burpee and

have competed your final 50 jump rope turns. Try to complete this workout as fast as

you can and then try and beat your time when you repeat it.

Jump rope


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4. 30/30 intervals

Do five sets of each of the following four exercises working hard for 30 seconds and

then resting for 30 seconds to total 20 minutes...

Mountain climbers – from the press up position, jump your left knee up and into your

chest and then shoot it back. Do the same move with the opposite leg. Keep pumping

your legs for 30 seconds.

Shadow boxing – keep moving your feet while you throw out jabs, hooks, crosses and

uppercuts at an imaginary opponent. If you have a punch bag, use it!

High knee sprints – with or without a jump rope, run on the spot but lift your knees up

to hip-height; really pump those legs!

Spiderman press ups – from the normal press up position, lower your chest toward the

floor and also bend one leg and pull your knee up to lightly touch your elbow. Extend

your arms and leg at the same time and then do the same move with the opposite leg.

Continue alternating legs for the duration of your set.

5. Double under challenge

Do as many double unders (two rope turns per jump) as you can in 10, 15 or 20-minutes

depending on your fitness. Rest when you need to but try and clock up as many

repetitions as you can in the given time. If you cannot do double unders, do single rope

turns instead.

6. Broken hundreds

Mark out the following pattern on the floor using cones or stones...

-----5 meters

----------10 meters

---------------15 meters

--------------------20 meters

Run out to the first marker and back, out to the second marker and back, out to the

third marker and back and then out to the fourth marker and back. This totals 100

meters. Rest for 60 to 90 seconds and repeat ten times. Alternatively, for a super tough

workout, perform this sequence at the top of each minute for 10 minutes to total 10

repetitions .


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7. Tabata quadrathon

Perform 20 seconds of each exercise in sequence and use the 10 second recovery to

move to the next exercise. There are four exercises in the circuit and you are going to

perform eight to ten laps in total – so 16 to 20 minutes to complete the entire workout.

Place the exercises close together so you don’t waste any time in the transitions.

1. Skipping – knee lift sprints. As described above

2. Lunges – stand with your feet together and your hands by your sides. Take a large

step forward, bend your legs and lower your rear knee to within an inch of the

floor. Pop back up, return to the starting position and then do the same move but

leading with your opposite leg. Continue alternating legs for the duration of your

set.

Lunges


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3. Bench dips – sit on a bench, stair or wide chair and place your hands on either

side of your hips with your fingers pointing forward. Support your weight on your

extended arms and shift your butt forward so it is clear of your seat. Bend your

arms and lower your butt toward the floor; bend your arms to 90 degrees. Push

back up and repeat. The closer your feet are to your hands, the easier this

exercise becomes so adjust your position to suit your strength levels.

4. Squats – as described above.

So your workout will look like this:

20 seconds skipping

10 seconds rest/transition

20 seconds lunges


20 seconds dips


20 seconds squats


Start from the top again with 20 seconds skipping…repeat for 8 or 10 laps

Make a mental note of how many repetitions you manage in your first lap and

endeavour to hit similar numbers in each subsequent lap. The next time you perform

this workout, try to add a rep or two.


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8. 50/40/30/20/10 countdown circuit

Start your watch and perform 50 repetitions of each exercise in the following sequence.

On reaching the fourth and final exercise, start the sequence again but only perform 40

repetitions. Continue working your way through the sequence but drop 10 repetitions

from the count each time until your final round consists of 10 repetitions per exercise.

Rest when you need to but try and keep going as the clock is ticking right up to the very

end!

1. Press ups – as described above. Do kneeling or full press ups as appropriate.

2. Jumping jacks – stand with your feet together and your hands by your sides. Jump

your feet out to wider-than shoulder-width and raise your arms up and above your

head. Jump your feet back together and bring your arms back down.

3. Back extensions – lie on your front with your legs straight, feet on the floor and hands

resting lightly on your temples. Lift your chest and shoulders off the floor and then lie

back down. Anchor your feet if necessary and place a folded towel or gym mat under

your hips for comfort. Placing your hands behind your lower back makes this exercise

easier.

4. Double unders – as described above. If you cannot do double unders do tuck jumps

instead.

Back extensions


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9. The Doubler

This workout requires a bit of maths but is a very simple and effective self-regulating fat

burner. Perform a maximum set of non-stop press ups and then rest 15 seconds. Next,

perform double that amount of squats and then rest 15 seconds. Perform a 2nd set of

max rep press ups, rest 15 seconds and then perform double that amount of

squats. Continue for 5 sets. (See example below)

Set 1

24 press ups/48 squats

Set 2


Set 3


Set 4


Set 5


Totals 80 press ups/160 squats

10. Out and Back

This workout includes a built in warm up so there is no need to do any additional cardio

before starting. Although you could theoretically perform this workout on a bike, it’s

best as a running-based workout.

Start your stopwatch and start running. Head out at a slow pace which increases slightly

as you progress. Run for 10 minutes and then stop. Take one to two minutes and

perform a few light dynamic stretches. Now, run back exactly the way you came but try

to run as fast as you can. The idea is to see how much faster you can run the return

journey compared to the outward journey. On completion, spend a few minutes

stretching your major muscles and then hit the showers.


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Fat burning workouts needn’t be complicated or time consuming – as these workouts

prove. Despite their brevity, each of these workouts will not only burn fat while you

are doing them but will also trigger something called EPOC – short for Excess Post-

exercise Oxygen Consumption or what we used to call oxygen debt. EPOC basically

describes how your metabolic rate remains elevated after intense exercise which

results in a significant increase in post-exercise calorie usage. Think of EPOC-triggering

workouts as being two workouts for the price of one!


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7) 12 Week Six-Pack Abs Workout (combining the

above workouts with ab and ab roller workouts) The following 12 week plan is designed to take you from soft-bellied zero to six-pack

hero in progressive four week steps. Each week builds on the last and, combined with

the diet detailed in the next chapter, these workouts will help you drop fat and

strengthen your core.

It goes without saying that if you are new to exercise you should check with your

doctor before you start this or any other workout. He’ll probably be glad to hear you

want to get in shape but may want you to start with an easier routine. Also, make sure

you have competed the introductory 4 week core strengthening plan before you move

on to this program.

Weeks 1 to 4

Week Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday

One Core 1 Fat burner 1

Rest Core 2 Fat burner 2

Rest Rest

Two Core 3 Fat burner 3


Rest Rest

Three Core 2 Fat burner 5


Rest Rest

Four Core 1 Fat burner 7


Rest Rest

Core workout 1

Ab wheel rollouts – AMRAP in five minutes

Using perfect form and the ab wheel rollout variation that suits you best, do as many

repetitions as possible (AMRAP) in five minutes. Make a note of how many you do and

try to beat that number when you repeat this workout. Rest when you need to and

consider doing lots of short sets rather than just a couple of longer sets – you’ll

complete more repetitions that way.

Skydivers – 3 sets of 30 seconds

Lie on your front and place your head on the floor and rest your arms palms down next

to your head. Lift your head, arms, shoulders and legs off the floor so you are balancing


58

on your hips. Hold this position (but not your breath) for 30 seconds. Rest a moment

and repeat.

Side plank – 3 sets of 30 seconds per side

Lie on your side with your legs and shoulders perpendicular to the floor and resting on

your elbow. Lift your hips up so your body is straight. Hold this position but not your

breath for 30 seconds and then change sides. Rest a moment and repeat. Do three sets

per side.

Core workout 2

Ab wheel rollouts – Ascending pyramid

Do one perfect rollout and then rest a moment. Then do two and rest again. Do three

and then rest. Keep adding one rep per set until you are unable or unwilling to continue

and hit RPE 9. Rest three-minutes and repeat the process one more time although you

probably won’t get as many repetitions .

Supine hip bridge – 3 sets of 30 seconds

Lie on your back with your legs bent and your feet flat on the floor. Lift your hips so they

form a straight line with your knees and shoulders. Keeping your core and glutes tensed

as hard as possible, hold this position for 30 seconds. Rest a moment and then repeat.

Crunches with a twist – 3 sets of 10 repetitions per side

Lie on your back with your legs bent and feet off the floor. Your knees and hips should

be bent to 90 degrees. Place your fingers and your temples and flare your elbows

outward. Lift your head and shoulders off the floor and twist your left elbow to your

right knee. Lie back down and do the same move to the opposite side. Continue

alternating sides for the duration of your set.

Core workout 3

Ab wheel rollout – Intervals

Do as many rollouts as you can in 30 seconds and then rest for 90 seconds. Make a note

of how many you do. Repeat for four sets. Add up your total from the four sets and try

to beat that number when you repeat this workout.

Good mornings – 3 sets of 15-repetitions

Stand with your feet together and your knees slightly bent. Place your hands behind

your head with your elbows pushed back to open your chest. Without further bending

your knees or rounding your back, push your butt backward and hinge forward from


59

your hips to work your lower back, glutes and hamstrings. Stand back up and repeat.

Rest for a moment and then do another set.

Flutter kicks – 3 sets of 30 seconds

Lie on your back with your legs raised six inches off the floor and your hands either flat

on the floor next to your hips or under your buttocks. Kick your legs up and down twelve

inches for the duration of your set while keeping your core braced tight. Do not hold

your breath.

Weeks 5 to 8


Five Core 4 Fat burner 9

Core 5 Fat burner 10

Core 6

Rest Rest

Six Core 4 Fat burner 1

Core 5 Fat burner 2

Core 6

Rest Rest

Seven Core 4 Fat burner 3

Core 5 Fat burner 4

Core 6

Rest Rest

Eight Core 4 Fat burner 5

Core 5 Fat burner 6

Core 6

Rest Rest

Core workout 4

Ab wheel rollouts – AMRAP in six minutes


repetitions as possible (AMRAP) in six minutes. Make a note of how many you do and

try to beat that figure when you repeat this workout. Rest when you need to and



Floor angels – 3 sets of 40 seconds

Lie on your front on an exercise mat. Place your head on the floor and your hands

outstretched in front of you. Lift your head, chest and arms slightly off of the floor by

contracting your lower back. Keeping your arms as straight as possible and your palms

facing down towards the ground, sweep your arms backwards until they touch your

outer thighs—do not let them touch the floor! Swing your arms forwards again to the

starting position and repeat. Do not overextend your lower back as this may lead to

injury. Keep your neck long and chin tucked in to reduce the strain on your neck.


60

Chinnies – 3 sets of 15 repetitions each side

Lie on your back with your legs extended and your hands next to your temples. Lift your

head, shoulders and upper back off of the floor whilst simultaneously lifting and bending

your left leg. Turn your torso and touch your left knee with the inside of your right

elbow before extending your leg and lying back down. Repeat the movement on the

opposite side. Continue alternating sides for the duration of your set. Avoid pulling on

your neck as you sit up as this may result in injury. Establish a brisk rhythm and stick

with it for the duration of this exercise.

Chinnies


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Core workout 5

Ab wheel rollouts – Descending pyramids

Do five rollouts and then rest a moment. Next, do four rollouts and rest again. Continue

until you have done a set of thee, two and then one final rollout. Rest two-minutes and

repeat the sequence again. Do three descending pyramids in total i.e. 5,4,3,2,1 REST

5,4,3,2,1 REST 5,4,3,2,1 FINISH.

Single leg Romanian deadlifts – 3 sets of 10 each leg

Stand up straight with your hands by your sides. Shift your weight over onto your left

leg. Lean forward from the hips and reach down to touch the floor just in front of your

left foot. Extend your right leg behind you for balance. Stand back up and repeat.

Change legs and do the same number of repetitions on the opposite side. Rest a

moment and then repeat. Hold a weight in your hands if necessary. If balance is an

issue, stand side on to a wall and use it for support but try not to become over reliant on

it – wean yourself off the wall as soon as you can.

Single leg Romanian deadlifts


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Lying side hip lifts – 3 sets of 12-repetitions each side

Place your forearm on an exercise bench and extend your legs so that you are in an

inclined side plank position. Make sure your heels, hips and head form a straight line.

This is your starting position. Slowly lower your hips toward the floor and then lift them

back up into the starting position. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions and

then change sides. If this exercise proves to be too demanding, perform it lying on the

floor as though you were performing regular side planks.

Core workout 6

Ab wheel rollout – Intervals

Do as many rollouts as you can in 45 seconds and then rest for 75 seconds. Make a note

of how many you do. Repeat for four sets. Add up your total from the four sets and try

to beat that number when you repeat this workout.

Cossack hip bridges – 3 sets of 12-repetitions per leg

Lie on your back and adopt the hip bridge position described back in workout two. From

this position and while keeping your hips up, lift your left foot off the floor for a count of

two and then your right leg. Continue this marching/alternating leg action for the

duration of your set. Rest a moment and repeat.

Negative crunches – 3 sets of 5 repetitions

Lie on your back with your legs bent and your hands resting on your thighs. Sit up so

that your body is as upright as possible. Use your abdominals to slowly lower yourself

back down to the floor. Take 10 seconds to lower all the way down. Immediately sit up

again and repeat. Use your arms to pull yourself into the upright position if necessary.

Exhale as you lower yourself down to the floor. Adjust your repetition speed to suit your

core strength: Lower more slowly to make the exercise harder or slightly quicker to

make it easier.


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Weeks 9 to 12


Nine Core 7 Fat burner 7

Core 8 Fat burner 8

Core 9 Fat burner 9

Rest

Ten Core 7 Fat burner 10

Core 8 Fat burner 1

Core 9 Fat burner 2

Rest

Eleven Core 7 Fat burner 3

Core 8 Fat burner 4

Core 9 Fat burner 5

Rest

Twelve Core 7 Fat burner 6

Core 8 Fat burner 7

Core 9 Fat burner 8

Rest

Core workout 7

Ab wheel rollouts – AMRAP in seven minutes


repetitions as possible (AMRAP) in seven minutes. Make a note of how many you do

and try to beat that figure when you repeat this workout. Rest when you need to and



Reverse hyperextensions – 3 sets of 15 repetitions

Lie face down on an exercise bench so your hips are on the edge and your feet are

resting on the floor. Keeping your upper body still and your legs together, lift your legs

up until they are slightly above parallel to the floor. Lower your feet back down and

repeat. If you do not have an exercise bench, place two chairs side by side and lie across

the seats.

Reverse crunches 3 sets of 20 repetitions

Lie on your back with your legs bent, thighs perpendicular to the floor and shins parallel

to the floor. Place your hands on your temples and your head and arms on the floor—

this is your starting position. Keeping your upper body still, pull your knees into your

chest to raise your hips and lower back off of the floor. Return to the starting position

and continue for the desired number of repetitions. Inhale as you lower your legs in

exhale as you pull your knees into your chest to maximise the effectiveness of this

exercise.


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Reverse Crunches


65

Core workout 8

Ab wheel rollouts – 50-rep challenge

Do 50 perfect ab wheel rollouts in as little time as possible. Rest when you need to but

remember the clock is ticking! Record your time and try to beat it when you repeat this

workout.

Romanian deadlift – 3 sets of 15-repetitions

Hold a heavy object in your hands such as a bag filled with books. Stand with your feet

hip-width apart and your weight in front of your upper-thighs. Bend your knees slightly

but then keep them rigid for the duration of the workout. With your chest up and

shoulders back, push your butt rearwards and hinge forward from the hips. Lower your

weight down the front of your legs to just below knee-height. Do NOT round your lower

back. Push your hips forward and stand back up. Repeat for the prescribed number of

repetitions.

Boat pose – 3 sets of 40 seconds

Sit on the floor with your legs bent, feet flat on the floor and your torso upright. Hold on

to the backs of your knees, extend your arms and lean back slightly. Slowly extend your

legs as far as your flexibility allows while maintaining your balance. Release your legs

and hold them in position using your abdominals. Keep your arms parallel to the floor.

Maintain this position for the prescribed duration.

You can make this exercise more demanding by extending your arms above your head

or easier by bending your knees. Make sure you breathe steadily throughout this

exercise.

Boat pose


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Core workout 9

Ab wheel rollout – Tabata intervals

Do as many rollouts as you can in 20 seconds and then rest for 10 seconds. Do eight sets

in total.

Feet elevated supine hip lifts – 3 sets of 15-repetitions

Lie on your back with your legs bent and your feet resting in a sturdy knee-high bench,

step or chair. Lift your hips up and off the ground so that they form a straight line with

your knees and shoulders. Keep your core and glutes tensed as hard as possible. Lower

your butt back to the floor and repeat for the prescribed number of repetitions and sets.

Cossack Plank – 3 sets of 40 seconds

Adopt the press up position with legs extended and arms straight. Make sure your

hands are directly below your shoulders. Keep your abs braced and lift your left hand off

of the floor and place it on your right shoulder, pausing for one second. Return your

hand to the floor and then perform the same movement but taking your right hand to

your left shoulder. Continue alternating hands for the duration of your set. Keep your

abs braced throughout this exercise. Keep your hips square and avoid rolling your

shoulders from one side to another—this exercise is an anti-rotation bracing exercise so

try to keep your entire body still except for your arms.

So there you have it – a 12-week progressive plan to help you obtain the holy grail of

fitness – the six-pack. Of course, because of several factors such as individuality,

dietary adherence, where you are starting from and so on, I can’t guarantee you will

have a six-pack at the end of this programme but I can assure you that you will be well

on your way, have increased your fitness and, above all, improved the strength and

function of those all important core muscles.


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8) Eating for Six-Pack Abs Whenever you open a magazine or newspaper you will see lots of information and

misinformation printed about fat loss and weight control. Diet books are often a source

of contradictory misinformation and the internet is literally drowning in fat loss advice

that is often ineffective, impractical and, in some instances, downright dangerous.

Google fat loss and you’ll get in the region of 52,200,000 hits! While experts will argue

which diet is best, the one thing they all agree on is if you want to lose fat, get in shape

and display a six-pack, what you eat (and don’t eat!) is vitally important. Six-packs are

made in the kitchen as much as in the gym!

It seems like good, honest fat loss advice is becoming an endangered species and is

being replaced by something far less useful – fad diets.

What is a fad diet?

Fad diets come in all shapes and sizes but usually share some common characteristics...

Promise amazing fat loss results in very short time frames

Are endorsed by someone famous but not necessarily connected with the health

and fitness industry

Involve a very strict eating regime that is usually impractical and/or unappealing

in the long run

Require you to buy unusual or expensive foods and/or supplements

Eliminates certain food groups while promoting others disproportionally

Leave you hungry, tired and feeling deprived of the foods you enjoy

Are not designed for long term use but, rather, to provide a “quick fix” i.e. lose

10lbs in two-weeks...

The problem with any fad diet is that they only work because they are so restrictive.

Unfortunately, the more restrictive the diet, the more likely you are to fall off the “diet

wagon” before you have reached your ultimate fat loss goal.

The bigger or more dramatic the changes you make to your eating and exercise regimes,

the more likely you are to revert to your previous unhealthy lifestyle. This is often called

the pendulum effect as in, the further the pendulum is swung away from the norm, the

faster and harder it swings back again.


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For example, you could embark on a fad diet that allows you to eat nothing but chicken

and Brussels sprouts for the next 12-weeks. Every breakfast, lunch and dinner you sit

down to a big plate of chicken and sprouts and nothing else. Initially, you will experience

rapid and dramatic fat loss but after a few days of eating such a restrictive diet, you’ll

soon get bored, feel deprived, become tired and irritable and most likely quit your diet

and dive head first into a barrel of ice cream to cheer yourself up. Needless to say, such

an approach is not recommended.

After such a big swing in one direction (the fad diet) you are much more likely to swing

back to your old eating pattern and are going to end up eating even less healthily than

before to make up for your period of deprivation. As a result, any fat loss will quickly be

regained; usually accompanied by a few more pounds for good measure!

When it comes to weight loss, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is! Any diet

that promises seemingly miraculously fast weight loss is going to have to be very strict

and limiting and while crash diets can work in the short term, for long term health and

leanness they are just about useless. Very few crash dieters ever keep the weight off

they have lost. The majority of the crash diet gang tell horror stories of feeling weak, ill,

lethargic and then, after all that sufferance, regaining the weight they lost seemingly

overnight.

Why do crash diets fail to deliver meaningful and long lasting weight loss? It’s all down

to something called the starvation response.

No need to starve yourself to lose weight...

When you go on a crash diet and dramatically reduce your calorific intake, your body or,

more specifically, the hypothalamus region of your brain, doesn’t know you are

voluntarily eating less. It makes the assumption that food is dangerously scarce and

takes steps to ensure you stay alive despite the lack of available nourishment.

Once this starvation response occurs, your body makes a number of changes designed

to help you survive this period of drastic calorific restriction. These changes include:

Reducing your metabolic rate (the number of calories you burn per day) to ensure

the little food you have got goes further


69

Using muscle mass for energy which results in further lowering your metabolic rate

and a loss of the muscle which can leave you looking “skinny fat”

Increasing the production of lipoprotein lipase – an enzyme that increases your

ability to store fat

Increasing your hunger levels to motivate you to get out and hunt (or hit the cookie

shelves at the supermarket more likely!)

Reducing your insulin sensitivity so that food consumed is more likely to be stored as

fat

These mechanisms are designed to ensure your fat stores last longer, that the little food

you do eat is readily converted to fat and that you return to your previous level of

fatness as quickly as possible. In many cases, crash dieters don’t just regain the weight

they lost, they gain back more as the body creates additional fat reserves to guard

against future periods of starvation. This “lose fat/gain more fat back” cycle is

commonly called yo-yo dieting.

Sadly, there are no quick fixes to long term weight loss – especially crash diets. It takes

most people years to gain excess body fat so it’s going to take a while to lose it –

especially if you want to keep it off. Most experts agree that instead of trying to lose

twenty pounds virtually overnight, you should aim for one or two pounds of weight loss

per week which might not sound like much but over 12 weeks could amount to 25lbs or

around 11kg. This is best achieved by making a small reduction in food intake and a

small increase in activity levels – following the six-pack abs workout for example. Such

conservative interventions are sustainable for a long period of time and are very unlikely

to trigger the starvation response. This way, when you reach your target weight, you

won’t experience a dramatic fat “bounce back” and regain all the weight you have

worked so hard to lose.

Rather than buy into the next celebrity-endorsed fad diet and set yourself up for

catastrophic failure, why not try a proven if less sexy option that is guaranteed to deliver

results while allowing you to eat fairly normally? Moderation is the answer!

Moderation simply means eating a little better, eating a little less, exercising a little

more and making these changes part of your everyday lifestyle for the rest of your life.

Okay, so you won’t lose twenty pounds in two weeks but the whole process will be


70

much more enjoyable and you can still eat normal foods. You can even enjoy treats from

time to time – you just need to make sure that treats are an occasional rather than

frequent occurrence.

When asked “what is the best fat loss diet” the response is always the same – it’s the

one you can stick with. Forget the fad diets and practice nutritional moderation – you

might take a while longer to get to your ideal weight but you’ll enjoy the process more

and, most importantly, won’t regain the weight you have worked so hard to lose. As

with exercise, when it comes to fat loss and weight control, consistency is the key.

Here, finally, are my seven golden fat loss guidelines which should make designing

your own fat loss diet a cinch.

Simple fat loss rule number one – eat protein at every meal

Take a look at most meals and you’ll see they are built around starchy carbs like pasta,

bread, rice or potatoes. There is nothing especially wrong with these foods but they

aren’t great if you want easy fat loss. Protein, on the other hand, will really ramp up

your metabolism, helps to preserve muscle mass when you are dieting and also keep

you feeling full for longer than carbs. By building your meals around protein you set

your internal environment to “fat burn” and away from “fat storage” so make sure that

the first thing you put on your plate is a good source of protein such as chicken, fish,

lean meat, eggs or any vegetarian protein source such as tofu or soya.

Protein food


71

Simple fat loss rule number two – earn your carbs

Carbohydrate is your muscles’ preferred source of energy during exercise and the longer

or more intensely you work out, the more carbs your body can use. Conversely, the

more sedentary you are the less carbohydrate you need and any carbs consumed when

you don’t need them are easily converted to fat.

The best time to eat rice, bread, pasta and potatoes is one to two hours before and

immediately after exercise. If you are taking a day off from exercise then cut down on

your starchy carb intake. On the days you work out include moderate amounts of

starchy carbs in your pre and post-exercise meals.

Eating carbs outside of this window of opportunity means that there is a fuel conflict

and your body is more likely to use the carbs for energy and not your stored body fat.

Limit your carb intake when you are going to be less active and you’ll give your body no

other choice than to burn fat for fuel.

Simple fat loss rule number three – eat your veggies

If you follow tip number two, you need to make sure you follow this tip too! Cutting

back on carbs is great but you need to replace those carbs with something equally

satisfying if you are to avoid feeling hungry. Keep hunger pangs at bay by eating foods

with bulk as they cause

significant stomach

distension which makes you

feel satiated.

Most veggies (with the main

exception being potatoes)

are very low in calories so

you can eat a big pile of

them without any worry of

interfering with your weight

loss. Leafy green

vegetables, mushrooms,

zucchini, peppers, onions,

cabbage, kale, Vegetables


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carrots...they’re all filling and healthy and major players in easy fat loss. Try to include a

variety of colours in each meal so you get a broad spectrum of healthy nutrients. See

how colourful you can make your plate!

Simple fat loss rule number four – don’t drink your calories

A typical can of regular soda contains around forty grams of sugar which works out

around one hundred and sixty calories. A blended iced coffee drink will contain even

more sugar and a lot of fat too and can contain as many as six hundred calories or more.

Many fruit juice drinks are not much better…

The thing is, even the most calorie-dense drinks do not fill you up and often actually

make you feel more hungry as they spike your blood glucose levels which then results in

a rapid increase in insulin production which can ultimately leave you feeling deflated

and craving more sugar. Save your calories for food and focus on drinking more water,

unsweetened coffee and tea.

Simple fat loss rule number five – be more active

If you are a regular exerciser and clock up three hours of exercise per week you are

already doing more than the vast majority of the population and are well on your way to

getting lean, fit and healthy. But; what

about the one hundred and sixty five

hours per week that remains? Do you

spend the majority of your time sat down

at work? Do you spend your leisure time

sat watching TV or surfing the internet?

Exercise is important for easy fat loss but

most of us don’t do enough general

physical activity to be considered anything

other than sedentary.

Your body is meant to be active for the

majority of each and every day –

something that very few of us do because

of the passivity of modern living. For easy

starvation-free fat loss you need to seek

out ways to be more active every day.

Walking


73

Walk instead of drive, stand instead of sit, take the stairs and not the elevator, wash

your car by hand, do some gardening, play soccer or catch with your kids…do whatever

you can to get up and get active. Adding this so-called non-exercise physical activity to

your day will ensure that you experience faster, easier weight loss.

Simple fat loss rule number six – minimize stress

Stress, be it emotional or physical, results in an increase in the production of the

hormone cortisol. Cortisol can impair fat burning, increases insulin resistance which

limits your ability to use carbohydrates for fuel and promotes fat storage, reduces

muscle mass and also suppresses anabolic hormone production. In addition, many

people are “stress eaters” and overindulge in less healthy foods which will further

compound the problems associated with elevated cortisol levels.

If you find it hard to lose weight or are showing signs of stress (inability to sleep, upset

stomach, nervousness, anxiety, misplaced anger etc) you should take steps to get a

handle on your stressors and learn some effective coping skills. Exercise is a great stress

buster and so is meditation and deep breathing but as stress is such a big and complex

topic it’s impossible to do justice to it here. Luckily, there are numerous online resources

that can tell you all about stress and how to deal with it. Just use your search engine and

you’ll find lots of stress-busting info online.

Simple fat loss rule number seven – treat but don’t cheat!

One of the common features of very restrictive diets is the so-called cheat day. The

basic premise is that you really toe the line all week, living on little more than a handful

of mung beans and a few scraps of turkey, and then, to stop you losing the will to live,

you are “allowed” to pig out at the weekend. This “strategic overeating” as it is

euphemistically called is often promoted as both a psychological and physiological

benefit as it will rev up your metabolism and also give you something to look forward to

end the end of each week.

While is true that your body will rev up to try and deal with the sudden influx of calories,

it can only work on its highest “setting” for a relatively short time. If the binge continues

for too long, your metabolism simply slows back down to normal and body fat levels

start to increase again. It is not uncommon to hear of dieters who lose five pounds in a

week only to regain six over the weekend!


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So, rather than be super-strict all week and go nuts at the weekend try having smaller

but more frequent treats if you feel deprived. This will help you avoid over indulging and

help keep your fat loss on the straight and narrow. So what constitutes a treat? Pretty

much anything that does not fall into either the weight loss or general nutrition

guidelines in this e-book. Cookies, cakes, crisps, ice cream and chocolate are all good

examples of treat foods.

Make sure you practice good portion control and do not buy bargain packs of naughty

foods with the intention of just having a little portion each day. Chances are, once you

have had a taste you’ll want more so limiting the food you actually have in your

cupboard will ensure you don’t “accidently” go on a junk food frenzy!

Treats


75

To further minimize the potential damage of treating/cheating, follow these tips...

Show some restraint! 1-2 pieces of pizza are fine. 1-2 whole pizzas are not. Don’t

cheat your way out of making any progress

Buy your treat on the day you are going to eat it. Don’t kid yourself that you’ll

save it until Sunday when you buy it on Wednesday. We both know that, if you

have a craving, you’ll be all over that bad boy as soon as you get home from work

so avoid temptation and only buy your treat on the day you are going to eat it.

Do some exercise before your treat. It doesn’t have to be a full workout but at

the very least get out and walk for 30 minutes before you relax your diet. This

little bit of activity will increase insulin sensitivity and hopefully result in at least

some of your cheat calories being partitioned into your muscle cells and away

from your fat cells

Don’t cheat alone! You are a lot less likely to go overboard if you are eating with

someone else. Sitting at home alone watching TV and eating a little of what you

fancy can easily turn a well-earned treat into a cheat-fest! Also, sharing your treat

halves the calories...

Go for quality and not quantity. The better quality the cheat, the less of it you will

need to eat to satisfy your cravings. For example, I’m pretty sure I can eat my

own weight in milk chocolate but if I eat really good quality dark chocolate, 50

grams is plenty as the flavour is so much more satisfying

To give you an idea of what a week of eating looks like, here is an example.

Remember though, this is not meant to be a diet for you to follow – it merely

illustrates how your diet COULD look if you follow the seven guidelines above.


76

Breakfast Snack 1 Lunch Snack 2** Dinner Snack 3

Mo

nd

ay*

Porridge made with skimmed milk, whey protein shake

Small pot of cottage cheese, celery sticks

Open grilled chicken salad sandwich on rye bread

Small pot natural yogurt, banana

Baked high meat sausages, mashed cauliflower

Small handful almonds and olives

Tue

sday*

Scrambled eggs, wholemeal toast, grilled tomatoes

Small piece of Cheddar cheese, 1-2 slices of turkey ham

Brown, tuna and mixed vegetable salad

Malt loaf, peanut butter, glass of milk

Grilled chicken, roast mixed vegetables

Beef jerky

We

dn

esd

ay

Organic muesli, skimmed milk, whey protein

Small pot of natural yogurt, apple

Large grilled chicken salad, small handful of almonds

2 hard boiled eggs, small handful of olives

Turkey and vegetable stir fry, shredded cabbage in place of noodles

2 hard boiled eggs, small handful Brazil nuts

Thu

rsday*

Grilled bacon, wholemeal toast, grilled mushrooms

Whey protein shake

Turkey ham and cheese salad sandwich on wholemeal bread

Small white bread chicken sandwich, apple

Grilled fish, steamed vegetables, small baked sweet potato

Small piece of Cheddar cheese, 1-2 slices of turkey ham

Friday*

2-3 poached eggs, grilled mushrooms and tomatoes, wholemeal bread

Beef jerky, small pear, small handful of almonds

Tuna with vegetables, small portion wholemeal pasta, olive oil

Natural yogurt, soft fruit and whey protein smoothie

Turkey and mixed vegetable curry – no rice

Small handful of Brazil nuts and small handful of olives

Saturd

ay

Porridge made with skimmed milk, whey protein shake

Low carb protein bar

Grilled fish, steamed vegetables, small baked sweet potato

Beef jerky, celery sticks

Beef bolognaise, shredded cabbage in place of pasta

Whey protein shake

Sun

day

Healthy English breakfast: bacon, sausages, poached eggs, mushrooms

2 hard boiled eggs, 2 oat cakes, small handful of olives

Lean beef and vegetable stir fry, no rice or noodles

Small can of tuna, olive oil, carrot sticks

Cheat Meal Chinese takeaway, no rice, 1 small bottle of beer

Beef jerky

* I’ve made the assumption that you are going to exercise on these days so your carb

intake will be slightly higher to maximise the anabolic effect of insulin.** Indicates

post training snack on workout days


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9) Dos and Don’ts for Optimum Success Getting lean and building a six-pack is not easy but this e-book contains all the

information you need to be successful. There are a few common pit-falls that are worth

avoiding and by simply adhering to the advice in this section, you’ll be at least one step

closer to your ultimate fitness and physique goal!

Do eat breakfast every day. Skipping breakfast is like missing a fat-burning opportunity.

Consuming protein on rising kicks your metabolic rate up a notch for the rest of the day

and also puts the break on catabolism. Also, if you skip breakfast, you are more likely to

eat badly mid-morning because of unscheduled hunger.

Not a breakfast person? Go with smoothies made from whey protein, soft fruit and

natural yogurt. Easy to consume, refreshing and quick to make, smoothies are the

ultimate excuse-free breakfast.

Don’t use artificial sweeteners. If you, like me, have a bit of a sweet tooth, it’s very

likely that you will consider using artificial sweeteners like aspartame and nutri-sweet so

you can indulge your cravings for sweets without ingesting calories. The problem is,

artificial sweeteners are so good that they end up tricking more than your taste buds

and can actually cause an insulin response, just like you are eating real sugar. Insulin

suppresses fat burning and needs to be kept low except after training when we want to

harness its anabolic power. Save the sweets for treat day and stay away from both sugar

and artificial sweeteners the rest of the time. Like most artificial additives, chemicals

such as aspartame may not be very good for you so steer away from ingredients that

you can’t pronounce.

Do eat the rainbow. When selecting your fruit and vegetables, try to eat as many

different colours of food as you can – providing they are naturally coloured that is! By

eating a wide variety of colours, you are much more likely to get a variety of the

essential nutrients that are vital to your health. Make your plate look like a set of traffic

lights or, better still, a rainbow and you can be safe in the knowledge that you have all

your vitamin and mineral bases covered.

Don’t shop on an empty stomach. Hunting and gathering is hard-wired into your brain.

If you are hungry and then head out to do your weekly grocery shopping, chances are

you will come home with a whole bunch of food you really shouldn’t have bought –

most likely, lots of simple sugary carbs. Only go shopping after you have eaten properly


78

and your blood glucose levels are nice and stable. And remember, no buying your treat

meal in advance. If it’s in your cupboard ahead of your scheduled treat day than you are

much more likely to eat it. Possession is nine-tenths of the law or so they say! If you

have it, you’re gonna eat it.

Do get a significant other on board. If you live alone, following a strict eating plan isn’t

as bad as you only have to prepare and eat your own food. If, however, you share your

home, preparing and then eating food that is different to the other members of your

household can be hard. I strongly suggest asking your partner to follow this plan with

you (they could do with losing a few pounds anyway but don’t tell them I said so!) so

you don’t have to sit opposite someone eating the sorts of foods you are trying to avoid.

Don’t leave home without healthy food. So, you are in a rush and need to get to work

in a hurry. You say to yourself “it’s okay – I’ll pick up a big salad from the cafe at work”

but dollars to donuts, the last salad will have just been sold and you’ll be left with a pie

and some greasy chips for lunch. Avoid nutritional disasters like this by always preparing

food in advance. I tend to pack my food the night before so I know that even if I am in a

rush in the morning, I don’t have to worry about the food I’ll need. Buy yourself an

insulated food bag and leave it in the fridge overnight. That way your food will be nicely

chilled and be fresh and yummy when you eat it the following day. I tend to make my

meals as I’m making my dinner – I’m in the kitchen anyway after all.

Do make a shopping list. I really enjoy wandering the isles of my local supermarket

looking for new and interesting things to eat. It’s my little bit of retail therapy! This is

fine when I’m not eating strictly but when it’s time to knuckle down for my annual get-

lean project, this can lead to all sorts of unwanted items making it into my shopping

trolley. When you are eating for leanness, it’s essential you stick to the meat, vegetables

and fruit sections of the supermarket and stay away from the isles where the biscuits

and cakes roam freely. They are just waiting to leap into your shopping basket and undo

your best efforts to build your six-pack. Plan your weeks meals in advance, only

purchase what you need and then get the heck out of Dodge before you end up buying

something that will add inches to your waistline.

Don’t miss meals. It might be tempting to skip a few meals in an effort to speed up your

fat loss but while this might seem logical, it can really upset your progress. Skipping a

meal can result in increased hunger levels so that, when you next eat, you end up

consuming more than you have actually saved. Also, skipping meals may lead to


79

triggering the starvation response and you know how detrimental that is to your

progress. Eat between four and six meals a day and remember that the more frequently

you eat, the more often you give your metabolism a little bump. Keep the fat-burning

fires burning hotter with smaller, frequent meals.

Do get enough sleep. Sleep is when your body goes through its growth and repair

processes which are essential for fat loss and raising your metabolism. Also, too little

sleep tends to encourage carb cravings as you seek alternative forms of energy when

you are tired. Get at least seven to eight hours per night and you will promote

anabolism, limit catabolism and prime your body for muscle building and fat burning.

Too little sleep can result in increased levels of the stress hormone cortisol which is

partly responsible for muscle breakdown. Don’t give mean old cortisol a look-in. Get

plenty of sleep and all your bodily functions will improve.

Don’t be afraid of repetition. If you find a really good meal that is easy to prepare, you

enjoy and meets the criteria of this plan, don’t be afraid to eat it a few times a week. By

eliminating choice, you increase you likelihood of diet compliance significantly. That

doesn’t mean that you can eat the same thing 42 times a week but certainly consuming

the same meal three or four times a week is fine. Unless you are a culinary genius

and/or have unlimited time for food shopping and preparation, you will probably find

that it’s so much easier to stick with your diet if you consume the same meals a few

times a week. It just makes things easy. My go to fat loss meal is oven roasted

vegetables (tomatoes, onions, peppers, courgettes), grilled chicken and olive oil

dressing. Very easy, filling, tasty and a real no-brainer!

Do plan your menu in advance. Leading on from the point above, by planning your

menu in advance, you are much more likely to adhere to your diet. If you get home, feel

hungry, and don’t really know what you are going to eat, you are much more likely to

choose the easy option of knocking up some high carb pasta based meal that will take

you a step away from your ultimate leanness goal and not towards it. Take an hour or so

to plan your weekly menu, build your shopping list around it and then see how much of

the food you can actually prepare in advance. One of the reasons so many diets fail is

that they don’t encourage structure and have such a scatter-gun approach that you

never get into any kind of routine. When eating for fat loss, repetition is your friend.

Don’t snack while watching TV. I love a bit of TV before I hit the hay but I also know just

how easy it is to lose track of how many snacks you have consumed while you are zoned


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out in front of the box. On a very low level, watching TV is like hypnosis and while you

are embroiled in the comings and goings on Coronation Street, it’s all too easy for your

hands to keep shoving food in your mouth without realising just how much you have

eaten. Try to eat your meals at a table and take your time to savour each and every bite.

Give the food time to register at the hunger centres of your brain by being aware of

what you are eating. Eating while distracted is an easy way to overeat so avoid this if

you can. If you must snack while watching TV, choose low calorie options like raw

vegetable crudités.

Do stick with it. No plan will work if you don’t stick with it. Commit to the exercise and

nutritional plans detail in this e-book and you WILL improve your health, fitness and

appearance. There will be times where things get hard and you get disheartened but

remember, this is just 12-weeks of your life – YOU CAN DO IT! Knuckle down for three

months and you will be amazed at how you can transform your body and remember, as

great (no, brilliant!) as this plan is, it’ll only work if you stick with it.

Good luck – and here’s to your new six-pack abs!


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10) About the Author Born in Bristol, England, in 1968, Patrick Dale realized at a very early age that sports and

fitness was "his thing" and has devoted almost all of his life to these pursuits.

After studying physical education in college, Patrick began working as a gym instructor

and aerobics class teacher before quickly progressing to facility management. He was

soon personal training a select group of clients before Personal Training became a

recognized job title.

He took a five year break from the Health & Fitness industry to join the Royal Marine

Commandos - one of the most elite fighting forces in the world. The Marines have a

reputation for "training hard and fighting easy" and Patrick's high level of fitness was

tested to the extreme during his service. Patrick saw active duty in many parts of the

world including Northern Ireland.

Patrick left the Marines to resume his Health & Fitness career first as a fitness manager

and then he began teaching other people how to become personal trainers and gym

instructors. He now has his own training company in Cyprus called Solar Fitness

Qualifications which provides professional certification courses for those wishing to

follow in his footsteps in to the rewarding industry of Health & Fitness.

As an enthusiastic sportsman, Patrick has been involved with and competed in a wide

variety of activities including athletics, rugby, rock climbing, weightlifting, bodybuilding,

triathlon, martial arts, trampolining and gymnastics; he has recently competed in his

first powerlifting competition.

His main areas of professional interests are strength and conditioning for improved

sports performance, nutrition, fitness psychology and weight management as well as

family health and fitness - an area he is very passionate about promoting. Believing that

prevention is better than cure, he wants to help people of all ages to get the benefits of

a healthy lifestyle and reduce their risk of the common chronic diseases associated with

poor nutrition and inactivity. Patrick has written three books – Military Fitness Training,

Live Long, Live Long and No Gym? No Problem! The Home Workout Bible which are

available from Amazon http://www.amazon.co.uk/Patrick-

dale/e/B00B5HPLRO/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_3?qid=1390912860&sr=1-3&tag=csxabweb-21

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Patrick-dale/e/B00B5HPLRO/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_3?qid=1390912860&sr=1-3&tag=csxabweb-21

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Patrick-dale/e/B00B5HPLRO/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_3?qid=1390912860&sr=1-3&tag=csxabweb-21


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When he isn’t researching and writing health & fitness related articles for various

international magazines, lecturing, or writing books, Patrick enjoys spending his free

time reading fiction, taking photographs, watching movies, cooking, walking his three

great Danes and making the most of the sunny climate of Cyprus. He can be contacted

at [email protected]

Patrick

mailto:[email protected]

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