Q&A for: 21-Jan-06
1243. Q:
What is the best way to not only get a defined stomach/abs, not to get abdominal muscles that instead of curving outwards like a beer belly - actually curve inwards so that they are smaller than your hip size. Some advisors say it it about being having very low body fat. I ask this, as the abs seem very tough to train as compared to the muscles in your leg. Do you have to very lean like a youth or do you need to be very muscular to have defined abs?
A:
Any kind of definition on the abs (often called the 'six-pack') requires very low body fat levels -- less than 10% usually. Without low body fat level, you will not see the abdominal six-pack no matter how much you train your abs. Body fats levels that low are very possible for many younger guys, in fact many have it naturally without even eating/training specifically to lower body fat levels. But for guys who are older than 30 or start out very overweight it is more difficult to lose enough fat to reach the six-pack. It is also extremely difficult to reach for women. I describe the approach to lowering body fat here.
What you are asking is that the abs be not only defined but also curve inwards into the stomach. This is a lot trickier since curving in is not a natural tendency for your abdominals. For one, you'll need the low body fat levels, of course. For two, you'll have to suck the stomach in at least slightly. For three, your stomach and digestive track must be relatively empty -- too much food or fluid in it will naturally create a outward bulge. For four, you cannot have too much muscle mass in your abdominals -- though this is rarely a problem.
There's one 'trick' you can use to your advantage to create the appearence of small or even inward-curving stomach if you are a guy -- have a well-developer upper body! A large broad chest and wide shoulders will create the illusion of smaller stomach and waistline. On the whole though, what you are asking is pretty much impossible without at least some 'cheating' (such as sucking in the stomach).
1244. Q:
Which is better to have strong muscles or muscles that are hard to the touch?
A:
It's each individual's choice what aspects of physique appeal to them, so it's impossible to answer which is 'better'. However I want to note that the actual hardness of the muscles does not change with training, only muscle size and strength do. What you are probably talking about is how the muscles of people with low body fat feel harder than of those with higher body fat -- that happens not because one muscle is harder than the other (as I said before, actual muscle's hardness is about the same for everyone) but because the person with low-body fat has less flabby fat covering the muscle, making it appear harder.
Of course, it's perfectly possible and normal to have both the low body fat and strong muscles -- the same weight training that makes your muscles strong also helps you burn fat leading to low body fat. So you can have the best of both worlds!
1245. Q:
how do you get hard muscles, rather than defined muscles?
A:
As I said in Q&A #1244 you have no control over the hardness of the actual muscle. By losing the fat the covers the muscles (in other words, by decreasing your body fat levels), you can increase the apparent hardness of the muscle. Aside from that however, the only way you can get harder muscles is by tensing/flexing them.
The definition in muscle also comes from low body fat levels. So in the end, the only thing you can do to achive both hardness and definition in the muscles is lose body fat. There's nothing else you can do to increase hardness rather than definition of your muscles.
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