8 Pack-Abs.. I Wish...

I was reading my daily newspaper, which is Philippine Daily Inquirer then something caught my eye. I catch a glimpse and it surprises me to see the headline stated on the front page under the sub news of lifestyle.

“The Man With a Killer Eight-Pack Abs”. Turn to Lifestyle, D-1.

So, being a dummy, I turned the page to D-1 hoping that the news was true enough. It was. And upon reading the article, it amazes me and I just want to share some portions of what I learned from the column.

According to Marge Enriquez, the contributor of the column of Inquirer on what I was reading, the guy with an 8 pack abs can be seen on the billboards of Edsa, a model for Hang ten. His name was Adbel Abdelkader.

As I was reading the column, I tried to get some tips (since I was dreaming of having such abs…) on how he was able to do what others deemed as impossible. His story was simple. He was skinny back then. Then, his personal trainer taught him the four basic principles of fitness: balanced diet, adequate rest, correct workout and hydration.

It’s easier said than done.

He works out 5 hours a day (so much for work, the guy’s must be a bum). He performs 90 minutes of cardiovascular exercises in the morning: 20 minutes each of spinning, running and elliptical; and 40 minutes of abdominal exercises such as leg lifts and crunches.

Ouch.

But what amazes me is that instead of traditional repetitions and numerous sets, he performs these until muscle failure, meaning he does every routine with an unexpected length of time or until the felt so much pain from the muscle. For example, he holds the plank for four and a half minutes! 4 minutes! 1 minute is already so hard for me, yet he could quadruple what I can do (well, there’s no surprise for that. Who am I anyway?).

His abdominal workouts are the same usual abs programs such as knee raise, bicycle crunch, V-sit, etc. But again, what makes these more special is that he performs these until muscle failure… No standard repetitions, no number of sets required. Only until he feel such pain that he cannot continue before he stops.

Lastly, he maintains a healthy diet. He starts a day with green tea, peppermint and ginseng, which burns fats and clean the system. He takes hard-core muscle tech for breakfast and dinner and his tea between meals.

Clearly, to have these, you’ve got to be disciplined. Disciplined enough to resist any kind of temptation or whatsoever.

I’ve been hitting the gym for the past 3 years. Since I’m allergic to Whey Protein, I substitute it with Soya Milk, Enervon HP and Egg whites. Some say I gained muscles or bulk (some only.. hope it’s true). I ran twice a week, with a minimum of 10 kilometers per week. Yet, makes me wonder, I’m doing what this clown is doing(well, not all), yet my abs is still round.

Now I get it.. Never eat too much.. especially when on a date. Well, there’s the culprit. I just ate too much. Nonetheless, this column inspired the that I once-thought it was impossible is actually possible although it takes guts and discipline. The column brings out my fighting spirit of trying to attain what I just read even though we know it's a long shot.

This column is best suited for people who wanna lose weight or other gym freaks who are conscious when it comes to their belly and abs. It may also help who are lazy enough to move their lazy asses to exercise or even hit the gym.

See the link below. Be ready to be inspired and be wowed.

http://lifestyle.inquirer.net/13703/the-man-with-the-killer-eight-pack-abs