This is AMAZING! In just TWO weeks my whole waist line grew an inch. This is good and bad, bad because I am not cut and it makes me look fat. Regardless, I know this is not fat because my bodyfat has stayed the same throughout my body. I just changed my squats to go ATG instead of 90 degree. This has REALLY built my abs! Has anyone else ever had similar results?
Yes, check out the strength sports forum on here and ask those guys specifically. ATG squats (or heavy to parallel squats) and deadlifts will certainly do wonders for your abdominal wall strength and size. Actually, I notice my weak link in a deadlift (the thing that causes me to miss a lift) are my abs. I’ve got around a 530 lb deadlift, but it really shot up from like 475 when I began incorporating weighted sit ups.
Yes. I don’t do direct ab work, but even though it’s not part of my goals, my 6 pack is coming out by doing only squats and deadlifts.
When I do deadlifts and squats and I never feel my abs activating; and I never feel DOMS from it either. What am I doing wrong
Think of it this way: If abs are heavily utilized in the squat and deadlift, then direct ab work should assist both lifts.
Man, my abs exploded when I started doing squats. I used to be one of those pretty boy lifters, doing benches and bicep curls every other day. I never got any results until I started doing squats and deads.
[quote]DanErickson wrote:
When I do deadlifts and squats and I never feel my abs activating; and I never feel DOMS from it either. What am I doing wrong[/quote]
You won’t get your abs sore doing deads and squats because abs act only as stabilizers. You’ll naturally use your prime movers more and your attention will be directed to them, not your abs. Thus, you won’t feel your abs activating.
I get slight DOMS in my abs when I do deads.
I don’t think you will continue to see great improvement in abdominal strength just from squatting. The posterior portion of your core is doing far more work than the anterior portion, trying to keep your spine from going into flexion.
http://www.T-Nation.com/readArticle.do?id=1705159&cr=
http://www.michaelboyle.biz/joomla/dmdocuments/mcbride-new-training-techniques.pdf
Does anyone else besides me see a problem of an inch of muscle growth in a muscle with not much potential to grow… in two weeks?
haha, yes scott, I was waiting to see how far it would go.
Fucking works best for me when it comes to abs…
You’re preaching to the choir here, man, but preach on!
I have also started doing an assistance exercise for my deadlifts, the pull through, and have found that also to be a killer ab exercise.
Squats and deadlifts both demand stability throughout your torso and so tedn to build up muscles throughout abdomen, including importantly the obliques.
What you may lose in a waspish waist you gain in raw strength (and even massive abdominal muscles ina regular man wont make the midsection look too big)
[quote]Scott M wrote:
Does anyone else besides me see a problem of an inch of muscle growth in a muscle with not much potential to grow… in two weeks? [/quote]
Sure - but might it be under used muscles filling up with glycogen and water as well as a little more ‘dry’ muscle size?
Could be a bit of fat too. Squats and deadlifts do wonders for appetite!
zercher squats are especially great for building abs and ive gotten abdominal DOMS from them plenty of times.
its funny how the people who tend to be so caught up on wanting abs are the ones who never do deads or squats -which actually build nice thick abs.
I’m actually glad to see this, while I have a visible six pack, I could care less about doing situps or whatever for them. I do lots of squats and deadlifts though, and direct ab work once in a blue moon.
[quote]Scott M wrote:
Does anyone else besides me see a problem of an inch of muscle growth in a muscle with not much potential to grow… in two weeks? [/quote]
Abdominal growth + oblique growth + lower back growth + increase in glycogen deposits perhaps? + fat = hott ABZ in two weeks!!
^ you could market that on an infomercial.
I just found it odd, if I came on T-Nation with a thread that my triceps had gotten a half inch bigger in 14 days from simply lowering dips to full stretch instead of stopping at arms paralell to the ground wouldn’t there be some questions? First thing out of anyones mouth would be A) bullshit and B) you measured wrong
I think people are overlooking the fact that the stomach tends to hold um… food in it and can vary greatly depending on hydration, food, measuring style(pull tape harder one time) etc. I could say typing on T-Nation while I do my online course and cleaning my apartment made my “core” grow 3 inches over the course of today, if I forget that fact that I ate 4 meals of steak and veggies and 2 protein shakes. If I measure in the morning my waist is 32-3ish around the navel, if I measured at night(don’t need the ego hit ha) it could probably be 36+. Maybe I’m just the crazy one here haha.