Is it really possible to have a flat stomach? We're not going to insult your intelligence by telling you that in ten days, with the latest abdominal "whatchamacallit", you can have the flattest abs you want. You must be tired of listening to the umpteenth abdominal-flattening promise on the home shopping networks. No, we're not going to do that.

Instead, we're going to tell you the truth. It has been said that the truth will set you free but first it will make you miserable! Well, some of the truth about achieving a superb set of abdominal muscles will not be very pleasant to hear.

It's hard work, you need to have patience because it takes a while for results to really show, and many times, it is genetically beyond your control. However, not all is bad news. Some of the "secrets" to having flat abs are actually attainable by the average person. You just have to know how to make those secrets work for you. Read on.

What causes fat to accumulate in this area?
Genetics determine where you will store fat when you overeat or underexercise (or do both). Your fat distribution pattern could be that of a "pear" or that of an "apple".

A pear-shaped figure will store fat in the lower body. This means the hips, buttocks, thighs, and, yes, the lower portion of the abdomen…the area below the navel. Most females fall in this category.

Apples store fat in the upper body. The arms, upper back, and upper portion of the abdomen become the fat-magnet sites. Most males and some females follow this pattern.

Within these two patterns are further sub-groups. For example, women who easily store fat in their hips and thighs but rarely in the abdominal region. Alternatively, women who store fat only in the abs but not anywhere else.

Your genes play a large role in whether you will be blessed with a flat tummy or whether you will struggle all your life with less than perfect abs. This is a sad fact of life. You have to work with what you were born with.

Reasons why the abdominal region can look bloated and what to do about it.
Reason number one: Flabby abs.
There are four layers of abdominal muscles. They are designed to act as a natural girdle to hold in your internal organs (liver, stomach, and intestines). When these muscles are flabby, they resemble an old girdle whose elasticity has worn out. The contents of your visceral cavity push forward and cause a jutting silhouette. Therefore, even if you don't have much fat on top of your muscles, you can still look like you are three to four months pregnant.
Solution:
Doing spot abdominal exercises will definitely firm up your abs but its not enough to just do the exercises. You have to do them right. You can do a hundred sit ups a day and still not have any real results.

Reason number two: Pregnancy has ruined your figure.
Skin that has gotten loose from too many pregnancies or from a single pregnancy, where you gained a lot of weight will also cause the abdominal area to look big. The loosened skin cannot properly hold back whatever fat you have there. The whole area, literally, hangs loose.
Solution:
Assuming that you have worked off the fat layer and have firmed up your muscles but you are still stuck with all that loose skin, the only real way to tighten up the skin is to consult a reputable plastic surgeon and consider a "tummy tuck". In the operation, excess skin is pulled down and trimmed away. Voila! A tighter stomach! Be aware, however, that you will have a wide scar and the surgeon will have to relocate your belly button (don't ask how, some things are better left unsaid!). There is also the post-surgical pain to deal with (ouch!).

If you have loose skin, excess fat and flabby muscles, we suggest you exercise and eat properly to get in the best possible shape before whisking yourself off to the operating room. Why? Because if you take the lazy woman's way out and skip the exercise and diet part, chances are, you will not have the discipline to maintain your new surgically enhanced figure. Surgery or liposuction should always be the last resort.

Reason number three: Your mother keeps telling you to stand up straight.
Poor posture is another culprit. Two types of bad posture can be responsible for less-than-flat abs. One is called "lordosis" or "swayback". This is an exaggerated curve to the lower back, the buttocks stick out behind, and the belly pushes forward. The other type is called "kyphosis" or "flat back". The shoulders are rounded and slouched, there is an exaggerated flatness to the natural curve in the lower back, and the midsection is pushed out from the weight of the upper body folding downward.
Solution:
Poor posture can be due to a muscular imbalance. Think of the spine as a TV antenna being put up on a roof. The wires holding the antenna need to be perfectly balanced or the antenna will be lopsided. It is the same with the muscles surrounding your spine. A swayback can happen when the abs are weak and the lower back is tight. Strengthening the abs and stretching the lower back will usually improve a swayback type of posture. Conversely, strengthening the lower and middle back, and the posterior muscles of the shoulders while stretching the abs (don't give up on the abdominal strengthening exercises though) and chest will help you improve a kyphotic posture.

Reason number four: Bad genes.
Life can truly be unfair! There are no guarantees that, in spite of consistent exercise and good eating habits, you will be rewarded with the flat abs you so righteously deserve. Your genes are to blame if in spite of practically killing yourself with exercise and dieting, you still have stubborn fat clinging to your mid-section.
Solution:
You have two options. One is to have liposuction. For so long as you continue with a lifestyle of fitness and good nutrition, the fat will stay away forever. The other is the good old-fashioned advice of "be happy" and accept what you cannot control.

What are the common misconceptions about the abs?
There are many myths but the most common of them all is that doing abdominal exercises will automatically flatten the abs. Wish it were that simple. Spot exercises help to firm up the muscles but do not do much to shrink the fat cells in that area. To zap the fat you have to burn calories by doing whole-body exercises (aerobics and weight lifting). It also helps not to add to your fat depots by overeating.

Another is that somehow you can melt the fat away. Many fitness enthusiasts in the Philippines use "sauna belts" while doing aerobics or weights. These are wide neoprene belts that fasten with Velcro. They are supposed to burn the fat in the area they are covering. Temporarily, the abs will seem to have gotten smaller due to the loss of sweat and compression from the belt. However, there is no solid scientific data backing up the claim that sauna belts will cause permanent changes in the fat cells.

Doing abdominal exercises right.
Exercises specifically for the abdominal muscles can work wonders in flattening the area. However, not too many people benefit from this "secret" because they don't do the exercises right. No matter what the ads say, it isn't enough to "just do it". You also need to do it right! So you don't waste your time (you can actually do a hundred sit-ups and get nowhere near improving your abs!). MEGA shares with you the secret to doing ab exercises the right way. The exercises shown here are effective and yet, safe for the lower back. Other popular old-fashioned exercises like full sit-ups and double leg raises can be very harmful to the lower back.

Keep in mind the following tips while doing all the exercises:

1. Move slowly. A common misconception is that the faster you move the more effective the exercise. Wrong. The faster you move, the less the muscle has to work because the force of momentum takes over. To make sure you are moving slowly, count to four as you contract and count to four again as you release. If you move slowly, you will find that you do not need to do countless repetitions to see results. Start with 8 to 12 repetitions per exercise. Graduate to 12 to 15 repetitions for one to three sets.
2. Start the movement by contracting the muscle before lifting any of the limbs. A very common mistake is to move the limbs first, creating what looks like the right way but in reality has very little to do with how the muscle should really be contracting. Pay attention to the body check tips. They will teach you the right direction pattern to move in.
3. Rest when you feel a burning sensation in the muscles or when you feel yourself getting tired. It is better to rest and start over again rather than continuing in poor form, which will lessen the effectiveness of the exercise, or place you at risk for an injury.
4. Pretend your abs are a sponge. As you contract, squeeze the water out of the muscle. The whole time, keep your mind focused on your muscle.

• Lie on the mat, facing the ceiling with your knees bent, feet flat on the floor. Keep your feet about 18 inches away from your buttocks.
• Do a "body check" to make sure you are contracting the muscle the right way. Put one hand behind your head. With the other hand, place your thumb on the bottom of your ribcage, your little finger on top of your hipbone. As you contract the rectus abdominis muscle, you should feel the fingers coming in closer together or feel the hipbones coming closer to the ribcage. You will feel the lower back flatten against the floor as you contract and the head, neck and shoulders being lifted off the floor.
• You should feel like an accordion -- folding in the middle as the ribcage and hips come closer to each other as the muscle contracts.
• Keep the head and neck relaxed. Use the hands to support the head. Start the contraction in the abdominals and not the neck and shoulders. Avoid thrusting the head forward as you start the curl. Get the power for the movement from the abs.
• Keep your chin about a fist distance from your chest. When you have curled up, your eyes should not be looking up at the ceiling... this means you are leaning your head too far back. They should not be looking through your legs. This means you have the head too far forward. They should be looking forward at an angle -- the point where the wall meets the ceiling.
• Avoid pushing against the floor with your feet. Use only the abdominal muscles to contract and move the pelvis together with the upper body. For another body check, you can keep one hand behind your head and the other hand against your buttocks. They should not be contracting. Let your abs do all the work.
• Avoid bringing your elbows into your face. You will end up pulling your head and neck forward as you do the front curl.

Reverse curls:
This also works the rectus abdominis but puts a bit more emphasis on the lower portion of the muscle.

• Lie on the mat, facing the ceiling with your legs up in the air. Knees can be bent at 90 degrees (easier) or can be straight with the knees only slightly bent (more challenging). Whichever position you choose, keep the legs directly over the hips so that you keep the lower back safe. Hands can be on the floor beside you (easier) or holding the mat above your head (more challenging).
• Safety tip: If you have a history of a slipped disc or a chronic back problem which is bothering you right now, it would be better to avoid this exercise.
• This is a very small movement. The legs are only used to add weight to make the exercise harder. Start the movement by using the abdominal muscles to curl the pelvis.
• Avoid swinging the legs back and forth. Avoid jerking the legs up. Move slowly.

Basic oblique curls:
This exercise tightens the internal and external obliques, two layers of diagonal fibers that crisscross at the waist. To visualize the muscle fiber direction of these muscles, slide your hands into imaginary pockets. This is the fiber direction of the external obliques. While keeping your hands inside your pockets, turn your hands over like you were turning your pockets inside out. This is fiber direction of the internal obliques. It is the different layers and angles of muscle fiber that make the abs act like a girdle.

• Lie on the mat, facing the ceiling with your knees bent, feet flat on the floor. Keep your feet about 18 inches away from your buttocks.
• For your body check, put one hand behind your head and hold the other arm diagonally straight across your body. As you curl diagonally, you will brush your fingers against the outside of the opposite knee or thigh. Avoid just reaching with the arm; use your abdominal muscles to bring your body diagonally forward.
• You should feel the ribcage and hipbones coming closer together. Except this time, they are moving diagonally towards each other (right ribs to left hipbone).
• Keep the head and neck relaxed. Use the hands to support the head. Start the contraction in the abdominals and not the neck and shoulders. Avoid thrusting the head forward as you start the curl. Get the power for the movement from the abs. Instead of pointing the elbow to your knee, use your chest and shoulder joint as the pointer.
• Keep your elbows away from your face to avoid the temptation of yanking your head and neck.

An anywhere, anytime ab-tightener exercise.
This exercise also works the deepest layer of muscles called the transversus abdominis. To imagine this muscle, place your hands at your waist. The fibers run horizontally encircling your entire torso.

If you don't have the time or the discipline to do any type of abdominal exercises, at least do this one. It's also a good idea to do this in conjunction with all the others if you are serious about having flat abs.

The exercise simply requires you to purposely tighten your abdominal muscles throughout the day whenever and wherever you want to. It sounds simple but most people will do it wrong so read the following instructions carefully.

• Ask someone to tighten their abs and they will inhale, suck in their abs and hold their breath. This is not the muscular action required for this exercise.
• Instead, pretend that you are about to cough or sneeze. Automatically, the abdominal muscles will tighten up. This is the feeling you are looking for. Pretend coughing or sneezing a few more times.
• Another way is to imagine that you are about to be punched. Imagine a fist coming at you rapidly. Instinctively, your abs will tighten up to protect you from getting hurt.
• Now, focus on your belly button. Slowly pull your bellybutton to the back of your spine as you exhale. Do it slowly, developing more tension in the muscles as you imagine your bellybutton coming closer to the back of your body. Hold the muscular tension for ten seconds. You should be able to continue breathing and talk normally (remember you can do this anywhere without other people looking at you strangely!).
• Do this daily as often as you can. In a few weeks, you will notice an improved tautness and flatness to your abdominal area. Try doing it while you are waiting in line at the ATM, while working at your desk, while driving, while waiting for lunch at a restaurant, etc.

The last secret.
The final secret to having flat abs is to keep your abdominal muscles pulled in every minute of the day (except for sleeping!). We are not talking about pulling it in with the same intensity as doing the exercise above but simply to maintain some degree of control over your abs.
It would be useless to do the ab exercises religiously every morning and then let your abs just hang out the rest of the day. Cultivate this habit and your abs will be as flat as your genes allow you to be.

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