When many people first start out on a workout and diet program, they list their goal as to ‘get abs and build muscle’. They want to see clear abdominal definition but yet at the same time want to also add more muscle mass to their frame, developing that very bulked, chiselled look they see on magazines.
But, before you dive into your program stating this is your goal, it’s important that you’re aware of some very important things.
The Issue Of Calories
The very first thing to keep in mind if your goal is to build muscle and get abs is the fact that to build muscle, you have to take in a surplus of energy. This means you’re eating more than you burn off.
To lose fat however, you have to take in fewer calories than you burn.
How can you accomplish both of these at once?
Great question and that’s what these people need to ask themselves. Apart from very new beginners, it becomes incredibly difficult to both increase your muscle mass significantly while getting ripped abs. Unless you happen to have ripped abs already (in which case you just have to worry about minimizing fat gain), you likely aren’t going to get leaner in the stomach while building muscle elsewhere.
Each goal requires a different calorie intake.
The Factor Of Training
Second, you also must think about your training that’s involved. To get leaner abs, you’ll need to start adding more cardio. While you don’t have to do hours of cardio, usually it will need to be present.
But to build muscle, your focus should be on very heavy weight lifting workouts, while minimizing cardio so you don’t sacrifice recovery.
Those that try and do both at once often end up overtrained and going nowhere.
The Superior Approach
So what’s the best approach? If you want to get abs and build muscle, what can you do?
You should zero in and focus on one goal at a time. If you want to get abs, focus on fat loss. Do everything you can to move closer to that goal and accept that your muscle size will likely stay the same.
If you want to build muscle, on the other hand, focus on producing the leanest gains possible so at least you aren’t accumulating any further abdominal fat. This way you’ll be closer to getting abs when you decide to start cutting down.
By working in this manner – choosing one goal to focus on at a time, you’ll be far more productive and accomplish a lot more results. Otherwise, you just end up at a standstill caught between dieting and bulking.
While there are very intricate training plans that can help you build muscle and lose fat at the same time, progress on them will be incredibly slow and most people would become frustrated before they see results anyway.
Use laser sharp focus with your approach and you’ll fare much better.
