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Everyone Has a Six-Pack

Jackie Wright / The Fitness Trail
Grand Lake, CO Colorado

If I had a dollar for every infomercial, DVD, book, article or class format that guarantees you a six-pack of abdominals, I would be a very wealthy gal (i.e. there are no guarantees).

First of all, we all have the basic same tendinous inscriptions that connect our sheath of muscle (i.e. rectus abdominis) from approximately the sternum to the vicinity of the pubic bone and those inscriptions are what represent the “six-pack”. So, congratulations, you have a six-pack or perhaps even an eight-pack as there are exceptions depending upon your genetic make-up.

Unfortunately, genetics play a very prominent role in whether or not your six-pack will be visible as will the significance of the layer of fat that may lie over the six-pack. You may have a very strong core and not have a particularly visible six-pack and you may not have a particularly strong core just because you possess a prominent six pack. So, rather than concentrating on creating a visible six-pack, think of focusing upon strengthening your entire core (i.e. think chin to knees) and that includes the inner core and outer core unit muscles that we refer to as the corset around the torso.



After all, a strong core means that the shoulder, hip and knee joints are solid, strong structures as well as the “corset” (i.e. we are not ignoring other joints, just focused upon chin-knees for the purposes of this discussion). Your body is a link system and every link is important to the links that lie above and below it. You are a 360 degree structure and need to strengthen front/back, left/right and top/bottom and if one segment of the link system is ignored, it will inevitably begin to negatively impact the other segments of the body through compensation.

There are foundational principles to training the core which do not require sophisticated equipment or three hours/day at the gym. True, those beautiful Olympic athletes that we watched do amazing things with their bodies this summer often possess very visible six-packs; however, not everyone is an elite athlete and not everyone spends six-10 hours a day training for elite sports. Consequently, comparing yourself to those who are genetically blessed, and train their entire lives diligently for their sports, may not be a good way to spend your valuable time.



Rather than making comparisons to others, take the time to have a good hard look at your lifestyle and your gene pool. Does this mean that your body is not capable of doing amazing things? Absolutely not, but it does mean being realistic and setting attainable, achievable, safe and effective fitness goals.

Over the next three weeks, we will be offering training tips and guidelines as well as a solid, yet fundamental total body core training program. If you will make the commitment to follow this program consistently, you may begin experiencing a stronger total body. Additionally, following some of the general nutritional guidelines provided will be as important as the total body core training program itself. It is a total package.

So, are you ready to jump in with both feet? If so, stay tuned because next week, we start the challenge!

Jackie Wright is the owner/manager of Never Summer Fitness, LLC located in Grand Lake, Colorado. She may be reached at her website at http://www.neversummerfitness.com, her email at NSFGL@comcast.net, her blog at http://www.skyhidailynews.com and her Facebook page at Never Summer Fitness.


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