Abs

In the never-ending war against our potbellies, men are fighting a pretty powerful opponent—and it''s not that overwhelming desire to dish yourself seconds at every meal, nor the underwhelming urge to get off the couch and flatten that spare tire. In the battle of the bulge, your main adversary is nature itself.

"It goes back to ancient times, when food was harder to find. Back then, our bodies adapted by storing fuel—in the form of fat cells—in the body. In men, that storage area was around the midsection. When food was scarce, your body could draw on the reserve," explains Doug Lentz, Pennsylvania state director of the National Strength and Conditioning Association and owner of the Chambersburg Sports Medicine and Rehabilitation Center in Pennsylvania.

In modern times, most men have no problem rustling up a meal or three, but we still eat—and our bodies still store excess fat—like an Ice Age was just around the corner. Consequently, Lentz says we get thicker and thicker around the middle, especially as we get older and our metabolisms slow down.

And that''s nothing to belly-laugh about. Put simply, fat can kill you. When you eat fats, they can cause plaque to build up in the walls of your arteries, cutting off blood flow to your heart and leaving you with heart disease, the single biggest killer of men. Or, if you eat beyond what your body needs, your body will store that excess fuel in the fat cells around your middle. When that spare tire inflates, it puts more pressure on your heart, which can cause high blood pressure and also lead to heart disease.

That''s just page one in the catalog of woes. "Even though it''s around your middle, excess fat does a number on your back," says Todd Ellenbecker, P.T., clinical director of Physiotherapy Associates Scottsdale Sports Clinic in Arizona. "The weight of it can really put a strain on lower-back muscles, and it''s one of the reasons why so many men suffer lower-back pain."

Finally, with this type of fat, what doesn''t kill you can certainly make you weaker, because the more fat we store in our guts, the less we tend to work the abdominal muscles. "And if those muscles get weak, it can cause a lot of problems," says Lentz.

There are only four major abdominal muscles, but this muscle quartet is one of the most vital in your body. Those abs—including the upper and lower abdominals and oblique muscles on either side of your abdomen—support the rest of your torso and lower back.

Abdominal muscles also help us move our legs and shift our hips. When you swing a bat, heft a box, kick a ball or shift your weight for more power, your abdominals are doing some of the work. The more fat you ladle on the belly, the more you''ll expose other parts of your body to serious injury.

Cutting Out the Middle, Man

You have two obstacles, then, to looking good around your middle—belly fat and flabby abs. Don''t confuse the two. "You might have very little fat around your middle, but that doesn''t mean you have good abs. Those muscles could be weak. Conversely, some guys might develop strong abs from the work they do or games they play, but they''ll wonder why they still have a potbelly," says Lentz.

The reason is that these guys are buying into the dubious exercise theory of spot-reducing. "It would be nice if it worked, but it doesn''t," says Peter Lemon, Ph.D., professor of applied physiology at Kent State University in Ohio. Dr. Lemon studies the link between food and exercise. Too often, he says, men believe that doing a lot of abdominal exercise will somehow burn the fat—or spot-reduce it—in their abdominal area. "It''ll never work. You might improve abdominal strength, but that alone won''t get you the results you want," says Dr. Lemon.

No, ditching the gut and toning the abs requires two separate strategies, says Dr. Lemon. The first revolves around eating foods that are lower in fat and burning what excess fat you have, not with sit-ups and crunches, but with a different kind of exercise. Aerobic exercise.

"In most men, fat around the abdominals is the last thing their bodies burn off. Aerobic exercise is what gets your body to start burning it," says Lentz. That means at least 30 minutes, three to four times a week, of a low- to moderate-intensity exercise like speed-walking, cycling, stair-climbing or rowing.

That''s not to say you should forgo your abdominal exercises. In fact, you should continue to do them. That way you''ll strengthen the muscles underneath so that, once you shed the fat, you''ll be able to show off those fab abs. Here''s a bellyful of some of the best abs-strengtheners around. Unlike most resistance-training exercises, you should work the abs to exhaustion. In other words, do the exercise until you can''t do it anymore. The only exception to this rule is if you do your abs exercises while holding dumbbells or a light weight plate. In that case, for the low-weight, high-rep principle, do 12 to 20 reps per set.

And in all cases, focus on good technique. Make sure you do all your abdominal exercises in a slow, controlled manner, Lentz says. Jerking, lunging or bouncing not only is bad technique but also could injure you.

Abdominals

Crunches

One of the best exercises for your upper and lower abs, crunches are more effective than the sit-ups you may remember from junior-high gym class.

Start by lying flat on your back with your hands cupped near your ears or crossed over your chest—never pull on your neck during a crunch, because you could end up injuring your neck or upper back. Keep your feet together, flat on the floor and about six inches from your butt. Bend your knees at about a 45-degree angle, and keep your legs slightly apart.

Curl your upper torso up and in toward your knees until your shoulder blades are as high off the ground as you can get them. Only your shoulders should lift—not your lower back. Feel your abs contract, and hold the raise for a second. Lower to the starting position, then continue with your next rep without relaxing in between. As your abs get stronger, you can hold a light weight plate across your chest and do your crunches that way.

Crossover Crunches

This crunch also works the obliques, which, Ellenbecker reminds us, are the side muscles that help shore up your back. Lie on your back with your feet flat and your knees at about a 45-degree angle. Keep your feet about hip-width apart and cup your hands behind your ears.

Raise your torso up, lifting your shoulders and shoulder blades off the ground. But instead of pausing at the top, slightly twist toward your left knee. Hold the contraction for a second, then lower to the starting position. Repeat, but this time twist to your right knee. Don''t relax between reps.

Raised-Leg Crunches

Lie on your back with your knees bent and your lower legs up on a bench or chair. Your thighs should be perpendicular to the floor, and your hands cupped behind your ears or folded across your chest.

Pull your torso up and in toward your knees, lifting your shoulders and shoulder blades off the floor. Hold the contraction for a second, then lower to the starting position. Repeat, but don''t relax between reps. As you do the crunches, don''t let your butt slide under the bench so that your thighs get bent toward your body.

Frog-Leg Crunches

Another great cruncher for upper and lower abs. Lie flat on your back, this time with your knees spread and the soles of your feet together. Your knees should be as close to the floor as you comfortably can get them. Cup your hands behind your ears or fold them across your chest.

Keeping the rest of your body in place, lift your shoulder blades and upper back off the floor. At the same time, slightly curl your pelvis up and in, but don''t lift your lower back off the floor. Concentrate on your ab contraction. Hold for a second, then lower to the starting position. Don''t rest when you''re done. Repeat your next rep, keeping your abs tight.

Hanging Single-Knee Raises

A fun exercise you can do while you''re just hanging around.

Hang fully extended from a chin-up bar with your palms facing out and your hands a little wider than shoulder-width apart. Your feet should be lightly touching the floor.

Without swinging to pick up momentum, raise your right knee toward your left shoulder as far as you can, using your abs for power. Slightly thrust your pelvis forward to help, but don''t rock. Hold for a second, then lower to the starting position and repeat with your left leg.

Vacuums

If you''ve ever tried to suck in your gut at the beach, you''re already familiar with the basics of this exercise.

Sit in a kneeling position with your feet crossed behind you and your hands on your hips or thighs. Keep your upper body upright. Breathe out, then immediately suck your stomach up and in as far as it will go. Hold for five seconds. Do two to three sets of ten reps. You can also do this exercise from a standing position.

Raised-Leg Knee-Ins

Lie on your back on the floor. Your arms should be close to your sides, with your hands palm-down and just under your butt. Press the small of your back against the floor and extend your legs outward with your heels about three inches above the floor.

Using your abdominal muscles and keeping your lower back against the floor, lift your left knee, keeping your right leg hovering above the floor. Hold, then straighten your leg to the starting position and repeat the movement with the other leg. Keep your abs taut throughout the exercise.

V-Spread Toe Touches

Lie flat on your back with your legs straight up in a V-position. Don''t lock your knees, and raise your arms to the ceiling.

Curl your shoulder blades up and reach toward your right foot with both hands. Hold for a second, concentrating on your abs, then lower to the starting position. Repeat, this time reaching for the left foot. Don''t pause at the lower position. Keep your abs tight.

Obliques

Oblique Twists

These next few exercises work the side, or oblique, muscles of your abdominal area.

Stand upright with your feet about shoulder-width apart, hips facing forward and your knees unlocked. Hold a broomstick across your shoulders, behind your neck so it''s resting on your trapezius and upper deltoid muscles. Your hands should be grasping the ends or outer portions of the broomstick.

Keeping your hips still and facing forward, twist to your left as far as you can go. Then come back to the starting position. Pause for a second, then twist in the opposite direction. Keep a slow, steady pace and concentrate on working your obliques.

Oblique Crunches

Lie flat on your back with your knees bent and your hands cupped behind your ears. Now let your legs fall as far as they can to your left side, so that your upper body is now flat on the floor and your lower body is on its side.

Keeping your shoulders as parallel to the floor as possible, lift your upper body up until your shoulder blades clear the ground. Concentrate on the oblique contraction and hold the crunch for a second. Lower to the starting position and do your next rep. Don''t rest between crunches—keep your abs tight. After one set on your left side, switch to your right and continue.