Why do cubes appear on the stomach. NO - refusal, invitation or question? Why are some cubes so far apart?

Why are my abs not showing up?? This is a very common question. Many people start going to the gym just to get a nice abs. Medicine has prepared a special material on this topic.

This problem can have many causes. Let's look at the main reasons.

Reason #1. You have little muscle mass

First possible reason- this is a banal absence or lack muscle mass. Each person has a different amount muscle fibers. If you have never (or for a very long time) played sports and did not go to Gym- then you most likely have practically no muscle mass. That is why, the first thing you should do in order for your press cubes to start to appear is to start working on recruiting and pumping muscle mass. Most big muscles in the human body are located in the legs and back. Therefore, it is most effective to start with classic barbell squats and back exercises. But do not forget about other parts of the body, especially the press. After you gain enough muscle mass, your six-pack abs will not keep you waiting.

The main mistake of many beginners is that people start download only the press. This is an extremely inefficient way - everything should be pumped in a complex.

Reason number 3. You don't sleep enough

You stay up late at the computer, thinking that you will get enough sleep on the weekend. If you want six pack abs, you need to get sleep deprivation out of your life. Lack of sleep contributes to the production of cortisol in the body. Cortisol - encourages fat storage. In addition, the muscles need sleep to rest and recover from training. In addition, you will become much more productive during the day.

Reason number 4. Are you overdoing diets?

Reason number 5. You are too obsessed with cubes

Many begin to do exercises only on the press. This is fundamentally wrong. abdominal muscle too small. To effectively grow cubes, you need to increase the overall muscle mass of the body. It is most effective to do this through pumping the muscles of the back and legs, because. they are the largest in the body. And, of course, do not forget about the press.

Reason number 6. You don't watch your cubes

Even if you have cubes, you need to keep fit. Maintaining the abdominal muscles (and indeed the whole body) in good shape should become a habit.

Reason number 7. you drink too much

This is not about water, but about alcohol. Before you buy another mug of beer, think about your goal, about your beautiful abs. Alcohol slows down the fat loss process. In addition, alcoholic beverages are high in calories. In other words, the next beer makes you fatter. You don't want to have a beer belly, do you?

Reason number 8. Stress

High levels of stress (as well as lack of sleep) contribute to the release of cortisol, and fat quickly accumulates in the abdomen. If you live under stress, it increases your body fat levels and reduces the amount of muscle mass. Review your lifestyle, find effective ones.

REASON #9. you do nothing

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When you enter the query "How to pump up the press" you will get a lot of false information, but basically different exercises and techniques. Zozhnik collected several key mistakes and dispelled them, relying on reliable sources.

0. Everyone has a press cubes, but they are usually hidden under a layer of fat.

Under the number zero, as the basics, it is simply necessary to repeat once again: everyone has a press with cubes, and even a poorly trained person - simply because the muscles are so arranged. But cubes become visible only at a definitely low percentage of body fat.

Certainly, appearance the abdomen still depends on the development of muscles abdominals. Roughly speaking, if you have been training for a long time and effectively, then the cubes will be visible with a higher percentage of fat, and if the press is poorly trained, then it will be visible only with an extremely low percentage of fat.

But in any case, the visibility of the press cubes primarily depends on the percentage of fat in your body. Therefore, the achievement of press cubes is FIRST OF ALL DIETARY, and only then the training, which we write about below.

Let's also give a basic picture illustrating the percentage of fat and press cubes:

In this regard, barbell squats will be much more effective than attacking ab machines.

2. There is no "bottom press" and "top press", as well as professional trainers who give exercises for the "top and bottom press".

Anatomically, the press is not divided into "top" and "bottom". Any abdominal exercise engages and develops the muscles to the fullest. There are more and less effective exercises(described in the text ""), but there are no exercises for the "up" and "down".

Therefore, with dignity and condescension, make up your mind about a coach who talks about the "top" and "bottom" of the press.

3. The number of repetitions does not matter

Of key importance when loading the press is the time the muscles are under load. That is, if you raise your legs in the hang, then try to freeze for a couple of seconds at the most difficult point and do repetitions slowly. 10 such repetitions will be more effective than 20 done at a fast pace.

Focus on burning. You need to do repetitions through pain until subjective muscle failure, that is, when it feels like you can’t do another repetition even for a million dollars. According to various sources, it is advised to select the load in such a way that subjective muscle failure occurs within 15-25 repetitions.

4. No need to lift straight legs and a straight body

The maximum contraction of the abdominal muscles occurs when the back is rounded and the chin is pressed to the chest. In all variants of twisting, you need to imagine that you are curling up.

In all variants of leg lifts, you need to slightly bend your knees, and try to raise not your legs, but your pelvis. This will reduce the load on the hip flexors and quadriceps, and load the abdominal muscles to the maximum.

In addition, there is a study on the risk of injury in lumbar some ab exercises. We talked about this in detail in the text "How to download the press correctly."

5. Different muscles are responsible for strong abs and a flat stomach.

The transverse muscle is more responsible for retracting the abdomen, and it also needs to be trained. Try to make a “vacuum” like the great Arnold.

6. It is impossible to increase the abdominal muscles and reduce the percentage of fat at the same time.

7. The beauty and arrangement of the cubes is given by nature, the press cannot be made even if it is not so from birth

Perhaps someday you will get to see your own press with cubes, and if you have not done this before, then what you see may come as a surprise to you. Your press may not be as beautiful and symmetrical as the guy in the title picture for this text. Here's how lucky.

Your press might look like this:

Or like this:

Or like this:

How lucky you are with genetics.

1. You have little abdominal muscle
The first reason why your cubes are not visible is the banal lack of muscles. Everyone has a different innate level of muscle fibers in the press, therefore, the first thing to do to increase muscle mass is to work on pumping the press. Rock the press with large weights. Great exercise for this - squats with a lot of weight.


2. It's innate
Another reason for the lack of cubes is genes. It's just that your genes have a predisposition to be overweight, and belly fat hides the press, and even if you lose weight to the point that only bones remain from your arms and legs, the cubes will still not appear. Therefore, working "for cubes" will be tantamount to climbing Everest.

3. You don't drink enough water.
In a world of fast food and highly processed foods, a dehydrated organism is noma. If you don't drink enough water, you will look like what you eat. 10 glasses of water a day should be the norm for you. And don't leave the salt shaker alone. Salt retains water in the body. You will notice changes in just three days.

4. You don't get enough sleep
Do you stay up late at work, promising to get enough sleep on the weekends? If you want cubes - you should reconsider this habit. Lack of sleep leads to the production of cortisol in the body. And this hormone, in fact, encourages the accumulation of fat. Go to bed earlier. Not only will you get rid of your tummy, but you will be more productive all day long.

5. You are procrastinating on diets.
You, like many people, believe that by removing carbohydrates from your diet, you will become thin. This is not entirely true. Low-carbohydrate diets can help you get rid of excess fat, but protracted diets can cost you a lot. In a prolonged diet, certain hormones that burn fat stop being released because the body thinks it doesn't need to burn fat anymore because it's not getting more. It simply turns off your metabolism. When your metabolism slows down and you stop dieting, you will quickly gain back, and weight loss will become almost impossible.
You should eat carbohydrate food at least once a week to keep the balance. Your cubes will thank you.

6. You are too obsessed with cubes.
Many men, setting the cubes on the press as their goal, begin to do exercises only on them. This is not true. The abdominal muscle is too small, and working to increase it does not burn the calories that you should lose by working on other muscle groups. Yes, you need to pay attention to the press, but after all other exercises.

7. You don't watch your dice.
Even when you have achieved your goal, you must constantly monitor your abs. You pumped up a beautiful press, and stopped doing exercises for this muscle group. You are making a mistake. Keeping the abdominal muscles in good shape should become a habit, and everything will be as you want.

8. You drink too much.
Are you going out with friends again on a Friday night? Before you order another beer, think about your goal of getting nice abs. Once in the body, alcohol puts the brakes on fat loss. In other words, the next beer makes you fatter. Everyone knows about the "beer belly". But we want to achieve the opposite, don't we?

9. Stress
Just like lack of sleep high level stress releases cortisol from the cell, and it quickly organizes accumulations of fat in the abdomen. If you live under stress, it not only makes you fat, but also reduces your muscles. Reconsider your lifestyle in order to achieve the effect of a beautiful press.

10. You break down
Even the best of us can break down during a strict diet. And don't be surprised to find yourself in a buffet with a double portion of food if you are on a too strict diet. When the thought of eating to satiety once again flashes through your head, remember what the press looks like that you want you to have. And reevaluate your diet. Feel for yourself what you should not eat and what to abstain from. Strict diets are fine, but too few calories can make you snap.

The front surface of the rectus abdominis muscle is crossed by three or four tendon bridges, due to which the muscle takes the form of cubes.

Rectus abdominis / youtube.com

In some people, these bridges are slightly shifted or staggered, and when the muscle increases in size, this becomes noticeable.

Staggered Ab Sections / bodybuilding.com

Why are they different?

This is a genetically determined feature, like eye color or hair structure. Moreover, genetics determines not only the location of the jumpers, but also their number. So, for some people, the press will consist of only four cubes, for others - from six, and for some - even from eight.

Left - six cubes, right - four / abgoals.com, gymterest.com

Does this affect performance in any way?

No. The location and number of tendon bridges does not affect the strength of the muscle, so you can work out with peace of mind power types sports - another form of the press will not bother you at all. However, genetics can affect how sculpted the abs look.

That is, someone can not swing at all, and the press will be embossed?

Not certainly in that way. In some people, the abdominal muscles are naturally thicker. Muscles with such a structure will look more prominent, especially if a person has a low body. However, it is impossible to get distinct cubes without training.

Why are some cubes so far apart?

It's all about the tendons that attach the muscles to the bones. If you have long tendons and short muscle bellies, the distance between the cubes will be greater, if vice versa - less. In people with short tendons, the potential for hypertrophy increases due to the greater muscle area.

Is it possible to somehow fix the asymmetrical press? Maybe there are special exercises?

No exercise will help you change the genetically determined structure of muscles and tendons. But there is nothing wrong with that. Many bodybuilders and athletes around the world have such a structure of the press, and this does not prevent them from doing what they love, looking great and winning competitions.

And not just increase, but make 6 cubes that girls like so much. It often happens that, despite the large amount of time that is devoted to exercising the abdominal muscles and the intensity of training, the cubes never appear. Let's look at 10 reasons that may be preventing you from having the abs of your dreams. 1. You have little abdominal muscle The 1st reason why your cubes are not visible is the banal lack of muscles. Everyone has a different innate level of muscle fibers in the press, therefore, the first thing to do to increase muscle mass is work on pumping the press. Rock the press with large weights. A great exercise for this is heavy weight squats. 2. It's innate Another reason for the lack of cubes is genes. It’s just that your genes have a predisposition to be overweight, and belly fat hides the press, and even if you lose weight to the point that only bones remain from your arms and legs, the cubes still won’t appear. Therefore, working "for cubes" will be tantamount to climbing Everest. 3. You are not drinking enough water In a world of fast food and highly processed foods, a dehydrated organism is noma. If you don't drink enough water, you will look like what you eat. 10 glasses of water a day should be the norm for you. And don't leave the salt shaker alone. Salt retains water in the body. You will notice changes in 3 days. 4. You don't sleep enough Do you stay up late at work, promising to get enough sleep on the weekends? If you want cubes - you should reconsider this habit. Lack of sleep leads to the production of cortisol in the body. And this hormone, in fact, encourages the accumulation of fat. Go to bed earlier. Not only will you get rid of your tummy, but you will be more productive all day long. 5. Are you dieting too much? You, like many people, believe that by removing carbohydrates from your diet, you will become thin. This is not entirely true. Low-carbohydrate diets can help you shed excess fat, but long-term diets can cost you dearly. In a prolonged diet, certain hormones that burn fat stop being released because the body thinks it doesn't need to burn fat anymore because it's not getting more. It simply turns off your metabolism. When your metabolism slows down and you stop dieting, you will quickly gain back, and weight loss will become almost impossible. You should eat carbohydrate food at least once a week to keep the balance. Your cubes will thank you. 6. You are too obsessed with cubes Many men, setting the cubes on the press as their goal, begin to do exercises only on them. This is not true. The abdominal muscle is too small, and working to increase it does not burn the calories that you should lose by working on other muscle groups. Yes, you need to pay attention to the press, but after all other exercises. 7. You don't watch your cubes Even when you have achieved your goal, you must constantly monitor your abs. You pumped up a beautiful press, and stopped doing exercises for this muscle group. You are making a mistake. Keeping the abdominal muscles in good shape should become a habit, and everything will be as you want. 8. you drink too much Are you going out with friends again on a Friday night? Before you order another beer, think about your goal of getting nice abs. Once in the body, alcohol puts the brakes on fat loss. In other words, the next beer makes you fatter. Everyone knows about the "beer belly". But we want to achieve the opposite, don't we? 9. Stress Just like lack of sleep, high levels of stress release cortisol from the cell, and it quickly organizes accumulations of fat in the abdomen. If you live under stress, it not only makes you fat, but also reduces your muscles. Reconsider your lifestyle in order to achieve the effect of a beautiful press. 10. you're breaking down Even the best of us can break down during a strict diet. And don't be surprised to find yourself in a buffet with a double portion of food if you are on a too strict diet. When the thought of eating to satiety once again flashes through your head, remember what the press looks like that you want you to have. And reevaluate your diet. Feel for yourself what you should not eat and what to abstain from. Strict diets are fine, but too few calories can make you snap. Photo: web-mirror.net