At the heart of the abs diet are 12 appropriately named power foods, which—when they comprise the bulk of your diet—encourage your body to ramp up lean body mass and store less fat. On their own, these foods have been found to have benefits ranging from strengthening bones and building muscle to lowering blood pressure and improving your immune function.
Just what will you eat on the abs diet?
* Almonds and other nuts, preferably with their skins intact
* Beans and other legumes, including chickpeas, kidney beans and lima beans
* Spinach and other green vegetables like kale and broccoli
* Dairy products like yoghurt, cheese and low-fat milk
* Instant oatmeal
* Turkey, chicken, fish and lean steak
* Sugar-free peanut butter
* Olive oil
* Whole grain breads and cereals
* Protein powder
* Berries, especially raspberries
These 12 power foods form the basis of the abs diet. They also provide a healthy framework for a lifetime of good nutrition. Simply have two to three of these foods at all three of your major meals. Then make sure to incorporate at least one of these power foods into three daily snacks.
With the abs diet, you should never feel hungry or fail to meet your daily nutritional needs. It is easy to get a healthy amount of protein, carbohydrates and fat at each meal.
Of course, diet alone won’t give you a washboard stomach. Even the abs diet isn’t enough to turn fat into muscle on its own. You need a plan. And, what the abs diet emphasizes is an efficient exercise program based on two key components: circuit training, an effective cardiovascular workout, and compound exercises, which increase your ability to burn fat by working multiple muscle groups at the same time.
Ideally, according to the abs diet, you should be strength training three times a week with special attention paid to leg exercises during one workout. Twice a week you should perform ab exercises. And, if you like, you could participate in a cardiovascular activity such as running or cycling on days when you do not do strength training. On one of those days, the abs diet recommends interval training (alternating periods of high and low intensity) to really boost your metabolism.
In addition to good food and powerful exercises, the abs diet encourages men to butt out. Smoking not only increases your risk of cancer and heart disease, it lowers the level of HDL (good) cholesterol in your body and contributes to the accumulation of fat in the abdominal region.
Developed by David Zinczenko, the Editor-in-Chief of Men’sHealth Magazine, the abs diet is helping men across America get more than ripped abs. They are improving their overall health and quality of life astronomically, with relatively little time—just a lot of sweat—invested.
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