Health and Fitness
Here’s How to Get Six-Pack Abs Without Destroying Your Health.
The desire for six-pack abs may create trauma. What if I tell you there are easier, more effective ways to get it?
Introduction and Context
So many people are obsessed with getting a six-pack belly. And some healthy people seriously destroyed their health to get six-pack abs in a short time. They torture their body, and of course, the body resists by reacting adversely.
From my experience, having a defined belly is a by-product of a healthy lifestyle. Six-pack abs are good to have but not the holy grail for happiness and joy. They only indicate fitness progress for being on the right track.
Many people desire to have six-pack abs and strive for it at every cost. There is nothing wrong with this ambition. However, doing it wrong may have detrimental effects on health. “Six-pack abs are tempting but not necessarily healthy”. Unlike fat in other parts of the body, belly fat is stubborn. This resistance is part of our evolution and survival mechanism.
While attaining six-pack abs is difficult or almost impossible for many people, paradoxically, some people achieve it effortlessly.
This article aims to shed light on the paradoxical aspect of gaining defined abdominals by sharing my learning from the body of knowledge and my personal journey for a half-century.
It is a topic close to my heart as, like many young people, it was an ambition for me and never happened in my youth. But, usually and paradoxically, it happened after my 50th birthday. I am grateful to have it and follow a sustainable health regime to keep it.
So, let me share my experience and findings from the literature.
How to get six-pack abs and sustain them without destroying our health
If you see the big picture for health and human anatomy, understand the rules of metabolism, and gain good habits, having six-pack abs and keeping them can be straightforward.
To cut to the chase, until we balance and optimize our hormones, eliminate chronic stress, reduce chronic inflammation, and get rid of toxins from the body, six-pack abs may remain a mystery. Having a defined abdominal area is not a matter of strict diet and exercise but shows the importance of a sustainable lifestyle.
There is a difficult and an easy way. Ironically, from my observations on media, fitness magazines, and fitness communities, most people choose the hard way without noticing it or, more precisely, due to misinformation.
Hopping on treadmills for hours and cutting calories to extreme minimum amounts are the most brutal ways of getting six-pack abs, even if they sound logical, enticing, and recommended by some fitness experts.
A caloric deficit is a scientifically proven weight loss method. We cannot deny it. But weight loss does not mean fat loss, and it does not guarantee to achieve defined abs. The extreme caloric deficit can be a deterrent to progress and damaging to our health. Even though we still need a caloric deficit to some extent, there are more critical factors than this overrated factor.
The common belief is that the easiest and the only way to burn fat is to create a significant caloric deficit by eating less and exercising more. The thought is convincing in theory.
And some fitness experts still advise it despite plenty of evidence on the harmful effects of excessive caloric deficit. However, in my opinion, and from experience, it is far from the easiest method. It is in theory, but in reality, this is the most challenging approach.
I was very fit and active in my youth, playing sports, running for several hours, and eating so-called healthy foods, which mainly included high carbohydrates and refraining from fat. As a result, I lost substantial weight using these touted techniques but never achieved my goal despite substantial focus and effort on my plan.
Ironically and paradoxically, I achieved this goal after 50 years of age with less stress, less exercise, and less eating my favorite food.
I am not saying my way is the only way. However, my learning and experience reflect some insights into the easy path and risks of the problematic approach. By trial and error, I found the key to success aligned with my genetic makeup, body type, and lifestyle choice.
There is no one size fits all solution to getting six-pack abs. However, there are some facts that we can use and design the building blocks to match and align our physical capacity and mental capabilities.
What are those facts that we can use and tailor to our needs?
I see six layers that are integrated to gain six-pack abs. They touch on many health and fitness topics. However, just doing one or two layers would not be enough to solve this complex puzzle. We need to meet the requirements of all layers. Here they are.
Layer 1: Optimizing Hormones
The first layer is managing and optimizing our hormones. This is the most complex and critical layer. As I mentioned in this article, fat loss (not weight loss) has nothing to do with calories but everything to do with hormones. To make our six-pack visible, we must lose fat, not weight which could be fluid, glycogen, muscles, and even bone density.
The most critical ones are understanding the effect of blood glucose and controlling insulin. Why is it so important? If we consume excessive carbohydrates and our body is insulin resistant, there is no chance for metabolism to tap into fat stores unless we go into starvation mode. But ironically, when the body senses starvation, it will accumulate any piece of fat converted from carbs. With high glucose and elevated insulin, it is not possible to burn abdominal fat. As you know, fat stores hide our natural six-pack abs.
To address the issues in this first layer, we need to ask two questions and find clear answers at the most fundamental level.
How can we keep blood glucose under control?
How can we move from the state of insulin resistance to insulin sensitivity?
The easiest way is to reduce carbs as they fit our lifestyle, increase healthy fat, and get moderate protein as required by our metabolism. One of the most effective diets, from my experience, is the ketogenic diet to practice this easy way. Another popular method is intermittent fasting.
There are many other hormones but in this layer, another important hormone is leptin. It is known as the satiety hormone. Its opposite is ghrelin which triggers the body to feel hungry. Leptin is a thermostat in our body. If leptin senses our fat stores are full, it sends satiety signals to the brain. If our body is leptin resistant, we cannot control our hunger and cannot reach satiety.
There is a close relationship between leptin and insulin. If our leptin hormone does not work, we may crave food and consume too many carbs. Excessive carbs raise blood glucose and cause an insulin spike. Both insulin and leptin can transform into resistance. These conditions are known as “insulin resistance” and “leptin resistance”. Both are documented scientific terms.
A well-known way of managing leptin is to consume healthy fats that help us reach satiety. If we cut calories too much, we may burn fat (after finishing glycogen), but since leptin does not sense fat, we will never reach satiety, we will feel hungry, and have intense food cravings.
From my experience, the easiest way of managing insulin and leptin hormones is cutting carbs, increasing healthy fats, and consuming an adequate amount of protein that keeps me in ketosis.
I explained it in this story titled: Why Fat Loss Has Nothing to Do With Calories: Introducing essential hormones that play critical roles in burning fat in simple terms.
When I was in ketosis, my body achieved a fat-adapted state. When we are in a fat-adapted state, we use our fat stores as energy. It is an effective way to tap into abdominal fat stores. In a fat-adapted state, cravings disappear. Blood glucose gets stabilized. Insulin spikes disappear.
When blood glucose is stabilized, insulin and cortisol hormones are optimized, our metabolism switches to fat-burning mode, and it starts mobilizing and burning abdominal fat. We don’t have to starve. The fat-adapted state keeps us satisfied and prevents food cravings.
It is not possible to introduce all hormones, but my key point in optimizing our hormones is the most critical factor in being on the right track toward achieving a defined belly.
Layer 2: Lowering Chronic Stress
The second layer is stress relating to both physical and mental health.
Emotional and chronic stress keeps us in fight or flight mode constantly. Even though we burn energy in this mode, we can hardly tap into abdominal fat stores. The culprit is another hormone, cortisol, along with adrenalin.
These hormones are essential for our survival, but when they are excessive and stay too long in the body, they can affect blood sugar and blood pressure. High cortisol also may lower testosterone which was evident in my blood work.
When I had elevated cortisol levels, I reduced my calories substantially and lost some weight and even some fat from various parts of the body but not from the abdominal area. So if we have too much cortisol and other stress hormones, it can be complicated to tap into abdominal fat. Here is a scientific paper explaining the effect of chronic stress on fat burning and obesity context.
We all have different tolerance levels and deal with stress differently. For me, the most effective ways were to improve sleep quality, priority management, mindfulness, moderate exercise, and staying in ketosis. I shared my experience of dealing with emotional and chronic stress in this story.
Effective stress management was one of the contributors to tapping into belly fat and shrinking fat cells. Several lifestyle changes, including cold showers every morning and taking a dry sauna for several weeks, effectively reduced chronic stress and burned fat.
Layer 3: Defeating Chronic Inflammation
Related to stress, the next layer is inflammation.
We need inflammation to survive. Acute inflammation is beneficial for our health, such as fixing injuries. However, chronic inflammation creates many health risks. It is a vast topic, but within our context, chronic inflammation affects fat utilization.
The best way of dealing with chronic inflammation is first to get it checked. Our healthcare professionals can order tests such as my CRP (C-reactive Protein), ESR (Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate and PV (Plasma Viscosity).
If we experience abnormalities, we take precautions. For me, staying in ketosis optimized my inflammation markers. Having high-quality sleep and mindfulness also contributed to reducing inflammation and getting rid of chronic stress, which was evident from my optimized cortisol levels.
Layer 4: Removing Toxins and Pathogens
The next layer is eliminating and refraining from toxins. They are known as endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs). Endocrinology is the science of hormones. According to this scientific study, “there is growing interest in the possible health threat posed by EDCs.
EDCs are substances in our environment, food, and consumer products that interfere with hormone biosynthesis, metabolism, or action resulting in a deviation from standard homeostatic control or reproduction. This paper is the first Scientific Statement of The Endocrine Society.
The paper presents the evidence that endocrine disruptors affect male and female reproduction, breast development and cancer, prostate cancer, neuroendocrinology, thyroid, metabolism and obesity, and cardiovascular endocrinology.
I used various methods to get rid of toxins. The most effective ones for me were the use of a dry sauna and the use of charcoal.
Initiating autophagy and mitophagy is the fastest way to get a trimmed body.
Here are helpful articles I wrote about them.
Here Is What Happened When I Experimentally Initiated Autophagy Decades Ago
Here’s How I Initiate Mitophagy and Make My Mitochondria Denser in 7 Steps
Layer 5: Optimizing and Customizing Nutrition
Our bodies need protein, healthy fat, minerals, and vitamins. I did not say carbohydrates because they are not essential. It is contrary to common belief. For many years I believed that carbs were necessary. Unlearning this misinformation was the best contributor to my health and fitness.
I have been on a near-zero-carb diet for over a decade. My blood glucose is at an optimal level. But, like many health enthusiasts, I debunked this using real-life experience. Our brain and some organs need glucose, but our body has a mechanism called “gluconeogenesis” to create glucose from protein on demand.
The beauty of “on-demand” is it never creates excessive glucose, so we don’t experience insulin problems.
Layer 6: Personalized and Smart Movement
Movement is an essential requirement for good health. It is also important to have defined abs. Like nutrition, we all have different requirements for exercise. Some of us thrive with cardio, like walking and running. Some of us enjoy and benefit from resistance training, such as weight lifting calisthenics. Some even find HIIT (High-Intensity Training) beneficial, especially for young people.
I incorporate all with minimal cardio, HIIT, and moderate resistance training. We don’t need too much exercise to burn belly fat. The most effective fat-burning workout for me is 20 minutes of fasted-cardio. My friend Eliza tried it with supervision from a health coach and produced remarkable results like shedding 30 pounds of fat in six months.
I don’t like muscle growth much but I enjoy toned muscles. Resistance training is ideal for me to tone my muscles. Apart from a few sets of heavy lifting, I usually practice pull-ups and push-ups. Using body weight is less risky for injuries. My goal is to have joyful exercise. Staying fit during travel times is a challenge, so I created a specific exercise regime for travelling.
After the fat loss, we may experience loose skin, which can prevent showing six-pack abs. I experienced this undesirable situation. It took me a decade to get rid of loose skin. I shared my experience in a story titled How Did I Get Rid of Loose Skin After Weight Loss. Resistance training was one of the contributors to getting rid of loose skin. And the most important one was autophagy.
Conclusions and Takeaways
Many lifestyle choices can fit into these six layers. They are all critical for our health, mental health, vitality, and fitness. Make the right choices, and six-pack abs will come along easily.
Meeting the requirements of these layers makes us healthy and fit and also helps us get defined bellies. So my secret to having six-pack abs after the age of 50 is practicing the requirements in these layers in an integrated way.
There is no shortcut to having a six-pack abdominal. I don’t believe in magical pills, excessive abdominal exercises, and too much caloric deficit by cutting essential nutrients and undertaking too stressful activities.
Obsession with six-pack abs can be detrimental to our health. As soon as I stopped my fixation on defining the belly and focused on these layers, I achieved my desired goals. When I was young, in my 20s, I was lean but always covered with belly fat. After 40, I changed my lifestyle. The main change was using fat as the primary source of energy.
My effective way to experience a defined belly was a lifestyle that matched my genetic makeup. Some people have a defined belly after using the techniques in these layers, but they start having a beer belly as soon as they stop. Eating one meal a day helps me keep my defined belly at this old age. I am joyful and grateful to unlearn misinformation and learn the truth about my metabolism.
Reaming is a fat-adapted state that transformed my metabolism. Cravings disappeared. My blood glucose, insulin, cortisol, testosterone level, and inflammation markers got optimized.
Understanding insulin’s role in burning fat was the critical success factor in tapping into the fat stores and losing stubborn belly fat. Only when insulin is low the body starts using belly fat as energy.
In a nutshell, burning belly fat as an energy source can increase motivation and joy. Workouts can turn into fun. Fatigue and tiredness can disappear.
I have an exciting journey that took a long to come to an optimized and transformed state. I hope these ideas can give you valuable perspectives. I wish you all the best in your health and fitness journey.
Thank you for reading my perspectives. I wish you a healthy and happy life.
If you are into shredding your body, you might check this article reflecting the experience of a fitness coach.
Samples Stories Reflecting My Dietary Regimen
When I Skipped Breakfasts for Two Decades, I Gained Copious Benefits.
Here’s What Happened When I Replaced Carbs with Healthy Fats for Two Decades.
Keto-Carnivore Diet 101: How to Benefit from Ketosis in Animal-Based Diets
Keto-Vegan 101: How to Benefit from Ketosis in Plant-Based Diets
Keto Diets and Intermittent Fasting Lifestyle Tick the Boxes of Health Goals.
About My Exercise Regimen
Here’s What Happened When I Performed Calisthenics for Decades.
Helpful Articles About Fat Loss and Lean Muscle Maintenance
Lose Visceral Fat by Understanding the Intricacies of Six Critical Hormones
Reduce Abdominal Fat and Increase Lean Muscles with Two Practical Steps
Three Tips to Eliminate Insulin Resistance and Shrink Waistline
Three Tips for Retaining Lean Muscles While Losing Visceral Fat Steadily
I post my health, fitness, and lifestyle articles to Euphoria.
As a new reader, please check my holistic health and well-being stories reflecting my reviews, observations, and decades of experiments optimizing my hormones and neurotransmitters.
ALS, Metabolic Syndrome, Type II Diabetes, Fatty Liver Disease, Heart Disease, Strokes, Obesity, Liver Cancer, Autoimmune Disorders, Homocysteine, Lungs Health, Pancreas Health, Kidneys Health, NCDs, Infectious Diseases, Brain Health, Dementia, Depression, Brain Atrophy, Neonatal Disorders, Skin Health, Dental Health, Bone Health, Leaky Gut, Leaky Brain, Brain Fog, Chronic Inflammation, Insulin Resistance, Elevated Cortisol, Leptin Resistance, Anabolic Resistance, Cholesterol, High Triglycerides, Metabolic Disorders, Gastrointestinal Disorders, Thyroid Disorders, Anemia, Dysautonomia, cardiac output, and urinary track disorders.
I also wrote about valuable nutrients. Here are the links for easy access:
Lutein/Zeaxanthin, Phosphatidylserine, Boron, Urolithin, taurine, citrulline malate, biotin, lithium orotate, alpha-lipoic acid, n-acetyl-cysteine, acetyl-l-carnitine, CoQ10, PQQ, NADH, TMG, creatine, choline, digestive enzymes, magnesium, zinc, hydrolyzed collagen, nootropics, pure nicotine, activated charcoal, Vitamin B12, Vitamin B1, Vitamin D, Vitamin K2, Omega-3 Fatty Acids, N-Acetyl L-Tyrosine, and other nutrients.
As part of my creative non-fiction writing goals, I’d like to share a few stories that might warm our hearts with a bit of humor into weighty topics.
Sample Humorous Stories
Finally, After Burning Her House, Georgia Found Enlightenment
Hilarious Tips to Prevent Brain Atrophy and Keep the Gray Matter Giggling
8 Psychological Points I Had to Unlearn and Relearn the Opposite
Based on my writing experience and observations, I documented findings and strategies that might help you amplify your voice, engage your audience, and achieve your desired outcomes in your writing journey.
I publish my lifestyle, health, and well-being stories on EUPHORIA. My focus is on cellular, mitochondrial, metabolic, and mental health. Here is my collection of Insightful Life Lessons from Personal Stories.
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