Tip The Misinterpreted Ab Training Study Search Skip to content Menu Menu follow us Store Articles Community Loyal-T Club Loyal-T Points Rewards Subscribe to Save Search Search The World s Trusted Source & Community for Elite Fitness Training Tip The Misinterpreted Ab Training Study With all the talk these days about having a strong core why do many lifters still have weak-ass abs Here' s part of the cause by Chris Shugart June 11, 2018August 18, 2019 Tags Abs, Tips, Training The Poll We asked T Nation Instagram followers a simple question: Based on the comments in the feed, it looks like many of the people who make up the 39% of "no's" are skipping direct ab work because they believe the big compound lifts like squats and deadlifts will train their abs sufficiently. You can't blame them for thinking that, but there's more to the story. Rear Core Muscles vs Six-Pack Abs A while back there were several studies that concluded that squats and deadlifts "activated" the core muscles nicely. But many missed the nuances in those studies. The lumbar multifidus, transverse abdominis, and quadratus lumborum core muscles were trained the hardest by squats and deads... not the muscles you think about when you think "abs" – the rectus abdominis (6-pack) and the obliques. As Coach Nick Tumminello has noted, the boring ol' push-up activates the abs and obliques more than squats or deads (based on EMG testing). You also "activate" your abs when you take a post-cheat day dump, but that's not exactly hypertrophying them. The Abs Need to be Built With Resistance Diets don't build or strengthen abs, they just make them more visible. You wouldn't tell someone who wanted big traps to just eat less so his puny traps will show up better, right? Same with abs. Abs need some direct training for aesthetics, strength, and athleticism. And that includes heavy work. Lots of workout ideas here: Big, Thick, Chunky Ab Training. Get The T Nation Newsletters Don' t Miss Out Expert Insights To Get Stronger, Gain Muscle Faster, And Take Your Lifting To The Next Level related posts Training Eccentric Exercise It seems like you've been adding weight to the stack each time you do triceps pushdowns. The veins in your neck stick out like a garden hose as you power through the sticking point, and the cable starts cutting into your neck, just like your idol, Tom Platz. You stop, however, before it cuts through and leaves a bloody mess on the floor. Training Peter Blanchonette July 21 Training Get Off the Treadmill and Get Metabolic Rachel Cosgrove's back with a metabolic circuit program that'll melt that fat off faster than any treadmill ever could. Metcon, Training Rachel Cosgrove September 8 Training Tip The Ring Muscle-Up Overview This has been called the most complete upper-body exercise. Want to learn it? Here's a quick guide. CrossFit, Exercise Coaching, Pull-Up, Tips Drew Murphy December 4 Training Tip The Kettlebell Face Pull Fix your posture and correct all those imbalances caused by too much benching. Nails your core too. Take a look. Tips, Training Kelvin King, Jr December 10