Want to know how to achieve tight, rock-hard abdominal muscles? This guide will show you how to trim down and tone up your waistline. Keep in mind that diet and cardiovascular exercises are just as important as doing the Ab exercises.

Be sure and do not get discouraged when trying to tone up. If you miss a day at the gym, that is fine. If you get a huge bowl of ice cream, dont worry about it. When consuming foods its more about portion control than what you eat. Instead of eating three scoops of ice cream, get it down to one scoop. Just REMEMBER, consume foods in reasonable proportions.

Your abdominal muscles consist of the first outer lateral layer called the external oblique. The next deep layer is internal oblique followed by transversus abdominis. When people commonly refer to abs, or 6-pack, they are referring mainly to their rectus abdominis. .

There are 3 easy things to follow to get and maintain great abs.

First important step is cardio. Every one has a 6-pack, they are just hidden deep to a layer of fat (Subcutaneous Fat). You will never be able to see your abs until this layer has diminished.

Watching your diet is just as important as cardio and doing the actual abdominal exercises. Consult a dietitian for a proper balanced diet, but be sure to watch the trans fats and saturated fats. Its also key to limit the amount of sugar you intake. Still consume "healthy" calories.

Switch your white bread to whole grain wheat bread. Switch 2% milk down to 1% or Skim Milk. Stop eating chips, soda, and processed foods. Eat vegetables and fruits each 5x a day.

Spend 15-20 minutes on your abs 1 or 2 times a week. You do not need to hit your abs every day. They need time to heal and if you do them right, you dont have to waste a lot of time working them.

Make slow movements. The people at the gym who do 50 crunches but do not flex in a slow controlled motion are wasting their time. . .