It’s well over ten years old. It’s a system still in use by people with VHS recorders. And now it’s completely free on the Internet.
But is the Eight minute abs video worth it?
Well, it’s worth more than the Ab King Pro, that’s for sure.
And of course it’s free. Worth is already doing pretty well for itself.
You don’t know what it is? I guess I’ll tell you.
The Eight Minute Abs Workout video is a system I came across a short while ago. It intrigued me mainly because when it comes to fitness I’m a fan of exercises that are based on time duration rather than reps. Don’t get me wrong. Reps are useful and it helps to have knowledge of how many you need for whichever exercise based on what results you want; but ten push ups done in ten seconds will never be the same as ten push ups done in one minute. (look I even made the word ‘never’ bold and underlined just to show you how much it will never happen (I’m a marketing genious!)
I’ve only been doing this routine for two weeks now. Since getting a new job my exercise routine has been hit with that fastball which can screw one’s exercise schedule over with a jarring interruption that can only come with the tiring act of sitting in the same place for seven hours a day – so I don’t want to boast the effectiveness of the system just yet (well I do, but I can’t). Also I recently came down (hard) with a case of twisted ankle after an innocent workout session of focusing purely on standing up and punching lightly went embarrassingly wrong. I’m currently confined to doing no cardio for 2-3 weeks that involves my legs transporting me to various different locations. So a time based aerobic workout is good, especially since I can no longer judge by distance.
So let’s cut down to brass tacks shall we? Is the Eight Minute Abs Workout good?
…
…
Well, that depends.
The first answer on Yahoo Answers (which will undoubtedly be above me in the search rankings) says no and really I can’t disagree with the logic behind it. I’ll say right now and I hope it’s obvious that eight minutes alone isn’t enough for a daily workout. The amount of calories burned is less than a hundred and that’s ain’t all that much. If you’re looking to burn fat (or the love handles, as our lovable on-screen friendly jock will tell us), and let’s face it, most people looking for an ab workout are (because they’re retarded), this is not going to produce results by itself. But therein lieth the flaw.
It’s not supposed to be by itself.
Wait a second. Yes it is. Eight minute abs that you can do by yourself quickly and efficiently. Perfect for slotting into a part of your day when you’ve got a spare moment and made easy to do everyday BUT THAT’S NOT WHAT IT MEANS!
Look at our lovable jock in the video.
Gimme all of your money, punk!LOOK AT HIM! Does he look like he’s done nothing but the eight minute ab workout all his life? Of course he hasn’t! The eight minute ab workout doesn’t even begin to focus on the chest. The only exercise demonstrated there of any use to our pectorals is the toe touches and even that’s minor.
So what should you be doing alongside the eight minute abs? Why, eating healthily and exercising of course. I don’t know if people are thinking it but an ab workout alone is not a total workout (think for picture I should have skinny stickman with abs). I know there are some people out there who think that exercises that focus more on your abs are perfect for losing belly fat BUT LET ME BE YET ANOTHER ONE OF THOSE CRAZY INTERNET GUYS THAT TELL YOU THE ONE TRUE SECRET OF LOSING BELLY FAT IS NOT JUST AB EXERCISES (nor is it that fucking Acai berry crap – there’s two links there. Click them both).
Ab exercises strengthen the abs. D’uh! They will firm and tone them- if done correctly. And with other exercises that focus on the surrounding muscle groups such as the obliques, they will build them up and bring you one step closer to those vanities of vanities, the sexy six pack. BUT THEY WON’T DO IT BY THEMSELVES.
And especially if you’re fat.
Fat is lost when the body tries to burn energy when there are no carbohydrates available and the body feels safe that it can get rid of fat. Exercises that push the body to burn more energy (ranging from mild aerobics to more effective cross training, body building and plyometrics) are what will burn fat. Doing ab crunches will help, but it won’t cause the muscles to eat away at the surrounding fatty tissue. That’s like expecting the lungs to consume the oxygen that’s made it into your stomach.
I’m losing to fat right now myself. I currently have a six pack. There are hard abs there that if ya feel ma belly when I’m wearing a shirt which be nice and obvious. Don’t ask to see them though because I certainly can’t! My current body fat % is 18.5, and surrounding me sexy, rock hard abs is those there lipids. Most people are like this. Skinny people with a small amount of muscle are going to look a lot more attractive than overweight people with a large amount of muscle. You could have a six pack and not know about it. But I’m getting off course. (and I’m not fat (I’M NOT!!!))
So… exercise and eat healthily right? Right right right. Seems a bit hypocritical right now but I roll with it on ma belly and presume you’re now wondering how I could suggest to go with the Eight Minute Abs Workout when it’s clearly on its own.
That’s the trick. It’s not.
There are other eight minute courses.
Eight times Five
Buns!
Arms!
Legs!
Stretching… i guess!
And the trick is to do them all. Click on the links above and things become a bit more obvious. It’s not just 8 min abs. It’s 16 minutes abs and arms. It’s twenty four minute abs, arms and legs. It’s 32 minutes abs, arms, legs and buns. It’s forty minutes of abs, arms, legs, buns and stretches. That’s a forty minute workout routine right there, with a step by step guide and personal trainer. Altogether it’s non-stop cardio and with one minute gap in-between it’s forty five minutes (forty four sorry. One minute break at the end). Two sets for each and that’s a ninety minute workout. Because these exercises work all muscle groups between them you’re getting a full workout that’s easy to modify and covers most of the strong areas you need to focus on. Upper back muscles get worked out with the arms. Lower back gets tackled with the gluteus. Healthy stretching is encouraged. If you want more resistance you can just add more weight. It’s not a bodybuilding routine, but it does cover cardio since you don’t get a break. Furthermore you’ve got a nice timer there so you can easily replace one exercise you’re now bored of with another one you want to try out yourself. Overall as a workout video I really can’t damn it in any way, save for our lovable, retarded jock.
There is one flaw though, and I think it’ll do good to remember to address it sometime right now.
Suddenly the Eight Minute Ab Workout is no longer just a quick, easy Eight Minute Ab Workout.
Well that’s tough. Eight minutes isn’t going to get you anything. It’s a great period of time to dedicate towards one muscle group and that’s the aim of the video. An eight minute set of anything is gonna help produce results, even if done badly. And this video’s not. They’ve got all the proper warnings there. Keep your lower back on the ground. Don’t arch your legs. No rocking movements. I tell you I get sick of seeing people doing this at the gym and then acting like the exercise is too easy for them. You should at least have a light sweat at the end of all of these workouts. If you don’t you’re being lazy or imperfect.
Another mistake people tend to make that’s worthy of mention here is doing ab exercises with a partner. There are some great ab exercises you can do with a partner when it comes to your abs, but I sometimes wouldn’t actually recommend doing any of the 8 min run with a partner. The one I want to highlight is the basic ab curl and all its upper ab exercising brothers, and what I wouldn’t recommend is having some idjit hold YER GODDAMN FEET!!! Another mistake. This takes all focus off your front abs and piles it all onto the hip flexors. These are two internal muscles that don’t need a regular workout. They’re part of the compound set. They’ll be done along with everyone else and they don’t need an isolated focus.
Another partner problem is doing the eight minute abs side by side with someone. Unlike Lovable Jock’s best friends; Sexy Girl and Even Bigger Jock That Used To Be A Bit Of A Jerk Until Friendly Jock Taught Him The Errors Of His Ways Using Friendship, you do this sitting next to someone and it won’t stay friendly. Competition tends to make form disappear.
One last nit-picker comment. The Eight Minute Buns Workout (what a retarded name, it makes less sense the more I say it) seems to take the assumption that you’re out with your TeeVee and VHS video recorder out in the backyard with plenty of soft ground that won’t grind your knees into hard, wooden floorboard. For the sake of Andrew Lloyd Weber get a pillow under your knees when you’re doing them (memory foam highly recommended here).
Conclusion
I’ve gone through all the videos now and I can safely say you will get a full body workout from them. You will not get a body builder’s workout and you won’t get a runner’s workout. But tone-age isn’t that far away with the Eight Minute Ab Workout.
If you’re going to take this up, I suggest you form a habit of it. I’m currently doing this straight after getting home from work. At the moment I’m always starting off with the abs, which I guess is what the majority of you want. But then link it straight to the next one. Youtube is perfect for this as the link for the next video is usually the next one in the suggested links. If you’re looking to do these based on time constraints, stick to just two a day for now with a minute’s break in-between. And do it ONCE A DAY AT THE LEAST. There’s no point slacking. If you don’t work at the weekends or whatever aim to do it when you get back in the afternoon just before dinner. Hell, do it while dinner’s cooking. You must form the routine of exercise or else you’ll never see the routine of progress.
Great Workout, guys! I’ll see you in twenty four hours… apparently.
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