JUNE 2017 MUSCLE & FITNESS 77GROOMING BY MATTHEW TUOZZOLI/ATELIER MANAGEMENT USING DIOR HOMME.
GOAL NO. 6 GET WELL-DEFINED V-CUTABS
● EVER SINCE CELEBRITIES started showing
off those V-shaped cut lines that start below their abs
and disappear into their pants, girls have been lusting
after them and guys gunning for them. Even if you
have six-pack abs, though, the V itself is very hard to
sculpt for one simple reason — it’s not a muscle. “The
V is formed by the inguinal ligaments,” says personal
trainer Ryan George, “and that’s hard to build.” We
all have inguinal ligaments, which originate from the
hip and run into the pubic region, but most of us have
a layer of fat covering it. “If you really want the V-cut
to be prominent,” George says, “more important than
anything is eating clean so you can achieve really low
body fat.” We’re talking eight percent (for help with
that, refer back to No. 1). That’s the bad news.
The good news is that there are exercises that target
the obliques and transversus abdominis that can
indirectly engage it and cause it to grow more defined.
For this George recommends the cable woodchop
because it engages the obliques and is a functional
movement; the seated medicine ball trunk rotation,
which also targets the obliques and – bonus – can be
done anywhere, no machines required; and, finally,
the kettlebell windmill, which engages the entire
trunk. In the case of the kettlebell windmill, remember
to start with a wide straddle stance and aim to touch
your toes with your free hand while keeping that
kettlebell up to the sky the entire time.
Repeat these three exercises 12 to 15 times, then start
the circuit over. Perform three rounds two to three
times a week, taking care to rest your core in between
to up your chances of carving out your V-cut.It takes more
than crunches
for rippling
abs. You need
to attack them
from multiple
angles with
a barrage
of exercises.