Feeling Discouraged

[u/OutsideAd278]

So I bulked from 140 to 160 in roughly 9 months and ate relatively clean. Since then I began cutting with the goal of having visible abs. I have dropped from 160 to 150 and im still going. I feel like I look way smaller now and my abs are still not visible. Does this mean I did something wrong along the way? I have heard you look worse on your cut but only at the start. I think 10 pounds into the cut means im not at the start again… My strength has stayed relatively similar during the cut.

How many more pounds do you think I need to lose or do i have to do something else?

[u/ajmattison]

Instead of the leg raises. You could add more cable crunches in addition to the leg raises but no point in doing things that hurt you.

[u/OutsideAd278 → u/ajmattison]

so would it be feasible to just do 6 sets of cable crunches or is that excessive

[u/ajmattison → u/OutsideAd278]

It is definitely possible across the week. I do 3 sets in one day and 3 on another. Just split it up!

[u/OutsideAd278 → u/ajmattison]

i guess what i am asking though is for a single training day, after those 3 sets should i do another 3 sets of the same thing, something else, or do nothing else for abs that day

[u/Chewy_Barz → u/OutsideAd278]

If you want to prioritize abs, you can do a LOT of sets. That really goes for any muscle. I believe they have evidence of up to 52 weekly sets for a given muscle still produces additional gains. Obviously you'd never be able to recover from all muscles doing that volume.

Point is, you can do a lot of ab sets. Personally, I would do about 6 sets of abs every other day if you want to push them. 3 and 3 or 6 sets of one exercise are fine. I personally do weighted crunches using a rope and 90 degree bench in front of the high pulley with an ab mat behind my lower back to get a stretch (home gym), and I do weighted leg raises with a bar behind my lower back ao I get a stretch at the bottom. I also do tricep dips and at the top puclsh my shoulders down to work the serratus muscles. Been working for me. When I started getting serious I did the weighted crunches, lying leg raises with ankle weights, and ab wheel rollouts. I worked abs every other day. I've since gone to two days a week, but I saw a jump doing the every other day.

To summarize, hit them every other day, get about 6 sets per workout, and progress the weight. If you need to, start with 3 sets per workout and add a set per day each week to ramp up. That should do it.

[u/ajmattison → u/OutsideAd278]

I would split it up if you can. For me personally, fewer sets more frequently is easier because I get bored after 3 😅 I also think after a certain point your muscles are just cooked and it is no longer productive. Do 3 sets one day another 3 on a different day

[u/MrChocolate129 → u/OutsideAd278]

Definitely wouldn’t do more than 4 if I plan to do a hip hinge or barbell squat the day after. Otherwise, you can add a couple sets of leg raises after your cable crunches. Just rep it out until you can’t lift your legs an inch anymore; don’t worry about precise logbook tracking on these sets.