As we get older we naturally lose muscle conditioning and put on body fat (as our metabolism slows down) without any change to our diet or exercise habits.
It seems that the dreaded middle-aged spread is inevitable, but this does not seem to diminish our desire for a perfect flat stomach and rock hard abs.
But if you are doing loads of crunches or religiously using an ab machine without experiencing the results you feel you deserve, you may be left asking yourself why can't I get a six pack? Why Can't I Get A Flat Stomach? So you have bought the ab machines or devoted a lot of time to doing crunches, but the perfect flat stomach and six pack you were hoping for simply hasn't materialised.
Rather than getting frustrated, de-motivated and giving up on exercise all together, you need to learn the real truth about abs.
Let me explain some reasons why you haven't got the flat stomach you really want.
Consistent Abdominal Exercises Alone Will Not Give You A Six Pack The widely held belief that endless crunches will give you that perfect flat stomach is simply not true.
There are many benefits to strengthening your core abdominal muscles, such as better posture and mobility.
But while abdominal exercises will strengthen and tone the muscles, they cannot melt the layer of belly fat that covers them.
You have to realise that you cannot remove body fat by simply doing exercises that work the specific area of the body you want to lose fat from (known as spot reducing).
Realise that even through diet and exercise, you will have no control over where on your body you lose fat first.
Create A Calorie Deficit The only way to lose your stubborn belly fat and enhance your chances of getting a washboard stomach is to create a calorie deficit on a daily basis.
This is when you burn more calories in a day than you consume, forcing your body to feed on your body fat.
The easiest way to do this is to increase your activity through regular exercise and decrease the calories you consume (by up to 500 calories a day) through a sensible diet that is low in calories, salt and saturated fat.
So focus on building muscle mass and gradually losing weight if you want a flatter stomach.
There is never any guarantee that you will lose all your belly fat, as age, gender and genes can all affect how your body shifts fat.
But if you stick to a healthy diet and take regular exercise, you will end up slimmer and fitter while looking and feeling great.