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SOYOUWANNA TONE AND FLATTEN YOUR ABS?

So you want abs like Brad Pitt's in Fight Club, huh? Not a bad idea. After all, flat abs not only help you look better in a bathing suit, they also confer many health benefits. Strong abs:

Help improve your posture
Prevent you from injuring your back when lifting heavy objects
Lower your risk of developing heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol or diabetes (because you have less body fat)
Protect you during your athletic activities (just ask Derek Jeter of the NY Yankees, who has been sidelined more than once for a strained abdominal muscle).

Having a tight stomach is partially determined by genetics. It is just a cruel fact of nature that not all human beings are blessed with a body type like Sylvester Stallone or Cindy Crawford. Nevertheless, if you persistently follow an abdominal-building routine, you may be in contention to win the newly instituted Nobel Prize for 'Most Ripped Abs.' (Really. Check this article out.)

We will warn you, though. It's not just about crunches, or diets, or exercise, or reading intriguing SYWs (as fun as those things can be). It's really about committing yourself to a program and sticking to it.

If you are even finding committing to reading this article tough, we've provided a quick overview of tummy-flattening ideas in a how-to video.

WATCH THIS HOW-TO VIDEO

1. MAKE THE COMMITMENT

The most important part of starting an abdominal-building routine is to be serious about it. You cannot expect major results in days or weeks. The spare tire will eventually disappear, but it can take up to a year and a half, depending on your initial level of fitness, to develop toned abdominal muscles. So it is important to stick with it.

The good news is that it will not take long before the new routine becomes a habit. After all, it doesn't take long to get into the habit of putting on a seatbelt when you get into a car. After a while, you just do it. It's the exact same with sticking to an ab program (minus mangled car wreckage). If you make the effort over the course of 30 days to stay committed to a new abdominal-building routine, you will find yourself doing the routine as a matter of habit, which makes it easier to stay motivated.

But please be careful to not get too obsessed. Those guys you sometimes see running in dangerous snowstorms are totally hooked on the endorphin rush (endorphins are opiates produced naturally by the body to insulate against pain by creating a natural high). They often drop dead of heat exhaustion, dehydration, and stupidity. Keep in mind that your goal is mostly aesthetic, and you should not let your ab program run your life.

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