Confused about getting more defined abs, help appriciated! (w/ pics)

[YellowHammer2]

hello nerd fitness community!

Im (m18 58.5 kg~, (128.9 lb), 178 cm, (5′ 10))

and for the last few months Ive started training my abs at home and go to the gym in addition,

you could kinda see their outline (mostly the top) and a bit more soo when theirs a light source above, and if as if theirs a bit more fat on the bottom part of the belly,

I am confused about what should i do in order to actually "get abs",

currently I train them for about 20 minutes a day~ every second day with intensive training is it enough to define them?

because my weight is on the lower end, i don't know if i should eat at a surplus and train my abs and weights to make them "grow"

or should i eat at a deficit in order to get lower fat%?

 

Front Picture

 

Side Picture

 

I appreciate the help, and sorry for mistakes i made with my bad English!

[Defining]

I don't click on random links as a personal rule, so I haven't seen your photos; but to see abs, you need a low bodyfat percentage. That's especially difficult for lower abdominal fat, since it's often the last to go.

 

I'm not an expert, doctor, trainer, or any kind of health professional; but IMO you should stop doing so much ab-specific work and simply focus on your whole body strength & gaining muscle all over. The stats you've listed are a lower healthy weight for your height, so personally I wouldn't be trying to LOSE anything more, even if your actual bodyfat percentage is a bit too high to see abs right now.

 

A full-body weight lifting routine with progressive overload (like  StrongCurves https://www.scribd.com/document/248743910/Strong-Curves-Workout-Templates for example; StartingStrength or StrongLifts would also work well) paired with a moderate caloric surplus (https://legionathletics.com/clean-bulking/) along with sufficient protein intake and recovery should make it relatively easy to for you to gain muscle over your entire body, and possibly incidentally lose a bit of bodyfat.

 

After 6-10 months of gaining muscle all over, you could then re-assess re: ab specific goals, to see if you may want to try a short cut cycle in order to lose a bit of bodyfat while holding onto all the muscle you've just gained. That's just what I'd do, 'hope it help!

 

Welcome to the forum; don't forget to be safe & go slow, and remember to have fun.

[YellowHammer2]

19 hours ago, Defining said:

I don't click on random links as a personal rule, so I haven't seen your photos; but to see abs, you need a low bodyfat percentage. That's especially difficult for lower abdominal fat, since it's often the last to go.

 

I'm not an expert, doctor, trainer, or any kind of health professional; but IMO you should stop doing so much ab-specific work and simply focus on your whole body strength & gaining muscle all over. The stats you've listed are a lower healthy weight for your height, so personally I wouldn't be trying to LOSE anything more, even if your actual bodyfat percentage is a bit too high to see abs right now.

 

A full-body weight lifting routine with progressive overload (like  StrongCurves https://www.scribd.com/document/248743910/Strong-Curves-Workout-Templates for example; StartingStrength or StrongLifts would also work well) paired with a moderate caloric surplus (https://legionathletics.com/clean-bulking/) along with sufficient protein intake and recovery should make it relatively easy to for you to gain muscle over your entire body, and possibly incidentally lose a bit of bodyfat.

 

After 6-10 months of gaining muscle all over, you could then re-assess re: ab specific goals, to see if you may want to try a short cut cycle in order to lose a bit of bodyfat while holding onto all the muscle you've just gained. That's just what I'd do, 'hope it help!

 

Welcome to the forum; don't forget to be safe & go slow, and remember to have fun.

 

Hey Thanks for your kind words and advice!, ill act on them accordingly! what do you think would be the optimal weight to stop bulking at my case?

 

I appreciate your help very much! thanks!

[Defining]

That's not something that anyone can answer for you - a lot depends on personal health and aesthetic goals, genetics, skeletal structure, etc. 

[N0rdicNinja]

As noted, if you want to bring your abs out you're gonna need to do that in the kitchen more than the gym. Once you can see your abs, working them can definitely improve their appearance, but getting them in the first place your limited time is better spent burning calories while maintaining as much overall size/strength as you can.

 

Even in peak summer, the most I do is 10 minutes of high intensity ab work. But I'm outside, moving around, burning calories for 1-2 hours.