If you’ve been doing 20-minute ab circuits, crunching away six days a week, and still not seeing results — this might be the most important thing you read today. The truth about building a visible six pack is simpler, and also harder, than most YouTube workouts make it seem.
Kinesiologist Jeremy Ethier recently broke down the exact two exercises he used to build his own six pack abs — no equipment needed, no marathon sessions, just smart, targeted training. The video has north of 7.6 million views, which for a purely instructional lifting video is saying something.
Why Most Ab Workouts Are Inefficient
The problem with most ab routines is that they overload your hip flexors instead of your abs. If you’re doing straight-leg raises or sit-ups without consciously controlling your spine, a huge chunk of the work is being done by muscles you’re not trying to train.
Jeremy points out that the abs have one primary job: spinal flexion — specifically, curling your spine into a rounded “C-shape.” Any exercise that keeps your back flat is shifting the load away from the abs and onto the hip flexors. Once you understand that, it changes how you approach every rep.
Exercise 1: The Reverse Crunch (Lower Abs)
The reverse crunch targets the lower portion of the rectus abdominis — the part that tends to be the hardest to develop and the last to show. In this movement, instead of lifting your upper body toward your legs, you curl your hips and lower back up off the floor toward your ribcage.
Key form cues to get this right:
- As you lift, think about pressing your lower back into the floor and rolling your pelvis up — not just swinging your legs
- Control the descent slowly. The lowering phase is just as important as the lift
- Your legs are just levers. Don’t focus on where your feet go — focus on the spinal flexion happening in your lower back
Start with 3 sets of 8-12 reps. As this gets easier, you can add ankle weights or hold a dumbbell between your feet for progressive overload.
Exercise 2: The Crunch (Upper Abs)
Yes, the humble crunch — but done correctly, it’s one of the most effective upper ab exercises in existence. The mistake most people make is treating it like a mini sit-up, lifting their shoulders a few inches off the ground while keeping their back flat.
The key: round your spine into a “C” as you crunch. Think about pulling your ribcage toward your pelvis, not just lifting your head. Your low back should peel off the floor slightly at the top of each rep.
As you get stronger, progress to the cable rope crunch at a gym — this lets you add significant load to the movement, just like you would with any other muscle group you’re trying to grow.
Body Fat Is the Real Variable
Jeremy doesn’t sugarcoat this part: no amount of ab training will make your six pack visible if it’s buried under fat. For most men, abs become visible somewhere between 10-15% body fat. If you’re currently above that, your primary focus should be on nutrition and calorie management.
Train your abs with these two movements 2-3 times per week and focus on eating in a modest caloric deficit. Build the muscle, lose the fat covering it — that combination is what actually produces results. Not endless cardio. Not 100-rep sets.
Two Moves. Done Right.
Done with real form and progressive overload, these two movements will build your abs more effectively than any 20-minute circuit. Watch Jeremy’s video for the form breakdowns — the details he covers on the reverse crunch alone are worth the watch.
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