Because of the popularity of six pack abs the abdominal muscles are probably the most well-known muscle group out there.

While there are several muscle groups within the abdominals such as external and internal obliques or transversus abdominis, the rectus abdominis muscle is the one that gives you the six pack lock.

With that said ABS needs almost no targeted work at all.

If you already do heavy compound exercises your core strength will improve and your ab-muscles will grow.

The reason they don’t show on most people is not their size but the big layer of belly fat covering them.

So if you want your abs to pop you should invest most of your energy into the right diet instead of some belly blaster workout, with hundreds of crunches and sit ups.

Now that doesn’t mean ab exercises are a complete waste of time though.

It just means that one or two weighted ab exercises along with heavy compound movements will be more than enough to develop strong abs.

Good examples include weighted cable crunches, the ab machine, weight and leg raises or when you’re weaker knee raises.