I’m sure you’ve probably heard the saying, “abs start in the kitchen.” If not, well there’s a saying out there that goes something like: “abs start in the kitchen.”

The point of the saying is that in order to get your abdominal muscles showing you have to eat right to get lean enough. Which is true.

It also says that’s where it starts but I’m going to explain why abs don’t start in the kitchen but instead they start in the mind. 

My name is Chaz and I’m the creator and content editor for The Fitness Wrangler. The Fitness Wrangler is your hub for how to keep control of your fitness while eating delicious, healing and non-damaging food. I’ve been through cancer, gut diseases and a head on car collision in my 20’s but managed to make it through all of them.

I know a thing or two about getting through tough times with the body.

More recently, I’ve managed to drop 30 pounds and get to 9% bodyfat with abs showing.

Now, let’s dive into where abs really start.

 

The Mind

How do you think of the mind? Something that keeps you present? Are you and the mind one? Or do you see the mind as separate than you?

I think of the mind as a tool. A powerful part of ourselves that we’ve been gifted with. I don’t think the mind is who we are, thank you Eckhard Tolle for the teaching, I believe it’s separate than our spirit and different than our true selves.

Once we know that we can then begin to use it in a way that’s not taught in school, not talked about in the media and quite unknown to most of the population.

“When I was very young I visualized myself being and having what it was I wanted. Mentally I never had any doubts about it. The mind is really so incredible. Before I won my first Mr. Universe title, I walked around the tournament like I owned it. The title was already mine. I had won it so many times in my mind that there was no doubt I would win it. Then when I moved on to the movies, the same thing. I visualized myself being a famous actor and earning big money. I could feel and taste success. I just knew it would all happen.” – Arnold Schwarzenegger

I’m referring to using the mind to visualize what we want in life, very specific goals, to then alter our subconscious to align with that identify in order for our actions to bring us there.

I’m still amateur level at this, with a lot more to learn, but this is what I did in order to drop 30 pounds and hit 9% bodyfat.

My boy Plato said it well: “Reality is created by the mind, we can change our reality by changing our mind.”

 

Action Steps

Okay okay that’s great that we can change our mind and we can live the life we want with abs. But HOW?? Let me tell ya.

Each night or every morning, whichever you prefer, when you’re sitting in bed follow this simple two step procedure:

  1. Think very clearly what you want your body to look like. Really imagine it and really feel what it would look like. Visualize seeing yourself in the mirror with your ideal body.
  2. Say out loud: “I create the body I desire” with visualizing that very specific body you’d like. Do it for a couple minutes a day.

THAT is how you prime your mind for the identity and body you want. You still have to put in the work to lose the weight but that will align your mind with what you want. This isn’t a magic bullet but it is the map blueprint that you need to set in order to build the body you want.

“Our thoughts, our feelings, our dreams, our ideas are physical in the universe. That if we dream something, if we picture something, it adds a physical thrust towards realization that we can put into the universe.” – Will Smith

That’s where abs start. Abs start in the mind not in the kitchen. We can say step 2 of getting abs is in the kitchen.

Now, not everyone that’s lost weight and gotten abs has done this exact method, true. BUT if you talk to them or listen to a popular person about losing weight and getting abs I bet you’ll find that they did this is some way. They visualized what they wanted to look like and may not have even realized they were doing it.

Their identity, when they got or maintained abs, was someone who was lean with abs. The way our minds work would make it impossible for us to have an identity and believe we have abs but be fat. That just wouldn’t happen.

 

Also I do want to mentioned that’s just one part of losing weight and getting abs. When I got abs I also ate less than what I burned in a day, calorie restriction, did at least 1 hour of working out/cardio a day and did that for 3 months straight. I only ate a surplus of about 800 calories on Saturdays to keep my sanity (sometimes though I slipped up and ate more on Saturdays, whoops).

But if your mind isn’t aligned to your ideal body and your identity isn’t around someone who has abs, you’ll find yourself with that spare tire month after month and year after year.

 

“Whatever you hold in your mind on a consistent basis is exactly what you will experience in your life.” – Tony Robbins

 

“Our thoughts could make us sick. So if it’s possible our thoughts could make us sick is it possible that our thoughts could make us well? The answer is absolutely yes!” – Dr. Joe Dispenza, from Impact Theory Show at 17 seconds in

 

Thanks for reading and I hope this helps with your fitness goals or any goal you may have!

Chaz