Building a sexy set of 6 pack abs isn’t as difficult as peole tend to think. The abdominal muscles respond to workouts just like every other muscle group and you just need to be committed to performing exercises to develop them. The biggest obstacle to displaying your washboard abs is body fat which tends to accumulate in the abdominal area and hide your hard work.

Proper dieting is essential in eliminating belly fat so that your 6 pack can be revealed. When dieting, be sure to consume nutrient-rich foods that are good sources of fiber, complex carbohydrates and protein, and that contain moderate levels of good fats. However, even when folks adhere to a six pack abs diet, there are 3 common mistakes which many make. Following is a list of the 3 most common 6 pack ab stoppers and how to overcome them.

Diet Mistake #1 – Not Having Achievable Dieting Goals

This is probably the most common of the diet mistakes which most people have problems with. If you don’t have a weight loss goal, or your goals aren’t achievable, then you won’t make it far in your attempt. You need to write your dieting goals down on paper so that you can visually keep them in front of you. Your fat loss plan should consist of both short and long term goals. They should be specific and fairly aggressive, but not so aggressive that you can’t keep them. Not reaching short term goals has a devastating impact on motivation and the ability to persist towards the reality of long term goals. When creating your fat reduction plan, take a serious look at where you’re at physically in the present moment. Determine if you have 10, 20, 30 or more extra pounds you want to shed and set short term goals that help you reach your final goal of weight loss in increments. By setting up a series of short term goals, you will intensify confidence and motivation as you reach each one, making it much easier to keep your long term desire in reach. It should be emphasized that you need to be very honest with yourself during this assessment.

Once you have created your weight loss plan, keep record of all your results along the way. Writing down your achievements will further provide motivational fuel for the fire to keep you on track with fulfilling your weight loss goals. If you happen to reach your long term goal without arriving exactly where you want to be, simply create another plan and follow it in the same way until your ab muscles are visible and ready to show off.

Diet Mistake #2 – Believing Your Diet Efforts are Short Term

Having a short-term mentality when it comes to sacrificing for fat loss dieting is another downfall to success. Many people stop dieting when they reach either their short term or long term goals instead of continuing on to fulfill further set goals. If you don’t move past short set goals or continue with renewed goals once long term goals are reached, you will fall back into the same bad habits that caused belly fat buildup in the first place. To avoid this error, keep the momentum running to the next short term weigh loss goal until you reach your final long term goal and your washboard abs are revealed. Then, create another plan that will keep you fit and trim so that you can maintain those coveted 6 pack abs shining brightly.

Diet Mistake #3 – Maintaining a Perfect Diet

Very few people can work through their entire fat reduction plan without falling off the wagon on occasion. A huge mistake is having a “perfect” diet mentality where you take an “all or nothing” attitude. Usually, you can make it several weeks without faltering, but then things begin to get tough and delicious, fattening temptations begin to appear around every corner. If you look at dieting in such a “perfect” way, you will be defeated the first time you gobble up a chocolate bar or woof down a few pizza slices. After indulging, you feel that you’ve blown your diet plan, get frustrated and stop the efforts altogether or, at the very least, continue half-heartedly through the remainder of the diet program, continually faltering along the way. In order to avoid this mistake, allow yourself a small amount of room for cheating. It’s ok to have a small, fattening snack once in awhile as long as you return with passion to your program right afterwards and tackle an extra aerobic exercise session to work off those extra calories.