This is How I Used the 80 20 Rule to Get a Six Pack

Nov 2019

I was having a conversation with a friend of mine about the blog the other day when she half-jokingly said, “I bet there aren’t any business tools or philosophies that you have applied with respect to how to get a six-pack?”

Seeing that she knows how much I love a challenge, I think she was pushing my buttons a little bit.

And of course, I took the bait – hook, line, and sinker.

“Actually, there is sweetheart…” I said to her with a cocky half-smile. “Let me introduce you to the 80 20 Rule…”

This blog post will be dedicated to how I have used the “80 20 rule”, also known as “the Pareto Principle”, to get a six-pack. And I don’t mean beer…I mean abs!

What This Post is Not

But before we get into it, let’s be clear that this post will NOT be tactical advice on how to get a six-pack, there are enough articles on the internet written by people with much more expertise in the sciences of exercise and nutrition than I. However, if you are smart and copy what I have done you should get similar results.

This will be more of a high-level look at the strategy I used which involved the application of a certain business principle to get the results I want, in this case: abs. Like most things in life, I believe getting abs is just a game and you just need to figure out how to play the game.

Who the Hell is Vilfredo Pareto and Does He Have Abs?

Let’s begin by quickly defining the 80 20 rule, aka the Pareto principle. The Pareto Principle is named after an Italian guy named Vilfredo Pareto, who showed that 80% of Italy’s land was owned by 20% of its population. Since then it has been applied to many situations in business as well as life. To answer the question from the heading, Vilfredo has long since passed and I am not sure if he had abs.

You can apply the Pareto Principle or 80 20 rule to your life by figuring out which of the 20% of your actions are responsible for 80% of your outcomes – then focus on those actions.

Or, you can figure out which 20% of your actions cause 80% of your problems – then try to reduce or eliminate them.

In business, for example, 80% of your sales may come from 20% of your customers, so you will want to focus your efforts on marketing to and giving that 20% of your customers’ great service.

When I utilize the 80 20 rule, I always start by thinking big picture. What is the one big nut I need to crack to be successful, what are the 20% of my actions that will account for the 80% of my successes?

Ok, enough theoretical crap, let’s talk abs…

Abs are something that many of us want; even though they are something that ALL of us already have (some are more developed than others, but we all have ’em).

Yup, you heard me right. We all have em’. Even you Pillsbury Dough Boy – but please don’t take this in a hurtful way, big guy!

Here’s an analogy that will hit home for all of you who currently live or have lived in areas where it snows. In July, you can see the sidewalk outside your door, but in February you can no longer see it, even though it’s still there. You cannot see it because it’s under that foot of snow. The same thing with abs, they are always there, the problem is that there is this thing called fat that is getting in the way of seeing them.

You may have heard the saying ‘abs are made in the kitchen’, I totally agree. You can work out 3 hours a day, but if you eat shit, your abs will be like that snow-covered sidewalk – never to be seen until the snow (or in your case, fat) melts.

How to Get a Six Pack Using the 80 20 rule (or at least how I did it)

Let me now explain the various ways that I have applied the 80 20 rule to get my abs, as well as how I make them actionable:

Application #1 of the 80 20 Rule – Focus on Diet

For me to see my abs, my body fat needs to be low enough so that they are visible. The number one factor in my having low body fat is my eating habits. There is another saying, “abs are 80% what you eat” which is perfect since this post is all about leveraging the 80 20 rule.

How I Make It Actionable: I eat foods that will ensure my body fat is low enough for my abs to be visible.

Application #2 of the 80 20 Rule – Eliminate Sugar and High Glycemic Carbs

When I was younger and had sugar and high glycemic carbs in my diet, they probably comprised roughly 20% of my diet, but they were roughly 80% responsible for me not having abs (those bastards!).

How I Make It Actionable: I eliminate sugar and high-glycemic carbs so my diet now consists of:

No sugar (it’s super bad for you anyway)
Zero high glycemic carbs (also bad for you)
No fried foods (same)
A combination of protein, low-glycemic carbs, and good fats
Lots of vegetables (I juice like a mofo and find I need less sleep because of it)
Drinking a lot of water (you will pee a lot but c’est la vie)

Application #3 of the 80 20 Rule – Focus on Weights in the Gym

In the gym, lifting weights is key for my staying lean, it ensures I am burning fat all day. And, it gives me 80% of the results I achieve in the gym.

How I Make It Actionable: I now spend most of my time (roughly 80%) at the gym lifting weights.

Application #4 of the 80 20 Rule – Focus on Compound Movements for Weights

As for lifting weights, I have found that 20% of the exercises in the gym (squats, deadlifts, chin-ups, bench press, dips, pushups) have a disproportionate benefit compared to the others, i.e. they give 80% of the results.

How I Make It Actionable: I focus on compound movements as described above.

Application #5 of the 80 20 Rule – Focus on High-Intensity Cardio

Cardio is important for your heart and for keeping your body fat low.

I also apply the 80 20 rule to the type of cardio I do. Most of the research that has been done recently shows that high-intensity cardio (i.e. interval training) is a superior method for optimizing body composition. The cool thing is that it takes 20% of the time as steady-state cardio (for example, an hour on the elliptical, treadmill or bike), but provides superior results in terms of body composition.

How I Make It Actionable: Perform high-intensity cardio for 15 minutes x 4-5 times per week.

So that’s it, that is how to get a six-pack using the 80 20 rule.

Are there other factors involved? Of course. Discipline, consistency, genetics, and intensity all play a part, there is no doubt.

What If I Don’t Want to Know How to Get a Six-Pack?

What do you mean, everyone wants to know how to get a six-pack, don’t they?

Ok, ok, I understand that many of you are saying “I don’t want to do all that, I don’t want to know how to get a six-pack. I want to live a little and eat whatever I want.”

Great, you do you. The point is to understand the principle and see how you can apply it to other parts of your life.

Some of you may still want to apply it in the gym but may not want to take it to the extreme as I have, and that’s ok too. You should be working out anyways for health – so why not use the 80 20 rule to optimize the time you are in the gym? And just because I stay lean doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy myself when I go out, I still eat whatever I want when I go out, I just eat clean on a daily basis.

The point is, if you want something, you can do it.

Just figure out what you want, be disciplined, stay consistent, and use the 80 20 rule to focus on what is making the biggest impact in whatever you are trying to improve.

If I can do it…

You can do it!

HEY – eyes down here!

The reason I put a picture of my abs is not that I am trying to impress you. I put a picture of my abs because I want to impress upon you that applying the 80 20 rule works on anything, including for how to get a six-pack – so use it!

As always, until next time…PYMFP!
-Rick

Use It or Lose It:

To wrap up, to use the 80 20 rule or Pareto principle:

Take the 20% of the things that make the biggest positive impact (80%) and leverage them. For example, I focus on:

Higher intensity lifting and cardio (less rest between exercises and sets.
Compound full-body exercises (i.e. squats, deadlifts, chin-ups, etc.
Making sure I get adequate rest and recovery.

Take the 20% of the things that make the biggest negative impact (80%) and eliminate them. For example, I try to eliminate or reduce:

Time between sets and between exercises.
Bullshit exercises that take time but provide no results.
Talking – I put on my headphones and get after it.

Other applications of the 80 20 rule you can use if you are wondering how to get a six-pack or improve body composition:

Cross-fit workouts are 20 minutes which is probably 20% of the time the average person spends in a gym. Assuming you are doing them safely, they can give 80% of the benefit.
Tabata training takes even less time and has been shown to provide great results.

When to Use It

At the gym.
In your daily routine – what 20% of your actions are producing the 80% of your results?
What 20% of your relationships are giving you the most joy? Consider spending more time on them.
What 20% of your relationships are responsible for 80% of the drama? Consider spending less time or eliminating them. I am not telling you to sever ties with your Mom if she is a whack-job, pain in the ass. Although, if she is that much of a problem you may want to consider spending less time with her, either that or do something about it.

What Do You Think?

How have you used the 80 20 rule in your life?

Until next time, keep flexing those abs and as always…PYMFP!
– Rick

If you enjoyed this post, it would mean the world to us if you shared it with people you care about via any of the social media platforms below!