Usually on Academy Awards night, it’s the outfits that get the most attention, and while there were some stunning looks on show at the Vanity Fair Oscars party, it was what Emily Ratajkowski wasn’t wearing, that got people talking.
The model chose a white bandeau crop top and low-slung maxi skirt, the minimalist matching set showcasing her incredibly toned stomach and famous ‘ab crack’.
Some people thought the tube top was a bit too revealing for such a glitzy A-list event, but showbiz presenter Ksenija Lukich summed up our thoughts when she commented on Instagram: “If I had abs like that, I’d probs wear that too.”
Which begs the question: can anyone get abs like Emily Ratajkowski?
If we started doing 1,000 sit-ups a day, would we all end with a deep ab crack running down the middle of our torso? Or is the 28-year-old’s body the result of genetics, rather than gym visits?
“Everyone has abs under there somewhere – they just need to be revealed,” says Adam Pinder, head trainer at F45 Peckham Rye.
“Emily is blessed with some pretty fantastic genes and a low body fat percentage, combine that with a decent work ethic and you’ve got the recipe for some well-defined abs.”
In order to reveal your abdominal muscles, you’ll need to reduce your body fat percentage.
“It’s true what they say: abs are made in the kitchen,” Pinder says. “Combine a solid workout programme with a calorie deficit and you’ll earn the abs you’ve been chasing.
“The best way to get an ab crack is to drop body fat, and you can achieve this with HIIT – high intensity interval training.”
HIIT workouts involve short bursts of intense cardio exercise interspersed with brief recovery periods, so your heart rate stays elevated and you burn more energy.
Then for women, he says, ab definition should apparently be visible once you reach around 10 to 14% body fat.
“However, we’re all put together a little differently and one person’s abs may not necessarily look like someone else’s,” Pinder says.
“It’s better to focus on yourself than chase someone else’s physique.”
While you work on getting your body fat percentage down, you’ll want to add some tummy-targeting exercises into your routine.
Here are four highly-effective ab exercises Pinder recommends…
1. Hollow hold
Lie on your back with your hands and feet raised about a foot off the ground, keeping your back flat.
Wrap a band around your feet and hands and hold for 30 seconds, repeating three to five times.
2. Hanging leg raise
You’ll need a pull-up bar to do this one. Grasp the bar with your hands, shoulder-width apart, engage your abs muscles and slowly raise your legs, keeping them straight.
If this is too difficult, start by raising your knees instead, twisting them from side to side.
3. Planks
There are lots of different plank variations that can tone your abs. Start with the classic forearm plank, where your forearms are flat on the floor, and hold for 30 seconds at a time.
Try adding hip dips, where you lower your hips from side to side, or progress to side plank to target your obliques.
4. Crunches
Crunches are another ab-toning classic with lots of variations. Start by learning the correct basic technique: with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor, keep your core tense and your neck straight as you slowly raise your back off the floor and lower it back down gently.
Once you’ve mastered the classic crunch you can progress to bicycle crunches (twisting so your elbow meets your raised knee) or dead bugs (raising and lowering opposite arms and legs).