KEY CONCEPTS
- Three rows of two blocks = the six-pack (the 3×2 grid)
- Upper abs: just below the chest — first to show, most visible
- Middle abs: around belly button — activated by crunches
- Lower abs: hardest to define — extend toward the groin
- Serratus muscles: finger-like slips along outer ribs below armpit
- Obliques: diagonal from rib cage to hip — create the athletic waist sweep
Think of the abs as a brick wall: three rows, two columns. Top row just below the pectorals. Middle row around the belly button level. Bottom row extending toward the groin. This 3×2 grid is what's commonly called the "six-pack." In heroic/comic drawing, all six blocks are drawn with strong shadow lines between them creating deep definition.
The belly button sits at the midpoint of the ab column — it is the zero in the center. Use it as a reference: upper abs start above it, lower abs extend below it. The belly button is always your mid-torso anchor when building the ab structure.
The obliques run diagonally from the sides of the rib cage down toward the hip. They wrap around the body. In profile, they are very prominent, creating the swept "waist" line that reads as athletic power. The serratus anterior muscles appear as a series of diagonal finger-like slips running from the ribs — on a defined physique they create a beautiful scalloped texture at the side of the torso.
VOCABULARY
- Rectus Abdominis — The six-pack muscles — three rows of two blocks
- Obliques — The side abdominal muscles that wrap around the waist
- Serratus Anterior — The finger-like muscles along the outer ribs below the armpit
- Linea Alba — The vertical line of connective tissue running down the center of the abs
REFERENCE GALLERY
