Plank is an isometric type exercise where you’re not contracting your muscles as you are stationary
There are many variations of this exercise. You can start by doing between one and six reps one set. You will hold that position for at least 10 seconds but you want to work up to a minute. You can rest for between 30 and 90 seconds. It looks really easy but it is very difficult in the beginning and it is quite a workout you are going to feel it the next day
Knee plank
This is the most regressed version of the plank that you can do on your forearms. The form is crucial here so shoulders will be directly over the elbows. You are on your forearms and your entire spine from your head all the way to the bottom part is straight. You are keeping your shoulders back and down and you’re not bending at the hip level this exercise really fires up the core and when we talk about the core it’s not just your abdominals. It includes your abdominals, your back, your hips, your shoulders, and your chest.
Fore Arm Plank
Once you have mastered knee planks. At the next step, simply tuck the toes under and lift the knees off the mat. it’s exactly the same you did in knee plank. You’re still creating lengthen the spine energy throughout now at the back of the feet and still length through the spine from the top of the head through the tailbone. You can do this for about a minute feel free to progress to the next one but think about the form here Form is of utmost importance.
Straight Arm Plank
Starting on the knees; the same thing you always start from i.e have your knees it’s all about stacking the joint so shoulders directly over the wrists arms are long and straight spine is long again crown of the head, tail bones, inline, same exact rules. Once you’ve mastered this tuck the toes under, lift the hips off and now you have a full plank. This is where we execute push-ups where we can just hold the plank and do a lot of different variations but for now, we’re keeping it simple form is exactly the same energy in the core once you can hold this stick it hold it for about a minute.
Side Plank
Another plank variation is a side plank. It is done by keeping it on the elbow and on the forearm. The shoulder stacked directly over the elbow. Hips on the floor and stacked. At first, the knees are stacked so everything is in alignment including the shoulders. Now go ahead, lift the hips off. This exercise is really challenging it changes because you’re on your side now you are going to activate a bit more of the side body than usual but you are still working the core! Hold it right there focus on your breath. Alignment through the spine is exactly the same. Tailbone to the crown of the head.
Now once you have mastered this let’s take it one step further. Extend the legs ( you can also cross the top leg over hips) stay lifted joints stay stacked so hip over hip and shoulder over the shoulder. You can extend the arm reaching through the fingertips and keep the long line from the tailbone all the way to the crown of the head. Now that is the side plank. Repeat it on the other side in the same way.
Benefits of Planks
let’s talk about the benefits of a plank exercise
- It will strengthen your core. What is the core?? The core is the body portion that connects the upper torso to the bottom part. We have the abdominal muscles, the back muscles, the side muscles, the hip muscles, and the buttocks.
- It can help to improve your posture as it is an effective way to improve the relationship between chest and mid-back and shoulders and the It keeps our head over the spine the way that it is not too forward.
- It can help symmetry between the front part of your body and the back part of the body as far as a strength because if you’re asymmetrical that can produce pain in your joints, especially your lower back.
- It strengthens the tendons, ligaments, and muscles because you have to hold this position for a long period of time.
- It can create a lot of stability in your core and what is meant by stability is that it can keep your back from being unstable and it can help your coordination when you walk.
- It can just reduce pain in your lower
- You can actually get a workout by doing this exercise; we are talking about sweating here. On startup, definitely feeling sore the next day.
- The plank is a great exercise to improve our flexibility. Plank acts upon muscles in our shoulders, collarbone, and shoulder blades. It helps allow them to be a lot more flexible. It increases our range of motion and use of posterior muscles the more we plank the better this flexibility will become.
- Like all exercise, plank releases endorphins and so really helps get us into a positive and happy mindset. Furthermore, when we don’t exercise, tension can build up in our muscles. This can then cause all sorts of negative issues such as anxiety or stress. Doing exercises such as the plank helps to relieve this tension
