Performing The Plank - A Fundamental Core Exercise

In a previous blog, we talked about strengthening your "core".  To refresh your memory, the core muscle group stabilize the spine, pelvis, and shoulders and provides a foundation for movement in the extremities.  This muscle group essentially makes it possible to stand upright and move on two feet.  Your core includes abdominal muscles but also other muscles from the lower part of the chest down through the hips on both the front and back of the body.  Click here to refer back to our previous blog entry on strengthening your core.

If you've been hanging around the gym for a while, you probably have heard of an exercise called the "plank".  This exercise is a fundamental core exercise that can be performed anywhere and without any equipment.  The plank can be modified until the core muscle group is strengthened.  Also, there are many progressions as your core strength improves.

Now that you know the basis for performing the plank, let's take a look at how it is performed.  First lie on your belly on the floor or exercise mat.  Keep your elbows tucked into your sides and directly under your shoulders.  Place your palms flat on the ground and keep your gaze on the floor between your hands.  Tighten your abdominal muscles and contract your thighs, lifting your torso and legs off the floor/mat.  Balance yourself on your elbows and toes.  It is important to keep your abdominal muscles contracted (tight) and keep the back straight, preventing any "sagging" in the low back.  Pretend you are balancing a board on your back that runs between your shoulder blades down through your feet.  If your hips rise too much, the board will slide off towards your head; if your low back sags, the board will fall towards your feet. 

This is the basic plank exercise.  Maintain tight abdominal muscles, breathe normally, and hold the plank as long as you can.  In the beginning, it may be difficult to hold this position very long but as improve your core strength, you should be able to maintain this position for more than one minute.  Once you've mastered this basic plank you can progress to make this exercise more challenging by lifting one foot off the floor while maintaining the plank position.  Other progressions include lifting one arm at a time, balancing on the hands (instead of the elbows) and toes, alternating arm and leg lifts while in the plank position, and moving to a side plank.

Start simple with the basic plank on the elbows.  It's an effective exercise to perform anywhere and every day.  A strong core improves your performance in daily activities such as lifting, bending, and sitting; it also will improve performance in sporting activities such as running, golf, and tennis.  Need help performing this (and other) core exercises?  Stop in PROMATx Health Club and meet with one of our trainers.

Be healthy...be strong...prevent injuries.