Plank is one of the most popular and effective exercises for the press worldwide. Plank not only makes the abdominal muscles and the shoulder girdle work, but the muscles of the body as well.
This exercise presupposes keeping the body horizontally above the floor for a few minutes, while resting only on the hands and toes. Undoubtedly, it is not a simple task even for two minutes. But the result will not take long to come. After two weeks of regular exercise you’ll notice that every muscle of your body has got tighter.
Plank is a static exercise. It does not include any movements because the most important thing here is to keep the body properly.
How to perform the plank evercise
- Lie on the floor, with your belly down. Bend your elbows to 90 degrees and rest on them. The body should form a straight line from head to toe.
- Just your forearms and the tips of the toes should touch the floor. Elbows are directly under the shoulders.
- Keep the body as straight as possible, tighten your abdominal muscles and not relax them. Try not to bend the hips down to the floor.
1. Feet
Put them together: it will become harder to maintain balance, and it will increase the pressure on your abdominal muscles.
2. Legs
They should be straight and tight, otherwise the load on the rectus abdominis muscle which prevents deflections of the lumbar will also reduce.
3. Buttocks
Strain them. And do not lessen the tension until the end of the exercise. Reduction of the buttock muscles increases the activation of the core muscles.
4. Loins
This is the most difficult moment! If the exercise is done correctly, the lumbar spine will be flat. The waist can neither be rounded nor bent. Imagine that your waist is kept tight against the wall.
5. Abdomen
Retract your abdomen and then try to draw it closer to the ribs. Throughout the exercise, keep your abdomen in this position, but do not hold your breath.
6. Elbows
To avoid creating unnecessary burden on the shoulders, rest your elbows directly below the shoulder joints.
You must start the exercise on the exhale and keep doing it until you feel moderate tension in the muscles. Try to keep your body in this position as much as possible: at first, it is enough to do the plank exercise for 10 seconds. Usually, people with a different degree of being fit retain this position from 10 seconds to 2 minutes. Ideally, one should keep the body in a fixed position as long as possible – so you engage your muscles to the maximum, but if you’re a beginner, do not try to break the record, start with the smallest time.
If you’re doing the plank exercise for the first time, first hang on for 10 seconds, next time try to do it 20 seconds, then 30 seconds, and eventually up to 1 minute. A good result is 2 minutes, but if you prefer 3 sets you will be able to do it for 1 minute at a time.
