6 More Ways to Plank Yourself to Health
When you feel you’ve successfully mastered the lower intensity planks outlined in last week’s post and are ready for a bit more of a challenge, give these a try. If placing your hand flat on the ground creates any pain in your hands or wrists, use dumbbells as your base of support.
- Classic Plank on Hands and Feet: Start this exercise on your hands and knees with your hands directly under your shoulders. Step your feet back one by one so you are in a push-up position. Keep a straight line from your head to your heels. Hold this pose.
- Elbows: Variation on Knees/Toes: Again, start on your hands and knees. This time place your elbows directly beneath your shoulders, with your forearms lying flat. Step your feet back and as above, maintain a straight line from your shoulders to your feet. If holding this pose is too difficult, lower to your knees while still maintaining that straight line. Remember to keep your head and neck in line with the rest of your spine as well.
- Side Plank Begin this exercise lying on your side, propped up on your elbow. Position your feet with the top foot in front of the bottom foot. Place your hand directly below your shoulder and raise your hips off the ground. Again, keep a straight line from your feet all the way through the top of your head. To increase the difficulty of this exercise, stack your feet on top of each other.
- Alternating Hands to Elbows: Start in a plank position on your hands and toes. Slowly lower down to one elbow and then the other. Now rise back up to your hands. Try doing 10 repetitions. If you are able to do 2 sets, switch and lower down and up with the opposite arm that you led with on the 1st set. If you only do one set, switch ½ way through the set.
- Alternating hip touch-downs on Elbows: Begin this exercise in the elbow/toes position. Twist your hips slightly to touch your right hip to the ground, rise back to neutral, and touch your left hip to the ground. Start with 10 repetitions on each side.
- Side Plank Variation: Begin this as you would a side plank. Start on your hands with stacked feet. Raise your arm in the air and lift your top leg. Hold!
Performing these advanced variations creates more instability, thus making your core muscles work even harder to maintain proper form and balance. Work your way up to these. As you improve, increase your hold time, increase your repetitions, and if you still need more of a challenge contact me anytime!
