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Planks can completely transform your core. To make it easier to hold the pose for longer, try'scaled' exercises.

The plank is a fundamental muscle-building exercise that is required for movements such as push-ups.

By Prasad Madusanka HerathPublished 2 years ago 3 min read
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Maintaining a proper plank posture necessitates a strong core, solid shoulders, and total body stability, and the longer you hold the position, the more difficult it gets to recruit all of those muscles.

Experts believe that focusing on perfect technique, scaling the exercise, and gradually increasing your plank time are the keys to success if you're working up to your first full minute plank.

Begin with a strong foundation.

According to Matthew Barle, founder of Trident Physical Therapy, planks offer a minimal risk of injury, especially for novices. Attempting a plank with poor form, on the other hand, will not help you gain core strength or full-body stability.

"You might not be developing your core as much as you should be, and it becomes more of an upper-body workout," Barle explained.

Place your palms on the ground squarely beneath your shoulders and step your legs back to balance on the balls of your feet to complete a high plank correctly. Squeeze your glutes and abs, drawing your belly button in toward your spine, to activate your core. Maintain a straight line from head to toes, avoiding arching your back, sagging your hips, or sticking your buttocks up.

Scale the workout according to your needs.

Start with less strenuous versions if you're having trouble staying firm in a plank. Some of the resistance can be reduced by lowering your knees to the floor or lifting your hands on a box or wall.

Performing a plank on your forearms rather than your hands will assist relieve stress on your shoulders and wrists, allowing you to focus on your core.

"You want to focus on building stability through the shoulder," Barle explained, "rather than just resting on them."

According to Ben Foster, head coach and founder of the People's Athletic Club, scaled workouts aren't just for beginners. They can also assist athletes of all levels in increasing their workout volume (more repetitions or time exercising).

You can scale an exercise mid-set if you can't achieve a desired number of reps, he suggested. If your aim is 20 push-ups but you can only perform 10, you may finish the last 10 reps using simpler variants, such as eccentric push-ups.

The purpose of a plank is to increase duration in the position rather than reps, so try maintaining a full plank for the first 20-30 seconds and then finishing the rest of the time in a knee plank.

Adding less severe variants of the exercise to your objective to "make up the difference" helps you maintain your form while you challenge yourself, according to Foster.

Begin with shorter plank hold sessions.

Even if you're sure in your plank technique, starting with shorter amounts of exercise will help you maintain it and progress to longer holds. According to Barle, correct form increases the intensity of the exercise's burn.

"When you're engaged, the plank seems a lot difficult," he explained.

Concentrate on making a small amount of improvement each week.

To grow stronger, you'll need to continuously challenging yourself (a basic principle of fitness called progressive overload).

For planks, this means either increasing the amount of holds you execute with rest in between or adding time to each hold.

Advanced forms of the exercise, such as single arm planks, side planks, and plank jacks, can increase the challenge if you reach your plank time objective.

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