It’s hard to judge the shape of your own plank, so getting input from a fitness trainer might be useful. — dpa
Doing the plank is not a complicated exercise, but getting it exactly right is important if you want to build up your core strength.
For a forearm plank – often considered the most common form to do a plank – lie on your stomach, rest your forearms on the floor, put your feet up, lift your pelvis, then hold.
The plank is one of the best-known fitness exercises, and rightly so, as it trains the core muscles particularly effectively, says German University for Prevention and Health Management lecturer Sven Seidenstücker.
Your core is the ring-shaped corset of muscles around the centre of your body, which includes the abdominal muscles and many of your back muscles.
They reward attention as strong muscles prevent back pain.
So it is worth trying to get the plank right.
“Take the name ‘plank’ literally,” Seidenstücker advises.
As a fitness trainer, he often sees people doing the plank with an hyperextended lumbar spine, creating a hollow back and causing the hips to sag.
But you shouldn’t push your bum too far up either.
In the perfect plank, the body forms a straight line and the head is kept in line with the spine.
Another mistake is shoulder blades that are not sufficiently fixed, so that you sag between your shoulders.
The problem is that it’s hard to judge the shape of your own plank, so if you are unsure and have the opportunity to do so, try getting a trainer’s assessment.
You should also be able to breathe evenly and relaxed while doing a plank.
And how long should you hold out?
Seidenstücker’s recommendation is that as it can be quite strenuous, don’t plank to the point of exhaustion. – dpa
