The plank or abdominal plank is also called a front hold, hover, or abdominal bridge. It is an isometric exercise for developing core strength and involves holding a position for a period of time.
How do you do a plank?
The front plank is the most commonly known. To do a front plank, get on the floor and rest your weight on your forearms while making sure that your elbows are below your shoulders. Now bend your elbows to make a 90 degree angle with your forearms. Straighten your back and legs with the remainder of your body resting on your toes. Your body should form a straight line from your head to the ball of your feet. Now hold that position for as long as you can.
How does a plank benefit your body?
The plank is one of the best exercises for a flat, toned stomach. It works all your core muscles, including the front of the abdomen ("six-pack"), the sides, the obliques, hips, and back.
How long can you hold your plank?
You have to constantly squeeze your abs to hold the plank position, making it a difficult isometric exercise — most people can't last 30 seconds. Take the plank challenge. Hold your body in a plank position for as long as you can while maintaining good form. Now using that as a base time try to hold the position for 5 to 10 seconds longer each day. Perform planks several times each day, trying to hold the position as long as you can each time. This is guaranteed to help you develop that core and build rock-hard abs.
If you can hold a Plank for over two minutes each time then your core is pretty strong, but the longest time in an abdominal plank position is 8 hours and 1minute and was achieved by Mao Weidong in Beijing, China on 14 May 2016... till then keep practicing.
What's your longest plank time? We'd love to hear from you, so leave your comments below.
