Your go-to, all-in-one exercise for full-body strength.
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Ah, planks.
Carpenters may think theyre planks of wood and pirates may think theyre balance beams.
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But anyone who’s ever taken a group fitness class knows that they are a deceptively difficult exercise.
Your core, shoulders, upper body, and lower body are all muscle groups targeted by planks.
The plank is a safe and effective exercise for people of all fitness levels.
What Muscles Do Planks Work?
Planks are a full-body exercise when you focus on doing them correctly and with focus, says Wickham.
The plank also works your shoulders, says Wickham.
But these arent the only upper-body muscles the plank works.
A.Start on all fours on the ground.
Adjust so wrists are stacked under shoulders and knees are bent and under hips.
B.Screw pinkies into the ground and away from the body to activate lats.
Pull belly button up towards spine to engage midline.
C.Step one foot back at a time into the push-up start position, with feet hips-width.
D.Squeeze glutes and quads to maintain a straight line from head to heels.
By strengthening these muscle groups, however, the exercise offers a number of other health and fitness benefits.
These deeper core muscles help support your spine as well as your internal organs, Wickham says.
The practice the plank gives you at engaging your muscles will have carryover to other exercises, he says.
This increased body awareness will have carryover outside of the gym, too.
Warming up helps prep your muscles, lungs, and heart for the workout ahead, explains Daniels.
Failure to prep your tissues and organs can put you at risk for injury, he says.
Planks on their own arent sufficient for preparing your body to lift, he says.
Instead, he suggests starting with stretching movements like twisting or cobras to move the area.
Then, elevate the heart rate a bit with a short 3-5 minutes on the rower or treadmill.
It really challenges your whole body, says Wickham.
For those folks, the below plank variations may be better.
Or, those who find that their wrists are sore following doing planks.
It puts greater emphasis on your obliques, your gluteus medius, and your abductors, he says.
If youre brand new to exercise, Daniels doing planks following a proper warm-up.
If, however, you are a seasoned pro he suggests adding them to the end of your workout.
Or, do a planktabata.
