How to do the Perfect Plank

At Hilton Head Health, we love to incorporate planks into the workout routines and fitness classes for our Guests. The plank has become one of the most popular exercises improving multiple elements of physical fitness and your general well-being with different variations that can be done pretty much anywhere. It's a great exercise that you can easily fit into any workout routine!

5 of the many benefits of planks are:

-           Develop core muscles (including back, abs, hips and glutes)

-           Improve Core strength and stability

-           Encourage good posture

-           Help prevent back injuries

-           Build upper body strength

How to Do a Basic Elbow Plank:

1.       Get face down on the floor resting on your forearms and knees.

2.       Push off the floor, raising up off your knees onto your toes and resting mainly on your elbows.

3.       Contract your abs to keep yourself up and prevent your booty from sticking up.

4.       Keep your back flat — don't drop it or you'll be defeating the purpose. Picture your body as a long straight board, or plank.

5.       Hold as long as you can. Aim for 20-30 seconds in the beginning and work your way up to one minute, as you get stronger.

Fitness Friday: The H3 Wave Plank

At Hilton Head Health weight loss camp and health spa, we help our guests achieve their weight loss and wellness goals by creating a personalized weight loss program and wellness program for a healthier, better lifestyle through fitness, cooking classes, nutrition education and stress management. While all these factors are important in helping our Guests with their individualized weight loss goals and new wellness paths, we also want our Guests to have fun while they reach their goals and carve out their new paths. Adding an extra element of fun not only helps vary workouts to make them more challenging, but it helps make the entire experience that much more enjoyable. After all, your trip to our weight loss camp and health spa is a fun getaway!

Following an interval training workout earlier this week, our Guests participated in what we like to call the "Wave Plank". It's just like "the wave" you see or do at a sporting event but there's a little twist. Our Guests did the wave while posed in plank position! Not only is this a fun way to mix up a sometimes monotonous exercise, but adding the extra movement of lifting ones arms can help strengthen the core and make the workout that much more effective.

 

Friday Fitness: Plank Variations

Friday Fitness this week is all about planks! If you have mastered the plank and are growing board holding still for minuets on end here are a few variations for you!

*Form is important for the plank, these are advanced moves. Make sure that you are comfortable holding the exercise first and then try out these variations.

Inch worm: Walk out to a plank position, hold for 5 seconds, when walk your way back up. Do 12 reps, 2 sets of this exercise.

Dynamic plank: Starting down in a low plank, lead with the right hand as you are coming up to a high plank. Do 6 reps leading with the right hand, and then alternate, leading 6 reps with the left hand. Do 2 sets.

Plank row: Hold a high plank and while alternating hands, bring one hand up toward your shoulder and raise your elbow up toward the ceiling. Lower down and repeat with the other hand. Right and left is 1 repetition, do 12 reps, 2 sets.

Triceps plank: Hold a low plank, hands together but do not interlace fingers. Push through the hands and rise up into a high plank. Modification: you can lead with one hand, just like the dynamic plank.  Do 12 reps, 2 sets.