The Three Best Plank Variations

Posted On Nov 30, 2017 By BowFlex Insider Team

The Three Best Plank Variations

The three best plank variations engage your core muscles in the right way to give your abdominals, back, hips, chest and shoulder muscles a fantastic workout.

This video will show you how to complete three of the best plank variations. Form is very important when you are doing any kind of plank, so if you are brand new to planks start with the very basic until you can hold it for about 30 seconds, and then work your way up.

Forearm Plank Variation

Go ahead and come down into a forearm plank. rotation is the easy way out, so try your best to not give in to rotation. Maintain a nice, wide base of support as you do a sidearm raise. Try not to allow your chest or shoulders to open up to the outside. Keep that range of motion nice and strong without going past the back. Do as many reps as you can until you fatigue. You can do it for time or you can do it for repetitions.

Full Plank Variation

In a full plank, come up into where you would start a pushup. Push the floor away. Keep shoulders perfectly stacked over the wrists. The more you push the ground away, the more engagement you’ll get. Take your knee to the opposite elbow. Lift up high. Then send the leg back. Go to the other side. Alternate, come to the elbow, lift up, tuck up and in as you lift through the abdominals. The slower you go, the harder this is. Do as many reps as you can to fatigue.

Side Plank Variation

Come onto your forearms, and pay careful attention to how you stack your body – shoulders over shoulders, hips over hips. Lift up nice and high. From here the top leg does a half circle from the front to the back. Range of motion is up to you! The bigger the range of motion and the more you can control your body from tipping forward and back, the harder this is. If you need to modify, you can drop the bottom knee to the ground and do the exercise the same exact way.