You have to pay attention to this when planking

For a strong center

You have to pay attention to this when planking

Planking trains the whole body because the exercise uses many muscle groups at the same time. Blick reveals why planking is so effective.

Published: 15 minutes ago

Updated: 8 minutes ago

1/11

Planks are generally not difficult: just get on your knees, support your forearms on the floor and stretch your legs.

If you plank, you strengthen your stomach and back muscles. Planking not only works your abdominal muscles, but also does something good for your leg and hip muscles, core, shoulders and arms. Basically, anyone can do this exercise on a daily basis.

Different planking variants

There are different types of planks or forearm support. The degree of difficulty can vary.

Classic plank version: In the prone position, bring your forearms to the floor parallel to your body, elbows at shoulder level, feet up and body up. Hips and shoulders must be level. Squeeze and tighten your stomach.
knee plank Particularly suitable for beginners if you do not yet have the necessary muscle strength in your stomach. In this variant, you can keep your knees on the floor and don’t have to lift them up. Nevertheless, you should pay attention to the greatest possible body tension so that you can use the muscle groups properly.
Military plan: Here you start in the classic forearm support as the starting position. After that, first place one hand on the floor and then the other until you are in high support. Then repeat the process by going back to the starting position. It is important that you keep the tension and do the exercise slowly.
Single Arm Plank: As the name suggests, this plank has only one hand on the floor. The starting position is again the classic forearm support. Then one arm is raised. The higher the arm is lifted and stretched, the greater the tension required. You have to try not to lose your balance when one arm is in the air. Therefore, this type of plank is more suitable for advanced users.
Side planks: You start in the side position. One forearm is on the floor. The legs are parallel to each other and stretched out. Then you lift yourself off the ground and use your core muscles to do so. After you have finished with one side, you can switch sides.
Plank with leg raises: The starting position is again the classic forearm support. Then one leg is lifted up. The closer the legs are, the greater the tension required.

The harder plank: This is how you get a beautiful figure(00:36)

The right plank

Although planks look easy, there are common mistakes that many people make. Avoid sagging in the abdomen when planking. The whole body must be tense and slightly stretched. This is sometimes difficult to follow, especially for beginners. But doing it right is important! Otherwise you would only hurt yourself because the torso would have an excessive load. That’s why beginners shouldn’t stick with the plank for too long, but rather do the exercise correctly and consistently.

How long should you hold a plank?

In general: The time of the planks should be increased slowly. You should do it slowly at the beginning and constantly improve over time. It’s enough if you only manage 30 seconds a day and try to do more time every day.

Another source of error with the plank: the buttocks are held too high in the air. In this way, one causes the tension to be relieved from the abdomen. That’s why you should try to keep your bottom low.

Some also make the mistake of shifting the angle between their arms and hands. These must always remain parallel to each other.

Can you lose weight by planking?

In addition to cardio exercises for burning calories, the core should also be fit, and a plank is perfect for that. Planking not only strengthens the stomach, but also ensures that you become generally fitter and have a good movement. Balance, back, legs and chest muscles are all trained at the same time. The exercise can be incorporated into any workout.

What is HIIT and how does it work?

Short, intensive and effective – these are the principles of high-intensity training such as HIT and HIIT. The trainers assume that gains in muscle building, endurance and fat burning are best achieved by pushing the body to its own limits. BLICK explains how to find your personal stress limit.