One of the things I try to decipher for people I work with is the difference between being challenged and feeling pain. The two sensations are sometimes confused and it’s more challenging than you may believe. I’ll use performing a plank in a workout to explain what I mean. The plank is a great exercise for strengthening the core musculature. We typically introduce this exercise to someone early in the training process at the studio. It’s a safe and effective exercise for strengthening the core, and a good way to improve someone’s proprioception or body awareness. We use what is referenced as a “Hardstyle” or RKC plank at the studio.
The goal is to squeeze or contract as many muscles as possible as you are in a prone position on your forearms and toes. When coaching the drill, I start with telling someone to squeeze their glutes first, this will insure they don’t arch their lower back and maintain a proper pelvic position. The next thing I’ll do is gently position my hand in the small of their lower back and tell them to brace or push against my hand. That increases the intra-abdominal pressure. I will instruct them to “pull-up” their kneecaps by squeezing their thighs. You can heightens someone’s focus to their thighs by lightly tapping their thighs. Finally, I’ll position my fist behind their upper arm and instruct them to press down again my fist. That engages their latissimus dorsi or lats. At that point it’s usually around 30 seconds and the interval clock beeps, signally for them to take a break. It’s tough, and it’s meant to be.
The goal is not to simply hold the position, but rather to create as much tension as possible in that position. If you just hold the position without attempting to squeeze those muscles, you more than likely will feel discomfort in your back, knees, shoulders, and possibly your neck. Your muscles provide the required support to hold that position. If you don’t "squeeze" and tighten those muscles, you’re just sitting on your joints. Planks never become easy, because engagement of all those muscles will always fatigue you. The upside is that over time, you learn how to efficiently turn those muscles on. Sometimes frustration kicks in because people either can’t squeeze their glutes initially or can’t do it for prolonged periods of time.
In those situations, I believe the key is practice. If you perform 3-4 sets of planks three to four days a week, you will get better at them. I recommend you start with 10 seconds at a time. Add five seconds every week until you hit thirty seconds. At the studio, we may have someone attempt a thirty second hold, taking a brief rest every 10 seconds. You must embrace the challenge to eventually improve. You will not improve by quitting.
I recently had someone tell me “I don’t want to do planks; they are too hard!” I had to give her a little resistance because this same person had a past of lower back issues, and I knew that planks were one of the best things she could do to strengthen the area. As the adage goes, either use it or lose it. A strong core is needed for routine tasks, such as picking up a case of water.
Forty-four-year-old comedian Kevin Hart was recently injured when he attempted to race ex-NFL star Stevan Ridley. He experienced tears in his lower abdomen as well as muscles in his hip and thigh forcing him to get around in a wheelchair. He later admitted that he had not attempted to run an all-out sprint in years and called himself “the dumbest man alive” for trying. This is from a person who exercises four-five days a week and has his personal trainer travel with him. A great example of how you can lose the ability to do something if you don’t do it from time to time.
Do your planks, and I’ll see you at the studio.