How to Do a Plank: Proper Form and Core Benefits
Master the plank with our professional guide. Learn the correct technique to build core strength, improve posture, and avoid common lower back mistakes.
How to Perform
- Begin by kneeling on the floor and placing your forearms directly under your shoulders with your palms flat or hands held together.
- Extend your legs straight behind you, supporting your weight on your toes and forearms while keeping your body in a straight line.
- Engage your core by pulling your navel toward your spine and squeezing your glutes to stabilize your pelvis.
- Maintain a neutral neck by looking at a point on the floor about six inches in front of your hands.
- Hold this rigid position while breathing deeply and steadily, ensuring your hips do not sag or lift toward the ceiling.
- Lower your knees back to the floor slowly to exit the hold once your form begins to break.
Common Mistakes
- Allowing the lower back to arch and the hips to sag toward the floor.
- Holding your breath rather than maintaining a steady respiratory rhythm.
- Piking the hips too high, which shifts the load away from the abdominal muscles.
- Looking up or tucking the chin too aggressively, straining the cervical spine.
Muscles Worked
Primary movers
- Abs/Core
Stabilizers
- Shoulders
- Glutes
- Lower Back
Related Guides
- 3008 Abdominal Crunch — Core
- Ab Roller — Core
- Ab wheel — Core
Abs/Core · Core