100 Planks

The Plank Encyclopedia for Back

Health,
Bodyweight Training & Ultimate Core
Strength
2nd Edition
 100 Planks:
The Plank Encyclopedia for Back Health, Bodyweight Training & Ultimate
Core Strength
2nd Edition

Copyright © 2020 Robert W. Moore

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in
a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written
permission of the author.
[Link]

Disclaimer: Please be advised that by participating in any of the exercises

presented herein, you are assuming all risks of injury that might result. The
owner of and participants in these photos and videos shall not be liable for
any claims for injuries or damages resulting from use of the content in this
book. We further disclaim any liability caused by intentional or
unintentional negligence. The information presented herein is not a
substitute for medical advice. Please consult a physician before engaging in
these exercises, following the advice in this book, or starting any exercise
program.
 Table of Contents
PREFACE
Videos and the Electronic Book
About the 2nd Edition
INTRODUCTION
The Essential Core
The Crux of the Crunch
The Muscular Belt
A Symphony of Muscles
Advice for Back Pain Sufferers
Let’s Get Moving!
Warm-Up
Getting Into The Plank
Standing Modifications
Wrist Health
Active Rest
The Dead Bug Series
Dead Bug 1
Dead Bug 2
Dead Bug 3
Dead Bug 4
Dead Bug 5
The Workouts
Workout 1: Finding The Core
Workout 1-A
Workout 1-B
Workout 1-C: Standing Circuit
Workout 2: Building The Core
Workout 2-A
Workout 2-B
Workout 2-C
Workout 2-D
Workout 3: Revolve Around The Core
Workout 3-A
Workout 3-B
Workout 3-C
Workout 4: Strengthening the Core
Workout 4-A: Oblique Strength & Stability
Workout 4-B: Strength & Endurance
Workout 4-C: Back & Core
Workout 4-D: Chest & Core
Workout 4-E: Biceps, Shoulders & Core
Workout 4-F: Rear Shoulder
 Workout 4-G: Chest, Triceps & Back
Workout 4-H: Glutes
Workout 5: Burning The Core
Workout 5-A
Workout 5-B
Workout 5-C
Workout 5-D
Programming Your Own Workout
Planks by Levels
Part 1: Box Planks
1. Box Plank
2. Cat Cow
3. Leg Extended Box Plank
4. Hand Marching Box Plank
5. Box Plank Leg Lift
6. Bird Dog
7. Bird Dog Touch & Lift
8. Bird Dog Tuck & Extend
9. Drawing Squares Bird Dog
10. Hovering Box Plank
Part 2: Elbow Planks
11. Elbow Knee Plank
12. Elevated Elbow Plank
13. Elbow Plank
14. Elbow Plank Knee Taps
15. Hip Lifts
16. Pike Plank
17. Side Toe Taps
18. Out-Out In-In
19. Leg Lifts
20. Hamstring Curl
21. 1 Leg Supported Elbow Plank
22. 1 Leg Elbow Plank
23. Wide Leg Lifts
24. Rocking Plank
25. Leg Pulses
26. Leg Lift Abduction
27. Lizard Legs
28. Diving Dolphin
29. Feet Elevated
Part 3: Plank ARMy
30. Push Pull
31. Wax On/Wax Off
32. Hand Taps
33. Arm Lift
34. 1 Arm Supported Elbow Plank
35. 1 Arm Elbow Plank
 36. Arm + Leg Lifts
37. 2-Point Supported Plank
38. 2-Point Elbow Plank (Bird Dog)
39. Drawing Squares 2
Part 4: Hand Planks
40. Hand Plank
41. Knee Tuck
42. Knee to Triceps
43. Knee Cross Under
44. Leg Lift & Tuck
45. Kick-Ups
46. Tree Plank
47. Starter Lunge
48. Plank to Pike
49. Pike Split to Knee Tuck
50. Up Up Down Down
51. Shoulder Touch
52. Extended Plank
53. Plank Push
54. 2-Point Hand Plank (Arm + Leg Lift)
55. Hand to Toe Touch
56. 3-Point Plank
57. Extended Bird Dog
58. Extended Bird Dog Tuck & Extend
59. Drawing Squares 3
60. Tuck Plank
61. Reverse Plank
Part 5: Side Planks
62. Side Hip Plank
63. Side Knee Plank
64. Staggered Side Plank
65. Elevated Side Plank
66. Side Plank
67. Side Plank with Dynamic Arm
68. Side Plank Hip Lifts
69. Side Plank Hip Dips
70. Side Plank Leg Lift
71. Side Plank Lower Leg Lift
72. Side Plank Tuck & Extend
73. Side Plank Rotation
74. Feet Elevated Side Plank
75. Side Hand Plank
76. 3-Point Plank to Side Hand Plank
77. 3-Point Plank to Side Plank Leg Lift
78. Extended Bird Dog to Side Plank Lower Leg Lift
Part 6: Cardio Planks
79. Plank Jacks
80. Mountain Climbers
 81. Walk The Plank
82. Jump Lunges
83. Bear Crawl
84. Hovering Box Plank to Crab
85. Prone Speed Skater
86. Flying Scissor Kick
87. Bucking Bronco
88. Lateral Bucking Bronco
Part 7: Resistance is Futile
89. Weight Pass
90. Weighted Plank
91. Weighted Push Pull
92. Renegade Row
93. Renegade Bicep Curl & Tricep Kickback
94. Renegade Reverse Fly
95. Side Plank Shoulder Press
96. Side Plank Forward Raise
97. Weighted Side Plank Hip Lifts
98. Weighted Crawl
99. Plank Band Pull
100. Hand Plank Leg Band Pull
The End…?
 PREFACE
Videos and the Electronic Book

Welcome to the e-book version of 100 Planks! I received several messages

from readers asking about the e-book since the paperback was published.
As a one-man-show over here (well, one man and a couple very helpful
cats), there’s a lot on my plate and I just couldn’t get around to formatting
the e-book exactly how I wanted it. Well, it’s still not exactly how I want it,
but I’m pleased to finally present this book in its electronic version, and
with added material!

The benefit of the e-book over the print edition is that all planks are linked
directly to their YouTube instructional videos. Just click the name of the
plank at the top of the page and you’ll be taken to the video. (And if you
happen to find any wrong or broken links, please let me know by sending a
message over social media, [Link]/100Planks.)

The reason I made a video for every plank in this book is because I think
proper technique is SO important when it comes to planks. I mean, sure, it’s
important for all exercise, but if you happen to swing the torso to lift heavy
weights for a bicep curl, you’re still going to be working the biceps. And if
you lean back a bit in a shoulder press, you’ll still be working the shoulders.
Cheating isn’t always a bad thing, though it certainly could lead to other
problems, as long as you know when to properly use and execute it. Except
when it comes to planks.

For Tom Hanks, there is no crying in baseball (random A League of Their

Own reference, for those unaware). And for me, there is no cheating in
planks. We think of planks as balancing in a horizontal position on your
elbows and toes, and if you can do that, you’re planking. But listen, there is
no reason to get down on your elbows and toes and sink into your shoulders
and drop your head and round your back and hike up your hips and drop
your thighs and hold your breath for the core strengthening benefits of a
plank because you’re not strengthening your core. Not only does it instill
improper muscle firing and movement patterns but is it a massive waste of
time. (Right, Tom Hanks?)

About the 2nd Edition

In the 1st edition, I didn’t offer too much guidance in the way of
implementing planks into your workout. It was basically, “Here are 100
planks. Have fun!” This edition comes with over 20 sample workouts and
advice for programming your own workouts. I say it several times
throughout the book, but it’s important to know that these are merely
sample workouts and that you have to find what is best for you and your
body. When in doubt, consult a certified trainer.

Another benefit of the e-book is that you don’t have to flip through a paper
book to find the exercise. The exercise links are all listed in the workouts to
make it really easy for you to reference how to do them. And then, of
course, you also have the videos for all the planks!

One more addition to this edition is the Dead Bug series. I wanted to offer a
simple exercise with several variations so that you can take a break from
planks during your core workout but still be working the core in a safe way.
This also helps to program core-specific workouts rather than just inserting
a couple planks into your normal exercise routine. But this is still a crunch-
less workout plan, and core strength and stability are the main goals.
 INTRODUCTION
Planks are my favorite for one simple reason. Sure, they are among the best
exercises to train strong cores and healthy backs. And yes, they’re a safe
way for nearly anyone of any height, weight, or ability to develop spine
stability and core awareness. Granted, planks help athletes like golfers to hit
farther, martial artists to strike harder, and tennis players to react faster. And
planks can also be the ultimate fitness tool for full-body strength,
endurance, and functionality in sports and life with the added BONUS of a
six-pack, chiseled obliques and sculpted glute, chest, back and shoulder
muscles. Oh, and it’s also nice to know that decades of research support the
plank as one of the top exercises we all should be doing to prevent
debilitating back injuries.

But mostly, I love planks because they’re fun!

When I started teaching fitness classes nearly twenty years ago, I had to
discover the balance between educating participants and inspiring them to
return. I wanted to teach people how to move while trying to light the spark
that kept them on the life-changing path of fitness. But I learned early on
that instructing basic abs exercises while talking about the origin and
insertion points of the transverse abdominis with respect to core activation
and spine biomechanics for injury prevention inspired little more than
dazed looks from my students who seemed to just want to work on their
six-packs and go home. What I needed to do was offer variety, challenges,
and goals to strive for, all in a class of multiple levels while sharing
information that was helpful and understandable without being
overwhelming.

Having graduated university with a degree in dance, I not only studied

anatomy and kinesiology, but I also discovered the fundamental joy we all
have when learning to move our bodies in different ways. And the key word
here is “different.” As humans, we naturally crave adversity and
information and adapting to challenges. It’s how we first learned to stand
and walk and jump and run and walk farther and run faster and jump higher.
And we did it because it was fun! Our brains actually rewarded us when we
accomplished these things by releasing lovely neurotransmitters like
endorphins and dopamine that made us feel great so that movement in
general became a rewarding behavior.

It makes sense, then, that the eyes of my participants lit up when offered
interesting variations of different bodyweight challenges like push-ups and
planks. Movement and exercise can become a tedious chore as we get older,
especially when we end up doing the same thing over and over again with
decreasing results. But when presented with something just slightly
different than the norm that’s also not outside the realm of possibility, we
can become intrigued again.

But the potential of planks isn’t just in their variety. Moving and controlling
your own bodyweight triggers a sense of autonomy and even self-
empowerment that generates feelings of independence and confidence. The
power of planting these seeds in your psyche, where they can grow and
spread to other areas of your life, can’t be underestimated. What it translates
to is freedom. It’s encountering an obstacle and facing it. It’s figuring out
within your own body how to overcome something you couldn’t before.
Have a look through some of the plank options in this book. They might
seem a little out of reach for you at the moment, or they might seem
downright impossible. The spark is lit when you try the first few planks,
accomplish them, and then say to yourself, “Awesome! I did that! I wonder
what else I can do?” And that’s where the fun begins.

Of course, if you’re trying the plank for the first time, you’re going to call
me a liar, because nothing about it will be fun. The very act of engaging the
entire body to hold a plank will feel like work. And it is. BUT, there is
immense joy in the result. Yes, you’ll be able to tackle harder planks, but
every activity in your life from the second you wake up to the moment you
fall asleep will be easier. Just as you did when you first learned to move,
you’ll soon be able to walk farther, run faster, jump higher, swing harder,
balance better, pick up heavier things, and generally continue to expand
what is possible. And the amount of variations and challenges in planking
means you’ll never get bored!
I know this makes me sound like a fitness geek, expounding on the “joy” of
planking. And truthfully, I own it. But that’s because fitness should be fun!
I rarely use the word, “exercise,” because it just sounds like work. “Exercise
for 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week for cardiorespiratory health and
wellness!” the health guide recommends. “Click here to learn more about
the benefits of exercise!” Ugh. Prescriptive exercise is among the
drudgeries of modern living and it takes all the pleasure out of what was
originally - and is supposed to be - fun. And that’s the act of simply
moving.

Ok, again, I’m going to put the reins on and realize, for a moment, that you
may not think of exercise or moving as “fun,” especially when you can
stream that binge-worthy show everyone is talking about while eating your
favorite snacks on the couch, letting episode after episode play until the
guilt-inducing prompt comes up on the screen, “Are you still watching?”
Yes, I’m still watching, stop judging me and play my show!

So let me rephrase. I don’t want you to think of fitness, or, ahem, exercise,
as moving. I want you to think of it as playing! “Go out and play,” our
parents would say to us as kids. Playing is how we used to try new things
and invent games and explore abilities and learn skills. For many of us, that
stopped around those wonderful, rebellious teenage years when we thought
playing was for kids and we wanted so badly to be part of the adult world.
But the best thing about growing up is finding out that you never have to
stop playing. And trying new planks is very much like playing. You’ll try,
you might fail, you might even fall - thank goodness the floor is close! - but
through it all will be the excitement of achievement and possibility and
what comes next. Therein lies, in my opinion, the true power of fitness.

And while I could go on and on about joy and fun and things that make me
go, “YAY!”, the planks in this book have given me the core strength and
awareness to fuel every other facet of my fitness life. When I’m deadlifting
285 lbs, I can feel if my spine is neutral and can engage different
compartments of my core to maintain my form without a weight belt. When
I hiked the Grand Canyon down to the river and back in a day (not a
massive triumph, but it’s not recommended because so many people have
died trying), squeezing my core on the long walk up was the only thing that
kept my legs from giving out. And whenever I’ve had to teach multiple
classes in a day, I could rely on my instinctive spine awareness to help keep
my form intact even when fatigued. None of this may seem like a big deal,
but when I’m faced with challenges and can rely on my core strength, I’m
always thankful that I focused on planks because I know keeping them a
regular part of my routine has propelled me to a sense of physical freedom
that I always wanted. And that is exactly what I want for you and why I’ve
written this book.

And while this is called 100 Planks, know that all of them are possible, and
I’ve avoided including the “show-off” ones that I don’t even recommend.
There’s no reason to stoke your ego trying to do increasingly challenging
options that may actually be impossible for your body proportions. We’ve
all seen enough FAIL videos to see that attempting crazy feats of strength
just for a few likes on Instagram is dangerous. Thus, in this book are not the
only 100 Planks you can do, but 100 of my favorite planks that I alternate
with myself and teach regularly to my group classes and private clients.
And just like in life, the spice of planks is variety. If your only goal is an
Elbow Plank, you’ll miss out on the important back stabilizers that get more
attention in other planks like the Bird Dog, and you won’t work the side
stabilizers like you would in Side Plank. There are many planks that you
will focus on to ensure a well-rounded workout. Therefore, I’ve tried to
keep this book as straightforward and accessible as possible.

I always recommend having a certified trainer help assess your technique,

and your doctor’s permission to move forward of course, but I hope I’ve
provided enough information to help you start and inspiration to continue.
If you’re going to skip right ahead to the planks, that’s okay! But in case
you’re not quite sold on the “joy” of planks, please read on for more
valuable information on why core stability is vital to your quality of life
and, of course, what makes planks so much - I’m going to say it again -
FUN! YAY!
The Essential Core

Core stability is essential to your well-being. When jumping, running,

throwing, lifting, walking, standing, or even just sitting, engaging your core
stiffens your spine to protect the spinal cord and its vital nerves. Whenever
you are moving, your body should react to maintain spine integrity in
opposition to external forces. Core muscles do this to minimize the
movement of your vertebrae and the shock-absorbing, cartilaginous disks
between. Problems arise when our core muscles aren’t strong or intuitive
enough to maintain proper neutral alignment and the vertebrae are forced,
under excessive load, to move too much and squeeze the disks that end up
bulging and irritating the nerves. And whether it’s an acute injury caused by
a specific action (rounding your back to lift a heavy box) or wear-and-tear
over time (consistent poor posture or too much sitting) a back injury can
range from annoying to life-altering. But if you’re already among the 80%
of us who will experience a back injury in our lifetimes, you know just how
debilitating a back injury can be, both physically and mentally. A strong
core is an essential safeguard against injury and arguably the most
important physical factor in your overall strength and quality of life.

And in my 20 years of teaching fitness to groups and private clients, I’ve

come to believe that a strong core is necessary not just for preventing injury
but for expanding possibility. It allows you to say, “YES!” to taking the
stairs when the elevator isn’t working or being able to lift and move things
without asking someone for help. More than affirming our independence, it
can mean taking on new challenges like a 5K charity run or a biking
adventure with friends or tackling a long hike at a bucket-list destination.
Whatever hurdle comes your way that invites your participation, simply
being able to say, “YES!” sends a powerful message of success to your
inner dialogue that just makes you feel amazing and limitless. Sometimes
clients literally rush to tell me how having a strong core has affected their
lives whether it’s something simple like Don, 26, saying, “Rob, I can finally
feel my obliques now in side plank!” to something more meaningful like
Elizabeth, 63, a regular in one of my beginner classes who couldn’t wait to
tell me about her recent vacation with her friends. She had the biggest smile
on her freshly-bronzed skin after a week in the Caribbean when she said,
“Rob, you know those big lounge chairs that swallow you up by the pool at
the resort? Well I was the only one out of all my friends who didn’t need
any help getting out of them! And it’s all thanks to you!”

Of course, none of that is thanks to me but all due to a person’s

commitment and consistency. And it is a commitment because having a
strong core requires a willingness to not only exercise but be thoughtful of
your body, to focus inward, to close your eyes and feel things that are
uncomfortable and knowing that you have to be comfortable with that.
Humans were meant to move and to be functional and strong and when we
remember that, our lives can change far beyond trying to look a certain way.
And being committed to being strong brings rewards you may not even
realize.

The sparkle in a client’s eye when they tell me they can do something they
couldn’t do before all because of a strong core is one of the most rewarding
aspects of my career. Bonnie, a fit 50-year-old was shocked that after just a
few months of core and balance training with me she finished her annual ski
trip for the first time in her life without falling even once. Jim, a 64-year-old
who had trained with me for years was walking on an icy sidewalk when
both feet slipped out from under him yet he managed to right himself
instinctively and land on one foot in balance (something he had never
thought his previously “unfit” body could naturally do). And then there’s
Cheryl, a 21-year-old who was making great strides in my abs classes when
she was unfortunately involved in a terrible car accident. She said her
doctor told her specifically that her strong core must have protected her
spine because the position she was found in suggested her back was broken.
She returned to class within a month.

Being strong is like being a kid again. You get to explore new things and
learn and adapt and feel a sense of freedom where you can wonder what
else is possible. But as we age, the inverse happens and our joy slowly
strips away over time as we lose our abilities and every single time we feel
we can’t do something that we always used to. Our inner dialogue slowly
turns “I can” into “I can’t” which can end up defining a person’s life. To a
large degree, being fit and having a strong core means retaining that
wonderful quality of life where we can continue to explore and try and do
and say, YES!

Just as a strong core is essential for embracing new challenges, having a

weak core often results in facing obstacles that are difficult to overcome. A
former client, 38-year-old Richard, wanted only to work on vanity muscles
and having “good pecs, big biceps, washboard abs.” I told him he could still
work on those things but add full-body compound movements with a focus
on back and core. He ended up staying with me for just a few weeks. A few
years later, after several back injuries left him in agony and not able to stand
up straight, he had surgery for a herniated disk in his lower back and is
currently working on building core strength with a physiotherapist. Mark,
42, wasn’t interested in vanity at all but his doctor told him to do yoga to
improve his posture and try and get in better shape, but I advised him that
the stretching in yoga can be harmful to your back if you have a weak core
and that he needed strength and conditioning first. Poor guy has been taking
Percocet for years for lower back pain after slipping a disk in a twisted
downward dog. An acquaintance of mine, Jared, 44, had always been
somewhat active as a young adult but sits for long periods at a desk job and
now suffers radiating pain from his lower back through his right hip and
down his leg to the point where he can’t walk normally, yet refuses to see a
professional because, “it’ll just work itself out since I’m still young.”

And that’s the hardest pill to swallow. An injury, especially to the back, can
age you faster than time. The problem is, once it happens, it can be difficult
to treat, not because the options aren’t available, but because our health care
system often treats the symptom instead of the cause, and many general
practitioners aren’t necessarily experts in spine biomechanics. Another
person who became a regular in my class, 53-year-old Lana, said she had
exhausted all options aside from invasive surgery that was recommended by
several doctors after a bad fall had left her back in near constant spasm for
years. After a few months of core-intensive work with me, her spasms
disappeared and she became stronger than ever.
I share these stories with you not to frighten you or make you feel bad in
any way if you haven’t yet ventured into this fitness territory before. But
each of us has a purpose in this life, and mine is to help you not only be
strong, but to be your best self by tapping into the boundless joy and
potential and possibility that strength can you bring you. And it all begins
with and radiates from your core.
The Crux of the Crunch

Speaking of the core, what about the crunch? By now, I think it’s common
knowledge that endless crunches do neither of the things they promise -
which are a strong core and washboard abs - and that they can actually be
dangerous to your spine. But is this knowledge common? Many fitness
professionals, including myself, generally defer to the research of Dr. Stuart
McGill, a professor at the University of Waterloo who has spent over three
decades researching injury prevention and treatment of the lower back. Dr.
McGill found that traditional crunches and sit-ups exert an incredible
amount of compressive force on the lower spine that contribute to injury
and should be abandoned altogether.

So, why are we still doing them? Many fitness pros still teach crunches and
sit-ups, sometimes instructing to complete as many as possible within a
given amount of time. In grade school, many of us were coached to do
crunches as part of fitness testing, often with a buddy holding down our
feet. In the military, we hear of training that involves endless crunches.
Surely if our coaches, teachers, and military leaders still teach them, they
must be a great exercise, right?

Well, it turns out they’re not all teaching them. There are several trials
under way to phase out crunches from both the US Army and some schools
in favor of the plank because of current research. While crunches target
mainly the rectus abdominis, the “six-pack” muscle, they usually do so at
the expense of flattening the lower back on the floor and leveraging it into
flexion which is when the spine is most at risk. But our backs have three
natural curves which are actually shock-absorbing and protective of the
essential nerve fibres that run along the spinal column. Core and back
strength comes from firming the muscles around the spine to keep it in this
neutral - as opposed to perfectly flat or straight - position. Crunches,
however, tend to push the lower back flat through abdominal pressure
which makes the back muscles passive, or worse, push the vertebrae into
the floor in order to lift the torso up in the crunch. Combining compressive
force on the spine while its supporting musculature is passive or assisting in
the compression is a recipe for disaster. Even minor damage to this area can
require months or years of rehab with a high probability of reinjury.

But I want a sexy six-pack!

But all of the research in the world isn’t going to turn people away from
crunches anytime soon. We want six-pack abs, and crunches work the abs!
After all, if we want better biceps, we just work the biceps, so that should
work for all muscle groups, right?

There are four things wrong with isolating the abs to get a six-pack. First, to
isolate the biceps, we flex the elbow. That’s it. That’s the only joint that’s
involved. To isolate the abs, we flex and apply force to multiple vertebral
joints, the sacrum, the hips, and often the upper back and neck, to contract a
variety of muscles that cross all of these joints in several ways and
directions. Minor injuries to the bicep result in some discomfort when
picking up your coffee cup, and a recommended week or so of rest and
possibly heat/cold therapies. Minor injuries to the spine can result in you
not being able to stand up. Seriously. A minor injury could mean you can’t
stand up or sit down without agony, or it could result in numbness in the
leg, or shooting pain when you cough. Lower back injuries can result in a
lifetime of chronic pain.

Second, we have to keep in mind what goes along with those six-pack abs
in military bodies, often seen as the pinnacle of the ideal physique. They
didn’t just come from crunches. You have to take into account the endless
amount of running, push-ups, and pull-ups included in their training along
with a regimented nutrition plan, and how all of that is more likely to shed
fat and reveal the six-pack. See, we’ve all got a six-pack, just as we all have
biceps. Nature just has this lovely way of storing fat primarily around our
abdomens for most of us, and not first around our upper arms. Therefore,
it’s easier to see our biceps after doing bicep curls. So while it might make
sense to think that isolating a muscle makes it more noticeable, because if
we want bigger biceps we just do more bicep curls, it is not the case at all
when it comes to the abs. You could do no other exercise but crunches but if
you don’t have a low body fat percentage, you’ll never see your abdominal
muscles. You might be surprised to learn that many of the world’s elite
athletes with ripped abs never do a single isolated ab crunch, but their
disciplined fitness and nutrition routines have resulted in having low body
fat and their abs are sculpted because they are trained in so many full-body
exercises.

Third, trying to do as many crunches as the next person is a bad idea. A

great amount of core activation is involved in many exercises like push-ups
and pull-ups that could actually allow someone to do a crunch or sit-up
properly with strength as opposed to leverage and a compressive force on
the spine. That means that if you’re someone who has trouble doing 10
perfect push-ups, you can’t compare the amount of crunches you can do to
someone who is able to perform 50 perfect push-ups. The person doing sets
of 20 pull-ups may be able to perform crunches in a safe way that does not
bring the spine out of neutral, but that comes from body awareness resulting
from attention to strength and technique in a variety of exercises. So, just
because the person next to you is doing crunches without any back pain
doesn’t mean that you can, or should.

And last, failure is more or less an option when it comes to crunches. What
I mean is that if you are doing bicep curls with dumbbells and you pick up a
weight that’s too heavy for you, your arm will not bend and you will fail to
do the curl. At some point, any amount of cheating by rocking the body or
swinging the arm or using the shoulder isn’t going to help you lift that
weight. When you’re doing crunches and your abs get tired, however, you
can work past failure of the musculature and keep going by leaning into
your back, pulling on your head, and relying on momentum and leverage.
Unfortunately, you’ll be no closer to having stronger or visible abs, but
you’ll be a lot closer to chronic back pain.

So where does this leave the beleaguered crunch? Do we throw it out? Does
it have any use at all? I actually still teach crunches, but generally slowly, in
limited amount, and while maintaining a neutral spine. It’s still a functional
movement, and it’s as safe as any other exercise when done properly. Dr.
McGill even prescribes a modified curl-up version that safely loads the abs
without compressing the spine. And even then, he only recommends doing
around five repetitions. The rectus abdominis is important for posture,
breathing, and flexing the lower spine, and it should be conditioned if it is
weak, but it is just one aspect of the core that works in coordination with a
multitude of others to perform optimally.

While working on the abs is not necessarily bad, we must get over the idea
that endless crunches will do anything but hurt your back. That’s all they’re
going to do. We also have to question any instructor that asks us to ignore
basic spine mechanics. There’s no reason why a yoga class should be
comprised mainly of forward bends that are flexing the lower spine,
especially when most people are straining to stretch as far as the person
next to them. And there’s also no validity in a Pilates class that teaches the
back should be flat or “imprinted” into the floor during sit-ups or roll-ups.
And if you happen to find yourself in an intense boot camp class with a
teacher yelling at you to do as many ballistic crunches or sit-ups as possible
within a certain amount of time, please just get up and leave. Better yet, buy
them one of Dr. Stuart McGill’s many books on back health and hopefully
they will change their program.

Everybody gets injured, but not everybody recovers

This is not to say that abandoning crunches means you’ll never get injured.
On the contrary, everyone gets injured. It doesn’t matter if you’re a couch
potato or the fittest person on earth, you can both get injured. And the fittest
person on earth has definitely put their body through more risk of getting
injured in the pursuit of being that way. So if most people are going to get
injured no matter what, what’s the point of all of this? What matters, then, is
how fast each of these groups can recover. Studies have shown, even in the
US Army, that replacing sit-ups with planks didn’t necessarily reduce
injuries from their intense physical regimen, but that they did require fewer
days off for recovery, and that can make all the difference.

Recovery from injury is just as important a factor in your health as

preventing injury. If you suffer a back injury from a bad fall, your ability to
recover could mean either returning to normal activities in a week, or
relying on medication and rehab for months, often suffering repeat injuries
or referred pain for years. Imagine how this lengthy process can affect
someone’s quality of life, both physically and psychologically. The long-
term pain sufferer is normally depressed, easily agitated, and hyper-
sensitive to pain, noise, and uncomfortable situations. When I see people
I’ve known for years who have been suffering from a recent injury, it’s like
a light has gone out in their eyes. Sometimes their pain is ever-present and
the mental impact is obvious.

And this also applies to “fit” people who were used to moving and feeling
free and unencumbered by pain. It’s not just general exercise that can
increase one’s ability to recover from a back injury, it’s focused core
stability work with the goal of training one’s movement patterns so that
core engagement is as instinctive as breathing. Basically, if you knew how
to contract your core before the injury, you will know how to contract your
core after the injury. And contracting muscles is not as easy as it sounds. It
can take years to train the proper neuromuscular connections to fire muscles
at will instead of relying on movement first. You certainly don’t want to
start this process after an injury has left you with such stabbing pain in your
back that any movement at all induces nausea and sweating. And whether
you’re a couch potato, office worker who sits most of the day, a fit army
soldier, or someone who can deadlift 300 lbs, if you don’t understand and
implement core-focused training, your ability to recover from a back injury
could possibly affect the rest of your life.

And if you have been injured, don’t fear! It doesn’t have to be a life
sentence. We’ll discuss back pain more in a bit, but even reading this is
putting the healing process into motion. Understanding the core empowers
you to have a say in your recovery. Knowing that rigidity of the back
muscles to support the spine in its natural curvature is already signaling
your brain to start figuring it out. While it can take years to train a strong
core, you are starting right now. A year from now, you will be so grateful
you did.
The Muscular Belt
Imagine getting ready for a night on the town and tightening up the belt on
your favorite pair of jeans. Think of how that cinching feeling of the belt
around the waist supports you and makes you stand a little taller and maybe
even walk a little lighter. Can you feel that pulling-in around the waist just
by thinking about it? That is the Muscular Belt.

When I instruct my clients to engage their core, I discuss the concept of the
Muscular Belt because it helps them understand that the core is not our abs
or the six-pack or the front of our bellies. The core is a 360-degree
experience from the front to the back to the sides and all around your waist.
You’ve probably been told to pull your abs in to brace your core but that’s
just part of the equation. Yes, you draw in your abs, keeping the rib cage
down. But you also feel the side and back muscles pull in simultaneously,
much like, you got it, a belt! But in this case, the belt is made of muscle and
it is inside your body to support your spine instead of outside to support
your jeans.

It’s important to know, however, that when you think about pulling the belt
in, whether we’re talking about clothes or muscles, the alignment of your
spine does not change. For example, pulling your back muscles in and
forward doesn’t mean pulling your spine in and forward because that would
result in over-arching your lower back and tilting your pelvis forward
(anterior pelvic tilt, Figure 1-1). And if you focused on just pulling your abs
in, you might end up losing your natural lower back curvature and tilting
your pelvis back which results in flattening or pushing out your lower
vertebrae which weakens the structure of your spine (posterior pelvic tilt).
The goal is to feel the back, front, and side muscles all pull in to support
your spine without affecting your anatomical structure (neutral pelvis).

Our spines are built with curves to absorb the shock and load of the forces
of daily activities. Therefore, the best way to train the core is to respect
these natural curves and train our muscles to support and stabilize the spine
in the same position instead of trying to change the alignment of the spine
or pelvis from neutral. The spine really should be in the exact same position
in the basic plank as when standing. In essence, the Muscular Belt should
feel like you’re giving your spine a big hug, supporting it just as it is. And
couldn’t we all use a big hug for being just who we are? Self-love is not
only wonderful but it’s functional too!

Therefore, throughout this book, I will often refer to the Muscular Belt.
Every time you see this phrase, imagine the 360-degree, three-dimensional
action of the core firming up to support the rigidity of your spine and pelvis
in neutral alignment. Honestly, it’s going to make it easier for me to explain
and easier for you to understand rather than getting overwhelmed with
every single muscle involved. And it’s not about engaging any single one of
these muscles, but rather, all of them together to function as a whole.
Figure 1-1. Anterior (Forward) Pelvic Tilt, Posterior (Backward) Pelvic Tilt, Neutral Pelvis
A Symphony of Muscles

The concept of the Muscular Belt refers to the general core area of the body
but highlights a specific muscle I don’t normally mention because of the
glazed looks on people’s faces when I discuss it by its proper name, the
transverse abdominis, which wraps horizontally around the waist with
attachments from the inside of the lower 6 ribs, the diaphragm, the front of
the hips and into the fascia of the lumbar (lower back) vertebrae. Yup, that’s
the glazed look I usually get! And honestly, it’s not my client’s job to know
anatomy, it’s my job, and it’s up to me to translate it in accessible ways that
are, hopefully, more intuitive. The Muscular Belt is also an easier term than
naming all the other muscles of the core I want people to engage when
talking about the core which includes the rectus abdominis (six-pack),
internal and external obliques (generally, the side ab muscles), the hip
flexors, and generally all the muscles in the back including the erector
spinae, multifidus, quadratus lumborum, latissimus dorsi, rhomboids, and
trapezius.

But, just as in my training sessions, I won’t spend a great deal of time here
mentioning individual muscles. In my 20 years of teaching fitness, deep
anatomical knowledge has not been incredibly elucidating to the layperson
and, in fact, it can actually complicate matters. If a person is so focused on
one muscle, like the transverse abdominis, they might not realize their neck
is completely flexed which can disrupt the spine’s integrity. Or, a person
could be thinking so much about every muscle a trainer has just told them
to engage that they feel overwhelmed and confused and try to force their
energy into an exercise instead of letting the energy and instincts flow
organically. Moreover, you can think you have pain in one area of the body,
but because every one of our muscles is connected to each other through
fascia, a web of connective tissue just beneath the skin that wraps around
and connects all of our muscles in a network, a problem in your foot could
literally be connected to tension in your upper back. Therefore, instead of
compartmentalizing the body into individual muscles with various diagrams
and descriptions, I want you to think of the body as a network of muscles
that need to interact together to function optimally. (That said, if you want
to dive deeper into anatomy, there are countless resources online to
research.)

This is why I talk about the Symphony of Muscles. Just as it’s never up to
one instrument to carry the entire orchestra to make music, it’s never up to
one muscle in the body to create movement. Rather, it is a Symphony of
instruments/muscles working in harmony and constant adaptation with one
another to perform amazing things.

Let’s take the basic crunch as an example using music as a metaphor. If the
rectus abdominis is the brass section, a crunch normally results in blaring
horns. Well, I’d like the string instruments, erector spinae, in the back to be
just as powerful. Back off the horns and feel the strings support the sound a
bit more. Wait, where are the wind instruments? Try exhaling forcefully
through pursed lips and you might find those wind instruments (transverse
abdominis) get in tune very quickly as they envelop the waist and the
sound. Don’t forget about a supportive percussion throughout - the side
obliques! But since we’re moving in a forward plane, we don’t need much
percussion but make sure we can hear you. Are any of the muscles feeling
extra tense? Quiet that section down a bit and raise the rest of the orchestra
to balance the effort. Now, conductor, is your wand straight? Well, since the
spine shouldn’t be completely straight, the question is, is your wand
neutral? Ok, then let the performance begin!
Honestly, it doesn’t matter to me what image is best for you, whether it’s a
Muscular Belt, a Symphony of Muscles, the core, the trunk, the pillar, etc.,
as long as you understand that you can’t focus on just one muscle when
engaging the core, but a network of many in coordination. If you don’t
understand how to work one muscle let alone several at the same time, you
might be feeling overwhelmed by this concept. You will find that over time,
the feeling is in the doing, and this book is laid out in such a way that you
will concentrate on areas around the core that will result in a balanced
musculature and “smart” body that will function instinctively to protect
your spine in particular and your joints in general. (You’ll also be enhancing
your neuromuscular connections along the way so it will be easier to tweak
certain instruments to make sure your body is in tune.) Because while there
is so much more to getting abs than doing crunches, there is so much more
to the core than working on your abs.
Advice for Back Pain Sufferers

While 100 Planks is a resource manual, it can also be a treatment plan to

prevent and treat back pain by firming up the muscles to support the spine
and improve posture and movement patterns. BUT, those suffering from
back pain should always consult a physician, specifically one specialized in
movement mechanics like a sports medicine doctor (you don’t need to be an
athlete to see one). While generally safe for most people, there may be
some contraindications in your situation that could be exacerbated even by
Level 1 planks. It’s also important for back pain sufferers to always be
monitored by a reputable trainer to ensure proper technique.

Should I see a doctor?

If you suffer from chronic back pain, yes, you should see a doctor. If you’ve
had an incident injury such as “throwing your back out” when lifting, you
should see a doctor. If you have a sore back and numbness somewhere in
your body, you should see a doctor. Whatever happens, you want to rule out
anything major that may have nothing to do with your spine or back
muscles. I will say that based on research, a majority of back pain can be
treated with exercise and not with medication or surgery. In his book, Back
Mechanic, spine specialist Dr. Stuart McGill says, “Ninety-five percent of
the challenging patients I see do NOT need surgery, even though many
were told that was their only cure.” That’s why I recommend seeing a sports
medicine doctor instead of a general practitioner. You need guidance from
an expert on the spine. While every situation is different, if your doctor says
your only solution is painkillers and/or surgery, then get a second opinion.
A wonderful book to read as an example of this would be another of
McGill’s fine works, Gift of Injury: The strength athlete’s guide to
recovering from back injury to winning again, written with powerlifting
champion, Brian Carroll. After a series of events left Carroll with extensive
spine injuries, he was told to have invasive surgery to deal with his pain and
that his competitive career was over. Dr. McGill assessed him and said his
situation could be cured with proper exercise. Spoiler alert, it worked, and
Carroll returned to powerlifting better than ever. While we can’t always see
a Dr. McGill in our lives, know that there are resources out there that can
help you whether it’s a doctor or a physiotherapist or a personal trainer.

I can’t find/afford a personal trainer!

I know that it can be difficult for many reasons to find an ongoing personal
trainer to help you. They can be expensive, they might not be good at their
job, and their qualifications might not be stellar. Also, gyms can be so
pushy, coercing or even forcing you to hire a trainer for a block of sessions.
If you belong to a gym and are looking for a good trainer, hang out in the
area where you can see them at work. Are they attentive or are they
watching the television when their client isn’t looking? Are they instructing
or are they simply counting reps? Are they engaged or do they seem
uninterested? When you find someone who you think is qualified and
would be a good fit personally, chat with them and tell them your goals.
They may offer you some quick tips or invite you to sign up for a few
sessions. They may even be able to offer you in-home sessions, depending
on their contract with the gym.

But I don’t WANT a trainer!

I know, you’re an independent person who is self-reliant and you don’t

want to bother with hiring someone for help. That’s ok! But, still, don’t go
this alone. If you have been cleared by your physician to embark on light
exercise to strengthen your core and you’re not sure where to start, show
them this book and ask which of the Level 1 planks you can start with.
They should be able to guide you appropriately and watch for errors, or
they can ask a member of their team to assist. Any quality caregiver will
have your best interest at heart, so don’t be afraid to ask for help. You can
also visit your local community center that normally offers very reasonable
membership fees and many free resources. You can then ask one of the
floor coaches for help. Or take exercise classes and then talk to an instructor
you like about your issues. If there’s one thing in common amongst all
fitness trainers it’s that we love helping people. And we want to help you,
we really do, so don’t feel shy about asking.
Can’t I just do some yoga or Pilates?

In short, no. If you have back pain of any kind, you will want to avoid yoga
and Pilates classes. And if your doctor recommends these for back pain, get
a second opinion. The amount of back-bending and flexion in the lower
spine in both yoga and Pilates will stretch rather than strengthen the
important spine stabilizers and are more likely to harm you than help you.
Stretching may provide a brief sense of relief but this is a case of treating
the symptom rather than the cause. Normally, back pain actually comes
from overstretching, specifically the lower back being flexed without
supportive strength resulting in disk bulges and hernias and nerve irritation.
With that being said, I teach both yoga and Pilates, but I now keep forward
bends to a minimum while respecting the neutral spine, and with very little
sensation of actual stretching. No one should be focused on flexibility as a
goal because flexibility is not correlated with injury prevention or even
good health in general. In fact, I have had countless people come to my core
strengthening classes after injuring their backs in yoga and Pilates. We can’t
help but compare ourselves to the person next to us in a yoga class who is
contorted into a seemingly impossible position so we strain and strive to do
the same, often with the “assistance” of a handsy instructor who is pressing
and pushing on you to “help.” It’s important to know that the originators of
both postural yoga (the exercise-based practice that was born only about a
hundred years ago) and Pilates did not have the functional anatomy
knowledge that we have today. In the hands of the wrong instructors, they
can be dangerous disciplines, just as any form of any exercise out there.

But I have degenerative disk disease so I am a lost cause!

If I had a nickel for everyone who told me that they had degenerative disk
disease. I will leave this one up to Dr. Stuart McGill, who said in Back
Mechanic, “In the vast majority of cases, ‘degenerative disk disease’ is a
misdiagnosis.” Usually, it is a case of a site-specific injury that presents as
age-related water loss from the spine. Dr. McGill insists this misdiagnosis is
not only unhelpful for the patient, but “unnecessarily dramatic,” in that it
leaves the patient feeling helpless without any real hope or treatment plan.
It allows some who have so far avoided exercise the excuse to continue
avoiding exercise because it infers there’s little option for someone with a
chronic disease that is only going to get worse. But chances are you are not
a lost cause and with proper treatment, your issue will be resolved.

Listen, I don’t want a trainer and I don’t want to see a doctor!

HELP!

Alright, I know there are many reasons that can keep you from going to the
doctor for back pain or seeking out a trainer. And maybe your back pain is
not chronic or something that is affecting your daily life. Perhaps it’s just
something that bothers you sometimes and it “works itself out” after a
while. Maybe you periodically see a massage therapist or a chiropractor to
help you. But are they really helping you long-term? Any real help from a
therapist of any kind should have the goal of not needing them ever again.

Before I say anything more, I will repeat, go see a professional in person

before starting this or any exercise program. Not only do you want to rule
out something serious that could be causing your back pain, you spent years
moving in a way that has probably not been good for your back, and it can
take weeks, months, and even years to get it working properly again. This
should not be a discouragement. In Gift of Injury, Dr. McGill makes a great
point that if you are someone who has been told to have surgery, pretend
that you did, because the treatment plan is the same. After surgery, you will
need to move very carefully and methodically to retrain your
neuromuscular pathways and avoid exacerbating your issue. Without
surgery, you have to do the same thing. You simply can not move and
perform in the same ways that you have been. It is like starting from
scratch. If the treatment plan works, then you know you didn’t need the
surgery! Of course, if it doesn’t, that may indeed be a last option. But that
should be a last-resort measure that every good clinician would seek to
avoid.

So what do I do if I want to try and heal myself?

Ok, you have some back pain in your lower back, maybe even into your
sacrum, that’s not aggravating but you’re aware of it. And you don’t want to
see a doctor or trainer. Instead, you want to help yourself, you stubborn,
loveable person. Listen, I get it. I’m exactly the same way. Here is some
general, research-based information for people with back pain who are
avoiding seeing a specialist. It is my responsibility to repeat that none of
this should be a substitute for a doctor’s medical advice.

1. DO NOT MOVE WITH PAIN! If anything causes you pain, do not do

it. Don’t try and work through the pain. Pain is telling you that something is
wrong and if you keep causing it, it’s going to get worse. If you keep trying
to work through pain, your brain will learn that movement in general is
painful until you’re convinced that everything hurts. Instead, and I know
this is groundbreaking - move with no pain! I know, sometimes easier said
than done. But you start somewhere with an exercise that stimulates back
muscles to fire while your spine is in neutral without pain (Standing Bird
Dog is a great option for most people to painlessly strengthen the back and
glutes). That’s a neurochemical signal of success and retrains your brain to
understand that movement in general is not painful. The more pain-free
movements you incorporate, the more your body learns how to move
because you’ve stopped triggering a pain response every time you moved
with pain. Slowly over time, your nerves will become less sensitized to pain
as you strengthen your body, allowing it to heal, and your pain-free
movement abilities will expand. It’s a beautiful, self-healing mechanism
and something I can attest to myself.

2. DO NOT STRETCH! As I mentioned before, stretching can provide a

brief period of relief for the pain. But stretching the muscles around the
spine without muscular support is probably what caused the back pain in
the first place. What happens in stretching is that the back rounds as the
back muscles relax, the abs may flex to assist pushing the back out, and the
lumbar vertebrae are vulnerable as they are pressed out of their natural
curve. The muscles that are supposed to support the lower back in its
natural position are weakest in the stretch position and, worse, passive
because of the ab flexion, so the spine has zero support which will leave the
disks bulging out of the flexed vertebrae. Imagine holding a metal spring or
slinky that is filled with a squishy substance. Bending the spring would
push the substance out between the expanded wires in the back a little bit.
That’s what happens in our spines. When the low back is slightly flexed,
like when sitting without lumbar support, the spine is like that spring that is
flexing but instead of a squishy substance that is bulging out, it’s actually
your vertebral disks. The back pain sufferer may find relief during
stretching because of the biochemical relaxation response that comes with
static stretching, but as soon as you need to return to normal activity, trying
to compress the bulging, squishy substance back within the rigid spring, the
pain will return. The goal is to strengthen the muscles to prevent the
bulging which will relieve the pain, not stretch the muscles which will
encourage the bulging which will increase the pain.

3. MOVE! While a week or two of rest can help an acute injury by

allowing inflammation to decrease, in many cases involving chronic back
pain, you will not get better unless you move. While you do need to sleep
well, eat well, and refrain from moving with pain, that doesn’t mean you
have to “rest” in order to heal. Training the muscles to work properly to
support the spine in neutral may be all that you need, and building stronger
glutes to take pressure off your back can do wonders. If, however, every
move is painful, you can still “move” even in your bed by isometrically
flexing (contract the muscles without moving) all of the core muscles on the
exhale, and relaxing on the inhale. Anyone can begin the process of healing
but it begins with you. If you can move, explore the Beginner Plan,
including the Warm-Up. Stick to Level 1 Planks and avoid anything that
causes pain. I would also avoid Cat Cow as you may not want to bend or
extend the spine. If the pain does not subside after a few weeks, or it gets
worse, bite the bullet and go see a doctor.

Remember that living pain-free is your goal. We can become addicted to

pain and the lifestyle that surrounds it just like anything else. Seeking real
solutions requires bravery and tenacity and some introspection to redefine
what you really want and who you really are. Such is the demon of chronic
pain to alter our consciousness. Know there is hope, there is opportunity,
there is possibility. All you really have to do is turn the page.
 Let’s Get Moving!
Warm-Up

Before we get into the planks and the workouts, let’s talk about the warm-
up. It’s important to wake up the body and get the blood flowing to prepare
the body for movement and your brain for communication with your
muscles. If you’re at the gym, perhaps you’re already warmed up simply by
walking there. Even so, I always recommend a series of movements that
will loosen up the hips and shoulders to prevent these normally tight areas
from impeding your ability to maintain a neutral spine. This series will also
remind you of posture and start to trigger the same pathways you’ll use in
the planks for core engagement and are a great supplement to core training,
whether you’re about to work out, or just want some movement throughout
the day.

This warm-up is only comprised of three movements: the squat, the lunge,
and the incline push-up. There is an optional fourth movement which is
jumping jacks or skipping and is for those of you who are looking to really
elevate your heart rate in your workout, especially if you’re tackling the
section on Cardio Planks. All of these exercises move multiple joints,
dynamically stretch the body, and recruit large muscles which requires a lot
of energy to function and, thus, will warm you up quickly. Pay close
attention to technique, though! I know most of you have done these
exercises before, but avoid breezing through them like you’ve done them a
thousand times. Approach every exercise, whether it’s this or anything
you’re doing, like it’s the first time. That way, you’ll focus more on using
the right muscles and doing everything properly and, in fact, it will - and
should - always feel a little bit different.
And I know that you’re thinking that it’s fine to skip the Warm-Up, but trust
me, it actually helps. You’ll have more energy through your entire workout,
you’ll be more focused, and your muscles will be primed for action. I even
think about my warm-up as meditation time to get in touch with my
breathing and the flow of energy through my body. Breathe deeply and
move with purpose. Enjoy the activity, even if it’s difficult. I’m sure you do
so much in the day for others, it’s important that you embrace the time you
devote to yourself. Changing your perspective can change everything.

Video!

I also have a quick 5-minute warm-up video that you can do here.
Otherwise, at least do the following exercises before every plank workout
to activate and loosen and lengthen the body.

• 5 to 10 Bodyweight Squats
• 5 to 10 Reverse Lunges, alternating
• 5 to 10 Incline Push-Ups to Pike
• 30 seconds to 1 minute of Jumping Jacks or skipping
Figure 1-2. Squat

Stand tall with a strong back, shoulders back and down, chest lifted, rib
cage in, and Muscular Belt engaged. With your legs slightly wider than
shoulder-width apart and slightly turned out, inhale and drop your hips back
and bend the knees. Keep the torso as upright as possible with your arms
stretched forward as you drop the hips as low as you can without tucking
the pelvis or letting your knees bend past your toes. Your back should
remain neutral the entire time. Exhale as you press your heels into the floor,
feeling the glutes (butt muscles) engage, and stand up. Squat for a count of
two and stand for a count of two.
Figure 1-3. Reverse Lunge

Stand tall with a strong back, shoulders back and down, chest lifted, rib
cage in, and Muscular Belt engaged. Legs should be hip-width apart and
toes pointed forward. Keeping the hands on the hips, step the right leg back
and bend the right knee into a shallow lunge. Don’t bend too far and keep
the torso vertical. Hold the lunge and lift your right arm to the ceiling.
Return the hand to the hip, press through the left heel to engage the left
glutes, and step forward to stand and change sides. As you continue, deepen
the lunge slightly but avoid any stretching sensation through the joints. You
should be able to move easily without strain. If balance is a challenge, keep
one hand on the back of a chair.
Figure 1-4. Incline Push-up to Pike
Choose a high stable surface like a bench, countertop, or the wall. Place
your hands just wider than shoulder-width apart and below the line of the
shoulders, brace your core, and bend your arms to 90 degrees into a push-
up. Press your arms straight and then come into a pike by pressing your hips
back, keeping the legs slightly bent to avoid overstretching the hamstrings,
and let your torso press through the arms. Return to standing and repeat.
Figure 1-5. Jumping Jacks

Jumping Jacks or skipping is an easy way to gently elevate the heart rate to
increase blood flow to the muscles and loosen the joints. If you can’t do any
jumping, try quick calf presses instead. The arm movement in the jumping
jacks will further loosen up the muscles around the shoulders.
Getting Into The Plank
Preparation affects outcome. Every time. Many of you have no problem
getting down to the floor and back up again. That’s great! Others may find
it challenging. And then there’s a lot of you who think you have no
problem, but the very way that you’re moving is part of a pattern that could
lead to back pain/injury in the future. We don’t practice core work so that
we can have good technique only during core work. The goal is to retrain
movement patterns so you move mindfully with proper mechanics all the
time! So let’s go over the basics of getting into the plank. But first, let’s go
over how many of you may be doing it wrong.
Figure 1-6. The wrong way of getting into plank. Even Kodi knows it’s wrong.

Movement Mistake: You are bending over and rounding your back to get
to the floor. Once there, then you try and find your correct alignment. That’s
like purposely doing wrong equations before doing the correct one on a
math exam. Your preparation will affect your outcome.
Lunge, Kneel, Plank
While there are a few more steps in the proper preparation for planks, this
will improve your preparation for any activity when getting to and from the
floor.

Figure 1-7. Lunge. Pet a cat for bonus points!


Step 1. Keeping the torso upright, bring one knee to the floor, using a chair
as support if needed. Don’t let the front knee extend beyond the toes. I
normally prefer and instruct a reverse lunge by stepping back instead of a
forward lunge because many people put too much pressure on the knee
when lunging forward. Use a mat if the knees are sensitive.
Figure 1-8. Kneel

Step 2. Once the knee is down, bend the other leg and bring that knee down
as well while the keeping the torso vertical.
Figure 1-9. Ready to Plank

Step 3. From the kneeling position, drop your hips back slightly and drop
your torso forward while keeping a neutral spine and place your hands on
the floor. You are now ready for planking!
Standing Modifications
If it’s uncomfortable to be on your knees for any length of time, you can do
the entire Basic Plan and some Level 2 planks standing with most of your
weight on your legs. Find a sturdy table or chair (or piano!) and place your
hands on it about an arm’s length away and hinge forward at your hips so
your back remains neutral (no rounding). Follow all the cues for each plank.
Try to perform the full Warm-Up before, but if you can’t, these options will
still put you on the path to back health. See some ideas for standing options
below. See Workout 1-C for a sample program all done while standing that
includes the Warm-Up.
Figure 1-10. Standing Leg Lift, option for Box Plank Leg Lift 


Place your hands on a high surface like a counter or back of a chair. Hinge forward at the hips and
keep your chest lifting forward and up to prevent rounding the back. Keep your left leg slightly bent.
Lift your right leg back as high as you can, squeezing the glutes. Hold for 1 to 3 seconds and change
sides.
Figure 1-11. Standing Bird Dog, option for Bird Dog 


Place your hands on a high surface like a counter or back of a chair. Hinge forward at the hips and
keep your chest lifting forward and up to prevent rounding the back. Keep your left leg slightly bent.
Lift your right leg back as high as you can, squeezing the glutes, while lifting your left arm forward.
Drop your left shoulder away from the ear. Feel strength along your whole back body. Hold for 1 to 3
seconds and change sides.
Standing Bird Dog…Cat! This shows a better view of the back activation in the Bird Dog. The
muscles along the spine have to remain rigid.
Figure 1-12. Standing Elbow Plank, option for Elbow Plank
.

Place your hands on a high surface like a counter. Hinge forward at the hips and keep your chest
lifting forward and up to prevent rounding the back. Drop down to your forearms; you might like to
put a towel down for your elbows. Step your legs back far enough so that you are in a straight line.
Press into your forearms and squeeze your Muscular Belt. Don’t let the back round at all. Hold for 10
to 15 seconds.


Figure 1-13. Standing Bird Dog Side Arm, option for Bird Dog, for those with shoulder issues and
can’t raise their arm over their head

Place your hands on a high surface like a counter or back of a chair. Hinge forward at the hips and
keep your chest lifting forward and up to prevent rounding the back. Keep your right leg slightly
bent. Lift your left leg back as high as you can, squeezing the glutes, while lifting your right arm to
the side. Feel strength along your whole back body. Hold for 1 to 3 seconds and change sides.


Wrist Health

Wrists are complex joints that, frankly, we take for granted. They make so
many things possible in our day like brushing our teeth, opening doors,
typing, shaking hands, and lifting everything. With 8 tiny bones and a
myriad of tendons, nerves, muscles, and connective tissue passing through,
they’re not given much thought when we’re suddenly supporting our
bodyweight with our hands. Outside of a yoga class, we’re not often
educated on wrist health in exercise programs. Recent research has found
that 25% of all sports-related injuries involve the hand or wrist. Since wrist
pain and injury can affect nearly everything we do, and because many of the
planks are done on the hands, it’s important to take proper care of the
wrists.

Therefore, follow these wrist health tips to keep them functioning optimally
throughout your plank training and your life. Whenever your hands are on
the floor (Figure 1-14), stretch your fingers wide and press down into all of
the fingers and knuckles, especially the base of the thumb and index
fingers. Feel like you are gripping the floor trying to pick it up. This helps
disperse the weight through the whole hand and prevents bearing weight in
the outside of the wrists which is a common point of contact that gets
overloaded in arm-supported activities.

Figure 1-14. Wrists, Wrong and Right.

Left, palms are lifted and weight is placed in the outside of the wrists. Right, palms are flat with the
base of the fingers and thumbs pressing into the floor.

Wrist health also directly affects the strength of your grip. Grip strength has
become an accurate indicator of your health, as those with a weak grip have
been found to have a higher rate of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hip and
spine fractures, hypertension, low nutritional status, and even impaired
cognitive functioning. This makes sense since grip strength is increased by
regular exercise and resistance training activities, the latter especially
important in maintaining bone density. But if you have a wrist injury or
problems with the wrist resulting from repetitive stress such as carpal tunnel
syndrome or tendinitis, your participation in resistance training is affected.
Therefore, it’s crucial to maintain strong, healthy, and mobile wrists to
ensure that you can continue resistance training thereby extending the
quality of your life. And guess what? The supportive and resistance action
of the hand in planks helps to build strong wrists and improve grip strength!

Ideally, the crease of your wrist is parallel to the front of your mat. The
index finger generally points straight forward. This is an ideal anatomical
position. However, every body is different, and you should consult a trainer
or medical professional if anything doesn’t feel right. Also, throughout the
day, the muscles and tendons in our forearms can get overworked and tight.
Do the following wrist stretches in Figure 1-15 regularly to loosen the
forearm muscles and maintain wrist mobility.

Figure 1-15. Wrist Stretches.

Stretch the forearm extensors (left) by extending the arm forward with the palm facing you and
gently pulling back on the hand with the other hand. Stretch the forearm flexors (right) by facing the
palm forward and pulling back on the hand, including the thumb. Don’t pull hard, just enough to feel
a lengthening through the wrist and forearm.
Active Rest

Between sets of exercise, you’ll be taking some time to rest. This gives your
muscles a chance to reset so they can tackle the job again at full strength. It
also allows your back and shoulders to decompress a little bit because you
will definitely be building up a lot of muscular tension and lactic acid. So
what kind of rest can you do? Well, if it’s a short rest, you might just sit
back on your heels and do the wrist stretches, shake out the arms, sit up tall
and relax, or assume Child’s Pose for a gentle stretch to open up the back to
expand with the breath. You can also do the Cat Cow to loosen up the back.
If it’s a long rest, you may like to stand up and walk around and grab some
water. I like to add some shoulder mobility work as well, specifically the
scarecrow because planks can fatigue the shoulders.

Whatever you choose to do, take some time to focus on your breathing,
letting your diaphragm drop, and expanding your rib cage in your sides and
your back. Conscious breath work is beneficial for many reasons including
reducing stress, aiding digestion, improving sleep, and boosting immunity.
Much like posture and core engagement, it’s another skill to practice during
exercise that can become an unconscious and important habit throughout
the day.
Figure 1-16. Resting between planks, Child’s Pose

Between planks, sit up tall and take a breath. Or you can relax forward over your knees in Child’s
Pose. Take several deep breaths to expand the muscles in the back and decompress the spine. Arms
can be forward or down by your sides. If it’s uncomfortable for you, place a pillow or bolster
between your knees so your torso has some support. Knees together will open up the back more, and
knees apart will open up the back as well as the hips.
Figure 1-17. Shaking out the arms between planks can help keep the shoulders loose
Figure 1-18. Scarecrow shoulder mobility.

Keeping the arms bent at 90 degrees and upper arms in line with your shoulders, rotate the arms
down and up, focusing on the external rotation on the way up and taking care not to rotate too far
down that the shoulder internally rotate. Keep the shoulders back and down the entire time.
 The Dead Bug Series
While there are no traditional crunches recommended in this book, I will
offer the Dead Bug, an exercise that can help balance a plank workout that
also builds core strength and stability. There is no movement in the spine or
torso whatsoever so while it can mimic the look of a crunch, it is a supine
exercise that is a much safer alternative.

There are many variations of the exercise, but the most important
consideration when choosing what’s right for you is how much you can
support your spine in neutral position. When you are doing the exercise,
your lower back should retain its natural curve instead of pressing into the
floor for leverage. When starting out, try placing the tips of your fingers
under your low back in Dead Bug 1. You should feel a bit of space between
the floor and your low back, or at least, no extra pressure from your low
back into the floor. When you lift the leg, that should not change at all.
Remember to turn on your Muscular Belt and pull the abs and back muscles
in, and make sure your rib cage stays down throughout.
Dead Bug 1

Level 1
This bug’s about to breathe its last breath! Focus on your breathing and the
abdominal contraction on the exhale and let’s see if we can’t get this bug
moving!

Cues

• Lie down on your back with your feet on the floor and arms raised to the
ceiling. Feel your tailbone, sacrum, mid-back, and the backs of the
shoulders heavy on the floor. Relax your neck.
• Brace your abdominals, keep your spine neutral, and exhale as you slowly
lift one leg up.
• Don’t let your spine be affected by the movement. Your hips are likely to
tilt back with the lifting leg which will flatten your low back. Keep the core
strong and hips heavy on the floor.
• Pause and slowly lower the leg on the inhale
• Switch legs, again without any change or adjustment in your spine or
alignment
• That’s one rep. Complete 5 to 10 reps, alternating legs.
Dead Bug 2

Level 1
It’s working! The arms are starting to move now too! The more movement
that is introduced to an exercise, the more we tense up in areas that don’t
need tension. Relax your neck and jaw and concentrate on your neutral
spine and core strength.

Cues

• Lie down on your back with your feet on the floor and arms raised to the
ceiling. Feel your tailbone, sacrum, mid-back, and the backs of the
shoulders heavy on the floor. Relax your neck.
• Brace your abdominals, keep your spine neutral, and exhale as you slowly
lift one leg up as you extend one arm back. Play with alternating the same
arm and leg and then opposite limbs, as well as extending the leg straight as
well.
• Don’t let your spine be affected by the movement. Your hips are likely to
tilt back with the lifting leg which will flatten your low back. Keep the core
strong and hips heavy on the floor.
• Pause and slowly return to the starting position on the inhale
• Alternate 5 to 10 times.
Dead Bug 3

Level 2

I think there’s hope yet for this dead bug!

Cues

• Lie down on your back with your knees up and legs bent at 90 degrees and
arms raised to the ceiling. Feel your tailbone, sacrum, mid-back, and the
backs of the shoulders heavy on the floor. Relax your neck.
• Exhale to engage your Muscular Belt and squeeze your abdominals in to
support your neutral spine
• Inhale as you slowly extend one arm back and the opposite leg forward.
• Don’t let your spine be affected by the movement. There should be no
movement in your back. If there is, shorten the movement of your limbs
until you can retain control.
• Pause and slowly return to the starting position on the exhale
• Alternate 5 to 10 times.
Dead Bug 4

Level 3
This bug’s not dead, he just needs a little help! Anyone remember the last
scene in the original movie, The Fly? You hear his tiny little voice, “Help
me! Help me!” As scary as that scene was (especially for a kid with
arachnophobia), I always think of that scene when doing this exercise.

Cues

• Lie down on your back with your knees up and legs bent at 90 degrees and
arms raised to the ceiling. Feel your tailbone, sacrum, mid-back, and the
backs of the shoulders heavy on the floor.
• Unlike the previous Dead Bugs, this version has your head lifted. Think
about tucking your chin slightly to your chest. The neck muscles do have to
work here so if they get sore, that’s normal and your strength will improve
over time. That said, if it bothers you too much, keep your head down.
• Exhale to engage your Muscular Belt and squeeze your abdominals in to
support your neutral spine
• Start to move the limbs slightly. There’s life in that Dead Bug yet! The
movements aren’t big so most just enough to start to challenge your core’s
stability against the moving limbs. Breathe evenly throughout.
• Don’t let your spine be affected by the movement. There should be no
movement in your back. If there is, shorten the movement of your limbs
until you can retain control.
• Keep moving in a controlled motion for 5 to 15 seconds.
Dead Bug 5

Level 4
“It’s alive! ALIVE!” I don’t know why I keep thinking about vintage horror
movies when exercising, but the iconic words of Dr. Frankenstein ring in
my ears every time this Dead Bug really gets moving. Hey, whatever you
need to do to make exercise fun is a good time!

Cues

• Lie down on your back with your knees up and legs bent at 90 degrees and
arms raised to the ceiling. Feel your tailbone, sacrum, mid-back, and the
backs of the shoulders heavy on the floor.
• Exhale and tuck the chin slightly and lift the head off the floor while
squeezing your abdominals in to support your neutral spine
• Inhale to extend the right arm back and left leg forward. Keep the torso
steady and don’t move the head.
• Exhale the limbs back to the starting position. There should be no
movement in your back. If there is, shorten the movement of your limbs
until you can retain control.
• Keep moving in a controlled motion for 5 to 15 seconds.
 The Workouts
You can think of 100 Planks as a toolbox. But just like when an area of the
house needs work, you don’t use every tool in the toolbox to tackle the job.
If a chair leg needs tightening, for example, you don’t pull out a hammer,
chisel, pliers, and wrench when all you need is a screwdriver. Occasionally
you will have to use more tools as other areas of the house need repair and
upkeep. And sometimes everything is in perfect condition and you want to
make improvements so you pull out the special tools. All of this is to make
sure your home is sturdy, strong, and something you can be proud of.

Your body is your home. And to strengthen your core, you don’t need to do
all 100 planks in this book. But you are going to choose the right tools, or in
this case, levels, for the job.
Every plank has been assigned Levels 1, 2, 3 or 4 based on the amount of
support on the floor, body movement, force applied to the spine, and the
strength required. Note that this is not equal for everyone; every person’s
body is different based on structure, proportion, weight distribution,
mobility, and strength, so don’t take this as a scientific scale with no
variance. Generally, Level 1 is basic, Level 2 is intermediate, Level 3 is
advanced and Level 4 is, like, super advanced!

But, that doesn’t mean that Level 1 is necessarily easier to achieve than the
other levels, nor should Level 4 be a goal for you. I know for a fact that the
person in my class doing a perfect Level 1 Box Plank Leg Lift is
demonstrating better core awareness and back strength than the person
doing a sloppy, disconnected Level 4 3-Point Plank To Side Plank Leg Lift.
What matters is your attention to technique and muscular recruitment.
Normally, Level 1 planks are less complicated than the others so you’re
able to focus more on your core musculature without being distracted by
extraneous movement.

With that being said, I do hope that you’ll look through this whole book and
be inspired by the possibilities. Just as there is purpose in going for a walk
for basic health, there is validity in taking that first step because of the
excitement of one day running a marathon. It is the power of fitness to
change your life by achieving small goals that open up a world of
possibilities. It is a feeling of success that can percolate into every area of
your life giving you confidence and drive. Being strong and capable and
knowing you can say, “YES!” to most opportunities that come your way is
incredibly freeing and life-affirming. And you thought planks were just
about core strength!

Every plank has a short workout guideline in the description; generally, a

few sets with some rest in between is all you need to get going. But I’ll also
be providing sample workouts below, but these are simply suggestions.
Experiment with the planks and find what is right for you. If some of the
exercises in the sample workouts aren’t great for you, choose another in the
same level or category.

Where do I start?

If your goal is basic core awareness and back strength for health and
longevity, you start with Level 1. Whether you are a beginner, an older
adult, pregnant, or even an advanced athlete who is struggling with back
issues, Level 1 planks will help strengthen your core and back, and train
your movement patterns so that you move mindfully throughout the day
with better balance, core awareness, and most importantly, a strong base of
support for your spine to prevent injuries and falls.

Have a look at the Level 1 planks on the Planks By Levels page. You can
try 3 to 5 of any of these following the Warm-Up for a good core workout.
Between sets, you will rest for 10 to 30 seconds either by sitting, kneeling,
or standing. During the rest you can gently shake out your arms and work
on wrist mobility to reduce viscosity in the joints. It is also a good
opportunity to sense your good posture with your neutral spine, shoulders
back and down, and your neck and jaw relaxed. If you find this too much
for you, then focus on just two planks for each session.

Otherwise, have a look at Workout 1: Finding Your Core for more ideas.

How often should I work out?

While strength training is generally recommended two to three times a
week, the Level 1 planks can be performed every day as long as there is no
pain in your joints or musculature. Otherwise, every second day will be
fine. You can also practice these throughout the day instead of in one
session. Often, these planks can reset a sore back after long periods of
sitting. While I recommend the full Warm-Up before a full session, if you
are practicing these basic planks throughout the day, you can shorten the
Warm-Up to a few squats and a few lunges to mobilize the joints before
practicing a plank, especially if it is after prolonged sitting.

The majority of the workouts can be performed 1 to 3 times per week. Just
make sure you have plenty of time to recover in between, especially for the
advanced workouts. For example, 2 days a week might be Monday and
Thursday. 3 days might be Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

If you’re adding planks to your standard workouts, the same applies. Don’t
plank every single day, but rather 1 to 3 times per week either at the end or
as part of your workout. I wouldn’t suggest fatiguing your core in the
middle of your workout when you’ll still need those stabilizing muscles, but
adding in a Renegade Row to a standard back workout, for example, is a
good way of incorporating planks into your routine.

When is the best time to work out?

The best time for your workout is the time that best suits your schedule.
Generally, avoid working out first thing in the morning. Overnight, the
disks in between your vertebrae fill with fluid, lengthening your spine. For
the first hour after getting up, your spine will feel stiff as the excess fluid
slowly leaks out. It is best to respect this natural process and exercise later
in the morning or throughout the day.

Okay, I’ve been doing the Level 1 planks consistently. Now what?

After a few weeks of consistent work, you may feel confident to move to
some Level 2 planks. Know, however, that while these may seem fairly
doable for you, actually recruiting the right muscles to achieve them is quite
difficult. Specifically, I recommend the Bird Dog, Elbow Plank and Side
Plank as essential planks everyone should be doing regularly. I call these
the Essential Planks that I include in nearly every training plan I instruct
because they strengthen different and vital components for core stability.
Generally, these planks work the entire core but specifically the Bird Dog
will work your back extensors, Elbow Plank will challenge your core
strength (transverse abdominis), and the Side Plank targets your side
stability (quadratus lumborum). Note that these are all Level 2 planks and
should not be attempted without attaining the strength required for all Level
1 planks. These can be performed along with the full Warm-Up, or during
your normal workouts when you are already limber. Paying close attention
to the cues and technique in each of these will go a long way to ensuring
your success moving forward.

Okay, I’m pretty good at the Essential Planks. Now what?

So you’ve mastered the Level 1 planks, and the Essential Planks are part of
your regular routine. Now what? Well, that’s up to you. You can now
explore and experiment with all of the Level 2 planks, slowly moving up to
Levels 3 and 4. Try new planks every single time you work out! Of course,
be aware of overtraining so you’re not straining your core muscles or
supporting joints. But it’s important that once you’ve attained basic core
and back strength to continue applying different stimuli so your body and
brain never stop adapting. This way, your body stays “smart” and will
continue creating new brain cells and new neuromuscular pathways to
create a resilient, reactive, and instinctive body ready to face new physical
challenges in a safe and intuitive way. Plus, trying new things is fun! The
variations truly are endless. I also love incorporating the weighted planks
in part 7 as much as possible. Being able to increase the weight you use
and the duration of the planks - as long as they remain technically perfect -
shows progress in your training and can be incredibly motivating.

Otherwise, there are over 20 sample workouts you can follow over the next
several pages. Try them all and find what you like. Switch up the planks,
experiment, and have fun!

Write It Down
I will recommend that you log your workouts in detail. Even if it’s a short
superset of planks, write down the specific planks, the work period, the rest
period, and how strong you felt. Even though people generally reserve
recording workouts for the big lifts like squat, deadlift and bench press, it’s
helpful to know what you’ve done before so you can have goals and
monitor progression. It’s also very motivating. If you see that you did a
workout 6 months ago where you could only manage half of what you can
do today, you’ll see that your hard work is paying off. And that feels
amazing!

Alright, let’s explore the workouts.

 Workout 1: Finding The Core
Starting out? Starting over? Need to dial back your workouts a bit right
now? Recovering from an illness or injury? I suggest finding your core with
Level 1 planks. Following the Warm-Up, you can choose a few of these
planks from the Planks By Level list and do a few sets of each with a short
rest between. Or, try the workout below.

This workout – and most of the workouts here – is called a circuit, a group
of exercises you’ll do in succession. The rest period between exercises is
usually just enough time to shake out the arms or stretch the wrists or
change positions and move on to the next exercise. You can rest in Child’s
Pose at the very end, at the end of each circuit, or whenever you need to.

Since we’re always trying to improve movement patterns, refresh your

memory of how to get into the plank because the transition between
standing to planking is just as important as the plank itself.

** Note that the length in seconds of the plank holds is simply a guideline.
It can be good to time your planks with a timer, but if you find that
distracting, you can count your breaths in the plank as well, and ensure you
do the same each time or on each side.
Workout 1-A

Exercise Links:
Box Plank
Leg Extended Box Plank
Hand Marching Box Plank
Side Hip Plank
Dead Bug 1
Box Plank Leg Lift
Bird Dog
Child’s Pose

Discussion

This is a circuit, so you will perform one exercise after the other instead of
doing all sets of one exercise in a row. Perform the circuit 3 times through.
You will start by focusing in Box Plank. There is a lot to do on the exhale,
so take your time and concentrate on pulling the Muscular Belt in and
contracting in neutral position.

Then, once you’ve established your strong Box Plank, move nothing else in
the body except one leg back and bring it in. If you shift side to side to
extend the legs, you know you’ve lost your core engagement. Reset in Box
Plank and focus on stillness as you extend the leg.

Same goes for lifting the hands in Hand Marching Box Plank. Any side to
side movement means you need to engage the core more. If you can’t get it
right away, don’t worry, it will happen over time.

You can get off your hands now, yay! The Side Hip Plank may not seem
like much work, but you should be squeezing those side obliques hard and
continuing to lift away from the floor the whole time.

And then it’s time to change perspective and get on to your back for the
Dead Bug 1. Remember your neutral spine alignment! You might like to
place your fingers just under your low back to ensure there is no movement
at all when lifting the leg.

Back to the Box Plank. If you’re brand new to this, I suggest starting with
the Leg Extended Box Plank and then lifting the leg, as opposed to lifting
it straight away. This helps to solidify your core strength and posture.

Finally, Bird Dog. Again, I would start with the Leg Extended Box Plank,
hold, and then lift the opposite arm forward as opposed to lifting both at the
same time. That way you can establish your good position first before
adding on. If you feel like Bird Dog is a bit much, repeat the Hand
Marching Box Plank instead.

You’ve completed one full circuit! While there are about 10 seconds of rest
in between exercises, just enough time to change positions, you can now
take a few deep breaths in Child’s Pose if you like. Your muscles will be
working pretty much the entire circuit, so it’s good to reset and recharge
before starting the circuit again. You can also take a moment and do some
wrist stretches or shake out the arms.

Complete the circuit 3 times so that you do each plank for 3 sets.
Progressing the workouts is as simple as choosing another exercise in the
same level or category to switch things up, or exploring a similar exercise
in the next level. Let’s look at a sample.

Workout 1-B

Exercise Links:
Cat Cow
Bird Dog
Elbow Knee Plank
Side Knee Plank
Dead Bug 2
Bird Dog Touch & Lift
Elevated Elbow Plank
Child’s Pose
Discussion

Like Workout 1-A, complete all exercises in order followed by an optional

Child’s Pose for a few deep breaths before repeating the circuit for a total
of 3 times.
Workout 1-C: Standing Circuit

If you can’t be on your hands and knees for any length of time, you can still
get a great core workout standing up. For this workout, we’ll be combining
the warm-up exercises with the standing planks for a fun circuit that will
work your core and get the heart rate up. The height of your support will
depend on you. You can use a high counter or table, or lean further forward
to the back of a chair. Just make sure you are hinging at your hips and
maintaining a strong neutral spine throughout.

Workout 1-C: Standing Circuit

Exercise Links:
Bodyweight Squat
Standing Leg Lift
Reverse Lunges
Standing Elbow Plank
Standing Bird Dog Side Arm
Standing Bird Dog

Discussion

Since the warm-up exercises are included in this circuit, there’s no need to
do one beforehand, unless you want to loosen up even more. Otherwise,
head right into the Bodyweight Squat. Keep in mind that you don’t have to
go very deep in the warm-up exercises. Half-squats are fine.

No rest for the committed! Rest your hands on a high stable surface for the
standing planks. Hinge forward at the hips, stick your butt out a little bit to
ensure a lifted tailbone and neutral spine, and start lifting the legs.

Again, the lunges do not have to be very deep. They can even look more
like a tap back than a lunge. Especially since this is a basic workout,
remember to go at your own pace and respect your own range of motion.

Even though the standard Elbow Plank is a level 2 plank, the standing
option should be great for all levels. You might like a towel beneath your
forearms.

As you warm-up, you may find your squat gets a little deeper each time.
Keep the chest high and spine neutral throughout.

The Standing Bird Dog Side Arm is really great for opening the chest and
strengthening the backs of the shoulders, both really important components
of good posture. Just make sure you really pull that arm back while keeping
the shoulder down.

Lunges again! For the second round, maybe descend a little deeper, keep
pushing into that forward heel, and make the glutes work.

And finally, it’s essential the Standing Bird Dog be done with a lifted
chest. Even though you’re leaning forward at the hips, still feel like you are
extending up with the spine to keep the back active.
 Workout 2: Building The Core
While I will always recommend going back to Level 1 planks, once you’ve
been working on them for some time in Workouts A and B, it’s time to up
the ante a bit. But just a bit. The following workouts all follow a balanced
progression.

Workout 2-A

Exercise Links:
Bird Dog
Hand Plank
Elbow Plank
Staggered Side Plank
Dead Bug 2
Dead Bug 3
Hand Plank Knee Tuck
Elbow Plank Side Toe Taps
Workout 2-B

Exercise Links:
Bird Dog
Bird Dog Tuck & Extend
Elbow Plank Knee Taps
Side Hand Plank + Side Knee Plank
Dead Bug 3
Plank to Pike
Elbow Plank Leg Lift

Discussion

And here’s an example of exploring options based on other planks. Because

I couldn’t include every single plank variation within a list of 100, I haven’t
always repeated the common variations between elbow and hand planks. To
progress from a Side Elbow Knee Plank, I don’t expect you to go right to
the Side Hand Plank with legs stacked. Instead, do the Side Knee Plank
but from the hand instead of the elbow to start building up to the full
version. Make sure you keep the supporting hand directly below the
shoulder. Never take anything written here as doctrine, but always listen to
your body and place a limb down or reduce the movement. Do what you
need to do in order to progress safely.
Workout 2-C

Exercise Links:
Bird Dog
Drawing Squares Bird Dog
Elbow Plank Out-Out In-In
Dead Bug 3
Side Plank
Dead Bug 4
Hand Plank Leg Lift & Tuck
1 Leg Supported Elbow Plank
Workout 2-D

Exercise Links:
Bird Dog
Elbow Plank Hamstring Curl
Hand Plank Knee Tuck
Side Plank Hip Lifts
Dead Bug 4
Hand Plank Kick-Ups
Elbow Plank Push Pull

If you haven’t yet, start to play with the time of the plank reps to see how
that changes the exercise. You’ll see the Hand Plank Knee Tuck is held for
3 seconds per rep. Really squeeze the abs and keep the knee moving
forward during the hold while lifting the tailbone to ensure a neutral spine.
 Workout 3: Revolve Around The Core
So far the planks have been working the body in the same plane. But a very
important part of core strength is rotation and anti-rotation. Being able to
rotate in one strong coordinated piece as opposed to compartments is
essential for spine health, especially in sports. And then being able to not
rotate when you’re off balance or the limbs are in motion is not only
important in sports but for all of us when we’re walking, falling, or anytime
we’re not completely balanced. These workouts will get challenging,
though, so be sure you’ve mastered the previous workouts, listen to your
body, and adjust the exercise as needed.

Workout 3-A

Exercise Links:
Bird Dog Touch & Lift
Elbow Plank Hand Taps
3-Point Plank
Side Plank with Dynamic Arm
Side Hand Plank
Dead Bug 3
3-Point Plank to Side Hand Plank
Dead Bug 4
Workout 3-B

Exercise Links:
Bird Dog Tuck & Extend
Hand Plank Shoulder Touch
Elbow Plank Wide Leg Lifts
Dead Bug 4
Side Plank Rotation
Knee to Triceps Plank
Workout 3-C

Exercise Links:
Drawing Squares Bird Dog
Elbow Plank Leg Lift Abduction
Hand Plank Knee Cross Under
Side Plank Leg Lift
Side Plank Lower Leg Lift
Dead Bug 4
3-Point Plank to Side Plank Leg Lift
Extended Bird Dog to Side Plank Lower Leg Lift

Discussion
As you do the workouts, consider the reason behind the order. Here, we’re
ultimately reaching the goal of the 3-Point Plank to Side Plank Leg Lift
and the Extended Bird Dog to Side Plank Lower Leg Lift which are very
challenging. For the Level 4 planks, you often want to work up to them
instead of tackling them head on. Because there are so many components,
it’s good to break it down and practice the individual moves within the
pattern first. You’ll need strong abduction (taking the leg away from the
midline) and adduction (taking the leg toward the midline) as well as
oblique stabilization. All of these planks work up to it. Keep that in mind if
you want to practice any of the Level 4 planks. What are the individual
components? How can you practice them first? Be mindful of the exercises
so you can be mindful of your body within them and how to program your
workouts in the future.
 Workout 4: Strengthening the Core
It goes without saying that adding weight to the plank is going to make it
harder. That’s a good thing for getting a stronger core, but not so good if
you’re challenging the endurance of small stabilizing muscles and tendons.
Therefore, I caution against using the weighted planks too much in
succession. Instead, add just a few on to your standard workout, or you can
even add them on to the other sample plank workouts in this book. This is
not about bodybuilding where you can keep pushing for multiple sets and
reps. This is about increasing and fine-tuning your strength and stability to
enable you to progress in your other sports and activities.

Workout 4-A: Oblique Strength & Stability

Exercise Links:
Weighted Push Pull
Weighted Side Plank Hip Lifts

Discussion

With a workout like this, you’ve got a few options:

1. Add this on to the end of your standard workout for a quick core series
2. You can do this as a circuit all the way through between 1 to 4 times
3. You can split it into supersets. Superset A would be the Push Pulls and
Superset B would be the Hip Lifts. Complete Superset A 2 to 3 times
followed by a short rest (ensure a good recovery to maintain proper form)
and then Superset B 2 to 3 times.
4. Adjust the lengths and rests to suit you. If you’re able to manage the
exercise but not for very long, shorten the sets to 10 or 15 seconds and
lengthen the rests to 15 to 30 seconds. If you find you’re not getting a good
enough workout, increase the sets to 30 seconds and the rests to 15 seconds.
Remember the workouts are completely customizable, so you can make it
right for you.
Workout 4-B: Strength & Endurance

Exercise Links:
Walk The Plank
Elbow Plank Arm + Leg Lift
Up Up Down Down
Hand to Toe Touch

Discussion

When choosing challenging planks to add in to your workout program,

think of what could naturally flow from one to the other. So far, we’ve
looked at several workouts that require at least a few seconds of rest to
adjust or change position. But organizing them to flow right into the other
builds strength AND endurance, regardless if you use added weights.

Do all of the planks right after the other with no rest. End the Walk The
Plank in Elbow Plank so you can immediately go into the Elbow Plank
Arm + Leg Lift. When you’re finished, immediately start the Up Up Down
Down. Finish that set in Hand Plank so you can immediately start the Hand
to Toe Touch.

30 seconds is a long set for each of these, so shorten it to 15 to 20 seconds if

you need to. You’ll probably need a good Child’s Pose at the end either
way!
Workout 4-C: Back & Core

Exercise Links:
Dead Bug 5
Renegade Row

Discussion

When exploring the Level 4 planks, I want to caution you from doing too
many similar moves in a row. Your core muscles are just going to give out
if you stay in a plank over several sets of different exercises. That’s partly
why I added the Dead Bug series. By flipping over and doing a stabilizing
exercise on your back, you can continue working the core in a safe way
while giving your shoulders, back, and core stabilizers a chance to recover
before moving on. This superset is an example.

While I said 0 seconds of rest, you honestly need a few to at least turn over
and reposition, but the idea is that you don’t stop moving. So this will work
the core and the back. But what if you wanted a more rounded workout?

Workout 4-D: Chest & Core

Exercise Links:
Dead Bug 5
Plank to Pike
Discussion

Just because I haven’t added any specific push-ups (that’s for another
book… stay tuned), that doesn’t mean you can’t add push-ups on to the
planks. The Plank to Pike works well for this because as you descend from
the pike, you just flow right from the plank into the push-up and then back
up through the plank right into the pike. (Of course, if you want to do push-
ups without the pike, go right ahead. And if you want to do push-ups but
you can’t manage them all on your toes, drop to your knees or do the
Incline Push-Ups.)

Therefore, you can try Workouts 4-C and 4-D as one big circuit, or
subsequent supersets to work both the back and front of the body. You may
just end up feeling like a Dead Bug after all that!
Workout 4-E: Biceps, Shoulders & Core

Exercise Links:
Renegade Bicep Curl
Side Plank Shoulder Press
Dead Bug 5
Weighted Plank + Side Toe Tap

Discussion

While the Renegade Bicep Curl & Tricep Kickback is fun for both the
biceps and triceps, you can separate the exercises to work just the biceps or
just the triceps and also stay on one arm instead of alternating.

When ordering your exercises, consider the amount of work needed in the
next exercise. This example shows a Renegade Bicep Curl which is going
to challenge the supporting arm a lot, especially since we’re not alternating
arms. So you wouldn’t want the next exercise to rely on the same
supporting arm. This is ordered so that the supporting becomes the working
arm, but you’ll see the rests can be longer to ensure recovery.
When you look at the weighted planks, think of what else you can do. The
Weighted Plank is made much more fun when added to the Side Toe Tap.
Finishing with a challenging hold is a fun and satisfying way to end a good
workout. Fun, right???
Workout 4-F: Rear Shoulder

Exercise Links:
Bird Dog + Renegade Reverse Fly
Weight Pass
Side Plank Forward Raise
Dead Bug 3

Discussion

Again, think about what other exercises you can add weights onto. If you
can’t manage to do any of the renegade options because it’s hard to be on
your hands and toes with added weight, replace it with something else. The
first exercise combines the Renegade Reverse Fly with the Bird Dog so
you can get the benefits of the rear shoulder exercise and the core and glute
strengthening of the Bird Dog without the pressure in the wrists or back.
This workout is also great for strengthening the rotator cuff muscles along
with the back and core.
Workout 4-G: Chest, Triceps & Back

Exercise Links:
Extended Plank
Plank Push (or Up Up Down Down)
Renegade Tricep Kickback
Staggered Side Plank Band Pull
Dead Bug 5

Discussion

G stands for Good Luck! This workout is advanced which is why the
prescribed rests are a bit longer.

Notice the Extended Plank is only done once at the beginning of the
workout. That’s to prepare for the Plank Push. But you won’t need to do
the Extended Plank again in the second set of the circuit (unless you really
really want to). If you find the Extended Plank very challenging, Plank
Push might not be accessible for you yet, so opt instead for the Up Up
Down Down.
The Plank Push alone will be hard enough, but following an exercise that
relies so much on tricep strength with an exercise that isolates the triceps?
Look, I apologize. It’s not nice. But I have a smile on my face, so you think
that I’m being nice, so it all balances out. Speaking of balance, the
Staggered Side Plank Band Pull will help to balance all the chest and
tricep action by working the back in a band row. Fun!
Workout 4-H: Glutes

Exercise Links:
Box Plank Leg Lift
Elbow Plank Leg Lift
Pike Split to Knee Tuck
Side Knee Plank + Hip Dips
Elbow Plank Leg Pulses
Reverse Plank

Discussion

If you’re looking for a good glutes workout, check out my book, My Bubble
Butt Bible. Otherwise, you can choose planks that work the glutes right
here! Complete this whole series focused mainly on the left leg lifting, and
then repeat the circuit with the right leg lifting.

You should take every opportunity to work on the glutes and the back body.
Every time there’s a leg lift, really lift it. Don’t just send it in the air half-
heartedly. Lift as high as you can to strengthen the glutes, the biggest
muscles in our bodies, because our hip activation is so important for so
many activities.
You’ll notice the combination of the Side Knee Plank and Hip Dips. This
helps you focus on the abduction to work the gluteus medius of the bottom
leg. That said, if you’re feeling strong enough, by all means do the Hip Dips
with straight legs. But this whole series will feel pretty intense, so the knee
plank also gives you a bit of a reprieve from the harder exercises.

Also, this is the first time we’re doing the Reverse Plank. Respect your
range of motion and don’t push past your own shoulder flexibility. Your
hips do not have to be very high to still get a good glutes workout. In the
plank, press into the supporting heel and lift the other leg up. You’ll feel the
glutes and hamstrings of the supporting leg fire, but squeeze the glutes
actively instead of sinking into your joints.
 Workout 5: Burning The Core
Planks may be among the best ways to gain core stability and back health,
but you can also implement them as part of your weight loss plan! Not just
any planks, though. You will choose from the Cardio Planks in Part 6 and
structure them to burn the maximum amount of calories possible while
working at your highest intensity. To start, you can easily add one of the
Cardio Planks at the end of your workout for 1 to 3 sets of 30 seconds. But
the best way to incorporate cardio is through interval training.

When you think about exercising to lose weight, you might be picturing
hours a week slogging away on the treadmill, elliptical, or other cardio
equipment as you’re counting down the minutes. However, interval training
has been found to be far superior than steady state training. This means that
brief intervals of maximal effort and elevated heart rate* are better for you
than an hour on the stationary bike in the “fat burn zone,” a comfy mid-
range of effort that promises you will burn fat while reading a magazine.
Technically, it is true that the fat-burn zone targets fat first as a source of
fuel over the body’s other source, carbohydrates. The problem is the fat-
burn zone does not deliver what we think it promises because you are not
burning many calories during moderate exercise and, therefore, the amount
of fat you’re burning is low. When you enter the “cardio zone” and your
heart rate is at least 70% of your maximum, your body will burn
carbohydrates first but also fat, and the energy expenditure from all your
systems working so much means that you will be burning more calories
AND more fat as a result. The best bonus? You don’t have to spend an hour
doing it! You couldn’t even if you wanted to! Just try working at 80% in
your cardio zone for an extended period of time. It’s very taxing on the
body. Interval training allows you brief periods of rest so you can reset your
system to work at high intensities more often throughout your workout.
That’s why interval training is so great. You get the maximum benefit for
your heart, lungs, and body in a short amount of time. It’s also much more
fun and interesting for your brain than sitting on a cardio machine for an
hour at 50% of your potential.

*If you’re not sure what your heart rate target should be, consult your
doctor, trainer, or licensed professional who can measure your resting heart
rate and fitness level. It is also beneficial to have a heart rate monitor to
help track your heart rate at rest and during exercise.

What intervals are right for me?

Interval options are endless and are completely up to you and your level of
ability, but also dependent on your medical history. This is why it’s best to
consult a doctor first. After getting permission to move forward, whatever
interval you choose, you will be working at a high intensity during the work
period, and then resting actively just long enough that you can repeat that
intensity. Know that the “intensity” in high intensity interval training is
entirely subjective. For some, a high intensity interval could be a full-out
sprint for 20 seconds followed by 10 seconds of walking. But that is
incredibly difficult to sustain and repeat. For others, it would be 20 seconds
of walking at a brisk pace followed by 10 seconds of walking at a very slow
pace. It could also be a 10-second sprint followed by 1 full minute of
walking. If you are a beginner, you will generally choose a lower intensity
and shorter work sessions with longer rest periods. Also know that if you
don’t have a heart rate monitor, you can try measuring your output out of
10. Whenever you’re exercising, ask yourself, are you working at a 5? Can
you bring that up to a 7? While not known for its accuracy, self-
measurement is at least a start to gauge how hard you’re working, and it’s
best to have a heart rate monitor so you can compare how you feel to how
you’re actually performing. And while there are several ways to time your
intervals, the one I like best is Tabata.

Tabata training is one of the most popular forms of high intensity interval
training. A research team led by scientist, Dr. Izumi Tabata, compared the
effects of one hour of moderate intensity exercise versus four minutes of
high intensity exercise divided into 8 sets of 20-second intervals separated
with 10-second rests. They found that the interval training was more
efficient than the steady state training in improving both aerobic (moderate
intensity) and anaerobic (high-intensity) capacities. What that basically
means is that you can stop wasting your time for an hour on the treadmill
because you will benefit much more from a fraction of the time! And
Tabata is a great and easy method for incorporating Cardio Planks into a
fat-loss workout plan. It can either be done with just one exercise or
alternating with other exercises.

For the strict Tabata protocol, you would repeat one Cardio Plank for 8 sets.
But you can also mix it up with other planks or exercises. I really like the
Mountain Climbers, Plank Jacks, and Jump Lunges for Tabata training.
Including a thorough warm-up (and I would double the warm-up for these
intense intervals and include a 1-minute round of skipping or jumping
jacks), the structure would look like this:

• Warm-Up (1 min. of skipping/jumping jacks, 10 squats, 10 reverse lunges,

5 push-ups, x 2)
• 20 seconds of Mountain Climbers
• 10 seconds of rest
• Repeat the Mountain Climbers for a total of 8 times (which equals 4
minutes)
• Because of the intensity of the interval training, limit this to 2-3 times a
week

To mix things up, you might alternate Mountain Climbers with jump squats
or other full-body exercises. Again, the intervals should be performed at a
high intensity throughout. Experiment with the combination if you are
choosing multiple exercises. Tabata is a 2:1 ratio, meaning the work
intervals are twice as long as the rest. If you are a beginner or you need
more recovery time, you can try 1:2, which would be 10 seconds of work
followed by 20 seconds of rest, but you would double the total workout
time to 8 minutes. However, the longer your rest time, the more you should
incorporate “active” resting which is keeping in motion at a low intensity
like walking.

Experiment with the times and combinations. While Tabata is known as

HIIT, high intensity interval training, it can be very hard on the system
because a 10-second rest isn’t really long enough to recover and repeat the
same intensity. Rather, you might prefer HIRT, high intensity repeat
training, meaning that you would focus more on resting long enough to
repeat the exact same intensity or even better in the next set. Use the timer
on your phone or search free interval timing apps to assist with timing.
Otherwise, be sure to follow me at [Link] as I’ll be posting
lots of options for you to try. Some interval options are:

2:1. Work intervals are twice the length as the rest intervals. For example,
20 seconds of work followed by 10 seconds of rest, 8 sets equals 4 minutes
total.

1:2. Twice the amount of rest time as work time. For example, 10 seconds
of work followed by 20 seconds of rest

1:1. The same amount of rest and work. 30 seconds of work followed by 30
seconds of rest, 5 sets equals 5 minutes total

1:3. Three times the amount of rest as work. This is great for those who
want more recovery time. For example, 1 minute of work followed by 3
minutes of rest, 5 sets equals 20 minutes total.

Let’s look at some examples of how to incorporate the Cardio Planks.

Workout 5-A

Exercise Links:
Mountain Climbers

Discussion

Simple, right? Yes, the program is simple. Easy to do? No way. This Tabata
workout takes just 4 minutes to complete, but if you’re doing it right and
maintaining your pace throughout, it’s going to be intense. Be strict with the
rest times.

Replace Mountain Climbers with any of the other Cardio Planks, or you
can mix them up like in the next workout.
Workout 5-B

Exercise Links:
Mountain Climbers
Flying Scissor Kick
Plank Jacks
Bucking Bronco

Discussion

This workout follows the Tabata timing and also takes 4 minutes to
complete but mixes up the exercises. Notice how the exercises are slightly
different in the hip action. 8 sets of Mountain Climbers is a lot of hip
flexion which can lead to rounding of the back especially as you get tired.
Flying Scissor Kick can correct this with extension through the hip and
extended legs. Plank Jacks then keep the legs extended which helps keep
the back extended followed by the Bucking Bronco which demands both
hip and knee flexion again. But the lifting up of the hips is what will still
help the following Mountain Climbers feel like a balanced exercise.
Workout 5-C

Exercise Links:
Bear Crawl
Walk The Plank
Plank Jacks

Discussion

This 90-second challenge is a great finisher to your workouts. One plank

flows right into the other. Notice the Plank Jacks are done in a push-up,
meaning that for 30 seconds, you’re holding a push-up position with your
arms bent at 90 degrees as your legs are doing the jumping jacks. Of course,
if that’s a bit too much, keep it at Plank Jacks, but I recommend trying to
hold the push-up for as long as you can and then extend the arms to
continue the Plank Jacks for the remainder of the set.

Also, the Bear Crawl can be a bit dependent on the space you have. Switch
that with a Hovering Box Plank to Crab if you like.

Switch up the exercises for a completely different 90-second challenge.

Workout 5-D

Exercise Links:
Jump Lunges
Jumping Jacks
Prone Speed Skater
Bucking Bronco
Lateral Bucking Bronco

This workout shows how you can add Cardio Planks to standing cardio
exercises. This has Jumping Jacks, but you can make it anything you want
like skipping, jump squats, burpees, running, anything.

BUT, since you’re going up and down with an elevated heart rate, I would
also prefer that you elevate your planks. Just like in the Elevated Elbow
Plank, use a platform like a step, BOSU, bench, etc., so that you never end
up with your head down low. If you have any blood pressure issues, you
would avoid this one.
 Programming Your Own Workout
I’ve said it many times before, and I’ll say it again. You have to find what’s
right for you. By now, you’ve become familiar with the exercises and have
been paying attention to the order. If you want to work on Extended Bird
Dog, for example, make sure that you practice its individual components
first like Bird Dog as well as a leg lift like Elbow Plank Leg Lift and an
Arm Lift like 3-Point Plank with the arm up.

You can also take any of the previous workouts and swap out planks on the
same level but working the same mechanism. For example, if it calls for a
Side Knee Plank, try an Elevated Side Plank in future workouts.

Or perhaps you want to put some exercises together that make it easy to
transition. Anchor your resistance band around a steady support and do both
the Plank Band Pull and the Hand Plank Leg Band Pull. Or grab a towel
and do the Weighted Crawl and then use the towel under the hand for the
Wax On/Wax Off. Pairing exercises based on the apparatus can be an easy
way to add a superset into your work.

And if you don’t want to do a full circuit, focus on just one plank at a time
with a good rest in between. If you’re struggling with Elbow Plank, for
example, just do 3 sets holding for as long as you can maintain perfect form
with a good period of recovery between. Or maybe you want to work on the
Tuck Plank by itself, a difficult one to do when working on other planks at
the same time.

Have fun and listen to your body as you strive for your ultimate core
strength!
Abs Are Made In The Kitchen
One more note before I close off the workout section. Know that while
these workouts can help you lose weight and get stronger, abs are made in
the kitchen. Have you heard this phrase before? It’s a good one to hear,
especially for those of you who still think that endless crunches are the only
solution to obtaining a sculpted six-pack. It means that no matter how much
work you do, your abs may not be visible unless you are following an
optimal nutrition plan to help shed that last layer of abdominal fat hiding
your abs.

Therefore, if washboard abs are a goal, pay just as much attention to your
plate as to your plank. Whenever I am asked about nutrition, I always
recommend seeing a nutritionist or dietitian with a university degree. There
is so much involved in knowing what the right nutrition plan is for you
including your ancestry, genetics, blood type, food sensitivities, history,
metabolic set point, religion, and personal philosophy. One plan does not
work for every body. While it’s great to follow someone else’s success, it
can be discouraging if it doesn’t work for you and leads to that self-
sabotaging inner dialogue of, “What’s wrong with me?! It must be me! No
one understands what it’s like to be me!” Trust me, there is a solution for
you. Anything worth attaining takes discipline, commitment, and hard
work.

Moving forward, remember to play, experiment, try new things, but above
all, listen to your body. Remember that all the workouts are simply
suggestions, and that you should always consult a certified trainer to ensure
proper technique.

Speaking of hard work, let’s get to it!

 Planks by Levels
Level 1

1. Box Plank
2. Cat Cow
3. Leg Extended Box Plank
4. Hand Marching Box Plank
5. Box Plank Leg Lift
11. Elbow Knee Plank
12. Elevated Elbow Plank
62. Side Hip Plank
63. Side Knee Plank

Level 2

6. Bird Dog
7. Bird Dog Touch & Lift
8. Bird Dog Tuck & Extend
9. Drawing Squares Bird Dog
13. Elbow Plank
14. Elbow Plank Knee Taps
15. Hip Lifts
16. Pike Plank
17. Side Toe Taps
18. Out-Out In-In
21. 1 Leg Supported Elbow Plank
40. Hand Plank
41. Knee Tuck
48. Plank to Pike
64. Staggered Side Plank
65. Elevated Side Plank
66. Side Plank
67. Side Plank with Dynamic Arm
68. Side Plank Hip Lifts

Level 3
10. Hovering Box Plank
19. Leg Lifts
20. Hamstring Curl
22. 1 Leg Elbow Plank
23. Wide Leg Lifts
24. Rocking Plank
25. Leg Pulses
26. Leg Lift Abduction
27. Lizard Legs
29. Feet Elevated
30. Push Pull
31. Wax On/Wax Off
32. Hand Taps
33. Arm Lift
34. 1 Arm Supported Elbow Plank
35. 1 Arm Elbow Plank
36. Arm + Leg Lifts
37. 2-Point Supported Plank
42. Knee to Triceps
43. Knee Cross Under
44. Leg Lift & Tuck
45. Kick-Ups
46. Tree Plank
47. Starter Lunge
49. Pike Split to Knee Tuck
50. Up Up Down Down
51. Shoulder Touch
54. 2-Point Hand Plank (Arm + Leg Lift)
55. Hand to Toe Touch
56. 3-Point Plank
61. Reverse Plank
69. Side Plank Hip Dips
70. Side Plank Leg Lift
71. Side Plank Lower Leg Lift
72. Side Plank Tuck & Extend
74. Feet Elevated Side Plank
75. Side Hand Plank
80. Mountain Climbers
81. Walk The Plank

Level 4

38. 2-Point Elbow Plank (Elbow Plank Bird Dog)

39. Drawing Squares 2
52. Extended Plank
53. Plank Push
57. Extended Bird Dog
58. Extended Bird Dog Tuck & Extend
59. Drawing Squares 3
60. Tuck Plank
73. Side Plank Rotation
76. 3-Point Plank to Side Plank
77. 3-Point Plank to Side Plank Leg Lift
78. Extended Bird Dog Side Plank Lower Leg Lift
79. Plank Jacks
82. Jump Lunges
83. Bear Crawl
84. Hovering Box Plank to Crab
85. Prone Speed Skater
86. Flying Scissor Kick
87. Bucking Bronco
88. Lateral Bucking Bronco
89. Weight Pass
90. Weighted Plank
91. Weighted Push Pull
92. Renegade Row
93. Renegade Bicep Curl & Tricep Kickback
94. Renegade Reverse Fly
95. Side Plank Shoulder Press
96. Side Plank Forward Raise
97. Weighted Side Plank Hip Lifts
98. Weighted Crawl
99. Plank Band Pull
100. Hand Plank Leg Band Pull
 Part 1: Box Planks
The goal of the plank is to challenge the stiffness and stability of the back
and core muscles while the spine is spared of a high load of intensity.
Elbow Planks are much more complex than they look, challenging to
master, and can actually reinforce bad moving patterns if not done correctly.
Box Planks are among the safest and most effective core exercises because
they make everything simpler by shortening the plank and lessening the
amount of weight your limbs have to support. This allows you to focus
more on discovering how a neutral spine feels. And because there is less
stress on the body, you can focus on working the back muscles around your
spine to begin to sense the necessary stabilizing musculature that is required
for the rest of the planks herein.

One of the best versions of this plank is the Bird Dog. Yes, it’s named after
the pointer dogs that would literally point to help hunter’s locate game.
Even if you’re not a hunter, the image should help your performance in this
exercise. Think of how intent dogs are when they are hunting or even
tracking a squirrel in the park, and how rigid and charged their bodies are,
muscles ready to fire and react, yet adaptable to changing conditions. Keep
that in mind when practicing these variations because while they may look
passive, they are actually just as active as any of the advanced planks in this
book.

Even if you are an advanced athlete, I invite you to return to the Box Planks
often to remind your body of the basic movement patterns, posture, and
neuromuscular activity that provide the foundation of core stability.
Sometimes we get preoccupied with performance, believing that the harder
the exercise, the better. Remember that in every moment of every exercise,
you are teaching your body how to move and react in the future, and if
you’re doing it wrong now, you’re going to do something else wrong later
which could lead to chronic issues or injury incidents. Then you’ll have to
start over and relearn the basics. Use your time, mind, and muscles wisely,
and you’ll build intuitive movement habits that can help extend your quality
of life! Yay, planks!
1. Box Plank

Level 1

Every plank in this book relies on the neutral spine alignment mastered in
the Box Plank as this is your basic starting position. Since there is very little
demand on the spine and no active movement to steal focus from
maintaining the natural curves in your back, it’s great for beginners, older
adults, those recovering from injury, or anyone who needs a better
relationship with their core. It looks easy but it should feel very active as
you engage the core.

Cues
• Start with hands directly under your shoulders and knees directly under
your hips
• On the exhale, feel the Muscular Belt tighten around your waist
supporting your spine in neutral position. Maintain the natural curve in your
lower back by lifting your tailbone slightly and bracing your abdominal
muscles.
• Actively push the floor away and feel width across your upper back
• Feel your shoulders reach away from your ears and the neck lengthen
• Activate the upper body by trying to slide your hands and knees to your
center
• As you exhale, continue to feel all the core muscles tighten in and begin to
sense your core strength and alignment
• You can release the engagement on the inhale
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds, breathing deeply into the rib cage, feeling the
muscles contract slightly more around your neutral spine on the exhale.
Repeat 2 to 3 times, resting between.
Common Mistakes

Even though the Box Plank looks easy, there is a lot involved and,
therefore, a lot that can go wrong. While firming your muscles to support
your neutral spine, be aware that you’re not over-working and tensing areas
of your body that will lock up your energy. Can you breathe easily? Is the
jaw tense? You should feel sturdy and strong yet relaxed and adaptive.

Mistakes & Corrections

• Weight is shifted back to the lower body. Center your weight between
your arms and legs.
• Shoulders are relaxed and retracted which leaves the upper spine
vulnerable. Push the floor away to separate the shoulder blades and feel
width across the upper back.
• Shoulders are up by the ears which reveals tension at the base of the neck
and lack of engagement in the trunk muscles. Pull the shoulders away from
the ears and feel the shoulder blades sliding down the back, gently hugging
the spine. Engage the trunk muscles by trying to slide your hands back to
your knees isometrically.
• Neck is flexed which locks tension in the upper trapezius and neck
muscles. Elongate the neck and keep the neck and head in line with the
spine.
• Lower back is slightly rounded which means the back muscles along the
spine are not engaged. • Feel like you are sticking your butt out slightly to
firm the lower back muscles.
2. Cat Cow
Level 2
Cat Cow is a great way to find neutral spine because of the
protraction/retraction movement in the shoulder blades, a tension source for
most people. It’s also a safe way to move the spine when warming up and
allows you to deepen your breathing. Note this is not a stretch and you
should not be moving to your maximum range of motion. If you have a
back injury, this could aggravate your condition. When in doubt, minimize
the movement and focus on your breath.

Cues

• Begin in Box Plank with a neutral spine. Inhale deeply, feeling the rib
cage expand.
• Exhale slowly, drawing the rib cage in, and gently push the floor away
allowing your spine to round while the tucking the tailbone and chin
slightly (think of a cat’s rounded back during stretching)
• Inhale and move the spine through the neutral Box Plank and continue to
a slight arch, lifting the tail and head gently (think of a cow’s slightly
arched back and hanging belly)
• Neutral spine can be found in between the cat and cow where the
shoulders are set down the back, the lower back has a natural curve, and the
head and neck are long and in line with the spine. Repeat 5 to 10 times and
finish with a neutral spine.
3. Leg Extended Box Plank

Level 1

Now that you’ve found your neutral spine and explored its supporting
musculature, it’s time to start moving the limbs to challenge stability. But
keep your focus on your core and neutral spine. As soon as we become
concerned with moving limbs, our focus often diverts to our extremities
away from the core. Be hyper-aware of how the spine is affected and what
micro-movements you need to make to keep the back, hips, and shoulders
in perfect alignment.

Cues

• Begin in Box Plank

• Brace your abdominals, keep your spine neutral, and slowly extend your
left leg back until it is straight and your toes are on the floor. Hold for a few
seconds to feel the core engage.
• Be aware if there is any change in the spine while moving the leg. If there
is, that’s ok! It takes time to learn to isolate the leg movement while
stabilizing the rest of the body.
• Pause, and feel your core and back muscles engage to support your neutral
spine and pelvis
• Slowly return back to Box Plank and repeat with the right leg.
• Alternate each leg 5 to 10 times. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
Common Mistakes

Without core strength and stability, the spine and pelvis move as soon as the
limbs move. This is problematic because the spine doesn’t have the range of
motion as the rest of the joints in the body and this learned pattern of
movement sets you up for disaster when the limbs are loaded lifting or
bearing weight. Learning to keep the spine strong and neutral while moving
the arms and legs is fundamental to core strength and avoiding back
injuries.

Mistakes & Corrections

• When the right leg moves, the body tends to shift to the left to counter-
balance. Instead, feel like you’re shifting your weight slightly to the right as
the right leg moves back and feel the counter-balance happen in your core.
Make sure weight is equal between both hands.
• The right hip tends to lift when the right leg moves back for two reasons:
1. The outer right thigh can then manage movement of the leg, bypassing
the normally weak glutes; 2. The left glutes aren’t firing to stabilize the hips
which should stay level. The way the hips, sacrum, and lower back
articulate with each other demands a strong sense of strength and
alignment, so engage the left glutes by trying to slide the left leg slightly to
the left and feel the right hip dropping. Try to feel all 5 toes on your right
foot touching the floor.
• Elbows are locked and turned in showing a lack of upper body
engagement. Keep a micro-bend in the elbows, and try to turn the insides of
the elbows slightly forward.
4. Hand Marching Box Plank

Level 1

Arms can be unexpectedly tricky in the plank. At first, they don’t appear to
bear much weight or have that much affect on spine stability. But any
weakness or sensitivity in the arms, hands, or fingers can alter the stability
and movement of the shoulders which then affects the upper back. This is a
great introduction and warm-up to using the upper body in hand planks.

Cues

• Begin in Box Plank

• Engage your upper body by feeling the hands press into the floor with the
sensation of trying to slide towards each other and back to the knees.
• Wrap your triceps (back of your arms) into your sides so the inside of the
elbows face slightly forward
• Keep the arms straight but maintain a micro-bend in the elbows
• Press the fingers and base of the knuckles into the ground to avoid sinking
into your wrists
• Lift one hand off the floor, feeling the weight transfer in the core
• Hold for a second and change sides. Do 3 sets of 5 to 10 repetitions
alternating sides.
Common Mistakes

It takes a lot of practice and time for the neuromuscular connections to fire
the core properly to stay balanced when one limb is off the floor, especially
when we’re talking about limbs that aren’t usually on the floor! The goal is
not to move the body at all when the arms are lifting, as well as taking care
of the delicate hands and wrists that are suddenly helping to bear our
bodyweight.

Mistakes & Corrections

• When the right arm has lifted, the right shoulder has elevated which
results in twisting the upper back. Instead of leaning to the left when the
right hand comes up, think about leaning slightly right and feel how the
core has to engage to maintain balance.
• The left palm has lifted up which bears weight on the outside of the wrist.
Spread the fingers wide and press into them to more evenly distribute the
weight away from the wrist.
• If the hands or wrists are feeling sensitive, keep your session short and do
the hand stretches from the Wrist Health section.
5. Box Plank Leg Lift

Level 1

The gluteals (butt muscles) are the biggest muscles in the body, and because
they work to stabilize the pelvis and extend the hips, which directly affects
the lower spine, their function in core stability and back health can’t be
underestimated. If the glutes are weak, we can transfer the job of moving
the leg to the lower back. The planks with lifted legs not only challenge
core stability but they will strengthen the glutes so the back muscles avoid
overloading.

Cues

• Begin in Box Plank and brace your abdominals and slowly extend your
left leg back until it is straight and your toes are on the floor
• Keeping your Muscular Belt active and the spine in neutral, engage your
left glutes to slowly lift the leg towards parallel and in line with the rest of
your body
• Flex the left foot, pointing the toes down to the floor, and feel energy out
the heel
• If you feel or see your back arching, lower the leg until your spine is
neutral
• Without shifting your weight, return to the Box Plank and repeat on the
other side. Alternate each leg 5 to 10 times, holding the lifted leg for 1 to 5
seconds.
Common Mistakes

Most of us sit on our glutes all day. It’s no wonder, then, that as soon as we
ask the glutes to fire and the hip to extend, the back arches in reflex due to
weak glutes, tight hips, or a weak core. This compresses the spine and will
damage it gradually over time leaving it vulnerable. Move slowly and be
patient as you learn this movement pattern properly.

Mistakes & Corrections

• The low back has arched to help the glutes lift the leg. Engage your
Muscular Belt more, especially the lower abdomen, to bring the spine into
neutral. Try to squeeze the glutes on the left side to lift the left leg while
trying to slide the right knee slightly to the right to activate the right glutes
to stabilize the hips.
• If the low back is still arched, lower the leg a few inches and see if the
spine can then become neutral. If so, the limiter in the exercise could be
tight hips. The reverse lunges in the Warm-Up section will help open the
hips.
• Any time we’re focused on moving one part of our body, we can forget
about the rest of our body. Try to take some time and think about all the
corrections in the previous planks. Is the weight centred between your
hands? Are your elbows locked? Are your fingers active and spread wide?
Are your head and neck in line with your spine?
6. Bird Dog

Level 2

One of the best exercises for core stability, back strength, and injury
prevention, the Bird Dog safely loads the spine with minimal risk and
teaches the core and back muscles to engage when the limbs are moving.
Chronic sufferers of back pain should generally look to the Bird Dog for
treatment, with advice from your caregiver of course, as opposed to
stretching. While stretching is a common prescription for back pain, it
generally exacerbates the problem. Back injuries usually happen due to a
lack of strength, poor posture, and the constant stretching and rounding of
the spine. If there’s one exercise you should do for the rest of your life, this
is it.

Cues
• Begin in Box Plank and focus on maintaining your neutral spine and
bracing your core
• Slowly lift your right leg back and your left arm forward
• Feel the connection between the extended limbs and the line of energy
along the back
• Hold for a deep breath or 3 to 5 seconds
• Return to Box Plank, avoiding any shifting of weight, and change sides.
Alternate sides 5 to 10 times, holding the extension for 3 to 5 seconds. Rest
and repeat 2 to 3 times.
Common Mistakes

Pay close attention to how shoulder movement affects the spine. Just as
moving the leg results in a change to the lower back, moving the arm
usually affects the upper back. The entire spine and torso should remain
identical in the Bird Dog as the Box Plank. As the dynamic movement
increases, so should the strength and attention to alignment around the
spine.

Mistakes & Corrections

• The left shoulder has crept up to the ear resulting in excessive rounding of
the upper back and tension in the neck and lowering of the head. This can
be due to weakness, tightness, or both. • This will improve over time and in
practicing the next few variations in this section. Focus on pulling the
shoulder away from the ear and feeling the shoulder blades slide down the
back. If it’s difficult to keep the arm that high, lower it until the spine
returns to neutral.
• Because of the focus on the lifted limbs, the abs have relaxed and the
lower back has dropped. Pull the abs in away from the floor and feel the
back lengthen.
• If you have trouble keeping the arm extended with a neutral spine, focus
on the Cat Cow to mobilize the shoulder girdle. Also, be sure to use the
entire range of motion of your arms during the Warm-Up which will help
loosen the shoulders.
7. Bird Dog Touch & Lift

Level 2

Now that you’ve mastered the Bird Dog, it’s time to add some movement to
train the shoulders and hips for strength and coordination. Once you begin
moving the arm and leg, let them move while you focus on core stability.

Cues

• Begin in Box Plank and move to Bird Dog with opposing limbs lifted
• With no change in the rest of the body, lower your arm and leg until the
fingers and toes touch the floor
• Lift your limbs back up to Bird Dog and return to Box Plank to change
sides
• Keep your shoulders and hips square to the floor and in perfect alignment
the entire time
• Keep your Muscular Belt braced and rib cage drawn in. Feel the back
muscles along the spine engage to prevent arching.
• Alternate sides 3 to 5 times. Repeat 2 to 3 times, resting between. You can
also try repeating the same side instead of alternating.
8. Bird Dog Tuck & Extend

Level 2

Similar to the Touch & Lift, the Tuck & Extend introduces a different
dynamic pattern to challenge core stability, this one a bit more
counterintuitive because you’re closing the angle of the limbs while
lengthening the torso in opposition.

Cues

• Begin in Box Plank and move to Bird Dog with opposing limbs lifted
• Bend the lifted arm and leg and pull the elbow and knee in towards your
center
• As the limbs pull in, avoid rounding your back or dropping your shoulders
and instead feel the spine grow longer and the core muscles get stronger
• Straighten the arm and leg back to Bird Dog without any change in the
torso or hips
• Return to Box Plank to change sides
• Remember the cues from the previous planks and engage the core muscles
so much that the torso feels like it is floating in space instead of sinking into
the supporting limbs
• Alternate sides 3 to 5 times. Repeat 2 to 3 times, resting between. You can
also try repeating the same side instead of alternating.
9. Drawing Squares Bird Dog
Level 2

Back specialist, Dr. Stuart McGill created the Drawing Squares variation to
“challenge the various neuromuscular compartments in the erector spine
group.” So far in this section, we have learned to keep a neutral spine
against the limbs moving up and down, and forward and back, but this
version adds out and in which is essential since many of our movements
involve abduction (limbs moving away from our center line) and adduction
(limbs moving toward our center line). Dr. McGill has given me permission
to present this version here.

Cues

• Begin in Box Plank and move to Bird Dog

• Move the extended arm and leg about a foot away from the midline, down
to touch the floor, back in towards the midline, and up again to Bird Dog,
drawing a square
• There should be no change in the neutral spine or shifting of weight
• As the leg abducts away from you, be careful not to lift the hip or twist the
spine
• Concentrate on keeping the torso still and square as much as possible
• Draw 2 to 3 squares in each direction and change sides. Rest and repeat 2
to 3 times.
10. Hovering Box Plank

Level 3

Who’s up for a challenge? This variation works the entire body and
demands a lot from the quads which are contracting isometrically to extend
the legs against an immovable object - the floor! Because of the leg action,
some may find this hard on the knees but the effort should be focused on
the core pulling the legs away from the floor as opposed to the legs pushing
the floor away.

Cues

• Begin in Box Plank and tuck your toes under your feet
• Press into your hands and feel your core pulling in and away from the
floor. Imagine your torso floating away from your limbs.
• Begin to take weight off your knees by engaging your core muscles more
and transferring the weight into your upper body
• Lift your knees one inch off the floor, maintaining a neutral spine
• Hold for 3 to 5 seconds. Repeat 2 to 3 times. Advanced persons can try
extending a leg back and even attempting the Bird Dog in this version. But
the knee(s) should remain within one inch off the floor.
 Part 2: Elbow Planks
The Elbow Plank is what generally comes to mind when thinking about
planks. So why does the first variation come in at number 11 in this book?
The plank is so much more than just resting on your elbows and toes. And
while it is now touted as the safer alternative to crunches for working your
abs, the force exerted on the spine can still be quite great and even risky if
not done with acute attention. The following section should be attempted
only after mastering at least the first nine Box Plank variations.

Throughout these planks, and throughout any exercise in general, you

should constantly be doing an internal diagnostic. How does my back feel?
Are the muscles around my spine engaged (great!), or am I feeling pain or
discomfort in the middle of my spine (bad!)? How are my shoulders feeling?
Is my jaw tense for no reason? Am I breathing comfortably? Are my ribs
drawn together and abs pulled in a little or a lot (somewhere in the middle
is good)? What are my hips doing? Can I sense my neutral back without
looking in a mirror? Can I feel a strong current of kinetic energy through
my body or is it getting blocked in a certain area?

Just like they do on Star Trek, imagine you’ve got a tricorder device and
you’re scanning your entire body in seconds to note any problem areas that
need attention. If you sense any issues, see what adjustments you can make
instantly. If I lift my tailbone, I can feel my back muscles engage which
takes that weight-bearing feeling out of my spine. If I relax my neck, my
shoulders drop away from my ears and my upper back then feels long and
strong yet supple. If I rest in child’s pose for a few seconds to reset my
strength, I can return to the plank with renewed focus and improved
technique. If I take a deep breath, my jaw relaxes and I can place more
energy into flexing and feeling my Muscular Belt. If I engage my glutes a bit
more, they take a lot of effort off of my lower back muscles which were
feeling fatigued and about to fail. If I extend my chest forward slightly,
suddenly the current of energy flows through my entire body without getting
locked up in my sternum and shoulder girdle.
Over time, you will become attuned to the neuromuscular connections in
your body and be able to sense and manipulate the smallest movements and
muscle contractions. Every time you plank will be a new experience
because of your expanding abilities. So grab your tricorders everybody, and
make it so!
11. Elbow Knee Plank

Level 1

The Elbow Plank can feel much different than the Box Plank even though
the same core muscles are tasked with stabilizing the neutral spine. But the
extra distance between the weight-bearing points of the elbows and toes
places more demand on the spine that calls for the hip flexors and legs to
share the strength responsibility and help manage the pelvic alignment.
Thus, we start on the knees. Any of the following planks can be modified to
the knees, so if you feel pressure on your back, drop your knees to the floor.

Cues

• Begin in Box Plank and, depending on your preference, either drop down
to your elbows and then walk your knees back until your back is parallel to
the floor, or walk your hands forward to extend your body and then drop to
the elbows. Keep a neutral spine.
• Interlace your fingers or place your palms flat on the floor. Having your
palms on the floor directly in front of your elbows requires a slight external
rotation in the shoulders which may not be comfortable for some yet it can
offer more muscle activation and stability.
• Keep the hips up in line with the torso and maintain a strong core
throughout.
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds seconds or a few deep breaths. Rest and repeat 2
to 3 times.
Common Mistakes

Obviously, we’re used to standing up on two legs, not balancing parallel to

the ground on all fours. Therefore, our sense of alignment can be thrown off
by changing our relation to the floor which can be surprising and humbling.
You might think your back is flat when it could actually be so rounded you
look like a camel. And then you’ll feel like you’re starting from scratch and
the advanced planks are miles away! Work your way slowly through the
cues using both visual and internal diagnostic feedback. As long as you’re
thoughtful and approach every plank with intention, you’ll soon feel as
confident on four limbs as you do on two!

Mistakes & Corrections

• The spine is rounded from the tailbone through the back and neck. This is
natural as we push weight into our supporting limbs instead of using the
force of our core muscles. Lift your tailbone (feel like you’re sticking your
butt out a little bit) and extend your chest forward to lengthen your spine
while bracing your core.
• When the lower back is neutral, the shoulders can still be rounded. Press
the forearms into the ground and feel them sliding back which can drop the
shoulders and extend the spine.
• Do not drop the head. Keep looking straight down or slightly forward. The
sternum will generally face the direction of where your eyes are pointing
which will affect alignment.
12. Elevated Elbow Plank

Level 1

Placing your forearms on an elevated surface gives you the opportunity to

explore stability in a full plank with less stress on your spine or joints. It’s a
great warm-up before exercise as it gets you in tune with your core
activation and proper alignment. This is also recommended for beginners,
older adults, and those recovering from injury who may not be ready to take
the body to a parallel Elbow Plank.

Cues

• Place your forearms on a sturdy, elevated surface. Start with something

about waist-high.
• Step your legs back until your body is a straight line from your heels to
your head
• Feel your core engage as you push your forearms down and feel strength
along your spine
• Don’t allow your hips to drop below the line of the body. You can keep
them slightly elevated if that is easier on your back as long as your spine
remains neutral and the tailbone is lightly lifted.
• Keep your head and neck in line with your spine.
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds or a few deep breaths. Rest and repeat 2 to 3
times.
Explore Other Elevated Options

Many of the planks in this section can be done with elevated arms. The
height of elevation depends on you. Generally, the lower your arms are to
the floor, the harder it is. So if you’re having trouble performing these
planks, choose a high elevation like a table (and a cushion under your
forearms). That way, most of your bodyweight is on your legs rather than
distributed between your upper and lower body.

The other great thing about elevating the plank is that it allows for more
space to add leg options that won’t affect the alignment of your pelvis or
back. Lizard Legs, #27, is pictured below and can be difficult on the floor if
your legs can’t externally rotate enough to keep the leg up and the hips
square. Many of these planks can also safely be done elevated as part of a
warm-up.
13. Elbow Plank

Level 2

While it is a safe alternative for training core strength, the Elbow Plank is
achieved only through a complex network of neuromuscular connections
firing a symphony of muscles to make beautiful music. As the conductor, be
sure that all the instruments have done their proper tuning in all the
previous exercises.

Cues

• Begin in Box Plank. Keeping your spine neutral, bring your forearms to
the floor and extend your legs back. You can interlace your fingers or press
your palms into the floor.
• In this and most planks, the legs are hip-width apart. Feel the legs subtly
sliding towards each other to engage the inner thighs. Remember to engage
the pelvic floor and connect the strength from your legs through your pelvis
and up through your spine.
• Feel like a strong plank of wood from beyond your heels out the crown of
your head
• Engage your Muscular Belt and feel a sense of squeezing in with the
elbows and toes
• Press into the forearms to ensure muscle activation and avoid sinking in
the shoulders.
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds or a few deep breaths. Rest and repeat 2 to 3
times.
Common Mistakes

Most people can lean on their elbows and toes, but that doesn’t always
translate to the proper execution of the plank. And too often, the plank has
become an endurance sport of ego with competitions to see who can hold it
the longest. But this is normally at the sacrifice of technique, as the
shoulders, back, and hip flexors take the brunt of the exercise. Remember
that leading spine researcher, Dr. Stuart McGill recommends just three sets
of 10 second holds. That’s all it takes to properly train the core muscles to
function. Yes, you could try for longer, but know that the last second of
your plank should be identical to the first second.

Mistakes & Corrections

• Due to fatigue or weakness, the hips have dropped and the upper back has
rounded meaning the core muscles have lost their engagement leaving the
plank reliant on leverage and hope. Rest for 30 to 60 seconds and reset in
the proper position with the shoulders blades down the back, hips in line
with the body, and Muscular Belt firing to maintain the neutral spine.
• Looking forward hyperextends the neck and compresses the cervical spine
especially when the thoracic spine has rounded. Look down and keep the
head and neck in line with your spine. Bring your chest forward, and hug
your shoulder blades down and in.
• The dropped hips have caused the pelvis to tilt forward. Pull in the lower
abdomen to keep them level and feel the back lengthen to neutral.
14. Elbow Plank Knee Taps

Level 2

Wait a minute, we just advanced to the full Elbow Plank, why are we going
back to the knees? In addition to being a good modification for the Elbow
Plank, tapping the knees to the floor is also a dynamic challenge for those
who are able to sustain the plank with the knees off the floor. In fact, most
will find it harder because the hips and spine have to remain stable against
the bending legs.

Cues

• Begin in Elbow Knee Plank with your toes tucked under

• Lift one knee off the ground by straightening that leg. The hips and torso
should stay stable.
• Change sides and alternate without any change in the rest of the body
• Beginners can bear some weight in the knee that is in contact with the
floor if holding the Elbow Plank is challenging. Experienced plankers
should lightly touch the knees to the ground without any transference of
weight.
• Progress to lifting and lowering both knees at the same time, and
increasing the speed
• Tap the knees for 5 to 15 seconds. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
15. Hip Lifts

Level 2

Core strength can keep the torso stable against limb movement, but it can
also move the torso against stable limbs. That’s the initial concept, anyway,
even though hip lifts (and the following Pike Plank) require activity from
the whole body. But the idea is to not rely solely on strength around the
moving joints - in this case, the shoulders and hips - but for the initiation of
movement to originate from core engagement. Remember that many of
these plank exercises can look technically correct, but unless you are
actively conducting the core muscles to fire, the point of the exercise will
be lost.

Cues

• In Elbow Plank, pull your abs away from the floor and lift your tailbone
up, feeling the hips rise a few inches. Press into your forearms and toes and
let the torso slide back and up with the hips as the calves engage to press
the floor away with the feet. Return to Elbow Plank.
• Maintain a neutral spine throughout, focusing on the lower abdomen
contraction and lifting the tailbone to avoid rounding the lower back or
tucking the pelvis
• The range of motion should be small with no feeling of stretch in the
shoulders or legs
• Start slowly with 1 to 3 sets of 3 to 5 lifts at a time and progress to 5 to 10
repetitions.
16. Pike Plank

Level 2

The Hip Lifts Plank preceding this should be mastered perfectly in

preparation for the Pike Plank. The greater range of motion in a pike
requires heightened awareness of body alignment in space. Think of a plank
that has been sawed in half with a moveable joint placed in the middle. The
top and bottom halves of the plank are planks themselves that can not bend
or buckle and can move only at the hips.

Cues

• From Elbow Plank, pull your abs away from the floor and lift your
tailbone up, feeling the hips rise. Press into your forearms and toes and let
the torso slide back and up with the hips as the calves engage to press the
floor away with the feet. The head may drop between the arms if that is the
spine’s trajectory. Pike as high as is comfortable and return to the start.
• Maintain a neutral spine throughout, focusing on the lower abdomen
contraction and lifting the tailbone to avoid rounding the lower back
• Pay close attention to the shoulders and hamstrings (back of the thighs) as
this is a dynamic stretch under load. If these areas are tight, only pike as
high as feels natural and in control.
• Start slowly with 1 to 3 sets of 2 to 3 pikes at a time and progress to 5 to
10 repetitions.
Common Mistakes

Since the hip flexors are flexed in the pike, the spine then also wants to flex.
Imagine all the times you sit in a chair with hips flexed and the back
rounded in a slouch. This is a learned position that can become engrained in
your muscle and fascial connections, so flexed hips automatically signal a
flexed (rounded) spine. That’s why attention to technique is so important
because you are unlearning years of training the wrong connections.

Mistakes & Corrections

• The lower back has rounded. Start the movement by lifting the tailbone
first and continue that motivation throughout. Imagine the spine getting
longer as the tailbone lifts and the lower abdomen drawing in to prevent the
pelvis from tucking under.
• The upper back has rounded because of tightness in the shoulder girdle or
lack of strength. • Extend the chest forward in opposition to the tailbone
reaching up. Look slightly forward to to inspire the lengthening spine, and
lower the height of the pike if you feel a stretch.
• The legs have bent. This isn’t necessarily a mistake. If the hamstrings are
tight, you will want to bend the knees slightly to avoid stretching the backs
of the legs. But if the knees bend because the legs are inactive, push the
floor away with the toes, lift the heels, and strengthen the legs. • This
prevents excessive stretching in the achilles tendons as well.
17. Side Toe Taps

Level 2

When you can confidently hold several sets of Elbow Planks with perfect
technique, it’s time to add a challenge so the body and brain learn to
maintain this instinctively. At first it requires a lot of mental energy to keep
the spine neutral and core engaged but eventually it will be programmed
into your neuromuscular network so you don’t even have to think about it!

Cues

• Begin in Elbow Plank. Keeping the hips and torso steady, lift the right leg
out to the right side, tap the floor without any weight transfer, and return to
the start. Change sides.
• Try not to shift the weight side to side or lift the hips which will twist the
lower back.
• As more dynamic movement is added, remind yourself of all previous
cues for the planks, including the feeling of sliding the forearms in and back
to activate the upper body, lengthening the spine, keeping the chest forward,
Muscular Belt engaged, muscles all along the neutral spine firing, and
keeping the neck and head up and in line with the spine.
• Play with the tempo of the taps, making them slow or quick, and repeating
the same side in addition to alternating.
• Tap side to side for 5 to 15 seconds. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
18. Out-Out In-In

Level 2

I wish I had a better name for this one, but it’s so descriptive that I’m
keeping it! The Out-Out In-In is great because you have the dynamic
challenge of the Elbow Plank Toe Taps, plus moments of complete
instability when weight is transferred away from your center. Your body
and brain have to work together to coordinate balance as you focus on back
and hip stability.

Cues

• Begin in Elbow Plank. Step the right leg out to the right side as wide as is
comfortable without affecting the hips and transfer weight to that foot. Then
step the left leg out to the side so you are now in a wide-legged Elbow
Plank. Step the right leg back in to the starting position, followed by the left
leg.
• Alternate the starting foot, so the steps are: right-left right left, and then
left-right left-right
• Every time the weight is transferred to a foot, the hips will want to adjust
and twist to counter-balance. Engage your core more to prevent this from
happening.
• Repeat the exercise for 5 to 15 seconds or a few repetitions on each side.
As stability increases, so can the speed. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
19. Leg Lifts

Level 3

Any time there is an opportunity to strengthen the back of the body in

plank, make every moment count. Lifting a leg or an arm signals the entire
back line of the body to share the load of keeping your body away from the
floor, and that’s a great thing. It’s easy to work the front of the body; we see
it all the time and it’s the face we present to the world. But many of us
forget about working the back which is essential for posture, spine integrity,
and longevity.

Cues

• In Elbow Plank, bring your attention to the back body, especially the
glutes. Fire the left glutes while pressing into your forearms and engage
your Muscular Belt. Lift the left leg.
• Weight will transfer to your right leg, but try not to shift your body to the
right. Rather, make your core muscles work more to adjust to the new,
unbalanced center of gravity.
• Hold the lift for just one second and change sides
• Play with the speed of the leg lifts and add one or several repetitions on
each side. As you get faster, focus more on keeping your core and upper
body completely still.
• Alternate leg lifts for 5 to 15 seconds. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
20. Hamstring Curl

Level 3

Did you feel the back body working in the previous Leg Lift plank? Great!
That’s the same feeling you need for the Hamstring Curl which ensures that
the back of the legs is getting conditioned to balance out all the work of the
front of the legs. But since I’m asking you to slightly extend through the hip
of the lifted leg with contracted hamstrings and glutes, the tendency will be
for the back to hyperextend and the pelvis to tip forward. Stay focused on
that core and hip alignment!

Cues

• In Elbow Plank, squeeze your right glutes and lift your right leg about a
foot off the ground. Engage your core to prevent the pelvis from tipping
forward and arching the lower back.
• Contract your right hamstrings and bend the right leg while keeping the
upper thigh lifted. Imagine you’re putting a footprint on the ceiling. Focus
more on core strength to stabilize the hips and spine.
• Extend the leg, lower to the starting position, and change sides.
• Alternate 2 to 5 times each side for 2 to 3 sets, resting between.
21. 1 Leg Supported Elbow Plank

Level 2

While a bit easier than some of the preceding planks, this one may be
challenging to those with weak hip flexors and legs because it relies on one
leg to bear the weight that was previously held by two. Remember to
respect your own bodyweight’s distribution. Generally, people who have
their center of weight in their hips will find this more challenging than
people who have their center of weight in their upper bodies.

Cues

• In Elbow Plank, brace your core and transfer weight to the right leg as the
left leg gets lighter
• Without any change to the body, lift your left foot and place it on top of
your right heel
• Feel the legs squeeze together as the inner thighs (adductors) fire to assist
the core muscles. Engage the pelvic floor to feel a strong pillar of strength
through the center of the body.
• Keep the hips completely square. All cues from the Elbow Plank should
be followed.
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds and change sides, resting between. Rest and
repeat 2 to 3 times.
22. 1 Leg Elbow Plank

Level 3

Different than the Elbow Plank Leg Lifts, the 1 Leg Elbow Plank is a static
hold. It’s a bit easier to lift and lower the leg and change sides quickly than
it is to hold one leg up because you’re asking a lot of the hip flexors to
contract isometrically with the extra load of the other leg. That’s why it’s so
important to focus on engaging the back body to lift up in order to help out
the front body. The pulling up of the back body should make it easier for
the front body to push away.

Cues

• In Elbow Plank, press into the forearms, engage your Muscular Belt, and
feel the right foot get lighter on the ground. Squeeze your right glutes and
lift the right foot up as high as is comfortable (the higher it is, the more
glute activation, but you risk affecting the alignment of the pelvis and
spine).
• Breathe deeply as you hold the leg in the air, focusing on the back body
engaging to pull you up. Continue pressing into the forearms.
• Don’t let the right hip lift at all. As with other planks, nothing in the body
should change.
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds and change sides, resting between. Rest and
repeat 2 to 3 times.
23. Wide Leg Lifts

Level 3

It’s amazing how one small change can drastically affect the plank. No
wonder so many variations exist! Take the Elbow Plank Leg Lifts. Yes,
you’ve already done them, so taking the legs a little bit wider should be no
big deal, right? Wrong!

Cues

• In Elbow Plank, step the legs wide like the first half of the Out-Out In-In.
Squeeze the left glutes while pressing into your forearms and engaging your
Muscular Belt. Lift the left leg.
• With wide legs, it is very difficult to keep the hips square with the extra
load on the side oblique muscles in the core having to counter-balance.
Engage your core, press into the forearms more, and fire your back muscles
to prevent shifting your body to the left.
• Hold the lift for just one second and lower the leg to the exact width as
before. As you continue, the legs will gradually get closer together because
it is easier. But don’t let them!
• Alternate leg lifts for 5 to 15 seconds. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
24. Rocking Plank

Level 3

The Rocking Plank is like the Cat-Cow in that its dynamic movement
between two positions can help you find the perfect middle. In this case,
you’re not moving the spine up and down, but forward and back. This plank
helps you to strengthen the shoulders and triceps, and requires a great deal
of strength in the abdominal muscles. Be cautious, though, as the Rocking
Plank exerts a greater shear force on the spine when the shoulders are
behind the elbows and, therefore, a very strong core to protect it. Keep the
movement minimal at first, and focus on just moving the body forward and
back to the Elbow Plank.

Cues

• From Elbow Plank, push through the toes, sending the body a few inches
forward. The shoulders will travel forward of the elbows. Return to Elbow
Plank with the shoulders directly above the elbows by pressing the forearms
into the floor. The arm action is extension so the triceps should be very
active in returning to the starting position.
• As strength increases, so can the range of motion, so you can rock back so
the shoulders end up behind the elbows. Advanced users can step the feet
back for a greater range.
• Rock forward and back for 5-15 seconds. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
25. Leg Pulses

Level 3

Now that we’ve lifted the leg, held the leg, and curled the leg, it’s time to
pulse the leg! It’s another opportunity to work the glutes and balance out the
strength between the front and back body. It also adds a fun dynamic
challenge to the leg lift that your core has to continually work and adapt
against. Let the fun begin!

Cues

• In Elbow Plank, strengthen your core and squeeze the left glutes to lift the
left leg several inches to a foot off the ground. Keep the right leg and hip
flexors fired up to manage the added strength challenge of the single leg
balance.
• Keep the left leg lifted and begin to pulse the leg up a few inches at a time,
ensuring the glutes are working to lift the leg instead of overloading the
back muscles
• Keep the hips completely square and the left leg turned in with the foot
flexed to point down
• Pulse the leg up for 5 to 15 seconds. Rest and change sides. Repeat 2 to 3
times. As strength increases, make the pulses more aggressive to further
challenge glute and core strength.
26. Leg Lift Abduction

Level 3

Once you can stabilize the hips against the changing center of weight in the
Leg Lift, you can further progress the adaptation response by moving the
leg away from the center line of your body. This is important because we
will find ourselves unbalanced throughout the day with our limbs in various
relations to our body and we have to train for those unpredictable moments.

Cues

• In Elbow Plank, prepare the core for the Leg Lift, squeeze the right glutes,
and lift the right leg
• Move the right leg to the right as far as you can without raising the right
hip
• Bring the leg back behind you and lower to the starting position before
changing sides
• Don’t allow the hips to tilt. Brace your core and obliques and focus on
keeping the right hip down in line with the left.
• Alternate sides 1 to 5 times. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
27. Lizard Legs

Level 3

Similar to the Leg Lift Abduction, this exercise trains pelvic stability
against the abducting leg while challenging external rotation of the leg.
Because the structure of your hips can determine how much the femur
(thigh bone) can rotate in the hip, this exercise may only be possible if the
arms are elevated. If you find your knee can’t rise above the floor when
taken forward, put your forearms on a step or low bench and try again.

Cues

• In Elbow Plank, brace the core, squeeze the right glutes, and lift the right
leg
• Externally rotate the leg so the toes are pointing away from you and bend
the knee to the side. Engage your right obliques and bring the knee towards
your right elbow.
• Try to lift the leg as high as you can so it doesn’t touch the floor, but keep
the Muscular Belt engaged to prevent the right hip from lifting and the
spine from twisting
• Return the leg back to Elbow Plank and change sides
• Alternate sides 2 to 5 times. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
28. Diving Dolphin

Level 3
This plank is similar to the Pike Plank with one major difference: diving.
Sending the body forward and the arms flexed into such a small angle is
going to require a great deal of strength from the triceps to get back up.
Aside from the tris, maintaining the strong pike will be challenging as the
tendency is to drop into a flat plank when you come forward because it is
easier. But who wants the easy way out? Not you, of course!

Cues

• Begin in Elbow Plank. Walk the feet forward keeping your legs long and
raise the hips into a pike. The legs can be slightly bent if the hamstrings are
tight and to avoid rounding the low back. • Allow the head to drop down so
the neck isn’t hyperextended.
• Look to your hands and bend your arms to dive forward on the inhale.
Aim your chin to your hands or slightly beyond them. Maintain the pike
position and a neutral spine.
• Pause with your chin an inch from the floor. Engage your triceps and push
your forearms into the floor with a strong exhale, sending your pike back up
to the starting position.
• Do 2 to 5 reps for 1 to 3 sets, resting between sets. Be careful not to
overwork the small muscles around the shoulders and arms.
29. Feet Elevated

Level 3

Elevating the feet in plank will put more load into the upper body and
provide another stimulus for adaptation. It also provides space for dynamic
leg additions that are difficult to achieve when on the floor like the Lizard
Legs or Knee Tucks. Caution: since the head will be below the heart, this is
not recommended for those with high blood pressure.

Cues

• Begin in Box Plank with a low stable surface behind you like a bench or
step
• Drop your forearms to the floor and place your feet on the bench keeping
your hips elevated
• Find your strong plank alignment in this new angle and press your
forearms into the floor to avoid sinking in the shoulders. More upper body
strength will be required here.
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds or try adding leg movements from any of the
previous options. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
Many of the following planks can be done with elevated legs. The height of
elevation depends on you. The lower your arms get, the more force is
applied to the spine.
 Part 3: Plank ARMy
Moving the arms in planks may not seem like a greater challenge than
moving the legs. But when you think of one shoulder doing the stability
work previously done by two, and how much smaller and weaker the
shoulders are than the hips, you’ll realize what a different core challenge it
is. The shoulder girdle and the arms have to be very strong as well as the
entire core. If you let your hips twist when the arms move, it informs all
future actions involving arm movement which could leave the lower back
unstable and vulnerable.

Shoulder Health

The shoulder is the most mobile joint in the body so it makes sense that it is
also the most often injured. And any time we’re loading the shoulder with
extra weight, especially in a position we’re not accustomed to, it is
vulnerable. Emphasize the dynamic arm motion in the Warm-Up to
mobilize and prepare the shoulders. Pay close attention to how the
shoulders are feeling in the planks and if they feel overloaded then be sure
to take a rest.

If you currently have a shoulder injury, or even an old injury that has
affected your range of motion, I highly recommend seeing a physiotherapist
or sports medicine doctor. The body has a wonderful way of bypassing
injuries and scar tissue by letting other muscles take responsibility for
weaknesses, but this has the drawback of not functioning optimally leaving
an imbalance between both sides of the body. For example, if you had a
right rotator cuff tear many years ago that left you unable to fully stretch the
right arm overhead without pain, you probably started relying on the left
shoulder for overhead tasks while the right shoulder grew weaker as its
range of motion decreased which left it tighter. You may have also let the
right upper trapezius muscle (at the base of the neck) raise the shoulder
blade to raise the arm instead of the shoulder and rotator muscles informing
a new pattern of movement. Any of these scenarios will affect your success
in planks involving arm movement.
If you are currently free from shoulder injury, let’s keep it that way! Many
of the planks herein help to condition the shoulders and arms to be strong
and mobile, but a proper warm-up and attention to technique are necessary.
So come on, Plank ARMy, let’s start moving those arms!
30. Push Pull

Level 3

Before we lift the arms, let’s play with moving the arms while they’re still
in contact with the floor. This helps build the strength and stability required
when the plank evolves from four weight-bearing points to three while still
initiating adaptation in the core neuromusculature. The Push-Pull can also
be thought of as an incline chest press and a pull-up depending on how
much weight you put into the moving arm (hint: it should be a lot!).

Cues

• In Elbow Plank, slide your right hand under your right shoulder
• Press the right hand into the floor and inhale to push the hand forward
until the arm is straight. You can place the hand on a towel if you like. Keep
your core engaged and hips square. The right hip will want to lift up.
Squeeze the right obliques to keep the hip down while engaging the entire
Muscular Belt.
• Press the right hand into the floor and exhale to pull the hand back to the
starting position. Feel the back and sides working as you draw the elbow
back and into your right side.
• If it feels too challenging to keep the hips square, you can separate the
legs a little wider which will help with stability
• Push and pull for 5 to 15 seconds on each side. Rest and repeat 2 to 3
times.
Common Mistakes

The most common mistake in all of the Elbow Planks that involve arm
movement is lifting the entire side of the moving arm which, on the solid
base of two legs, will inevitably twist the spine and even the knees if the
hips are twisted enough. This makes sense because when the right arm isn’t
holding its share of the weight, the instinct is to lean to the left where there
is more support. But in life, there won’t always be a support to lean onto. It
is in those times that your internal support of core stability can save you
from a nasty fall or injury.

Mistakes & Corrections

• Because the right arm isn’t bearing as much weight, the right hip has lifted
which has twisted the lower spine out of neutral. Feel the right obliques
engage more and lower the right hip. It may feel, in this unbalanced
position, that you are dropping the hip below the line of the body. Use a
mirror or trainer for feedback so you can compare what feels natural to the
correct alignment.
• The right shoulder has lifted which will also affect the upper back. It’s
natural for the shoulder to lift to make room for the arm to move, but you
want to adjust the arm and not the shoulder. The left side will have to be
very strong to make up for the weight shift and you’ll have to focus on
dropping the right hip and shoulder to keep a neutral spine. If this proves
too difficult, drop the knees to the floor.
31. Wax On/Wax Off

Level 3

Oh, the cultural impact of The Karate Kid. Mr. Miyagi really knew his
stuff! Similar to the Push-Pull, this plank involves the moving arm
maintaining contact with the floor as you “wax on” and “wax off” in
circular motions. Not just a fun pop culture reference, these circular
motions help to work all the muscles around the shoulders and torso while
the core continually adapts to the changing lever. No guarantee, though, that
this will help you defeat your nemesis in a nail-biting Karate showdown.
Now, come on, Daniel-san, start waxing!

Cues

• In Elbow Plank, pull your right elbow into your right side sliding your
right hand under your right shoulder
• Extend the arm forward, pressing the hand into the floor, and then move
the arm out drawing a large circle until it ends in the starting position
• Repeat or reverse direction, and be aware of any change in the alignment
of your pelvis, spine, or shoulders. If needed, widen your legs slightly or
lower to your knees.
• Repeat or alternate directions 5 to 10 times. Rest and change sides. Repeat
2 to 3 times.
32. Hand Taps

Level 3

Now it’s time to try lifting the arm away from the floor. Whenever I’ve
given this as an option in my classes, everyone can tap the hand forward,
but it’s rare that someone will tap the hand forward while keeping the hips
level. It’s incredibly difficult and takes great focus and strength to maintain
a neutral body. And that’s what training is for! Let’s tap it out.

Cues

• Begin in Elbow Plank and start to shift your weight from the right arm to
the left and feel the weight transfer in your core as opposed to leaning to the
left
• Keeping the right shoulder down away from the ear, lift your right arm
and extend it forward and tap the floor in front of you and then return to
Elbow Plank. While the arm can be quick, there should be no movement in
the rest of the body. Change sides.
• If you feel your hips or torso twisting, try taking your legs a little bit wider
and strengthen your core
• Alternate taps for 5 to 15 seconds. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
33. Arm Lift

Level 3

If you have tight shoulders, you may find the Arm Lift slightly easier than
the Hand Taps because the arm extends to the side instead of extended
forward. But like the Leg Lift Abduction, you have to be hyper aware of not
lifting the associated shoulder or hip.

Cues

• Begin in Elbow Plank and start to shift your weight from the right arm to
the left and feel the weight transfer in your core as opposed to leaning to the
left
• Lift your right arm out to the right side. You can keep the arm bent at 90
degrees.
• Engage your obliques and feel your right shoulder and right hip dropping
in opposition to the lifting arm. Ensure the spine is neutral and strong.
• Pause and then return to Elbow Plank and change sides
• Alternate the lifting arm 3 to 5 times. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
34. 1 Arm Supported Elbow Plank

Level 3

As previously stated, these planks can stress the shoulders and all the
muscles in the torso so you have to be aware of not overloading them. The
legs, however, have more options available for various single leg positions
because the hips are fairly strong and can handle force that the shoulders
can’t. While you can definitely practice this with the arm in any position as
long as it’s lifted (see the next plank!), taking it around the back does help
you lean the right unsupported side into the support of your body. This extra
stability will make the job of the left shoulder slightly easier than if the arm
were held away from the body.

Cues

• From Elbow Plank, engage your core and lessen the amount of weight
under the right arm. Feel the muscles around your hips, shoulders, and right
side adjust to keep a neutral back.
• Lift your right arm from the floor and wrap it around your back or hold on
to your side
• If you can’t prevent the hips from tilting, take the legs a bit wider for more
support
• Keep the body neutral and breathe deeply
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds and rest before changing sides. Rest and repeat 2
to 3 times.
35. 1 Arm Elbow Plank

Level 3

Removing all support for the lifted arm makes this a super fun challenge!
(I’m sure by now you know what I mean by “fun!”) Watch those shoulders,
and keep the hips and shoulders square to the ground. If you aren’t in a
neutral position, it really doesn’t matter if you can lift the arm. Yes, you
need a good amount of strength and stability in the shoulders and hips, and
the ego wants to muscle through this to lift the arm and “achieve” the pose,
but the real achievement is in the neutral spine.

Cues

• From Elbow Plank, engage your core and lessen the amount of weight
under the right arm. Feel the muscles around your hips, shoulders, and right
side adjust to keep a neutral back.
• Lift your right arm and stretch it out to the side or extend it forward
parallel to the floor
• If you can’t prevent the hips from tilting, take the legs a bit wider for more
support
• Keep the body neutral and breathe deeply. Remember to think internally
and diagnose any areas of excess tension where none is needed (jaw, face,
neck, holding your breath) and place that energy into the core.
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds and rest before changing sides. Rest and repeat 2
to 3 times.
36. Arm + Leg Lifts

Level 3

Moving to a plank with only two points of support may seem like an
extreme challenge (a super FUN challenge, am I right??). But, oddly,
because the limbs are opposite one another diagonally, their resulting shifts
of weight actually manage to cancel each other out making it easier to keep
the body square. Of course, what they don’t cancel out is the extra weight
on the back and limbs so the core has to work extra hard to protect the spine
and keep the hips up.

Cues

• In Elbow Plank, brace your core, and lift your left arm to the left side and
your right leg up and slightly out to the right side. Pause briefly and set
them down to Elbow Plank.
• You may want to take a moment to reset your core engagement before
changing sides.
• While the body may be more square in a 2-point plank than in the
previous 3-point planks, keep the Muscular Belt very engaged to prevent
the hips from sagging.
• Alternate sides 2 to 5 times. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
37. 2-Point Supported Plank

Level 3

Did I say that planks on two points was easier to balance than three? I did
say that didn’t I. Why didn’t my content editor catch that?! It’s one thing to
lift two limbs and then immediately bring them back down, and it’s another
to lift them up and keep them up. The core’s adjustment to the new support
can react quickly but it doesn’t tend to have a lot of endurance. Before
moving, see if the two lifting limbs can feel weightless, and then float the
limbs up. You want to ease into the position instead of attacking it.

Cues

• In Elbow Plank, engage your core and take some weight-bearing support
out of the right arm and left leg. Feel the body adjusting to the weight
transfer first before lifting the limbs.
• Lift your right arm and place it behind your back while lifting your left leg
and crossing it over the right leg
• Keep your hips square. If you feel a lot of tilting side to side in the hips
and torso, return to Elbow Plank and rest.
• Holding for just a few seconds is great for this one. Work up to 5 to 15
seconds. Rest before changing sides. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
38. 2-Point Elbow Plank (Bird Dog)

Level 4

No surprises here, you knew where this was going after the last plank.
Instead of lifting your limbs and providing support for them, you’re going
to lift them up and hope for the best. Haha, just kidding. Well, not really.
Honestly, at least you’re close to the ground. :)

Cues

• In Elbow Plank, engage your core and take some weight-bearing support
out of the right arm and left leg. Feel the body adjusting to the weight
transfer first before lifting the limbs
• Float the right arm and left leg up. The limbs could be extended in line
with the body or taken slightly to the side.
• The right quads and hip flexors will get a big workout from this so keep
them turned on but avoid the sensation of gripping in the area. Allow
energy to flow through the whole body.
• Maintain the neutral spine and don’t allow the hips to sag.
• Return to Elbow Plank and rest
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds and rest before changing sides. Repeat 2 to 3
times.
39. Drawing Squares 2
Level 4

We drew squares in the Box Plank, so let’s draw squares in the Elbow
Plank! A step up from Dr. Stuart McGill’s original intention in creating the
first variation, this version will certainly continue challenging the
neuromuscular connections needed for spine stability against moving limbs
while adding a big strength and endurance challenge. Have fun!

Cues

• From Elbow Plank, lift and extend the right arm forward while lifting the
left leg up for Elbow Plank Bird Dog
• Abduct both limbs to the side about a foot’s distance
• Lower the limbs to touch the floor without transferring your weight
• Adduct both limbs back toward the center line
• Lift both limbs back up, thus completing the square
• Keep the Muscular Belt engaged to maintain the neutral spine the entire
time
• Complete the square 2 to 5 times and rest before changing sides. Repeat 2
to 3 times.
 Part 4: Hand Planks
Now the real fun begins. Not that we haven’t been having fun so far, but the
addition of the hands and fingers as support to the lengthened plank to
access more strength in the upper body - and the extra room for leg
movement by lifting the elbows off the floor - highlights the potential of
planks to be one of the best bodyweight training exercises. That’s not to say
that Box Planks and Elbow Planks don’t work the whole body, but their
very structure allows you to focus more on core stability without worrying
too much about working other muscles. Hand Planks, on the other, erm,
hand, require not only core stability but significantly more strength in the
upper and lower body to achieve. Because of this, more muscles are firing,
more neuromuscular connections are being made, more calories are being
burned, and more concentration is needed to perform these properly without
risk of injury.

Until now, the planks have come with the goal of building core stability.
Yes, the Hand Planks will train core strength, but because so much more is
involved, more can go wrong. Therefore, core strength is not so much a
goal in this section but a requirement. You should not even attempt
something like #58, Extended Bird Dog Tuck & Extend without a strong
core because you simply can’t train all the compartments necessary in core
stability while balancing on one arm and one leg and moving the others.
Before trying these, you should have mastered all the previous planks, and
feel that engaging your core is as instinctive as breathing. Otherwise, you’ll
risk not only your spine, but your hands, wrists, elbows, shoulders, neck,
hips, knees, ankles, and feet. Remember to always do an internal diagnostic
and listen to your body.

And in this section, arms are the new legs! But you have to respect that
they’re not used to carrying your bodyweight so you have to condition them
slowly. Make sure you’re spreading your fingers wide and pressing under
the base of your thumb and finger knuckles to disperse the weight away
from the wrists. Pay close attention to the shoulders, keeping them away
from the ears, and the shoulder blades set down the back and supported.
And if your elbows hyperextend like mine, you have to be careful to not
lock your arms but keep a slight bend in the elbows at all times. And
because of this, you don’t want to hold any of these planks for a long time
because the bicep tendons will get overworked by maintaining that bend
and is a common place of injury for this kind of training. Now, if you’re
ready to take your training to the next level, let’s get started!
40. Hand Plank

Level 2

The standard Hand Plank is a great core exercise that also trains the proper
use of the hands and arms for other bodyweight exercises. It is also a
generally safe strength training exercise that helps maintain and build bone
density for the older adult. Refresh your memory of the Wrist Health
advice.

Cues

• Begin in Box Plank and extend your legs behind you and keep your hands
under your shoulders so your body is a straight line from your feet through
the crown of your head
• Spread your fingers and actively press into them and the knuckles so all
your weight isn’t sinking into your wrists.
• External rotate the upper arms which will help keep the shoulders away
from the ears and the shoulder blades sliding down the back. Think of your
triceps wrapping into your armpits and the insides of the elbows trying to
point forward instead of facing each other. This also engages your lats, the
big muscles in your back and sides, which aid stability.
• Feel the toes and hands trying to slide to your center to further engage
your core.
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds or a few deep breaths. Rest and repeat 2 to 3
times.
Common Mistakes
The most common mistake in the Hand Plank is thinking that it’s easy. As
with all other planks, much more is involved than meets the eye, and just
because you’re balanced on your hands and toes doesn’t mean you’ve
accomplished the pose. Work through the cues and use a combination of
visual and internal feedback to feel what achieves the proper alignment.

Mistakes & Corrections

• The head either drops or lifts. Keep the head and neck in line with the
spine.
• The upper back tends to round because of pushing into the shoulder girdle.
Think of extending your chest forward and pull your shoulders away from
the ears while the shoulder blades pull toward the spine. Push the hands into
the floor to activate the pectoral (chest) muscles which will aid shoulder
stability.
• The arms turn in which affects the shoulders. Try to point the elbows back
while exposing the insides of the elbows forward. Remember to draw your
triceps into your sides into your armpits and try sliding your hands back to
engage your back and sides.
• The hips usually drop and the lower back either rounds or collapses.
Engage your Muscular Belt to lift and support the spine in neutral.
• The hips tilt forward which causes compression in the lower spine.
Activate your lower abdomen and think of connecting the front of your hips
to your lower ribs.
41. Knee Tuck

Level 2

One of the major benefits that Hand Planks have over Elbow Planks is that
you have more room for leg options. Sure, you could technically tuck the
knee forward in an Elbow Plank, but that may result in rounding the spine;
not a terrible exercise, as it does target the six-pack muscles in a crunch-like
fashion that can be safer than the crunch, but it defeats the purpose of spine
stability. Also, the line between allowing the spine to bend to work the abs
and pushing the spine out to hollow out the abs is very fine and difficult to
instruct through these pages. Occasionally we will allow the back to round,
but not yet.

Cues

• Begin in Hand Plank and bend your right leg and tuck your knee forward
to your chest as far as you can without tucking the pelvis or rounding your
back. Think of lifting the tailbone in opposition to the forward knee.
• Pause, feeling the strong core hold the knee in place while maintaining a
neutral spine
• Extend the leg back to Hand Plank and change sides
• Alternate or repeat sides 2 to 5 times. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
42. Knee to Triceps

Level 3

This option asks you to abduct the leg slightly outside the same arm without
tilting the pelvis to the opposite side. The key is for your core and moving
leg to work together in opposition. The right leg wants to get higher? Think
of the right hip socket dropping lower. The leg wants to go farther forward?
Think of the tailbone reaching farther backward. This oppositional training
prepares the body for unpredictable forces through the day, like catching a
ball, and also spring loads your musculature to react quickly to those forces,
like throwing back.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, bend your right knee forward and outside the right elbow
• Squeeze your right obliques and the outside of your right thigh to try to
touch your knee to your right triceps, the back of your arm just above the
elbow. Touching the arm may depend on the length of your limbs and torso.
If the knee doesn’t touch, keep reaching as if it is.
• Think about dropping the right hip in opposition to the lifting leg
• Pause, ensuring your spine is neutral, then return to Hand Plank to change
sides
• Advanced users may let the back round for an ab “crunch” feeling, but
slow and controlled
• Alternate or repeat sides 2 to 5 times. Complete 1 to 3 sets, resting
between.
43. Knee Cross Under

Level 3

The leg adductors, the inner thighs, are very important for core stability.
They adduct the thigh towards your center but they also assist in pelvic
stability and our balance when standing. While adding a twist to this
exercise helps engage both the adductors and the obliques, it’s necessary to
first learn this without any spine movement at all. Therefore, it’s up to the
strong inner thighs to move the leg across your midline as opposed to
relying on hip rotation.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, brace your core and bend your left knee forward and
across the midline of your body. Imagine you are going to touch the left
knee to the right elbow.
• Feel the inside of the left thigh engaging to move as far as possible to the
right without rotating the hips. Imagine the left hip is lifting in opposition.
• Maintain a neutral spine, not allowing the back to round or twist at all
• You can hold the position briefly and return to Hand Plank to change
sides, or you can stay there for the duration of the plank.
• Alternate sides or hold for 5 to 15 seconds. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
44. Leg Lift & Tuck

Level 3

Let’s not forget about the back body! Lifting the leg straight up works the
glutes, dynamically stretches the hip flexors, and challenges pelvic stability.
Adding it in a sequence with the preceding three Knee Tuck options will
work the entire hip musculature while forcing the core to work even harder
to maintain a neutral spine.

Cues

• From Hand Plank, engage your core, contract your left glutes, and lift
your left leg up as high as you can without disturbing pelvic alignment
• Bend the left leg and bring the knee forward to the chest contracting the
abs
• Extend the leg back and lift it up again to engage the glutes and feel the
dynamic stretch in front of the left hip
• Lower the leg to Hand Plank and change sides
• Alternate or repeat sides 2 to 5 times. Repeat 2 to 3 times, resting
between.
45. Kick-Ups

Level 3

We explored Leg Pulses in the Elbow Plank, so let’s make it a bit more
aggressive. This time, we’ll be kicking the leg up, really firing the glutes
and contracting the core muscles. This will also challenge the supporting
leg and hip stability because of the repetition and explosiveness.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, brace your core, engage your left glutes, and lift your left
leg up as high as possible without affecting hip or spine alignment
• Lower the leg almost to the floor and then kick the leg back up fast and
powerfully
• Continue kicking the leg up while pressing your right foot into the floor to
stabilize the leg and squeeze your Muscular Belt to keep the spine neutral
• Once the set is complete or you feel your form failing, lower back to Hand
Plank to rest and change sides
• Kick the leg up for 5 to 15 seconds. Rest and change sides, repeating 2 to
3 times.
46. Tree Plank

Level 3

The Tree Plank mimics the standing Tree Pose in yoga but it takes on
different meaning in this horizontal plane. Working the glutes, especially
the gluteus medius on the outside of the hip, and external rotation, this static
hold should feel anything but static. The leg should continually be lifting
while its respective hip is dropping.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, lift the right leg, bend it, and turn it out so the knee is
pointing to the right and lifting away from the floor
• Touch the inside of the right foot to the inside of the left leg either above
or below the knee joint. As in yoga, the foot should not rest or press into the
left leg, but rely totally on strength to keep it in place.
• Because of the structure of your hip, your leg may not rotate very much.
Keep feeling the rotation away from the body but feel the right hip drop and
left hip lift in opposition.
• Ensure the back remains neutral and the weight stays even between the
arms
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds or a few deep breaths. Rest and repeat both sides
2 to 3 times.
47. Starter Lunge

Level 3

On your marks! Get set! Don’t go! Because we’re not going anywhere with
this modified Starter Lunge. This is designed to open the hips with a
dynamic stretch and explore the opposition between energies moving
forward and back, and up and down while, of course, keeping that spine
neutral.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, brace your core and transfer weight away from your right
leg to your left
• Bend the right leg and bring the knee forward to the outside of the right
triceps
• Touch your right foot to the floor at the end of your range of motion. Aim
to touch outside your right hand. It probably won’t get there, and that’s ok!
You may feel a dynamic stretch in the right hip.
• Feel the tailbone lifting up and back to prevent the pelvis from tucking
• Feel the right hip drop against the lifting force of the right leg
• Pause for a moment, then return the leg to Hand Plank and change sides.
• Complete 1 to 3 sets, resting between.
48. Plank to Pike

Level 2

If you found piking in Elbow Plank was too challenging because of the
range of motion required in the shoulders, you may prefer it in the Hand
Plank. The extended arms allow the hips to rise higher than in Elbow Plank
without an excessive stretch through the shoulders.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, press your hands into the floor, pull your abs in, press
through your feet, and allow your hips to rise as high as is comfortable
• Keep your spine long and tailbone lifted
• If the backs of the legs are tight and you are feeling a stretch, bend the
knees slightly. It’s more important to lift the tailbone high and keep a
neutral lower back than it is to keep the legs straight.
• In the pike position, allow your chest to drop between your arms towards
your thighs as long as the head and neck remain in line with the spine
• Lower the hips back to Hand Plank
• Repeat 3 to 5 times. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
49. Pike Split to Knee Tuck

Level 3

Because the hands actually offer some dexterity and control to the balance,
you can do more in a pike than on the elbows and forearms. Respect your
range of motion though, and the goal of the exercise. As more goes on in
the body, the more you have to focus on core technique.

Cues
• In Hand Plank, press your hands into the floor and raise the hips into a
pike. This is your starting position.
• If the legs are far apart, step them together so you have a strong center
footing
• Again, press your hands into the floor, engage your right glutes, inhale
and lift your right leg as high as you can. Do not lift the right hip to lift the
leg. Keep the hips square and your right foot flexed and pointed down.
Height of the leg is not as important as square hips.
• Engage your core, exhale, and sweep your right leg forward as you drop
your hips into Hand Plank, and bend the right knee towards your chest to
perform the Knee Tuck
• Inhale and send the leg back up as you press into a pike
• Lower the leg and change sides
• Alternate or repeat sides 2 to 5 times. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
50. Up Up Down Down
Level 3

Gosh, these titles are creative aren’t they? And yet, in Elbow Plank, if I
said, “Up, up, down down,” you’d probably know exactly what to do. If
not, read on!
Cues

• Begin in Elbow Plank

• Brace your core and place your right hand beneath your right shoulder.
Trying to keep your shoulder girdle square to the floor, press into the hand
straighten your arm as you place the left hand under the left shoulder,
coming to Hand Plank.
• With control, bend your right arm and place your right forearm back on
the ground while bending the left arm to accommodate while keeping your
shoulders square. Place your left elbow on the ground back to return to
Elbow Plank.
• That is one repetition. The tendency is to tilt the torso side to side as the
bodyweight shifts between the hands. Keep the weight transference in the
core and focus on the square body.
• Repeat or alternate the starting arm 2 to 5 times. Repeat 2 to 3 times,
resting between.
51. Shoulder Touch

Level 3

The Shoulder Touch starts to test your stability in Hand Plank when lifting
the arms. Because the shoulders aren’t as stable as the hips, the torso tends
to tilt side to side which twists the spine. If this feels easy, then you’re
doing it wrong. It takes tremendous core strength and focus to achieve this
without any tilting. But as with all other planks, your body will learn how to
find stability if you stick with them and practice diligently.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, brace your core, especially your side oblique muscles
• Without shifting to the left side, lift your right hand and quickly tap the
left shoulder and place it back down. This movement is fast which will help
avoid shifting and also signal your core muscles to fire quickly.
• Play with the tempo and see how it feels to hold the shoulder tap versus
quick repetitions
• Repeat or alternate sides 5 to 10 times Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
52. Extended Plank

Level 4

The Extended Plank is not for everyone. It’s not only challenging but risky
because of the shear force on the spine due to the extended weight-bearing
points. But it’s a great challenge for those advanced athletes who could do a
plank standing on their head. Wait, I guess that’s technically called a
headstand. Well, you get the point. Don’t try this unless everything else
feels very accessible.

Cues

• Begin in Hand Plank. Brace your core and your entire torso. If your hips
are slightly elevated, that’s okay because this can actually protect the spine
here.
• Walk your hands forward and inch at a time while maintaining a neutral
spine. You will feel the pressure in your core and back increase. Engage
your Muscular Belt more. If you feel any pain or discomfort in the middle
of your back in your spine, then stop immediately.
• Know when you’ve reached your maximum distance with your hands.
Since you are an advanced athlete (and you are, since you’re trying this
exercise!), you will know when you shouldn’t go any further when you feel
like your core strength is reaching its limit.
• Lower your knees or walk your hands back and rest. Repeat 2 to 3 times,
resting between.
53. Plank Push
Level 4

Somewhat similar to Up Up Down Down because you are moving from

Elbow Plank to Hand Plank, yet entirely different because you are moving
both arms at the same time to Extended Plank. This is a core and triceps
killer! It can also be a wrist killer if you aren’t using your hands properly.
Remember to push your entire hand into the floor, especially the base
knuckles of your thumbs and index fingers. Avoid leverage force to the
wrists.

Cues

• Begin in Elbow Plank with your palms flat on the ground in line with your
arms
• Press your weight into your hands and fingers and lift your elbows off the
ground until your arms are straight and you come to Extended Plank
• Slowly, and with control, bend your arms and lower your elbows back
down to Elbow Plank. Resist the descent so you don’t crash down onto your
elbows.
• In the transitions, keep your elbows in and don’t let them flare out to the
sides
• Maintain a neutral spine throughout
• Repeat 3 to 5 times. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
54. 2-Point Hand Plank (Arm + Leg Lift)

Level 3

Like in Elbow Plank, moving from four weight-bearing points to two may
seem like a challenge, but because of the counterbalance, it might actually
be easier than it looks. The difficulty will lie in your ability to not only
maintain a neutral spine and pelvis but to use the hands and arms properly
because this is a dynamic exercise. Think of this as a “The Floor Is Lava”
challenge as you want to avoid resting all four limbs on the floor.

Cues

• From Hand Plank, brace your core and lift the right hand and left leg up at
the same time without any shifting in the body. You can keep the right
elbow bent and close to you in this version without extending the arm
forward.
• Place the limbs back down to Hand Plank and change sides immediately
• You don’t need to lift the limbs very high. You can focus on quick changes
as opposed to a static hold so your body gets used to only two weight-
bearing points.
• Remember to spread the fingers wide and press down into all your fingers
and the base of your fingers to avoid bearing into the wrists
• Alternate or repeat sides 3 to 5 times. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
55. Hand to Toe Touch

Level 3

A variation of the 2-Point Hand Plank, this version adds a moving pattern
that challenges focus and accuracy. If you feel even slightly out of control
with this, spend more time on the preceding planks to build up instinctive
core strength so you don’t even have to think about the neutral spine while
moving the limbs.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, brace your core and feel weight transfer away from the
right hand and left foot to the left hand and right foot
• Lift the right hand and left foot at the same time. Bend the left leg forward
and turn it out slightly as if the left foot is trying to reach the right shoulder.
Touch the right hand to the left foot.
• Return the limbs back to Hand Plank and change sides
• There should be no tilting side to side or change in the rest of the body
while the limbs are moving
• Alternate or repeat sides 3 to 5 times. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
56. 3-Point Plank

Level 3

As with the Elbow Plank, removing just one weight-bearing point can be
harder than two, especially when it comes to the arms. But, if you need a bit
more time building up to it, the choice is yours which limb you want to lift
and which three stay on the ground. If you can’t lift an arm without feeling
wobbly, stick to a single leg lift until your strength increases. Whatever you
decide, keep that core engaged and spine neutral!

Cues

• In Hand Plank, feel your Muscular Belt engage as you transfer weight
away from your left arm
• Without tilting to the right, extend your left arm to the left side parallel to
the body
• If you are tilting to the right, engage your obliques more. Also, feel your
left hip and shoulder dropping in opposition to the lifting arm.
• If you feel unstable, separate the legs a little bit which gives you a wider
and more stable base of support. As you progress, take the legs closer for
more of a challenge.
• Either pause briefly or hold for the plank duration. Lower the arm back to
Hand Plank.
• Alternate or repeat sides 3 to 5 times. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
57. Extended Bird Dog

Level 4

Now this one is just as challenging as it looks, especially if you choose to

hold it. Remember that the back body has to be just as active as the front so
there’s a sense of lifting and pushing and pulling all at the same time. Even
though the limbs are extended, this should feel very similar to the standard
Bird Dog in Box Plank and you should be in complete control of back and
pelvic stability.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, press the floor away with all four limbs and feel the core
engage so much that you feel that you are floating in space
• Lift the left arm forward and right leg up. Keep the left shoulder away
from the ear and back strong. Contract the right glutes and lift the leg as
high as you can. All the muscles along the spine should be working to keep
the back stable. Feel the front ab muscles pulling in to keep the hips up.
• You can either hold this position or return to Hand Plank to change sides
• Either alternate sides quickly up to 5 times or hold up to 5 seconds. If it is
a long hold, you may want to rest before changing sides. Rest and repeat 2
to 3 times.
58. Extended Bird Dog Tuck & Extend

Level 4

This is when flaws in your technique will really reveal themselves. If you’re
not using your hand properly and sinking into the wrist, you’ll have no way
of making the necessary micro adjustments to balance. If the core isn’t
engaged, your hips will either be sinking or lifting as the body sways side to
side. If the back isn’t strong, the upper back will sag and the shoulders will
be up by your ears. Remember you are the conductor of your Symphony of
muscles and everything must be working together.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, brace your core and lift your left arm forward and right leg
up to Extended Bird Dog
• Bend the left arm and right leg, bringing your elbow and knee towards
each other
• Return your left arm and right leg to the extended positions
• You can either repeat the tuck and extension or lower to Hand Plank to
change sides
• Keep your body completely stable while moving the limbs
• Alternate or repeat sides 3 to 5 times. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
59. Drawing Squares 3
Level 4

So many muscles work together to both stabilize and move the shoulders
and hips. Sometimes, the inability to achieve certain plank poses isn’t
because of lack of strength but because something is limiting your stability
or movement within these two joints. If you have mastered Drawing
Squares 1 in Box Plank and Drawing Squares 2 in Elbow Plank, give this a
try and continue progressing your strength and stability in all areas
involving the core.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, brace your core and lift your left arm forward and right leg
up to Extended Bird Dog
• Next you will be drawing a square with both of your lifted limbs. Move
the left arm a foot to the left and right leg a foot to the right, lower both
limbs to the floor without any weight transfer, then move the limbs back in
a foot, then up again to Extended Bird Dog. That is one square.
• You can either repeat the same side or lower to Hand Plank to change
sides
• Alternate or repeat sides 3 to 5 times. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
60. Tuck Plank

Level 4

Hm, one of these things is not like the others. I’m not sure Tuck Plank can
actually be called a plank but I’m including it anyway. It doesn’t rely on
neutral spine nor does it train the core muscles in the spine-stiffening way
we’ve been exploring. BUT, it does pose a fun challenge as we progress
through the hand planks with leg options. Like, how successfully can you
hold a plank without any help from the legs at all?! This tests abdominal
and upper body strength and can be a fun goal to work towards for the
advanced athlete with acute body awareness.

Cues

• Start in a crouched position on your toes and hands with your knees
tucked into your chest
• Press into your hands and shift your weight forward into your arms
keeping the elbows bent. Keep your chest reaching forward and your focus
slightly forward which will keep you from rounding too much and falling
forward (but keep a pillow in front, just in case).
• Feel the feet get lighter on the floor. Lift one foot and if you feel stable,
lift the other foot as you lift your knees into your chest. Be aware that
you’re not contracting your abs too much. You should feel strength but not
a sense of bearing down. Breathe evenly.
• Hold for 3 to 10 seconds. Repeat 2 to 3 times, resting between.
61. Reverse Plank
Level 3

Reverse Plank is a great way to strengthen the back body and improve
posture. Just be careful to not lift too high or you may overstretch the
anterior deltoids, the front shoulder muscles which are fairly fragile when
stretched under heavy load.

Cues

• Sit tall with your legs extended in front of you and hands on the floor with
your fingers pointing forward or out to the side
• Press into your hands and heels and lift your hips up as high as is
comfortable to create a straight line in your body. Your hamstrings and
glutes will be firing like crazy! Avoid feeling a stretch in your shoulders.
• Keep your head and neck in line with your spine
• Engage your core and try to feel light on your hands and feet
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds or try lifting the legs straight up or with a bent
knee, either alternating lifts or a single-leg hold. Repeat 2 to 3 times, resting
between
 Part 5: Side Planks
There are two sides to the body. I know, obvious, right? Well, as a trainer, it
doesn’t look too obvious to me because many people in the gym are on
machines or training both sides of the body simultaneously which means
important stabilizers aren’t being activated. Thankfully, we have something
to fix that, and it’s called the Side Plank.

Quadratus Lumborum

The Quadratus Lumborum is the deepest core muscle and I’m giving it a
special mention here because it is located on both sides of the lower back
and it attaches to each vertebra in the lumbar spine as well as to the lowest
rib and the top of the hips. That means it has a big impact on stabilizing the
low back and pelvis whether you are sitting, standing, walking, bending
side to side, or extending the spine. What’s funny about this muscle,
though, is that it doesn’t really change in length during any of these
activities. That means it contracts isometrically to stabilize the pelvis and
low back. Unfortunately, because of its location and structure, the QL’s can
take over for weak glutes and spinal erectors which are often weak because
we spend so much time sitting and with poor posture. Since the quadratus
lumborum is contracted pretty much all the time to keep us upright as well
as doing the job of neighboring muscles, it gets overused, fatigued, tight,
and even imbalanced between both sides which can all lead to pain, injury,
and muscle spasm. Ever had nagging pain on just one side of the low back?
Say hello to the QL!
What we need to do is train this deep muscle unilaterally (on one side) in a
targeted and functional way without loading the spine. And the Side Plank
targets the QL while incorporating the core so that these systems can be
trained neuromuscularly to fire together.

The basic Side Plank is like the Bird Dog and Elbow Plank in that everyone
should be doing some form of these exercises now and for the rest of your
lives. Lower back pain, especially chronic, can affect everything you do
and, perhaps worse, heighten your sensitivity to pain in general, leaving you
feeling very unhappy. That’s right, everyone! The recipe for happiness is
enough money to live comfortably, loving yourself, and side planks.
Unfortunately, I can only offer one of those, so let’s get to it!
62. Side Hip Plank

Level 1

You may not think Side Hip Plank is challenging. With the hip down, there
isn’t much to do, right? Wrong! Your core should be just as active here as in
any of the planks. This version safely loads the shoulder and upper body for
those who may not be used to this position.

Cues

• Begin in Box Plank. Extend the right leg back with your toes on the floor.
Lower your left hip to the floor. Keeping both legs bent, stack your right leg
on top of your left with the knees slightly forward of the body. Using your
right arm for support, lower your left forearm to the floor so the elbow is
directly under the shoulder.
• Press the left forearm down, keep the left shoulder away from your ear,
brace your core, and feel the rib cage lift up from the floor. Imagine a line
from the hips to the head.
• With the left elbow down, you are focusing on your left obliques
engaging. You can press your right fingers into your left side and feel the
muscles firm up.
• Pull the left elbow towards your hip slightly without moving. This helps to
engage the latissimus dorsi, your powerful back muscles that will also
stabilize you in this position.
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds and change sides. Repeat 2 to 3 times, resting
between.
63. Side Knee Plank

Level 1

Once the upper body feels stable in Side Hip Plank, you can challenge
yourself by lengthening to the knee. I generally recommend this over the
full Side Plank because it allows you to focus on core engagement without
struggling with the strength challenge in the supporting shoulder and legs.

Cues

• Begin in Box Plank. Extend the right leg back with your toes on the floor.
Lower your left hip to the floor. Lower your left forearm to the floor.
Keeping both legs bent, stack your right leg on top of your left and extend
the hips forward slightly to keep your body in line.
• Press the left forearm down, engage your core, feel your left side
contracting, and lift your hip off the floor, using your left knee as support.
You can keep your legs stacked or extend the right leg so the inside of the
foot is on the floor for added support. The right arm can rest on the hip, the
opposite shoulder or lift to the ceiling. Play with arm positions to see how it
affects core engagement.
• Breathe evenly and feel a greater contraction in the left side on the exhale.
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds and change sides. Repeat 2 to 3 times, resting
between.
64. Staggered Side Plank

Level 2
Staggering the legs in Side Plank helps broaden your base of support so it’s
not so hard to balance. This variation also allows you to connect with the
inner thigh adductors of the top leg that offer much support in Side Planks.
But, if you have any knee issues, be careful as this kind of adduction with
your bodyweight can put the knee under stress.

Cues

• Come into Side Knee Plank on the right forearm and brace your core and
right obliques
• Straighten your left leg slightly forward with the inner edge of your left
foot on the floor and extend your right leg slightly back with the outside
edge of the right foot on the floor. This is your staggered stance. The inner
thigh of the top leg and the outer thigh of the bottom leg will be engaging to
push the floor away. If you feel any pressure in your knees, return to Side
Knee Plank. Sometimes we need to build up our abductor and adductor
strength in the thigh so that we don’t bear too much weight in our knees for
side stabilization.
• Keep the hips up by lifting through the obliques and press the floor away
through the elbow
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds and change sides. Repeat 2 to 3 times, resting
between.
65. Elevated Side Plank

Level 2

Why so many options before full Side Plank? As I mentioned, this is an

uncommon position that requires proper conditioning to be effective as a
core strengthener. If you get to full Side Plank and are too uncomfortable in
the shoulders, back, or legs, you won’t be able to target the quadratus
lumborum because the body will be compensating for weaknesses. And
remember, Level 1 options aren’t necessarily easier than Levels 2 and 3,
they just take extraneous distractions out of the equation so you can focus
on what really counts. Here, elevating the forearm in Side Plank can takes
pressure off the core as more weight is supported by the legs.

Cues

• Kneel down beside a bench or stable surface

• Place your forearm on the bench and extend your legs to a Staggered Side
Plank. If you feel stable, stack the legs.
• Pull the lower side body in away from the floor as you press the forearm
into the bench. Keep the legs straight and strong so the body is in one line
from the feet through the crown of the head.
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds and change sides. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
66. Side Plank

Level 2

We made it! Full Side Plank from the elbow. The lack of stability from
reducing the contact points on the floor is transferred directly to the core
where the quadratus lumborum works with the abdominal wall to balance
the body and functionally coordinate the musculature of the legs, hips, and
spine. Yay!

Cues

• Follow the cues to begin in Side Knee Plank with the left elbow down in
line with the shoulder, and hips elevated. Extend the right leg forward and
straighten the left leg to balance with staggered legs. Keep the legs straight
and strong with no sinking in the knees.
• Feel the left side body engage more, especially the left obliques and the
left glutes, and stack the right leg on top of the left, ensuring the body is
aligned from the feet through the crown of the head. If this feels unstable,
return to staggered legs.
• Keep the left shoulder away from the left ear and press the left forearm
into the floor.
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds and change sides. Repeat 2 to 3 times, resting
between.
Common Mistakes

There are a lot of things for the body to learn, and these common mistakes
in the Side Plank apply to all of the planks in this section.

Mistakes & Corrections

• The hips have dropped. Engage the obliques as well as the legs to push the
floor away. Feel the right forearm pull towards the waist, almost sliding the
body up. This engages other important side and shoulder stabilizers to keep
the hips elevated and spine supported.
• The shoulder is up by the ear. Keep it down by pressing the forearm into
the floor.
• The body is rotated slightly down. This could be due to weakness in the
shoulders, core, or fear from falling back. Focus on the slight external
rotation in the right shoulder as the right forearm presses the floor away,
and open the left shoulder slightly towards the ceiling.
• The legs are not straight. Because so much is going on, we can forget
about feeling strength through the entire body. Engage the legs equally,
squeezing together and pushing the floor away. • Feel the strength through
the pelvic floor, the torso and out the crown of the head.
• The head has dropped. The cervical spine in the neck is an important cue
for the rest of the spine, and if it is relaxed, chances are parts of the core are
also relaxed. Lengthen the neck and keep the head in line with the spine.
67. Side Plank with Dynamic Arm

Level 2

The rotator cuff muscles, along with the shoulder girdle, are very important
to core stability. The entire trunk structure has to work together and if the
shoulder blades flare when the arms move while the core is trying to protect
the spine, the upper back may twist slightly as a result which puts the spine
and all the delicate shoulder and rotator cuff muscles at risk. Remember,
too, that the core works to inhibit internal motion against external forces.

Cues

• Come into your preferred version of Side Plank either from the knees, or
staggered or stacked legs
• Lift your top arm to the ceiling. Keep the shoulder away from the ear and
feel the strong back holding the shoulder blade down.
• Move the arm forward to point directly in front of the shoulder without
any rounding of the shoulder or movement in the back. Lift the arm back up
to the ceiling without any change in the body.
• Repeat the arm movement several times for 5 to 15 seconds. Rest and
change sides. Repeat 2 to 3 times.
68. Side Plank Hip Lifts

Level 2

Once you can hold Side Plank confidently, add some movement to enhance
the side contraction. Hip Lifts help to isolate the obliques and the QL
because of the lateral bending motion as long as the rest of the body isn’t
being overloaded. And while the contraction should be strong, the actual lift
of the hips is minimal, respecting the long, neutral spine.

Cues

• Come into your preferred version of Side Plank either from the knees, or
staggered or stacked legs
• Contract the obliques and allow the hips to rise slightly as a result, no
more than one or two inches, and then drop the hips back into Side Plank
alignment. It can help to exhale with each lift which also stimulates the core
musculature.
• The lifts can be quick or slow, so experiment with different timing
• There should be no extra effort from the supporting limbs in the Hip Lifts.
All energy should be focused in the side contracting as opposed to the
supporting shoulder, arm, or leg.
• Pulse the hips up for 5 to 15 seconds. Rest and change sides. Repeat 2 to 3
times.
69. Side Plank Hip Dips

Level 3

Unless you’re super strong, don’t even think about attempting this one.
Well, you can attempt it. And you can keep the movement very minimal.
But remember all that talk about trying not to overload the shoulder and
keep all the tension in the core? Yeah, that kind of gets thrown out the
window with this one. The core certainly has to work hard to control the hip
dip and the subsequent lift, but the supporting shoulder is essentially doing
a lateral raise, albeit in coordination with other muscle systems, with a
massive amount of weight. So if you’re in top physical condition, then have
fun!

Cues

• In Side Plank, inhale as you slowly drop the hips an inch or two towards
the floor. Respect the range of motion of the shoulder and the slight lateral
bend in the hips.
• Exhale and lift the hips back up by pressing the forearm into the floor and
contracting that side body. If the shoulder feels at all compromised,
abandon ship! Focus most of the effort in your obliques and try to lessen the
amount of work the supporting shoulder is doing.
• Advanced users can increase the range of motion of both the dip and the
lift
• Repeat the dips 5 to 10 times and change sides. Rest and repeat 2 to 3
times.
70. Side Plank Leg Lift

Level 3

Come on, abductors! Even with the legs stacked, you’re using both of them
to keep your hips up. How about when one of those legs is lifted? The outer
thigh abductors of the lower leg have to work extra hard. But, this leg lift
can definitely be added to the Side Knee Plank to help strengthen the
abductors under much less stress.

Cues

• In Side Plank, brace your core and feel the glutes and outer thigh of the
lower leg strengthen. Feel the top leg get lighter.
• If it feels stable, lift the top leg up as high as you can. The lifting of the
top leg can help lift the hips so it’s not all up to the lower leg.
• Hold the leg lift and breathe evenly, keeping the core and obliques strong
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds and change sides. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
71. Side Plank Lower Leg Lift

Level 3

If you’ve ever had knee issues, don’t try this one. While the inner thigh
adductors of the top leg are supposed to take the weight, they are still fairly
weak for most people which puts the knee, especially the MCL, at risk. But
if you are in top physical condition, you may find this a great conditioner
and connector of how the inner thighs work in coordination with the core.

Cues

• Begin in Staggered Side Plank with the top leg in line with the body
• Start to take some weight away from the lower leg and feel the inner thigh
of the top leg contract more. Make sure the legs are long and strong but not
locked straight. If it feels stable, lift the lower leg, bend the knee, and bring
it forward of the body in the air.
• Ideally, the inner edge of the foot of the top leg is on the floor. You may be
tempted to put the foot flat on the floor which will feel more stable but it
will stretch the outside of the ankle which is not recommended.
• Keep the hips high and feel the strong obliques lifting you away from the
floor to help out the inner thigh of the top leg
• Hold for 5 to 10 seconds and change sides. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
72. Side Plank Tuck & Extend

Level 3
We moved the arms and then we moved the legs. Alright, altogether now!
While I will sometimes do these while flexing the spine like a traditional
crunch, for the purposes of this book, I’m going to stick the goal of full
stability. Once you can tuck and extend the limbs with no movement in the
body, feel free to experiment with a slight flexion through the core when the
limbs bend to your center and then extension when the limbs straighten. But
know this will still put some pressure on the spine, so make sure your focus
consistently remains on core stability.

Cues

• Come into Side Plank and lift the top leg. Extend the top arm beside the
ear.
• Bend the lifted limbs forward to touch the elbow to the knee in front of the
body. The limbs probably won’t meet without flexing the spine, depending
on your body’s proportions, but this motivation will help engage the core
further. Do not round the back or hips, and maintain your strong neutral
spine.
• Extend the limbs back to the starting position. That is one repetition.
• Repeat the tuck and extend 3 to 5 times and change sides. Rest and repeat
2 to 3 times.
73. Side Plank Rotation

Level 4

Any movement at the shoulder joint is going to require strong, healthy

shoulders in addition to a stable core. That’s important because this is a
rotation and not a twist, and there should be no movement in the spine. The
entire body rotates to the floor as one instead of in pieces. The tendency is
to start the rotation in the upper body followed by the rest of the torso and
then the pelvis and legs. But this segments the spine and informs the body
to move in a disjointed way.

Cues

• Begin in Side Staggered Plank with the top leg forward and bottom leg
back. The top arm can be wherever you like, either down at your side,
straight up, or, as pictured, bent with the hand just behind the head. I like
this arm position because keeping the elbow pulling back in the rotation
keeps the shoulder from rolling forward.
• Rotate the body to face the floor. The movement is initiated in the core but
connected to the whole body. Avoid moving the pelvis or the upper back
first, but move as one whole piece.
• Ensure you end up facing the floor in 3-Point Plank with your toes
pointing straight down
• Rotate back to the starting position, keeping a neutral spine the entire time
• Rotate 3 to 5 times and rest before changing sides. Repeat 2 to 3 times.
74. Feet Elevated Side Plank

Level 3

Just as elevating the arm in Side Plank takes pressure off the core, elevating
the feet adds pressure to the core. The upper body in general will be more
taxed in this position so be sure you have a good foundation of strength and
stability in the shoulder girdle before attempting this. The set-up alone
requires good strength and coordination in the lower body as well.

Cues

• Line yourself up perpendicularly to a bench or stable surface

• Come into Side Hip Plank with both hands on the floor and your top leg
bent so the foot is on the floor behind you
• Place your bottom leg on the bench and lift your hips off the floor
• Press your forearm into the floor and lift your top leg and place it on top
of the elevated bottom leg. The top arm will have come off the floor and
you can extend it above you or rest it on your hip. Squeeze your Muscular
Belt and breathe evenly.
• Experiment with previous arm and leg movement options
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds and change sides. Repeat 2 to 3 times, resting
between.
75. Side Hand Plank

Level 3

Before you jump right into Side Hand Plank, remember that you can use
other options in the Side Elbow Planks first, like dropping the knees for a
Side Hand Knee Plank or keeping both legs down for a Staggered Side
Hand Plank. Before attempting Side Hand Plank, review the Wrist Health
tips in the Introduction so you have a good foundation for the following
planks. Never lock your elbows or knees, but feel strength through your
whole body lifting and supporting you.

Cues

• Begin in Hand Plank and rotate to one side, lifting the top arm. You are
now in a Staggered Side Hand Plank (much like Staggered Side Elbow
Plank). If this feels like it’s too much, bend the bottom leg to support
yourself on the knee (like Side Knee Plank). But if you’re feeling steady
and strong, stack the legs
• Make sure the hand is directly below the shoulder. Spread the fingers wide
and disperse the weight through the whole hand. Keep a microbend in the
arm.
• Engage the obliques and legs and keep the hips high as you press the floor
away
• Feel the strong back keeping the shoulder girdle stable and shoulders
away from the ears
• Keep your head and neck in line with your spine. Breathe evenly.
• You can easily modify this with the knee down and staggered legs, or turn
it up a notch with the previous plank options of hip lifts and dips, and top
and bottom leg lifts.
• Hold for 5 to 15 seconds and change sides. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
76. 3-Point Plank to Side Hand Plank

Level 4

Similar to the Side Plank Rotation, this version tests how well you can
move as one compartment. The tendency here is to undulate through the
body both to get to Side Hand Plank and to return to 3-Point Plank. It’s the
last part that’s so tricky. The common limiter is shoulder and upper body
strength but also awareness of a square body. Just imagine that your toes,
hips, and shoulders all have to face the same direction at once. If you find
your toes pointing down but your hips pointing 45 degrees to the side and
the shoulders pointing somewhere in between, you’ve lost your form and
should start again.

Cues

• Begin in Hand Plank and lift the left arm to the side for 3-Point Plank.
This is the start.
• Moving the body as one, rotate to the left to end in Side Hand Plank with
legs staggered
• Again, moving the body as one, rotate back to the starting position. Make
sure the body has ended completely square to the floor with toes, hips, and
shoulders pointing down, and the left arm reaching to the side away from
the shoulder.
• Lower the left hand and repeat on the other side.
• Alternate or repeat sides 3 to 5 times. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
77. 3-Point Plank to Side Plank Leg Lift

Level 4

Yay, so many options! This one pivots between both planks on just one leg,
so don’t feel bad if you have trouble finding your balance. The only way to
train balance is to train out of balance! Remember the body again has to
move as one compartment instead of in segments.

Cues

• Begin in Hand Plank and lift the left leg for 3-Point Plank.
• Moving slowly, rotate the whole body to Side Hand Plank while keeping
the left leg up
• Pause and then rotate the body back to face the floor while keeping the left
leg elevated and place the left hand down to return to 3-Point Plank
• Lower the leg and lift the right leg to repeat on the other side.
• Alternate or repeat sides 3 to 5 times. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
78. Extended Bird Dog to Side Plank Lower Leg Lift
Level 4

You’ll recall in the Side Plank Lower Leg Lift that there is a risk to the
knee, especially the MCL, the medial collateral ligament, when the top leg
is supporting you. If you’ve ever injured the knee, skip this plank option
entirely. If you are in peak physical condition without any knee troubles,
then this is a really fun option to advance your core strength and balance.

Cues

• Begin in Hand Plank and extend the left arm and right leg up for Extended
Bird Dog
• Bend the right leg and tuck the right knee under the body as you pivot on
the left foot and right hand to rotate to the left and reach the left arm to the
ceiling and extend the right leg forward for Side Hand Plank Lower Leg
Lift. Did you catch all that? While a lot happens at once, move slowly and
methodically. Note the left leg can bend to make pivoting easier.
• Pause and then reverse the process by bending the right leg and tucking it
under the body as you rotate back to face the floor with the right leg
extended behind you in the air and the left arm reaching forward in
Extended Bird Dog.
• Lower the limbs to Hand Plank and repeat on the other side.
• Alternate or repeat sides 3 to 5 times. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
 Part 6: Cardio Planks
Everyone who thinks cardio is boring, raise their hands! Oops, everyone
dropped this book.
Now that you’ve picked this book back up, let’s get to cardio. Wait! Cardio
doesn’t have to be boring! I know you’re thinking about the hours a week
needed on the treadmill, elliptical, or other cardio equipment to get the
benefits of challenging your cardiovascular system. But, as I mentioned in
the Weight Loss Plan, interval training is much more effective than
traditional steady state training, and these plank options are perfect for
intervals. And wouldn’t everyone prefer to cut down their cardio time? I
know I do! Check out the workouts in Burning The Core for more ideas.

The following planks all raise the heart rate through challenging, dynamic
movement and are a great addition to any workout plan, especially if your
goal is fat loss or increased athletic ability. They also test all of the core
conditioning you’ve been working on in the other planks. Also, and this is
my favorite part, they’re just plain fun!

BE QUIET!

And I mean that literally. If you think of movement as noise, then stillness
is silent. And many of the Cardio Planks have noisy limbs but should have
very quiet torsos and hips. So when you’re doing Plank Jacks with the legs
jumping out and in quickly and, probably, being quite loud, the rest of the
body should ideally not move at all and be quiet as a mouse. Imagine you
were being filmed from the hips up during Plank Jacks. Because of your
stability and stillness, no one should be able to tell that you’re even doing
Plank Jacks just by looking at your torso. So make like Elmer Fudd hunting
wabbits and be vewy vewy quiet!

And that also applies to the Cardio Planks that require a lot of movement
and “noise” from the whole body like the Bucking Bronco where the hips
and torso do rise. Listen to how much impact your feet are having on the
floor when you land. Ideally, you will absorb the landing with your strength
and resilient joints so you’re not crashing down hard on stiff limbs. This
also reveals how much core and upper body strength you’re recruiting
which is challenging but necessary for the successful performance of these
planks.
79. Plank Jacks

Level 4

Everybody loves jumping jacks! And you’re especially going to love them
in the horizontal plane. Strength, stability, fast-twitch muscle fibers, cardio,
this exercise trains everything. But guess what this exercise isn’t?
Twerking! Save that hip bounce for the club, people.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, brace your core and feel your body shifting slightly
forward so more weight is in your arms
• Keeping your hips stable, quickly jump your legs out to a wide plank and
immediately back in. • Keep jumping until the end of your set.
• Don’t allow the hips to bounce up and down at all. You can cheat by
lifting the hips to make the legs lighter and then jump them out but then
you’re using leverage and momentum. Feel like the legs are floating as you
quickly jump out and in.
• Repeat the jumping jacks for 5 to 20 seconds, breathing evenly
throughout.
80. Mountain Climbers

Level 3

This classic cardio core exercise is usually performed with bouncing hips, a
rounded back, and feet crashing into the floor. Not today! In many of these
cardio planks, you are engaging the core so much and shifting your
bodyweight forward to make the legs feel light so that when they’re
moving, the rest of the body remains stable.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, brace your core and feel your body shifting slightly
forward so more weight is in your arms
• Bend the right knee forward towards your chest. Quickly jump the legs to
change position so the left leg is forward and right leg is back. Continue
jumping like you are running, or, as the name suggests, speed climbing a
mountain.
• Avoid any bounce in the hips by squeezing the Muscular Belt, and feel
your arms gripping and pressing into the floor to keep your bodyweight
forward
• Repeat the Mountain Climbers for 5 to 20 seconds, breathing evenly
throughout.
81. Walk The Plank
Level 3
So far you’ve been getting into plank safely by lunging, then coming to
your knees, then Box Plank, then proceeding to the plank of your choice.
Right?? Okay, I won’t call the technique police on you, but remember that
moving mindfully in the transitions is very important. And here’s a fun way
to move in and out of plank that is a fun exercise in itself!

Cues

• From standing, drop your hips back and bend your legs to squat. Keep
your spine neutral.
• Place the right hand on the floor in front of you as your heels lift off the
floor. Then step your left hand farther forward than that as your body
becomes parallel to the floor.
• Drop the right forearm to the floor followed by the left to come in to
Elbow Plank
• Press up onto your right hand and then your left farther back as you bend
the legs. Push the floor away with the hands as you pull the body back with
your core strength into the squat.
• Stand and repeat starting with the left hand. Ideally, there should be two
“steps” forward and back with the hands, but if you’re trying this for the
first time, add more. Progress to taking just one step forward and back with
the hand. The back stays neutral the whole time.
• Repeat 2 to 5 times or for 5 to 20 seconds, increasing speed as you get
stronger.
82. Jump Lunges

Level 4

Similar to Plank Jacks, Jump Lunges require jumping the legs while the
hips and torso remain stable. But this one challenges your hip mobility and
plays a bit more with your center of weight which definitely makes hip
stability a challenge. Keep your spine neutral with a strong core and back. If
you find your pelvis continues to tilt back and the lower back rounds,
reduce your range of motion. Note the reverse lunges in the Warm-Up will
help mobilize the hips so if the hips are tight, try repeating that exercise.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, brace your core and shift your body forward so more
weight is in your arms
• Bend your right leg and bring your knee towards the outside of your right
arm and touch your foot to the floor. Do not lift the right hip or allow the
left hip to drop.
• Engage your Muscular Belt to keep your torso and hips rigid and quickly
jump your legs to change positions so your left leg is outside your left arm
and your right leg is extended back
• Try not to “land” on your feet in the lunge, but feel like you are just
tapping the floor quickly with your feet as you change. Try to keep more
weight in your arms than your legs.
• Repeat for 5 to 20 seconds, increasing speed as your strength progresses.
83. Bear Crawl

Level 4

Remember when you used to be a kid? I know, it was a looong time ago,
right? Well, you used to be able to walk around on your hands and feet all
the time. You’ve just forgotten how! The Bear Crawl is ideally performed in
a large space or outside on the grass where you can walk for a good
distance. If you don’t have a lot of space, then you will just walk forward as
far as you can, then back, repeating until your set is done.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, bend and step your right leg forward while walking your
left hand forward transferring your weight to those limbs. Keep a neutral
spine and lifted tailbone.
• Step your left foot forward while walking your right hand forward.
Continue crawling forward until you’ve run out of space, and then crawl
back to your starting spot.
• As always, keep your spine neutral, tailbone lifted, shoulders down away
from the ears, arms slightly bent but rigid, and feel a strong line of core
strength through the whole body
• Since you are moving the hands frequently with weight transfer,
remember to be mindful of spreading the weight through the whole hand so
you don’t aggravate the wrists
• Crawl for 5 to 20 seconds forward and back, increasing your speed as
strength progresses.
84. Hovering Box Plank to Crab

Level 4

Once you realize how much functional movement is possible without

sacrificing spine stability, you’ll wonder how you ever moved before! This
variation includes a calisthenic exercise you probably did in elementary
school gym class, the crab. But this version keeps the hips way down
instead of pushing them up. The anterior deltoids, the front of the shoulders,
are small muscles that are usually tight and are at great risk of tearing if you
force them into extension under load which is what pushing your hips up in
a crab would do.

Cues

• Begin in Hovering Box Plank, bend your right knee towards your left
elbow while lifting your left arm. Follow this momentum by spinning the
body around as you pivot on the left foot to face the ceiling with the right
leg and left arm elevated, keeping the hips low.
• Reverse the movement and take the right leg under you and pivot to
Hovering Box Plank.
• Alternate sides while keeping the arms slightly bent and ensuring the
spine is neutral. Try to initiate all movement by engaging the core first to
move the leg and to rotate the body.
• Repeat 2 to 5 times or for 5 to 20 seconds. Try combining this with a Bear
Crawl by doing 4 Bear Crawls, switch to Crab and then do 4 Crab Walks,
and repeat.
85. Prone Speed Skater
Level 4

We’ve had the chance to explore lateral movement several times in the
planks, but this variation adds a plyometric challenge. If you play sports
that require quick changes in direction, you’ll enjoy the Prone Speed Skater
as it conditions the reactive muscles in the outer thighs and hips in
conjunction with the core while training impact absorption through the feet,
ankles and knees.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, brace your core and bend your left knee, lifting the leg
forward. Shift your bodyweight slightly forward into your arms to prepare.
• Powerfully jump the left leg out to the left to land on the left foot with a
bent knee while the right leg pushes the floor away and rises in the air to
come beside the left leg but staying aloft with a bent knee. Briefly, the arms
will take all your bodyweight while both legs are airborne. At first, you may
have one foot always in contact with the floor.
• Repeat to the right, feeling a smooth side-to-side motion like a speed
skater. You can allow the hips to rise, especially to send more weight into
your arms.
• “Skate” for 5 to 20 seconds. As you progress, make the movement bigger
and faster.
86. Flying Scissor Kick
Level 4

Hopefully you’ve been keeping in mind just how active the back body is in
the plank. If so, then this plank will be a breeze. Literally! You will feel the
back pulling the body up and away from the floor to get lift for the legs and
to avoid crashing down on your feet.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, brace your core and lift your left leg. Shift your
bodyweight slightly forward into your arms and lower your left leg almost
to the floor to prepare.
• On a strong exhale, contract the left glutes and kick the left leg up into the
air high and forcefully. Allow the hips to rise. At the top of the kick, feel
your arms take all of your bodyweight for a moment and kick your right leg
up. Briefly, both legs will be in the air until your left foot returns to the
floor and the hips return to parallel plank position in line with the body as
the right foot lowers to almost touch the floor. Kick the right foot up to
repeat the sequence.
• You should feel a sense of the legs flying as your arms take most of your
bodyweight throughout the set
• “Fly” for 5 to 20 seconds or as long as your technique remains perfect.
87. Bucking Bronco

Level 4

Quads. That’s what you’re feeling. “Hello, quads,” you can say to them as
they’re burning. “Yes, you’re burning, but it’s only another 10 seconds, and
anyone can do pretty much anything for 10 seconds, so hang in there,
quads!” Plyometrics are great for building power in the legs and core and
the Bucking Bronco literally kicks it up a big notch by recruiting both legs
and a big range of motion.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, brace your abs and bend both legs and shift your
bodyweight slightly back
• Kick the floor away powerfully to send both legs into the air while
shifting your weight into your arms. In the air, bend the legs again and kick
towards your butt.
• As you descend, extend your legs slightly to prepare for landing. You
want to land with strong muscles and resilient but sturdy knees that absorb
the impact. Bend the knees to again prepare to repeat.
• Don’t rest on the floor, but kick back up forcefully as soon as you can
• Kick up for 5 to 20 seconds. Reduce the range of motion if it’s hard on the
knees.
88. Lateral Bucking Bronco
Level 4

Jumping in a plank while keeping the hips and spine stable is a big
challenge but one I’m sure you’re up for if you’ve made it this far. But
remember all that talk about not bouncing the hips in other variations like
Plank Jacks? I’m sure by now you’ve figured out that that’s not always the
case. Hips bounce, backs round, bodies move. The point of plank training
isn’t to lock your joints into one unmovable object, it’s to stiffen the
muscles around the spine to protect it from damaging forces. The Bucking
Broncos, and the preceding Flying Scissor Kick, ask the hips to rise and fall
while keep the core and back strong to maintain the neutral spine.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, bend your legs and send more weight into your lower body
• Push the floor away with your legs, allowing your arms to take your
bodyweight while you thrust the hips up and jump the legs into the air,
bending your knees, and landing a couple of feet to the right with legs bent.
• Again, push the floor away and jump your legs into the air, bending them
as if you are kicking your butt, and land them a couple of feet to the left of
your starting position
• Jump 3 to 5 times each side or for 5 to 20 seconds.
 Part 7: Resistance is Futile
(Actually, no it’s not, it’s totally necessary
here!)
You can add a weight or some type of resistance to nearly every plank in
this book. If I were to show you all the options, this book would have to be
titled 200 Planks! So instead of doing that, in this final section I’ll show you
some of my all-time favorite resistance plank options that I do regularly.
They come with a big word of caution though: faulty technique in non-
weighted planks can leave the spine vulnerable to injury, so adding extra
weight can increase the risk exponentially. Attempt these only once you’ve
mastered their non-weighted options, especially if you are not supervised by
a professional. For those of you who are ready, these planks will really take
your core strength and body awareness to the next level!

Making the external internal

I talk a lot about having fun - and these resistance planks are super fun! -
but remember that we train the core not only to build a strong, supported
spine, but to improve your habits and movement patterns throughout the
day so that you’re always aware of your alignment and core engagement.
Don’t let your focus rest on the weight that you’re using, but how you
integrate the weight into your core functioning. That’s actually how you
should always think of external loading factors. Don’t lift the weight,
absorb the weight into your core and move. Don’t lift the box, bring the box
into your core and carry it. Don’t hit a ball with a racket, the racket is an
extension of your core that absorbs and reacts to the ball’s impact. Don’t
block a hit, absorb the hit’s force into your core so you can use it to transfer
it away from you. Internalizing your environment will change how you
function with its unpredictabilities which then reinforces how connected we
are to everything around us. And that’s something worth meditating on
during those long planking sessions. Bet you didn’t think we’d be musing
on zen and quantum mechanics one plank at a time when you picked up this
book, huh?! LOL! YAY, PLANKS!
89. Weight Pass
Level 4

Performing the Weight Pass in Elbow Plank is very difficult because the
shoulders want to tilt to counterbalance the extra weight in the arm. But that
would mean twisting the spine! Start very light with this one.

Cues

• Begin in Elbow Plank with a light weight, about 3 to 10 pounds, to your

right
• Lift your right arm to the side and grab the weight without lifting the right
shoulder. Bring the weight in front of your left hand and lower the right
forearm back to plank. Grab the weight with your left hand and extend it
out as far as you can to the left side without tilting the shoulders or the hips.
Touch the weight to the floor and then bring the weight back in front of the
right hand. That is one repetition.
• If stability is challenging, try widening the legs a little bit until the hips
remain square. If the shoulders continue to tilt, use a lighter weight or no
weight until you build up more strength.
• Alternate or repeat sides 2 to 5 times. Rest and repeat for a total of 2 to 3
sets.
90. Weighted Plank

Level 4

The Weighted Plank is only for those who are confident in their advanced
level strength. Adding weight to the center of your body where it’s most
vulnerable is not a challenge I recommend often. That said, it’s a great
workout for those who want to be reminded of the burning ab muscles you
once felt when trying to hold it a plank for 20 seconds. Be hyper-aware of
your technique, though, and avoid dropping the hips or rounding the upper
back. Ideally this is performed with a weight plate or sandbell to rest on
your sacrum and mid-back.

Cues

• Kneel down with your toes tucked under and sit on your heels next to a
weight of your choice (go light at first, to a maximum of 45 pounds).
Carefully lift the weight up onto your heels and shift the weight to balance
on your sacrum and mid-back (ideally, not a dumbell, as pictured). Holding
it in place, tilt your torso forward until you’re parallel with the floor and
come onto your elbows and extend your legs for Elbow Plank.
• Don’t sink in the hips, but brace your core even more to sustain the extra
weight.
• Hold for 5 to 20 seconds. Rest and repeat for a total of 2 to 3 times. Try
adding dynamic movement like side toe taps, leg lifts, arm lifts, or arm plus
leg lifts at the same time.
91. Weighted Push Pull

Level 4

One of my all-time favorites for how much neuromuscular awareness it

takes to keep the body square while moving the weighted arm. Because it’s
largely up to you how much resistance is involved, the hips and shoulders
will want to tilt because of your focus on the weight. Start very light and
work the obliques to ensure a square body. Think of the Weighted Push Pull
like an incline chest press and chin-up, pushing hard into the floor to
activate the upper pectoral and shoulder muscles, and pulling back hard as
if you’re trying to pull yourself forward.

Cues

• Have a weight near the left arm and come into Elbow Plank. Grab the
weight with the left hand without tilting the shoulders or hips and press it
into the floor. Push the weight forward until the arm is fully extended and
then pull it back until the arm is fully bent and the elbow is into your side.
• If the hips are tilting, squeeze your obliques and try to drop the hip on the
same side as the moving arm. You can also widen your stance for more
stability.
• Make sure the moving arm’s shoulder stays down.
• Repeat the same side 5 to 10 times. Rest and change sides. Complete 1 to
3 sets.
92. Renegade Row

Level 4

One of the most popular plank options with weights, the Renegade Row is
amazing for its stability training and for its perfect position for back
conditioning. Many people perform standing rows only slightly bent over
which tends to make the movement shoulder-dominant. But bringing the
torso parallel to the floor in plank means the powerful back muscles can
work in direct opposition to gravity and thus function properly.

Cues

• Begin with heavy dumbbells in your hands in Hand Plank or Box Plank.
The weights should be challenging to lift but not so heavy they disturb your
alignment.
• Lift the right arm up with the weight, pulling the elbow up and back to
squeeze into your side. The latissimus dorsi work not only with the pulling
action but with the adduction action of the arm coming towards the midline
of the body, so make sure the elbow isn’t flaring away from your side.
• Lower the weight and change sides, or repeat the same side. If the handles
of the dumbbells bother your palms, keep your hands on the floor and
alternate hands to grab one weight.
• Alternate or repeat sides for 5 to 10 repetitions. Rest and repeat for 2 to 3
sets.
93. Renegade Bicep Curl & Tricep Kickback

Level 4

Similar to the Renegade Row, this can be performed in Hand Plank, Bird
Dog, or Extended Bird Dog. Choose the option that is best for you that is
challenging but not beyond your limits.

Cues
• Begin with a light dumbbell in your hand in Hand Plank or Box Plank
with an optional leg lift opposite the weighted arm. The weight should not
be so heavy to disturb your alignment. You can keep weights in both hands
if holding them is okay for your wrists.
• Holding on to the weight, do a bicep curl. Keep the elbow directly below
the shoulder as you try to curl the weight up to the shoulder to maximum
flexion.
• Then keep the arm bent and pull the elbow back to your side and then
straighten the arm for the tricep kickback. The arm will extend back in line
with your body.
• Lower the weight and change sides.
• Alternate or repeat sides for 5 to 10 repetitions. Rest and repeat for 2 to 3
sets. Play with the order of exercises. Try a bicep curl, tricep kickback, and
another bicep curl before placing the arm down and changing sides. Or start
with the kickback then curl and change sides. Experiment and keep the
body guessing.
94. Renegade Reverse Fly

Level 4

The Reverse Fly is another exercise like Renegade Row that is actually
performed more effectively in this angle than standing. Working in
opposition to gravity, the rear deltoid and all of the back and shoulder
muscles that stabilize the shoulder blades can function correctly and
without straining the neck or lower back. That is, if you can keep the body
square in the full extension, which is no easy feat.

Cues

• Begin with light dumbbells in your hands in Hand Plank, Bird Dog, or
Extended Bird Dog. The weights should not be so heavy they disturb your
alignment.
• Lift the left arm to the side away from the shoulder until it is parallel with
the body. Keep the arm long with a slight bend in the elbow. Do not lift the
left shoulder or hip. Imagine the left shoulder dropping in opposition to the
lifted arm.
• Lower the arm and change sides
• Alternate or repeat sides 5 to 10 times. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times each
side.
95. Side Plank Shoulder Press

Level 4

The Side Plank Hip Lift is hard enough without adding a shoulder press, so
this will be really fun! You can try this in any Side Plank of your choice
whether it’s from the elbow or hand with the legs stacked or staggered, or
from the knees. As always in Side Plank, listen to the supporting shoulder
and keep the body movement to a minimum at first.

Cues

• In Side Plank with extended legs, staggered legs, or bent knees on your
right side, grab a light dumbbell in the left hand and extend it to the ceiling
• Bend the left arm so your elbow is tucked in to your left side. You can add
a Hip Dip if you have strength and control in the range of motion.
• Contract the lower side body and lift the hips and press the weight up
extending the arm
Inhale to bring the elbow back into your side as you lower the hips slightly
to repeat
• Do 5 to 10 shoulder presses, making sure both the moving and supporting
shoulders are feeling stable. Rest and complete 2 to 3 sets each side.
96. Side Plank Forward Raise

Level 4

Our body parts are like sheep; where one part goes, the other parts want to
follow. Sometimes that’s exactly why we get injured, because we can’t
resist energies pulling us in a certain direction if we can’t balance ourselves
in opposition. This is a great exercise that reveals a lot about your body
awareness and helps you tune in to all those micro-movements you don’t
even realize your body is making.

Cues

• In the Side Plank of your choice from the elbow or hand, with stacked or
staggered legs or from the knees, grab a light weight in your top hand and
extend it to the ceiling
• Keeping the core strong, lower the arm forward until it ends up directly in
front of the shoulder. • There should be no movement in the torso. Feel the
back of the shoulder girdle remain strong and stable. Don’t allow the
shoulder to round forward.
• Raise the arm back up to the starting position using the strength of your
core, back muscles, and posterior deltoid (back of the shoulder)
• Do 5 to 10 reps per side. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times each side.
97. Weighted Side Plank Hip Lifts

Level 4

If you find yourself getting bored and daydreaming about Caribbean

vacations while holding a perfect Side Plank, it’s time to add some weight.
And for some of you, that may mean a lot of weight. I do Weighted Side
Plank Hip Lifts at least once a week with a 40-pound dumbbell on my side,
pulsing up for 20 reps, doing three sets each side. But for some of you,
holding just 5 pounds on your side will add enough resistance to keep your
focus on your core instead of the Caribbean. Not that there’s anything
wrong with that. Fitness retreat in Turks, anyone? Ok, now I’m the one
who’s daydreaming! Back to the Side Plank!

Cues

• In Side Plank either from the knees or staggered or stacked legs, grab a
manageable weight and place it on or just above your hip
• Squeeze your bottom obliques, exhale, and lift the hips up. Continue
pulsing the contraction in your obliques to keep lifting the hips.
• Keep the movement minimal here. Any extra weight will add pressure to
the spine as well as the supporting shoulder and legs especially during
movement.
• Do 5 to 20 lifts per side. Rest and complete 2 to 3 sets each side.
98. Weighted Crawl

Level 4

Adding weight to leg movement will further work the hip flexors, quads,
and the entire core in general. If you don’t have access to a gym that has
weight plates (and sandbells are perfect for this!), you just have to
MacGyver something at home. When I work with my clients in their
homes, I’ll have them put their feet on a towel and place a heavy dumbbell
between their feet.

Cues

• In Hand Plank, place your feet on a weighted apparatus that can slide
easily like a weight plate on astroturf, a heavy sandbell, or a towel with
weights on it
• Keeping the legs straight and back flat, walk forward with your hands as
far as you can and either turn around or push backward to your starting
point
• Keep a neutral spine and don’t let your hips drop. If possible, try to
squeeze the legs together so you feel the inner thighs, pelvic floor, and
lower abdomen contract strongly to pull the weight forward.
• As an alternative, the “Inchworm” starts by bending your legs and tucking
your knees forward and then walking your hands forward until the legs are
straight
• Crawl for 5 to 20 seconds. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times.
99. Plank Band Pull
Level 4

Adding any kind of pulling motion to a plank is beneficial not just for the
core but to stimulate back muscles which don’t get nearly as much attention
as they should. Posture, spine health, balance, and body awareness are all
improved by training back strength especially in coordination with core-
focused plank work. Wrap a resistance band around a stable post like the
foot of a bed or, in this case, a piano, or use a cable machine at the gym.

Cues

• Anchor a resistance band around a stable post or use a cable machine at

the gym. In the plank of your choice - Bird Dog, Elbow Plank, Side Plank -
make sure you are far enough away from the post that there is resistance
with your straight arm but close enough that grabbing the band doesn’t
overstretch your back or shoulder.
• Pull the elbow back and in to your side, engaging the back muscles. Pause
and extend.
• Whatever plank you choose, make sure it is unaffected when pulling the
band. The shoulder should stay back and the spine should remain neutral
without any rounding. Make sure you exhale on the pull, and increase the
resistance as you get stronger.
• Complete 5 to 10 reps per side. Rest and repeat for 2 to 3 sets.
100. Hand Plank Leg Band Pull
Level 4

Like the Plank Band Pull, wrapping a band around the foot adds a whole
other dimension to the plank. The muscle fibres in your lower abdomen will
fire like never before as the hip flexors and core are overloaded trying to
pull the knee forward. Because the legs and hips are more powerful than the
arms, you can really benefit by doing this at the gym and adding a lot of
weight to the cable machine. Try this in Bird Dog, Hand Plank, or Side
Plank, but Elbow Plank won’t give you enough room to move the leg unless
your elbows are elevated.

Cues

• In the plank of your choice, wrap an anchored resistance band around your
foot. You may have to walk yourself a few inches away to make sure the
band or cable is under tension when your leg is straight to get the full
benefit
• Brace your core and keep your back neutral as you pull the knee towards
you. You can pull the knee to the chest or outside of the corresponding
elbow to work the obliques more, or bend the leg to work the hamstrings
and glutes. The resistance from the band or cable will want to pull your
spine into flexion, but don’t let it!
• Slowly resist the load as you straighten the leg.
• Repeat 5 to 10 reps and change sides. Rest and repeat 2 to 3 times
 The End…?
Well, I’m sure you know that this is not the end. Fitness is a never-ending
journey through highs and lows and detours and discoveries. Throughout all
of it, never forget the joy. Whether you are a professional athlete slogging
through the rain and mud because you can’t miss a day of training or you
are an overworked parent trying to find a second to take care of yourself,
finally, or you’re someone who’s struggling to stay afloat in the quagmire of
depression, I hope you’ll find a way to connect with the primal joy of
moving. Let’s not take for granted what our amazing bodies can do.
Through the bad times, I’ve always tried to say to myself, “But hey, I’m so
thankful for my two legs and the things they can do!” And if I didn’t have
two legs, I like to think I’d feel grateful for my arms or the very act of
breathing. Using your body can remind you that you have to take care of
yourself and that you have a lot to be thankful for. Enjoy the process, enjoy
the results.

And if you don’t, I hope you at least enjoyed seeing my kitties throughout
this book! In case you don’t know, my cats, Shorty and Kodi, are my little
furry feline companions with a popular online following. They normally
join me when I’m filming fitness and yoga videos and Kodi, particularly,
was very interested in being part of the photos for this book. Shorty, for you
black cat lovers out there, was still present, albeit off camera, watching
everything from the window sill (though she does make regular
appearances in some of the video tutorials). They also remind me to enjoy
the process and keep me living in the moment. They also make planks
much more interesting. Try a Side Plank Tuck & Extend with the
supporting hand petting an insistent cat! It’s just another variation of the
many plank options out there and why planks are my favorite and just so
much fun. Here’s to strong cores and stable spines and funny felines and to
you.

STAY STRONG!
Rob
[Link]