Flip Flop Rider

anyone doing it? I'm talking supporting your weight on your forearms and the balls of your feet in a straight position

do you time yourself? Do sets? Do it during commercials? Have variations?

was wondering because I heard a podcaster mention it. Is this an effective ab workout in your opinion?

​​​​​​​thanks for all replies

Wileyrat

Yeah, I do planks. Three sets of 1 min 3 times a week (part of my weight workout).

jim p

I think the world record is 6 hours and 40 odd minutes. I do a couple of minutes in yoga.

mcours2006

Six HOUR! That's crazy. I once held the pose from the end of Double Jeopardy to the end of Final Jeopardy. Maybe six minutes.

KraneXL

Its one core exercise among many. Personally, I don't feel its that effective, rather, an overrated trend and less effective than standard sit-ups. Nevertheless, if its something you feel is challenging and enjoy doing them then by all mean have at it.

DanBraden

If you really wanna blow minds, throw some push ups in.

Also, add some instability with a yoga ball.

Plank on a yoga ball using your elbows (hands clasped together), then rotate your elbows together in large circles one direction a few times then the other. It sorts feels like kneading dough with your elbows and is REALLY great for getting all those itty bitty lazy muscles to pitch in!

Rock71

If you really want to make planking more effective do 20 sit ups, bicycle from your back for 5 minutes, leg lifts for as long as you can and then roll over and plank.

Flip Flop Rider

that makes sense, thanks

you guys/gals that are doing yoga, are you taking a class or on your own?

don't know much about yoga other than many do it
thanks

PaulRivers

My experience that it depends on what muscles your body is already used to using. For a lot of people their body doesn't use the muscles that are meant to be worked with planks and so they don't help. For others they do.

I went through a lot of physical therapy related stuff and I can see now why some exercises I can do now were useless before...I just didn't have the ability to engage the muscles the exercise was supposed to work.

For me personally Limber 11 was a lot more effective for building up strength that I used on the bike:

simot

4 sets of 1 min planks on each side (front-right-left) with 1 min rest between sets a couple of times a week seem to work for me, I used to have back pain on the right side, started doing these + stretching and it's completely gone!

I used to underestimate these exercises, never again!

clengman

Thanks for this! I have frequent lower back pain and very poor flexibility in my hips and hamstrings. This looks like just what I need!

obsail1947

Planks and Yoga 4 to 5 x/week in addition to cycling 15-30 mi.4 or 5 x / week when able.

raceboy

SylvainG

Yeah, and also side planks.

wolfchild

Sit-ups are massively overrated and one of the worst exercises you can do. Static hold exercises like various forms of planks are actually better for your core than sit-ups, and leg raises are also a far better alternative to sit-ups...The purpose of your core is to stabilize your body and protect vital parts of your body, sit-ups don't address any of these...Personally I don't do sit-ups nor any other special core exercises. My core gets a hard workout from doing kettlebell training, front squats and some other bodyweight calisthenics.

phughes

I would venture to say all the minutes that person planked were odd, not just the last 40 minutes...

Gyro

I'm doing around 170 pushups three times a week. Can't seem to get past 40 non-stop. 35+ miles on my road bike each day. Weather depending. I'm 64

https://hundredpushups.com/week1.html

qbiker

I'm with DanBraden yoga ball works great do each exercise no more than once a week work out 3 times a week mixing it up gives me better results.

KraneXL

Wait...say that again.

livedarklions

Sometimes I like to stare at lumber. Does that count?

Flip Flop Rider

depends on the position you're in

cthenn

I usually time myself, start with whatever you can do comfortably, then increase. I'm usually doing a dedicated ab workout, so I may only do 3 sets, and I'll usually choose 5 exercises from a "library" of different ones. If standard planks become easy, try star planks. I had been doing regular planks for a long time, then when I switched to these, it was like back on training wheels. Also +1 on the side planks as well. There's some variations to make it harder, once the normal version becomes easy.

I'm also a big fan (and by "big fan" I mean I HATE them, but they really work) of the ball pass:


But my favorite abs exercise is wood choppers. Anything that works in a twisting motion really tightens up the core. People do too many exercises that work in a linear motion (like a crunch movement) and don't focus enough on stabilization movements (planks), and twisting movements (wood choppers, Russian twist).

REDMASTA

This is the position I sleep in. Go to bed and wake up with obliques of steel.

Troul 

side planks from reaching in the lower section of the fridge grabbing the beerverage from the far back. works up a thirst!

cb400bill