Plankaholic

Whenever someone asks me what my go-to exercise for my abs are I immediatly say planks. There's so many differnt types of planks that vary from beginner planks to much more difficult ones. If you're still trying to ease your way into the planking world (exercise planking, not that stupid one that I see posers doing on random objects) I suggest starting with the basic frontal facing and side planks for 30 seconds. As these become easier for you, you should increase the time to 1 minute and then a minute and 30 seconds. I know this can get boring so if you're trying to mix it up here is a list of a couple of my favorite plank variations with the links to instructions on how to do them on youtube.

Up-Down Plank – trust me this is a lot harder than it looks

Plank Jacks- make sure you have appropriate running shoes for these or else your toes will be hurting

Spiderman Planks- these work your obliques like no other

Side Plank Twists- I originally saw this in my yoga class

Wall Plank- You can also substitute the wall for an exercise ball

Toe Touch Plank – Fairly simple to do and you can always increase the intensity

Hip Dip Planks- I could not do these for the longest time, and even now I sometimes lose my balance

 

There you guys go! My top 7 favorite variations of the traditional plank. I typically choose three of these and some form of sit up between each with three sets. Any of your favorites that I didn't mention?