3 Good Reasons to Practice Plank and 5 Warm-Up Exercises To Improve your Plank Game

Plank … Some fear it, others love it. Why should you consider incorporating it into your strength training routine? Find out below. If you are in the fear camp, hopefully by the end of reading this post your feelings toward it will begin to shift.

3 Good Reasons to Practice Plank

1) Reduces lower back pain and risk of back injury

Instead of working the superficial core muscles (what most of us refer to as a six pack), planks engage and strengthen the deep inner core muscles (transverse abdominals, diaphragm, pelvic floor, multifidus) which help create support around the spine and reduce the load on our lower back or lumbar spine, therefore reducing back pain and risk of injury from constant stress.

2) Improves posture and relieves tension

A plank is not just a core workout. It is a total body workout. It strengthens the wrists, shoulders, chest, core, back and glutes and creates flexibility in your hamstrings, calves, feet & toes! With repeated practice, the strength created from the waist up will help your spine stay in alignment when seated or standing up, and the flexibility created from the waist down will bring relief to the stiffness in your lower body from being seated in an office chair or from sitting in your car for extended periods of time.

3) Boosts mood

Because planking is typically a timed exercise, it makes it easy to measure and track your own personal progress. The longer you can hold a plank, the more your strength is improving. The simple act of being able to set numerical goals (ie. +30 seconds or +1 minute) and visually see that timed number increase over time can do wonders for your self-esteem. I recommend getting a small notebook to keep a weekly record. Put a star next to the number each time it increases and give yourself a pat on the back for doing something that over time will help increase your quality of life.

So how can you increase that number?! Continue reading for some pro-tips on how to warm up the body to prepare yourself for plank success.

5 Warm-Up Exercises to Improve Your Plank Game

1) Child’ Pose with Shoulder Stretch

· Come into a tabletop position and sink the hips back and down towards the heels coming into a child’s pose

· Ground down into all ten fingers and relax the shoulders, hold for 3 rounds of breath

· Take a bend in the elbows and move the palms to meet in prayer above the head (option here to place a block under each elbow for a deeper stretch), hold for 3-5 rounds of breath

2) Wrist Extension & Flexion

· Wrist extension - Come into a tabletop position and rotate the hands so that the fingertips face towards your knees (palms face down), begin to lean slightly back drawing the hips down towards the heels any amount until you feel a stretch in the wrist, hold for 3-5 breaths and then release

· Wrist flexion - Come into a table top position and one hand at a time, flip onto the backs of the hands, fingers face towards the knees, try to rotate the triceps inward so that the elbow creases face forward, hold for 3-5 breaths and then release

3) Sun Salutation (Targets toes, feet, hamstrings, core, chest, shoulders)

· From Mountain pose

· Inhale arms sweep overhead to meet in prayer

· Exhale forward fold

· Inhale fingertips ground into mat as you halfway lift

· Exhale fold, planting the hands and stepping back to high plank position

· Inhale in high plank for a one breath hold

· Exhale lower knees, chin and chest

· Inhale chest draws through and elbows hug in for low cobra

· Exhale press back to downward facing dog

· Inhale right leg lifts high

· Exhale hug the knee into the chest, gaze forward and step the foot to the top of the mat

· Inhale draw the chest forward as you lengthen and stretch through the left leg

· Exhale left leg steps up to meet right

· Inhale halfway lift

· Exhale fold

· Inhale arms sweep up to rise, exhale hands through heart’s center and release down at the sides for Mountain Pose

· Repeat on the left side

4) Supine Breath with Core Activation

· Lay on your back, knees bent and soles of the feet to the floor or a mat

· Place your hands on your lower belly and take a deep inhale

· Exhale naturally and pause

· Without taking another breath in, exhale all of the remaining air out of the lungs through your nose and feel the transverse abdominals contract (this sensation of pulling in is what you should feel when you are in your plank position), repeat 3 times in order to wake up the deep inner core muscles.

· Optional: Try lifting your pelvic floor at the end of each exhale once you feel the lower belly contraction for an added challenge!

5) Tabletop Knee Hover & Step Back to Plank

· Come into a tabletop position, wrists aligned directly under the shoulders, knees directly under the hips

· Ground down through all ten fingers and press through the c-curve (pointer and thumb finger) in your hand to protect the wrists

· Inwardly rotate the triceps, elbow creases face forward

· Tuck your toes, gaze slightly forward, engage the transverse abdominals (they should feel the same as in exercise #4!) and on an inhale lift your knees, hovering them an inch off of the floor or your mat

· Exhale and feel the sensation of the tailbone tucking under

· Deep inhale and on your exhale, keeping the upper body, core and tailbone engagement, step the right leg back and left leg to follow

· You are now set up in the perfect plank position!

Source(s):

https://fitness.mercola.com/sites/fitness/archive/2014/12/05/5-plank-benefits.aspx

https://www.verywellhealth.com/activate-your-deep-muscle-core-297188

Honoring Sun Salutes: Why are these simple movements such an important part of our yoga practice?

“The sun shines not on us, but within us.” John Muir (1838-1914)

With the Summer Solstice only weeks away, and with a little inspiration from the profound words of American naturalist and conservationist John Muir, I thought it appropriate to dive into the practice of Sun Salutations and learn more about why they are such an integral part of vinyasa yoga practice.

Sun Salutations are typically the first sequences that we perform during class. Because we are so familiar with them, it is easy to move through them mindlessly, taking them for granted. But if we do this, we short change ourselves and miss out on their numerous far-reaching benefits.

Considered to be dynamic stretching, or stretching as you are moving, Sun Salutations are an excellent way to progressively warm up the major muscle groups and joints in the body. They aid us in building heat and energy, so that as the intensity and range of motion in our movements increase, there is already adequate blood flow and oxygen to the areas of the body that we want to work, which ultimately helps prevent injury. In addition to this, the transitions and postures performed have functional cross over to many of our daily activities (ie. lowering down or getting up from a seated position, bending down to pick something up, and reaching overhead to get something off of a shelf). Because of this, Sun Salutations are ideal for performing not only at the beginning of yoga class, but also as a dynamic warm-up before a strength training session or as a stand-alone morning mobility exercise before you begin your busy day.

The beauty of the Sun Salutes is in their simplicity. A simple movement with breath connection and intention, is far more effective and meaningful than a complex movement or posture that is disconnected. Movement with intention is when the mind begins to turn off worry, doubt and anxiety and turn on passion and fire, activating the “sun within us.” When we begin to practice our movement with this in mind, recognizing that the same heat and energy that burns brightly in our sun is also found within, we are able to comprehend our true potential. We begin to realize that we will only burn as brightly as we allow ourselves to.

So the next time you find yourself at the beginning of class moving through a Sun Salutation with your mind wandering to the future with anticipation and excitement for some of the more advanced poses in your practice, I challenge you to bring your thoughts and intention back to the present moment to ignite the fire within, unleash your true potential and truly appreciate how powerful these simple movements can be for yogis, athletes and peace seekers alike.

To see just how anatomically all-encompassing these movements and postures truly are, please refer to the table below.