Plank

How to perform

1. 1Forearms down, body in one straight line from head to heels.
2. 2Squeeze your glutes and breathe — don't hold your breath.

Technique in detail

Set your forearms on the floor directly under your shoulders, elbows bent ninety degrees, and extend your legs behind you with your toes tucked. Your body should form one straight line from heels to head. Squeeze your glutes, brace your midsection as if bracing for a punch, and gently tuck your pelvis so the lower back flattens rather than arches. Push the floor away with your forearms to spread the upper back. Breathe steadily. Hold only as long as the line stays honest — thirty controlled seconds beats two sagging minutes.

Common mistakes

• Hips sagging toward the floor, which loads the lower back instead of the core. The moment the line breaks, the set is over.
• Hips piked high in the air. It feels easier because it is — lower them until your body makes one straight line and the work returns.
• Chasing longer holds instead of harder positions. Once you can hold two clean minutes, progress to a harder variation rather than adding time.

Equipment

• No equipment