Dr. McDougall's Online Discussion Board

Okay, I'm going to have an instruction session with husband today. Those planks are just what I need, my weight is perfect but my tummy needs some toning after having two kids Stay tuned.

Please keep us posted on your progress. Let's see if you can repeat the performance.

Ha Ha !!!! I thought a plank was yet another new exercise thingy - till I followed the links. Got right on the floor and was able to do about 60 seconds. Wow I can feel it all over. I do 20 to 30 pushups almost every day but I like the 'whole body' effect of the plank a lot more than pushups. I will definitely include this in my exercise routine. Thanks to all!

Plank notes: !!! I tend to take this for granted because I have an unusually good kinesthetic sense and tend to perform movement in good form and if not, I can sense that and correct it. You can easily build strength on top of dysfunction and cause yourself even more problems in the future than if you had just stayed "weak"! Planks need to be done with a neutral spine, not arched and not totally flat. Maybe slight rotation of pelvis, very slight, to help activate the abs. Also, knees need to be straight, not bent. And very important, shoulders need to be "packed" ie lats flexed strongly, as if you are trying to squeeze a sponge in each arm pit. The shoulder blades need to be flat against your back, now winging out. All these things may well make the exercise feel "harder" and that is a good thing! It means you are actually training/retraining your body to hold healthy, functional position under load. Hip flexors need to be flexible! And really, while holding the position, every muscle in your body should be flexed, even your hands/forearms--your fingers should be digging into the floor!!! Seems counter intuitive but this will make your abs contract harder and you will make gains in strength and endurance faster.

Best advice really, is if you can find find a skilled trainer. Second best would be find youtube vidoes of people who are highly skilled to watch and try to copy...

Planks are the bomb. I always have a plank series in my yoga class. I add plank then knee to elbow (opposite), and then side planks, and finally a few lowering the body until the arm is a 90 degree angle (Chaturanga dandasana in yoga).

I hope you guys won't mind if I post a link from Mercola, but I just came across this exercise page and it is exactly what I - and many of you - have been looking for: The right way to do pushups including the 'plank' and what's even more important the many DIFFERENT WAYS to do pushups to achieve different results. I've been doing mine pretty much the same way. This is what I needed.The video is great and I made a print out of the write up to help me do it right.

I like portability in my exercises that's why I do pushups and yoga and walking/running - you can do it anywhere

http://fitness.mercola.com/sites/fitnes ... ques.aspx#

The key words for me were--you can do yourself more harm than if you stay weak if the exercise isn't done right. So I am thinking of hiring someone to do them for me.

Didi

didi wrote:The key words for me were--you can do yourself more harm than if you stay weak if the exercise isn't done right. So I am thinking of hiring someone to do them for me.

Didi

Ha ha! Didi...if it would help you, I think several here would volunteer to exercise for your...but since that would not help you ...please MOVE!!!

didi wrote:The key words for me were--you can do yourself more harm than if you stay weak if the exercise isn't done right. So I am thinking of hiring someone to do them for me.

Didi

How much are you offering to pay???

My advice would just be to start small, very very small. I still haven't fully recovered from a yoga class over 6 months ago where a new teacher devoted half an hour of the class to the sun salute. I've been doing yoga for several years but it really seems to have affected my forearms.

Got a question for Geoff and others. After reading this thread I have started doing planks and I see some change. Can you guys give me some sense, how long you hold it and how many planks a day? I know it will vary greatly in accordance with an individual but would like to get some ballpark idea to make sure I'm not doing too little. May not be on the top side of the spectrum and that is fine just don't want to do too little. Like right now I can hold first plank from 45secs to 1 min, after a pause, I can then hold it for 30 secs.

Chimichanga (hmmm, deep fried burrito??), that is pretty good amount of time! I just learned a "better" way I think. Stuart McGill is a professor of spine biomechanics at the University of Waterloo who has written book that has become practically "Biblical" amongst weight training crowd.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ey9uiWiiL6I
McGill also likes regular planks but this takes less time and you can put a lot more load on the muscles more easily.

Step one video for this one that he mentions is no longer available but you will get the idea
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JzzTVGeCsKA

The McGill crunch looks easier than the planks which I still haven't done

Forgot to mention, you want to contract as hard as possible for the 10 seconds. These are isometrics to build strength and the McGill crunch is plenty challenging if you really cinch up your abs, as if trying to touch lower ribs to pubic bone and then deep breathe behind the contraction. Tons of fun!