How to Do a Plank: Form, Common Mistakes and Easier Versions

Form guides · 2 min read

The plank looks like doing nothing. Done properly, it trains your abs, shoulders and glutes to hold your body in one straight line, which is the position almost every other bodyweight exercise depends on.

How to do it

Start · Finish

Plank

1. Kneel, then place your forearms on the floor with elbows under your shoulders.
2. Step your feet back one at a time until your legs are straight.
3. Hold a straight line from head to heels and breathe normally.
4. Stop the hold as soon as your hips start to sag.

Form cue: Tuck your tailbone slightly and squeeze your glutes.

Easier: Keep your knees on the floor.

Three mistakes that make it harder

• Hips sagging. Your lower back takes the load instead of your abs. Squeeze your glutes and tuck your tailbone slightly.
• Hips too high. It feels easier because it is: the work has moved off your core. Lower them until shoulders, hips and heels line up.
• Holding your breath. Breathe normally. If you can’t, the hold is too long for today.

How long should a beginner hold a plank?

Long enough to keep a straight line, and no longer. For many beginners that is 10 to 20 seconds. Two clean 15-second holds are worth more than one shaky 30. Add a few seconds each week.

Train your sides too

Start · Finish

Side Plank

1. Lie on your side with your elbow under your shoulder and legs stacked.
2. Lift your hips until your body is a straight line.
3. Hold and breathe. Keep your top hip stacked over the bottom one.
4. Lower, then repeat on the other side.

Form cue: Push the floor away with your forearm.

Easier: Bend your knees and keep the bottom knee on the floor.

If planks bother your wrists or shoulders

The Dead Bug trains the same bracing skill lying on your back, with no weight on your arms.

Start · Finish

Dead Bug

1. Lie on your back, arms straight up, knees bent at 90° above your hips.
2. Press your lower back gently into the floor.
3. Slowly lower one arm overhead and the opposite leg toward the floor.
4. Return to the start and switch sides. That is one rep per side.

Form cue: Lower back stays on the floor. Go only as far as you can keep it there.

Easier: Move only the legs and keep your arms still.

General fitness information for healthy adults, not medical advice. Talk to your doctor before starting an exercise program, and stop if you feel pain, dizziness or chest discomfort. Results vary. The people in the photos are models.