Planking Progress at Week 21 of Recovery

My physiotherapists know I love to plank. And the reason why I love to do it is that I want to regain the core muscles around my abs. I may need a very long period of time to regain the beautiful athletic abs I used to have many years back. But, the fact that I can trim down the belly, that would be the best feeling ever. 

I started planking at week 14 of my recovery with both my legs apart while planking. And now that week 21, I can plank with both legs together. 

When I first started planking at week 14, I could only hold for about 22 seconds or so. I slowly build up the strength of my muscles especially muscles around the quadriceps and abs by doing 2 planks which I hold for 30 seconds at minimum twice every time I did. I rest for 30 seconds before resume another round of plank.

As time passes, I increased the time for 15 seconds till it reaches 60 seconds. Now I can plank twice and hold for a minute. I set a goal for myself to achieve and my current target is to do 3 planks by holding a minute with a break of 30 seconds in between. 

There are secrets in holding a plank long enough to achieve that 60 seconds record. And here are my secrets which I hope can be of help :-

1.   To breath in and out while holding a plank - Never ever stop breathing when you are holding your plank. You will need all the oxygen you can get to have it ' energize ' your body. Fresh air helps holding a plank a long way.

2.   Keep your focus clear - Focuses on breaking that record you set the last time. Be the best that you can possibly be!

3.   Tighten up all muscles before lifting up your entire body - To always ' tell ' your muscles to be prepared for ' battle '. God created our body so that we can have excellent mobility. And He created our body to work in unity. 

4.  Keep the arms the same width as your shoulder - Keeping it the same width as the shoulder ensures longer period in holding the plank. 

5.   Hands clasp together - It works well for me when I have both my hands near to each other or clasp together. It helps me to hold my plank longer. 

The photo above gives an overview of the correct way of planking. And I do hope this is the most layman way of telling people of how it should be done.

I still have a long way in achieving the result I want. But, I believe it is possible to achieve.