science

Plank (exercise)

Plank (exercise) is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Plank (exercise) rather than just read about it. In short: The plank (also called a front hold, hover, or abdominal bridge) is an isometric core strength exercise that involves maintaining a position similar to a push-up. Form The most common plank is the forearm plank which is held in a push-up-like position, with the body's weight borne on forearms, elbows, and toes.

Key takeaways

Plank (exercise) belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Plank (exercise) to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Plank (exercise) from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The plank (also called a front hold, hover, or abdominal bridge) is an isometric core strength exercise that involves maintaining a position similar to a push-up.

Form The most common plank is the forearm plank which is held in a push-up-like position, with the body's weight borne on forearms, elbows, and toes. Many variations exist such as the side plank and the reverse plank. The plank is commonly practiced in Pilates and yoga as exercise where it is called Chaturanga Dandasana, and by those training for boxing and other sports. The "extended plank" adds substantial difficulty to the standard plank exercise. To perform the extended plank, a person begins in the push-up position and then extends the arms or hands as far forward as possible.

Effect The plank strengthens the abdominals, back, and shoulders. Muscles involved in the front plank include:

Primary muscles: erector spinae, rectus abdominis (abs), and transverse abdominis. Secondary muscles (synergists/segmental stabilizers): trapezius (traps), rhomboids, rotator cuff, the anterior, medial, and posterior deltoid muscles (delts), pectorals (pecs), serratus anterior, gluteus maximus (glutes), quadriceps (quads), and gastrocnemius. Muscles involved in the side plank include:

Primary: transversus abdominis muscle, gluteus medius and gluteus minimus muscles (abductors), the adductor muscles of the hip, and the external and internal obliques. Secondary: gluteus maximus (glutes), quadriceps (quads), and hamstrings. A study in British Journal of Sports Medicine of 270 trials found that isometric exercises which involve engaging muscles without movement, such as wall sits and planks, were more effective than other types of exercise for reducing blood pressure.

World records Guinness World Records lists the record for longest duration of a front plank, resting on elbows, as 9 hours, 38 minutes and 47 seconds set by Josef Šálek from the Czech Republic, in May 2023. The former record of 9 hours, 30 minutes and one second was set by Daniel Scali from Australia in September 2021. Before Scali, veteran Marine officer George Hood set a record of 8 hours 15 minutes and 15 seconds on February 20, 2020. Hood also completed a record attempt in June 2018, holding a plank for 10 hours, 10 minutes and 10 seconds as well as the most cumulative plank time in a 24-hour period of 18 hours, 10 minutes and 10 seconds. The longest time in an elbow plank:

by a woman is 4 hr 30 min 11 seconds by DonnaJean Wilde in March 2024 (Canada). by a woman with a 60-lb pack is 17 min and 26 sec by Eva Bulzomi (USA) in July 2013. with a 100 lb pack is 20 min 03 sec, and was achieved by Xu Qisheng (China) in Guangzhou, Guangdong, China, on 10 November 2022. with a 200-lb pack is 4 min 2 sec by Silehm Boussehaba (France) in March 2018. The longest single-arm plank while balancing on medicine balls is 1 min 20 seconds, by Brandon Westover (USA) in August 2021.

Gallery

See also Chaturanga Dandasana – yoga low plank Crunch (exercise) Planche (exercise) Sit-up Vasishtasana – yoga side plank

References

External links Media related to Planks at Wikimedia Commons

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Plank (exercise)

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Plank (exercise) claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Plank (exercise) before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Plank (exercise) ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Plank (exercise)

In research: Plank (exercise) appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Plank (exercise) in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Plank (exercise) is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Bodyweight exercises, Reclining asanas, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Plank (exercise) outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Plank (exercise) in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Plank (exercise) means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Plank (exercise) out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Plank (exercise) in simple terms?

The plank (also called a front hold, hover, or abdominal bridge) is an isometric core strength exercise that involves maintaining a position similar to a push-up. Form The most common plank is the forearm plank which is held in a push-up-like position, with the body's weight borne on forearms, elbo…

Why does Plank (exercise) matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Plank (exercise)?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Plank (exercise).