Are planks good for abs? When it comes to listing ab exercises, planks are often mentioned and recommended alongside classic core workouts such as crunches and sit-ups. Despite their popularity as a core workout, how good are planks for abs and can they give you that enviable six-pack you’ve always dreamed of? Let’s find out.
First thing first, what is bodybuilding? According to Britannica, bodybuilding is the use of a regimen of exercises to enhance the human body’s muscular development and promote general health and fitness (3).
In addition to rigorous training (through body weight exercises and weightlifting) that helps build and grow muscles, proper nutrition and cardio are also required for proper bodybuilding (8).
So are planks any good for this? Yes, they are. In fact, Harvard Health Publishing refers to this exercise as ‘the gold standard to working your core’ – placing it above classic ab exercises such as crunches and sit-ups (18).
Research has also shown that these exercises are great for bodybuilding:
Body weight, skeletal muscle mass, and the basal metabolic rate were also increased, while body fat mass and fat percentage saw a decrease (7).
These older adults also recorded increases in their physical fitness, with their grip strength and their ability to do sit-ups smoothly also increasing(8).
From these studies, it can be seen that planks are good for abs/core bodybuilding, they build the endurance and strength of other muscles in the body, and they improve BMI and other health factors.
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Here’s a further breakdown on why this exercise is good for your abs:
When people think about the core, they mostly imagine the front area of the stomach where the abs are located. While this is indeed the core, it’s only just a small part of it. The core is actually made up of several different muscles namely:
These 4 muscles (two on either side) work together to help you bend sideways and twist your body from side to side.
Unlike some other core workouts, planks exercise all these muscles at once.
According to Harvard Health, traditional ab workouts such as sit-ups require a curling motion that can stress to your spine and lower back, particularly if your hip flexors are too tight, which can lead to discomfort (18). If this discomfort is left unchecked, it can further lead to chronic pain and injury.
Unlike sit-ups and crunches, planks often require you to remain in one position with your back raised and spine aligned, which decreases the chance of back injury. If you already suffer from back pain but you’d like to strengthen the core, this workout is the better option.
In a study published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, researchers found that planks – specifically the front plank with brace – were the best-tolerated core exercise among patients with chronic lower-back pain. It’s worth noting that the lateral plank was not well tolerated and patients with this condition should be wary of this one (16).
In another study published in The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, researchers stated that plank exercises were good as a fitness program for increasing core strength and that the exercises could also be done as a rehabilitation program to help patients with decreased core stability and chronic lower-back pain increase the stability and strength of these muscles (4).
The standard plank is not the only variation there is. This simple, seemingly boring workout has many variations that still work out your core and prevent the boredom of repeating the same thing over and over.
Please note that you must learn how to brace your core before doing any ab or strength training exercise. Abdominal bracing helps activate the core muscles (17) and stabilize the spine, which prevents injury when working out.
Despite this exercise being among the workouts for abs, you’re not supposed to spend too long doing it. Beginners are often advised to hold a plank for just 10 to 30 seconds, while more advanced exercisers are urged to push up to the 1-minute mark (12).
If you want to push your limits on this exercise, you can try to hold a plank for 2 minutes, but no more than this. It’s said that after 2 minutes, you’re just tiring yourself out and not getting any benefits from the exercise (12).
If you’re doing a split 3-day push-pull workout routine, adding a 30-second or 1-minute plank hold at the end of each session could be a good idea.
Remember that the core is used in all exercises, even when you’re not working the core muscles directly. Therefore, adding a plank at the end of a routine is a good way to strengthen the core muscles, which will help you perform all other exercises better with a reduced risk of injury.
Read more: Does Planking Burn Fat? Unveiling the Truth of the Famous Plank vs. Fat Debate
A variation of the original plank workout, side planks are a great workout to add to your routine, particularly if you’re looking to strengthen your core. Like the original exercise, this variation works almost as a full-body workout. Side planks muscles worked include those in your arms, obliques, shoulders, butt, and legs.
Some benefits of doing side plank exercises and their variations include:
Chronic lower-back pain is one of the most common ailments in adults. In 2019 in North America alone, approximately 75 million people reported suffering from chronic lower-back pain (10). Over the years, researchers have found that adding core workouts to a routine works well for alleviating chronic lower-back pain, in addition to improving functionality that may have been lost (5, 1, 9).
Side planks may be one such exercise that could offer relief to someone who is suffering from this condition. A study published in the International Journal of Science and Research revealed that lumbar stabilization exercises, including side planks and bridge exercises, can help with the treatment and therapy of lower-back pain (14).
However, it should be noted that another study published in 2019 stated that lateral planks (aka. side planks) are not well tolerated by patients with chronic lower-back pain (16). Due to this discrepancy, we would ask you to proceed with caution or better yet, speak to a professional before you attempt this workout.
Side planks can be classified as compound exercises – workouts that exercise multiple muscle groups at the same time. Therefore, depending on your side plank variations and combinations, you can end up working out your whole body with one simple exercise.
Research has shown that doing simpler plank variations such as the elbow plank, high plank, body saw plank, and elbow plank with legs open can help increase core strength and endurance, in addition to balance in both average people and athletes (6, 13).
From this, we can simply assume that side planks, which require you to balance your body and its weight on one side, can work even better for better balance and coordination.
Many common and even easy-to-do workouts can be quite dangerous for you, especially if you don’t use the correct form. To prevent such injury, strengthening your core and the muscles that surround the spine can help keep you safe.
One study published in the International Journal of Sports Physical Therapy showed that a weak core increases your risk of injury and plank exercises such as side planks can help reduce this risk (15). A study published in 2019 showed that strengthening the quadratus lumborum, which is located in your lower back on either side of the lumbar spine, through workouts such as these helps reduce the risk of back injury (16).
Doing a plank challenge is an excellent way to slowly strengthen your spine and back muscles, improve your posture and balance, and get some abs. If you want to try the side planks challenge, here are some side planks for abs exercise variations:
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All variations of this exercise are good for your abs area and your whole core. As long as you maintain the correct form, you’ll reap the intended benefits. If you’re wondering ‘what planks are good for abs and back?’ the answer remains the same.
However, if you’re using this workout as therapy for an injured back or spine, please consult your doctor or therapist to better understand which variations are okay and which may cause more harm than good.
While planks are a fantastic core workout, they’re not enough to help you get abs. If you’d like to get abs, here are some things we suggest you do in addition to doing planks:
This is difficult to predict as all bodies are different and training intensities differ from person to person. However, results from strength training generally start to show from anywhere between 4 and 12 weeks. Just be patient and consistent and the results will come.
When you’re holding any plank variation position, your muscles contract, and the longer you hold, the more you continue to push the contraction to its limits, which leads to shaking. Don’t worry if you notice shaking – it’s absolutely normal and everyone, from beginners to experts, shakes when doing planks.
Doing planks consistently can help increase endurance, which can help reduce the time between the start of the plank and the start of the shaking.
Read more: Maximize Your Home Workout: 5 Plank Wall Exercises for a Powerful Core
Not quite. Planks largely target the muscle under the belly fat and not the fat itself. If you want to lose belly fat, cardio combined with a full-body weight training workout is your best bet.
Yes, a one-minute plank a day is enough. Make sure to also do other workouts so you can reach your goals.
Yes, planks are considered to be better than crunches for core strengthening (18). However, for the best results, an ab routine that includes planks, crunches, and a number of other core exercises is best. If you have lower-back pain, crunches shouldn’t be on the list of workouts to do.
Push-ups are a great workout for building upper-body strength and endurance. However, as with any other workout, push-ups shouldn’t be done every day without a break. Training a muscle group every day can lead to overtraining, which is symptomized by excess soreness and pain in the muscles, weakness, and more undesirable side effects.
Yes, they are. This simple and often disregarded workout works incredibly well for the core area and is recommended by many for this exact benefit.
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