The Benefits Of The Plank Exercise
Many people choose to do the plank exercise because they want to build a more defined six-pack, and there’s no doubt that this exercise will certainly help in that regard, particularly if you are combining it with other abs exercises, and doing plenty of cardio to burn off any excess fat.
However it also has some more practical benefits as well because this plank exercise engages many different muscle groups such as your shoulders and neck to improve your overall posture and flexibility, and will help you build a much stronger core, which in turn will make it easier to perform a number of different exercises in the gym and protect you from injury.
Equipment Needed
A good thing about the plank exercise is that it requires no equipment at all. Therefore you can perform this exercise anytime and anywhere.
Nevertheless, it is a lot easier if you use a stopwatch or a timer on your phone, for example, rather than counting the seconds yourself, and you will find that it is a lot more comfortable for your elbows and toes if you use an extra thick exercise mat.
30 Day Plank Challenges
30 day challenges have become very popular in recent years because they can help you achieve great things in a short space of time because you always have a specific goal that you have to achieve every day as it gets progressively harder.
That’s certainly true with plank exercises because if you go online and do a search for ’30 day plank challenge’ or if you search on Pinterest, for example, you will find several variations of this challenge that you can try.
Some are a lot harder than others, and in fact some are a little unrealistic because they will be far too hard for many people to stick to, particularly if they have never performed this exercise before.
However there is one in particular that is suitable for people of all fitness levels, and challenging enough to give you a super strong core in just 30 days.
The Best 30 Day Plank Challenge
The 30 day plank challenge that we most recommend is pictured below in the form of an infographic and it is worth printing out so that you always know what you have to do each day without having to switch on your computer:
This challenge starts off with a few days of 20-second planks, which most people find pretty easy, before gradually increasing in duration as the days go by until day 30 when you should hopefully be able to do a full 5-minute plank.
An Alternative For Beginners
If you find that the previous challenge is too difficult, there is an easier 30 day plank challenge for beginners that you might want to do first.
Details of this particular challenge can be found in the chart below, and as you can see, this one also starts off with some 20-second planks, but progresses up to 2 minutes after day 30 instead of 5 minutes, which you should find a lot easier to achieve:
Key Points To Remember
Whichever challenge you decide to do, it’s vitally important that you maintain correct form whilst performing this plank exercise in order to maximize your results and avoid any discomfort.
This means keeping your elbows directly beneath your shoulders and maintaining a straight back at all times. A common mistake is to raise your bottom in the air, or allow your bottom to sag slightly when you start to struggle, but you want to try and maintain a straight line from your shoulders to your ankles if you can.
If you can hold a perfect plank, you should find that it will get easier as time goes on because your core will start to get stronger, and as well as the practical benefits, you should start to see a little more definition in your abs once the 30-day challenge is over.
30 Day Plank Challenge Before And After Results
To show you what kind of results are possible, here are some before and after photos from people who have successfully completed one of these 30 day plank challenges:
If you have attempted this challenge yourself, please share your results in the comments section below and let us know how you got on.
Alternative 30 Day Challenges For You To Try
If you do successfully complete one of these plank challenges, you might want to start a brand new challenge that targets one of your other problem areas, such as your arms, legs or glutes, for example, or helps to improve your fitness. Here are some of the challenges that we have featured on this site:
- arm challenge (tone your biceps and triceps)
- cardio challenge (improve your fitness level and lose weight)
- squat challenge (develop your glutes, quads and hamstrings)
Question. How many times one can do planks in a day? For instance, Day 1 suggests a 20 sec long plank. Doing it once for 20 secs is enough or can we do multiples of 20 secs plank, resting for a minute or two between each plank?
The first few days of this challenge are designed to ease you in gently and get you used to doing planks with correct form. So one 20-second plank is enough for the first few days. Don’t worry if you find it too easy. It will start to get a lot harder from the second week onwards.
it is up to u I recommend if u want to see results quicker do it 2 or 3 times. I started off by doing 4 minute plank and got to 12 in 30 days.
Hi Dakota, does this plank do miracle for our abs.
Thank you thank you thank you!! I cannot afford a gym or trainer. I started walking but wanted to add more. Heard and read about “planking” but didn’t know where to get started!! Started the challenge today ❤️
We have tackled the more difficult plank challenge at our office several times spread out over the last few years. Yes, we wear our office attire though some people luck off their shoes. About a third of the initial participants make it to the 5 minute plank on Day 30, then we start a daily maintenance plan of 3 minute planks. It’s been not only an ab booster but also a team bonding experience.
Wow, that’s fantastic that a simple exercise can bring people closer together. It’s also very impressive that so many of your colleagues are able to complete the entire challenge and hold a plank for 5 minutes because that’s not easy to do. Keep it up!
Does it count if the 5 min plank includes side planks as well? Like switching between the 2 positions?? Thanks
Yes, no problem at all. Side planks will target your obliques more than regular planks, so you will be targeting all of your core abdominal muscles by doing both variations.
What happens after the 30 day challenge has been completed? Should I plank each day for 2 mins or every other day? I am 60!
Hi Jay. It depends what your end goal is. If you just want to maintain a strong core, then you could do one 5-minute plank per day, for example, but if you want to develop your six-pack more, you should start combining these planks with some abs exercises as well.
I have been doing 5 minutes of planks/day for the last 2 weeks. I divide them into sets of 1 or 2 minute planks throughout the day ( 1 min plank 3x throughout the day + 2 min plank = 5 min, for example, but it varies). I really focus on having the proper form and find its a lot easier when I do so. I start to struggle around 1:30 but push through.
I am naturally very thin and can’t say that I have a “gut” but I know that I have a weak core. In the morning, my tummy is flat, but when I eat through out the day, my tummy can bloat, but it does not look like fat, and does not go out to the sides. I avoid lactose and this “bloating” occurs no matter what I eat. I have a fast metabolism and eat a pretty healthy diet and probably less than my recommended calorie intake (not to stay thin but more out of laziness).
Besides this, I walk a lot and swim maybe once a week. I am in quite good shape otherwise.
Do you think that planking can help to lessen this “bloating” effect?
I do planks every day, and still experience a lot of bloating. So I don’t really think this has any effect at all. You might have better luck doing crunches and sit-ups because this may help expel some gas.
do we need to focus on diet too while doing planks?
Yes, if you eat a lot of junk food and consume too many calories, you won’t see any visible results from doing planks because your abs will be covered by a layer of fat. So cardio is very important as well.
i have done planks for 30 days plus now i ad doing 3 sets of 50 second planks is this enough to maintain the better look and keep the core strong
It depends. If you find you can do 50-second planks really easily, you might not be getting much benefit, so it might be worth doing 2 or 3-minute planks every day instead.
hey James! can I lose all my belly fat by plank?
No, planks will give strength and definition, but you need to be doing cardio exercises to lose belly fat and see visible results.
can I lose all my belly fat by plank?
What would be your recommended work out be to loose belly fat as I have a baby waiting for a new heart so I don’t have much time with medications to administer so I’m looking for some thing thats not to long but is effective I have just started the plank challenge for beginners and would also like to know how many planks I should be doing each time I do them thank you
Hi, this may sound completely insane but if you go to Walmart, there’s a little bottle called Relacor it’s in the diet section by the protein bars and all the other diet stuff it’s about $25. I swear to God everybody I’ve told about this loves it. You take three pills a day and it has something in it that reduces your belly fat for the past two years. I’ve been taking them then I stop taking them and then I get back on taking them but when you take them within a week you will lose 8 pounds I promise you on my heart patient it does not affect my heart does not ration your body. You do not feel weird. you are not jittery and it’s called relic core now. I have dropped 30 pounds in the last two years just taking them granite I should’ve been working out but they do work and I promise you everybody I’ve told about them loves them. I’ve met two or three ladies just talking to him on the aisle in Walmart and they’re like is it really that great on the cow I said I will give you my phone number you can call me and tell me tell me your results because it is really that great. I have all my family members taking it I don’t know what it is now if you go to HEB they’re going to sell a combo pack that is Rela core and then have some bread diet pills in it or felt fat melters. Those red fat melter pills do not do anything so do not buy the combo pack. If you get on Walgreens and look to order them right now it’s 1999 so if you want to it’s a little over $40 in savings cheaper and they do free shipping. I love absolutely love to tell people about this because it’s a hidden gym I promise you it will work. I am a 47-year-old female and I started my son who is 19 who is 64 325 pounds on it and then first two days he’s lost 6 lbs. I promise you you will not have any negative side effects. You take three pills a day but the main thing is when you wait you have to wait every day around the same time I’m not saying it right at 11:02 we have to wait but if you weigh around 1 o’clock waiting between 12 and two, the next day you know don’t worry morning and night morning and night but I promise you after two days you will lose weight and you can lose all the fat but then you’re gonna have a problem I have with and I’m not I’m not bad I mean I weigh 122, but do you know the excess skin so if you have any hints as to what I can do that and some of the excess it’s not horrible, but it is Wrinkly, please let me know. Now I have just started the 30 day plank challenge. Look it up and I’ve also started a 30 day squat challenge. Look that one up also. Today was my first day so we’ll see how I feel tomorrow. But I promise you you will not be disappointed if you spend 20/$25 on these pills and some month supply. You will lose in between 8 to 12 pounds in that month. wrinkly, please let me know. Now I have just started the 30 day plank challenge. Look it up and I’ve also started the 30 day squat challenge. Look that one up also. Today was my first day so we’ll see how I feel tomorrow. But I promise you you will not be disappointed if you spent 20/$25 on these pills and some month supply you will lose in between 8 to 12 pounds in that month. please try it and let me know. And by the way, I am using an automatic voice text so if it miss spells or makes up words I’m sorry, thank you seriously, go try it Jennifer
Such a great forum. I have just lost 2 stone and 4 pounds on the Keto coffee and diet. Having lost the weight I am in desperate need of toning ( especially the tummy) Sit-ups are just not working so going to start this straight away as there seem to be limited exercises just for the core.
can do this, who have high blood pressure patients
Will I lose weight and lose some belly fat by doing this?cuz it looks like I have a flat stomach but I’d dont?
Here comes my personal challenge!
I do a fair bit of MTB, but my upper body lacks behind, which obviously will influence the cycling.
So, nothing to loose, but that watermelon below the ribcage.
Can’t wait to see what happens in 30 days.
I’m gonna start this but what is recommended to eat and can I do more exercises as well
I started with 5 1 minute planks day 1, day 2: 3 1 minute planks.. feelin positive about this practice!!
I do dance classes three times a week, including an upbeat hip-hop class. I want to strengthen my core, which has been my goal. If I change the plank time to 1-2 minutes per day, how long do you think it will be until I see results?