The Rules of Plank Club

When I first started working with my trainer back in December, a  30 second plank felt REALLY challenging. As I built my core strength I worked my way up to a 60 second hold, then a 90 second hold, and, as of Friday, my new record for holding the plank is 2 minutes. From what I’ve read, that’s a pretty impressive amount of time, especially for a girl, but I know I can do better!

So, I’ve decided to make a little challenge for myself, and I’m posting about it here in case you’d like to join in. Every day between now and April 20 (which is when I leave on vacation) I will perform one plank hold, in addition to whatever else I may be doing for exercise that day. I will start tonight with my current PR of 2 minutes. Tomorrow, I will go for 2 minutes and 5 seconds. And so on. By the end of March I should be up to 3-1/2 minutes, which is just insane!

If you’d like to join the challenge but you haven’t done a plank in awhile (or ever) you may find that you can only hold the position for 30 seconds or less. That’s okay. Just do one everyday and add five seconds each time. Most importantly, don’t forget The Rules of Plank Club:

1st Rule: You can talk about Plank Club.
2nd Rule: You can talk about Plank Club.
3rd Rule: If your butt drops or raises during the plank, the plank is OVER.
4th Rule: No limits on how many people can plank.
5th Rule: Perfect plank form must be observed at all times.
6th Rule: Wear whatever you feel like, plank naked if you must.
7th Rule: Planks will go on as long as your muscles can handle it.
8th Rule: If you join PLANK CLUB, you HAVE to PLANK.

I’ll be planking every day using a yoga mat on the bedroom floor, but if you have a carpeted surface that will work fine too. To keep the time, I’ll be using the Stopwatch app on my Android phone, but any clock with a second hand will work. The important thing is to just get planking! Your core will thank you!