Having been shown this move as a good core strength exercise (although you don't move), how long do you hold it for?
I'm doing 2 minutes at a time with not much effort.

If you are doing it for 2 minutes at a time without much effort then you are doing it wrong.

2 mins is about right. Good if you can do that (properly!) without feeling it though. Try doing the plank on it's side (eg turn your body 90 degress (both ways) and support your weight on one arm.

EDIT – Jimmy – not so – it's perfectly feasible if you've built up good core stability – I used to and did so. Now I'd struggle to do a minute…

Clubber – not a chance that they have good core stability though, not if they are someone who is looking to build up core strength. My guess is that their arse is in the air, or their balls are on the floor and they are using a whole different set of muscles.

Fair comment and I did suspect similar…

Get a mirror and check you're doing it right.

I've only tried it 3 or 4 times. Wearing walking boots my feet are 90 degrees to my body and locked rigid (unlike barefoot which is a little more difficult) which is, as far as I am aware, perfectly flat, no raised butt. I'll get a pal to double check this later as I might be wrong (small dangly bits).

3 x 2 minutes, with the final stint being as long as it can be held.

I'm doing 2 minutes at a time with not much effort.

*swoon*

About 40 seconds, shaking like a sh1tt1ng dog before collapsing.

PMSL @ thecrackfox. Sounds like my efforts too 🙂

Hummm.
The second 2 minutes was much more difficult!
Shaking a little and I had to regulate my breathing to help out.
Here goes the 3rd set…

1:41 on the 3rd set.
Something to work on.

or

Lie facedown on an exercise mat, legs extended, and place your elbows under your shoulders, resting your forearms on the ground, palms facing each other in loose fists.

Which is it as I've only been shown the flatter-body, forearm position?

The 2nd.

second

This:

From a very good book I have called Pilates For Core Strength

Raise diagonally opposite limbs and stretch out as far as you can. Try that.

as above, second one I know is where your on your side, both arms straight(like your in a cross position) feet on the ground. Having the strenght to do that for any lenght of time is one thing, the balance in that position is another….

plank as normal but set the feet wide, put a step inbetween and step up and down slowly,

Forearms on the ground for me, 2 x 40 secs then the third for as long as I can hold it – which isn't much longer!

Plank doesnt really work the core all that well though. Six pack muscles aren't core muscles.

Will try the alternative planks tomorrow.

By the sounds of things I have a decent core strength wich is surprising (in a good way!) since I do no other exercise bar walking and some free weights a few years ago. Last sit up was 10+ yrs ago!

as above, second one I know is where your on your side, both arms straight(like your in a cross position) feet on the ground. Having the strenght to do that for any lenght of time is one thing, the balance in that position is another….

…yeah I am bored.

I think home based Pilates is pretty worthless.

If you have a good teacher she will point out where you're not engaging the correct muscles and you learn that the important bit to the position is the last 2%. Which you can never get from a book.

And it can be a great spectator sport if you go to the right gym. 8)

Wearing walking boots my feet are 90 degrees to my body and locked rigid (unlike barefoot which is a little more difficult)

Having been to several Pilates classes for a number of years never seen anyone wearing walking boots, usually bare foot or socks if your pinkies get cold.

Got to disagree there John – while it clearly isn't as good as instructor based sessions, it's still beneficial. It's a bit like saying there's no point mtbing unless you've got a skills instructor every time.

Kona – I'd just come in from a walk and I deceided to give the plank a go out on the decking before breakfast.
Maybe I could start a trend….

Maybe a few sessions in a class to establish good form and technique wouldn't go a miss and then continue at home with the odd visit now and again to catch up with the far more supple ladies in gym kit is called for (I have never been able to touch my toes)!

Hah, if you aren't flexible enough to touch your toes then maybe your core is a little too rigid. I've never really got much past a minute doing the plank, but I am also kind of heavy.

I can however near enough put my pams flat on the floor when beding to touch my toes – cos I've only got short legs 🙂

Easy to say you can do a plank for 2+ minutes on the internet…;-)

Try doing a dip with legs extended horizontally forwards then rotate your legs and lower body around and up into a handstand and hold it. Then do a freestanding handstand press up or two.

That'll test your core strength…

I laugh in the face of your feable plank, during physio recovery from my ACL reconstruction they had me doing single leg squats with ten kilos in each hand. 25 x 3 reps with 30 sec recovery between sets, now that aches somewhat..

try kettle bell lift, lay flat, lift bell and stand while keeping bell above your head at all times, great core strength builder. Sounds easy, hurts like **** after a few.

So there's the 100 situp club (I never got round to starting that) – how about the 1 hour plank club?!
And thecrackfox – spot on – surely that's how the plank is *supposed* to be done?

We do the plank as part of our circuit training. I hate it but you very quickly improve on your times. I would be surprised if anyone who wasnt training regular (Not cycling as it does nothing for core strength really) could manage 2mins x 3.

From what i have been instructed it is picture 4 of Jamies first picture post. We get made to start again if our arses are too high.

I can do 'the plank' (verified as proper) for 2 minutes no problem with no training, always have.

I can also do the one where you 'sit' against a wall with knees bent at right angles and back to the wall for ages. Used to do boxercise classes with some very fit people but I was always best at that.

Don't know whether it's to do with good core stability (I am a swimmer) or something else, there's some exercises I can't do because my arms don't seem to have been attached to my body at quite the right angle :-S

Edit: never been able to touch my toes with my legs straight, even as a child, and as a girl that's meant to be easy for me

http://i.ehow.com/images/a02/74/d7/perform-modified-plank-exercise-200X200.jpg

This is how the plank should look………and no shoes that makes it easier!!

Try doing the plank on a powerplate in the gym to make it harder – I can't hold it on the powerplate for much more than 45seconds, whereas doing it on the floor, I can hold for a lot longer. The vibrations will also help your arm/shoulder muscles – my press ups have almost doubled in number since starting doing the plank on the powerplate – and it's the only thing I'm doing differently.

Seems to be like the diet / losing weight syndrome – there doesn't appear to be universal agreement on how to do the plank. Picture from Clareymorris is how I've been taught making sure that you do not create a "bridge" with your arms ie. arms and hands should be in line with your body and not joined together. The picture that Ti29er posted is supposed to be a harder version of it. To add to the effect you then have the option of slowly raising a foot off the ground and lowering it back down (alternate feet). Supposed to be good for core along with crunches. Sit ups work the 6/8 pack rather than the core, apparently. But then again, I am only going on info provided by our gym instructor.

Hobo.
I don't do any other training but did just shy (20 seconds) of 3x 2 minute sessions on my first attempt, so after a few weeks I'll maybe need to try some of these variations to keep it fresh.

This must in part come from mtn biking (?), perhaps because I've swapped out from a sit-&-pedal FS to an out-of-the-saddle HT in the last year or so.

Got a mate who can hold it for 7+ minutes, its insane. Think my record is ~5 minutes, which hurt. Try also holding the normal position, but with one arm or one leg. Or both one leg and one arm.

This is the one exercise that seems to prevent my re-occuring back injuries and help with riding:

do it on a swiss ball…like me 😀