When we join the gym we seek to have a toned body in which we can see the famous six pack. The abs are exercises that are surrounded by hoaxes and false beliefs about their growth and development. One of the most used exercises to improve the abdomen are the abdominal planks. These exercises have been considered the best to develop the entire abdomen area. However, to what extent they are useful is, how long should it last, how often should we train, which variants are more effective, etc.
We will solve all these doubts in this article where we will talk in depth about the abdominal planks.
Diet for a good abdomen
Before talking about the abdominal soles and how we should execute and train them, we must talk about a fundamental aspect. The diet according to exercise. We must know that, in order to gain muscle mass, we need to be in a calorie surplus in the diet on a sustained basis over time. That is, we must spend part of the gym time gaining muscle mass and another time losing excess fat. To do this, two phases known as the volume phase and the definition phase are carried out.
In the volume phase, a phase of gaining muscle mass, we use the diet to generate a small surplus of calories that, together with the high protein, helps us to generate new muscle tissues. The problem is that during this phase you inevitably have to gain some fat in the process. In this way, our abdomen will not look so visible and we will not be able to show off abs. However, It is the necessary process to be able to create abs that can then be shown during the definition phase. During this phase, we lose the fat that we have gained volume and "uncover" the abs.
Once this is clarified, we are going to analyze all the abdominal planks and their variants.
Abdominal planks and variants
In the abdominal plank we try to exert pressure on the entire core area to be able to generate a sufficient stimulus to force the tissues to develop. This is how we grow our muscle mass in the abdominal area. However, it is usually quite a demanding exercise and there are different variants for all levels.
We are going to analyze which are the main variants of the abdominal soles.
- Plate with change of supports: It is the one in which we place ourselves in the position of the plank with our arms outstretched and one of the elbows flexed alternately so that the point of support is the forearms. In this way, we will also tone the arms.
- Plank with bending: In this type of variant, we acquire the position of the plank and do not lie on the ground leaning on the wrists and instep. We will bend our elbows to get closer to the ground and hold for a few seconds until we stretch our arms again.
- Single Leg Balance Plank: from the plank position we separate one leg from the ground and try to maintain balance for several seconds. We will rest the leg on the ground again to repeat the exercise with the other leg.
- Iron superman: this is well known in the gym. It consists of raising one arm simultaneously along with the other opposite leg. The body remains balanced on the points of support.
- Plant with knee to chest: we place ourselves in the plank position and we go alternately bringing the knee to the chest.
- Plank with jump: it is focused to analyze some hip rotations. It is a type of exercise that requires strength throughout the body.
Within all these variants we also find exercises with fitball. It must be borne in mind that to use the fitball we cannot drop the lumbar and always keep the navel towards the ceiling. In this way, we avoid any type of injury. We also have the side plank variants in which we stand on our side with the elbow resting below the shoulder. You have to place your feet together and separate your body from the ground. You have to keep a straight line with respect to the ground.
Effectiveness of abdominal planks
Since there are many people who venture to perform the challenges of abdominal planks, we must know that you have to execute this exercise. In this type of exercise, a lot of muscles are worked. The main emphasis is on the rectus abdominis and the transverse. However, by having to be completely stabilized you also get to work part of the shoulder, chest and involve some triceps. We also do some lower body exercise. Being placed in the plank position we see that we demand some work on the hips and the rectus femoris quadriceps.
We must remember that we can have very well developed muscles, that if we have a layer of a few centimeters of fat in front we will not be able to see anything. Therefore, this type of exercise must be combined with a hypocaloric diet to reduce the percentage of fat and with other aerobic exercises.
Although it is an exercise with good effectiveness, you have to perform the technique well. Although it is an exercise that has no movement, we should not consider it as an exercise free of possible injuries. It is not an exercise that is recommended for people with overweight or lower back problems. You need to turn to a personal trainer to assess your situation. They should also correct your technique well to make a good placement.
If we do not perform the technique well on the abdominal planks, we can put a lot of load on the lumbar area with too much curvature. In this way, we get the vertebrae to suffer. Another way people often confuse these exercises is with frequency. The abdomen must be trained as if it were any other muscle. Should have an intensity, a training volume and a frequency according to our level and objective What are we searching for. Let's not forget that the abs also need rest to be able to develop well.
Lastly, the same is true of duration. We should not exceed the duration of the abdominal plank as we can damage the lumbar.
I hope that with this information you can learn more about abdominal planks.