Plank question

MoiAussi93

The past few weeks I have tried to be more consistent with strength training...all body weight exercises. Planks are one of the exercises I am doing. I can't get past 45 seconds when doing them. The problem is not my abdominal muscles..they feel like they could definitely go a bit longer. The problem is the strain on my shoulders. I feel like too much weight is pressing on them and they start to hurt. I'm not light, but 178 pounds does not seem like enough to cause this kind of discomfort so I'm wondering if there is some problem with my form.

I am keeping all the core muscles engaged and believe my body is in a straight line...not sagging and not with my butt in the air. But I do these at home so don't have a mirror to be absolutely sure. Is is possible my arms aren't properly positioned? I do them with hands clasped and elbows under my shoulders. Or is this shoulder pressure/pain just normal and part of what comes with planks?

JoRocka

After a minute you're not getting much other than the desire to just "do it longer" anyway- strength benefits have scaled out at that point.

If you can do 45 seconds- up grade to a harder variation.

AllanMisner

I feel a similar “pressure” on my shoulders when I do planks. If you find them unbearable, consider doing hollow body holds or hollow rocks instead: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlDNef_Ztsc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V72HS7BV42g

tulips_and_tea

Have you tried it without clasping your hands? Just stay on your elbows, hands and forearms basically relaxed. This may relieve some pressure.

MoiAussi93

JoRocka wrote: »

After a minute you're not getting much other than the desire to just "do it longer" anyway- strength benefits have scaled out at that point.

If you can do 45 seconds- up grade to a harder variation.

I was planning to try some side planks or other variations once I could consistently hit a minute.

LKArgh

MoiAussi93 wrote: »

The past few weeks I have tried to be more consistent with strength training...all body weight exercises. Planks are one of the exercises I am doing. I can't get past 45 seconds when doing them. The problem is not my abdominal muscles..they feel like they could definitely go a bit longer. The problem is the strain on my shoulders. I feel like too much weight is pressing on them and they start to hurt. I'm not light, but 178 pounds does not seem like enough to cause this kind of discomfort so I'm wondering if there is some problem with my form.

I am keeping all the core muscles engaged and believe my body is in a straight line...not sagging and not with my butt in the air. But I do these at home so don't have a mirror to be absolutely sure. Is is possible my arms aren't properly positioned? I do them with hands clasped and elbows under my shoulders. Or is this shoulder pressure/pain just normal and part of what comes with planks?

45 seconds is great. I had a similar issue and I could nto figure out what was wrong. It was not something visible in a mirror, or even noticeable by a trainer, it was just not putting enough effort on the core muscles vs the shoulders. But it was one of these things that sound obvious once you do them right, but impossible to figure out what right is before you manage it Have you tried planks on a push-up position? It makes it easier to do it "right".

MoiAussi93

AllanMisner wrote: »

I feel a similar “pressure” on my shoulders when I do planks. If you find them unbearable, consider doing hollow body holds or hollow rocks instead: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlDNef_Ztsc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V72HS7BV42g

So it sounds like it might just be normal. It only gets bad towards the end. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't doing something that might cause injury. But thanks for these alternatives. I want to change my routine every six or eight weeks, so these will be nice to add in.

MoiAussi93

BZAH10 wrote: »

Have you tried it without clasping your hands? Just stay on your elbows, hands and forearms basically relaxed. This may relieve some pressure.

I haven't tried that...maybe a simple change could help. Definitely worth a try. Thanks.

MoiAussi93

aggelikik wrote: »

MoiAussi93 wrote: »

The past few weeks I have tried to be more consistent with strength training...all body weight exercises. Planks are one of the exercises I am doing. I can't get past 45 seconds when doing them. The problem is not my abdominal muscles..they feel like they could definitely go a bit longer. The problem is the strain on my shoulders. I feel like too much weight is pressing on them and they start to hurt. I'm not light, but 178 pounds does not seem like enough to cause this kind of discomfort so I'm wondering if there is some problem with my form.

I am keeping all the core muscles engaged and believe my body is in a straight line...not sagging and not with my butt in the air. But I do these at home so don't have a mirror to be absolutely sure. Is is possible my arms aren't properly positioned? I do them with hands clasped and elbows under my shoulders. Or is this shoulder pressure/pain just normal and part of what comes with planks?

45 seconds is great. I had a similar issue and I could nto figure out what was wrong. It was not something visible in a mirror, or even noticeable by a trainer, it was just not putting enough effort on the core muscles vs the shoulders. But it was one of these things that sound obvious once you do them right, but impossible to figure out what right is before you manage it Have you tried planks on a push-up position? It makes it easier to do it "right".

I haven't tried them that way...I will give it a shot. It could be there is some very subtle difference or emphasis that could make the difference. Thanks for the suggestion.

MoiAussi93

Just an update...I experimented a bit and discovered that by moving my arms just slightly forward I relieved a lot of the pressure. Instead of my elbows being directly below my shoulders with my upper arms perfectly perpendicular to the floor, now the elbows are about an inch in front of my shoulders. It's a tiny change, but makes a huge difference for me. If any of you have the same issue, I recommend trying that.