Oct 15, 2020Building Core Strength from Plank Movements
Anyone can hold a basic plank, but that gets boring and monotonous after some time.
Ebenezer Samuel, C.S.C.S., shared that the plank and side plank are great foundations for incorporating other movements in a recent article in Men’s Health.
“You’re training your core and simultaneously teaching your core to resist excess movement in multiple planes,” Samuel said to Men’s Health. “And that’s one key thing your core is meant to do.”
Pointing to the Copenhagen Plank Delt Raise — a version of a side plank that that is a “vicious” and challenging move to hold for an extended period of time — Samuel said this exercise targets one’s abdomen, obliques, and shoulders.
“You’ll build abdominal strength and build your entire core,” Samuel said to Men’s Health. “And you’ll get some much-needed rear delt and mid-back activation too. You’re lighting up adductors and abductors through your hips and then when you add the weight things get fun. You have to find a way to keep hips and shoulders square to the front, but every time you bring that plate forward, your torso is going to want to tip. It takes massive core strength to make sure that doesn’t happen.”
In addition, you’ll spend that time building up your rear delt and mid-back strength, with Samuel adding that this drill is key to overall shoulder health.
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You can do the Copenhagen Plank Delt Raise almost anytime. But it also fits easily in a workout. It’s a perfect lead ab exercise in any core workout, or it can be a finisher to a total-body session.
To read the full story on Ebenezer Samuel and his Copenhagen Plank Delt Raise from Men’s Health, click here.
