My Plank Poppin: How to Keep a Strong Core

A SPIN ON THE SIDE PLANK

Hey there you guys! So this holiday season I'm working on keeping a strong core. It feels like such a challenge for me this year because my diet has been a little shaky but I'm determined to finish the year strong and make my goals. For this post, I wanted to share some of my personal tips on the core challenge that you can try during your workouts to build ab and arm strength. Doing this exercise weekly will target the core muscles, abs, arms, glutes, and legs!

THE PLANK WORKOUT CHALLENGE

1. START BY GETTING INTO YOUR BASIC PLANK POSITION, ALSO KNOWN AS KUMBHAKASANA. REMEMBER TO SUCK IN THE BELLY AND KEEP THOSE LEGS STRONG. 

2. SLOWLY PIVOT OVER TO YOUR RIGHT SIDE, USING THE LEFT FOOT AS YOUR BALANCING POINT. REMEMBER TO GROUND YOUR RIGHT HASTA BANDHAS (ALSO KNOWN AS THE HAND LOCK, OR THE FOUR STRATEGIC POINTS IN YOUR HAND THAT WILL LOCK INTO THE GROUND). THEN SLOWLY RAISE YOUR LEFT ARM. LOCKING IN YOUR HASTA BANDHAS WILL MAKE YOU LIGHTER ON THE EARTH, GIVING YOU A STRONG FOUNDATION FOR INVERSIONS AND ARM BALANCES. 

3. AS A CHALLENGE, I BRING MY LEFT ARM BEHIND MY BACK TOWARDS MY WAIST. YOU WILL FEEL YOUR BICEPS, TRICEPS AND LATS BURN, THIS WILL TARGET THOSE MUSCLES AND TONE THEM!

4. YOGA IS ABOUT FEARLESSNESS AND MOVING SLOWLY AND DEEPLY INTO EACH POSE. I MAKE UP IN MY MIND THAT I WILL CONQUER THE NEXT CHALLENGE AND SLOWLY RAISE MY LEFT LEG. REMEMBER TO KEEP THE HIPS UP, DON'T LET THEM SINK TO THE MAT. THIS WILL TARGET THOSE OBLIQUES. 

5. TO SAFELY COME OUT OF THE POSE, LOWER THE LEFT LEG AND PLACE THE RIGHT HAND DOWN, BACK INTO YOUR PLANK POSE. MOVE ON TO THE LEFT SIDE OF THE BODY, TARGETING THE SAME MUSCLE GROUPS PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED.

6. AS A WAY TO COUNTER-ACT THE PLANK AND SIDE PLANK POSES, I LIKE TO DO A FRONT FACING PLANK. LIFTING THE HIPS, I USE MY CORE TO HOLD MY BODY WEIGHT UP AND TONE THE QUADS AND GLUTES. TO COME DOWN, BE CAREFUL WITH YOUR ARMS AS YOU MAKE YOUR WAY INTO A SEATED POSITION. TRY THIS CHALLENGE 2 - 3 TIMES ON YOUR NEXT WORKOUT, INCREASING THE SETS EACH TIME.

HEADING INTO TO NEW YEAR LIKE

THERE'S ALWAYS ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT. THIS HAS BEEN A YEAR OF BOTH POSITIVES AND NEGATIVES. I'M SO GRATEFUL I'VE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO BRING YOGA TO MY COMMUNITY AND MY ONLY HOPE IS TO UPLIFT/INSPIRE/CREATE A SAFE SPACE FOR YOU TO VISIT THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. I LOVE WHAT I DO AND LOOK FORWARD TO A STRONG, HEALTHIER, AND HAPPY 2018! MORE IS TO COME SO THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT, STAY TUNED!