Take the plank challenge
Let's do this people! Well, at least Aliantha should do it with me. We'll take that 20 seconds to 5 minutes in 30 days. :D
I'm in ... just did my 20 sec Day 1. :)
I did it. Today.
Even got complimented on how straight my back was.:)
Yay! 40 seconds, day 4 for me. :-)
Haha....you'll be able to do 40 secs on the fourth day too. ;-)
I started about a week ago. I learned not to do it in socks on carpet.
Even got complimented on how straight my back was.:)
The model in the picture looks to have terrible form to me, back and belly are rounded, sagging, and the way her ankles aren't square. Don't what the correct form is, but that doen't look good for your back.
EDIT:
indeed, terrible form
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/05/fix-your-form-planks_n_1567803.html
in fact here is the same pic used as an exmaple of bad form!
I did have this on my initial workout schedule I was given, but it was 30 seconds, rest, then do it again. I haven't tried it in a while I'll have ago later and see where I am up to.
just start at day 1. it's not just about how long, it's the how often also.
Just checked, today is day 11 for me. oops. evidently I am not very good at keeping count. I've missed three days so far, including yesterday and Tuesday :(. I think I'm just pre-enjoying my "rest" days.
I'm going to call this day 9 instead of day 11 and go from there
What the hell. I'm gonna find some space under my desk where I can try this.
I'll probably forget and just do it when I see this thread as a reminder.
20 seconds huh? Let's see how this goes.
...
I wouldn't say it was hard, but it was more tiring than I expected. Shit, I'm out of shape.
Day 2 - 20 seconds
ETA: I wouldn't do this right after eating lunch. Not again, anyway...
What the hell. I'm gonna find some space under my desk where I can try this.
Before, or, after the blood draw?
Before. But I did just take a brisk walk outside. I gotta have my lunch time walk, or I just turn into a sloth-like lump of jello plopped in my chair for the rest of the day.
Besides, where else am I going to have a toothless guy asking me where some street is that I never heard of before?
**Goes off to Google maps to look for Terrorist street. Or maybe Terrace street.**
I thought this was going to be about quantum theory.
i am disappoint.
That would have been the Planck challenge - next galaxy over.
day 9: 60 seconds. check. just.
Today (day 10) tried in the sauna after swimming a mile. a little over-optimistic apparently. will try again tonight.
As soon as I get out of this hot tub, I will complete my 30-second plank. Count on it. ;)
I could tell those extra ten seconds were there.
But then again, my belly is almost touching the floor, and I have something going on in my left shoulder. No extra pain, though, so Ima stay with it.
30 secs for day four.
As soon as I get out of this hot tub...
Tease.
Aaaand ... I forgot about my 30-second plank.
I blame it on chemo-brain.
Tonight I'll do it before the hot tub. :D
3 day 30 sec done. While chewing a sandwich. Is that poor form?
days 10 and 11 a wash. yes I know today isn't over, but I know no plank is happening. two days of swim championships make the drinking start early :D
Damn. I suspect no plank will be happening today. For some reason, dinner is not sitting well. I never get queasy ... no idea where this is coming from, but will not risk tipping over the edge by tensing all my core muscles. :(
If you have sex, you should be able to count that as a couple days planks right?
hahaha...I just read this thread. I have to admit, I have been slack about my planking, partly because I've been busy LOSING 4KG IN less than TWO WEEKS! Anyway, more on that later.
I did the first week and was keeping up with the program, and have been kicking myself for not continuing, but it's been a madhouse. Mostly I just need to remember to do it before I put my feet up for the night.
I'm going to start at the beginning again from tomorrow. :)
Wow, Ali! Don't forget to tell us more about losing 4 kg in less than 2 weeks. What program are you on?
It's called hcg, but I think it's more that my calorie intake is only 600/day. I have been eating a lot of salad. lol. I have also been making a lot of Asian style broths with those slender noodles to bulk up my dinner time meals. The hcg (which is apparently from African mango) is supposed to keep the metabolism from slowing down on a calorie restricted diet. So anyway, it's going well, and if I keep planking, my core strength will be such that with a bit more weight loss, I will be ready to do some worthwhile exercise.
Didn't Pooka do that with great success? Flint? Look .....a real "summons" ;)
(what's the betting he ignores this one because I am the monster who cried "Flint!" ?) :lol:
I don't know, but he's not likely to say anything worth hearing anyway. Not to me anyway.
Lost track of my days so I just pick up from day 6. Yes, I am cheating. :-P
LJ: no, sex doesn't count. Gotta do your planks the right way. :-)
Ali: yes, start again. :-)
Day 12 also didn't happen (well I spent 4 hours in the lotus-ish position in a cold garage, but i'm guessing that doesn't count) I tried in bed last night but gave up at 20s --and was asleep 3s later .....so I went back to day 10 (1 minute) It was easier than I anticipated. :D
Here you go:
The HCG DietCool. Just read the thread. Thanks monster. I am aiming to lose a little over 2kg per week so about 6lb. So far I'm on track. I set myself a goal of 20kg by xmas. I think that might have been a little unrealistic, mostly because during both weeks so far I've been out drinking and dining one night. Still, I've lost 2kg both weeks so far, so not too bad. I'm not having too much of an issue with hunger either. I use myfitnesspal to keep track of my calories, so if I can fit in a light snack, I do.
I am not being as strict as Pooka was, but still getting results. My clothes are already starting to fit better. soon I hope to be getting back into stuff that really doesn't fit now.
If you can come close to 2kg a week for an extended period ([SIZE="1"]without murdering someone[/SIZE]), that's fantastic. Remember the first week you don't make your goal, don't give up. There will be frustrating plateaus, but keep going.
Anyone keeping up with your planking? I've been forgetting. :-/ okay, start again tomorrow. I just ate dinner a short while ago so not gonna do it now.
I'm keeping up. One minute this morning.
I restarted at 20 sec. Tomorrow and Sunday I'll work it in. I've started some core work and beginner's yoga as well.
Just did a minute. It feels like a long time and like I need to read or something during it. Staring at the same spot of dirty floor for a full minute is tedious on top of the exercise. I am not looking forward to multiple minutes of it.
Oh, and my core feels sore.
/whine
Plankwhatnow? Apparently, I'm so busy, I don't have thirty-forty seconds to spare...
I'll be starting over. Maybe. Prolly. [Size=1]Maybe.[/Size]
If you have sex, you should be able to count that as a couple days planks right?
Hells yeah!
No planking for several days....but I rn a 5K this morning :)
A minute and a half. I get tomorrow off.
Back to the start ... :yelsick:
No planking for several days....but I rn a 5K this morning :)
:thumb2:
I restarted at 1 min. Did 1 min. today and will again tomorrow.
After getting yesterday off, I did a minute and a half again today. A minute and a half is hard. I'm really curious how the next week is going to go.
Today I'm at the red dot. Tomorrow, I'll be half way through the challenge, but as you can see, the real work hasn't even begun yet. I should stop scrutinizing this before I psych myself out.
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I don't see exactly where the beer or the pepperoni come in. :confused:
I bumped up to two minutes today. And I did it. It was hard, but I did it and probably could have gone a bit longer.
It just may be that whoever designed this challenge knows what they are doing. No way could I have done two minutes when I started two weeks ago.
I am the bottom of the curve in this exercise, the less than 5th percentile. Does starting over multiple times count?
One thing in which I have persisted: I am sticking to my diet and have lost 8 lb in just under 2 weeks. Hooray! And I'm exercising, honestly - just keep forgetting to do the damned plank. :(
2.5 minutes.
There's getting to be a cardio component to this now. I'm breathing pretty hard by the end of the plank.
I am the bottom of the curve in this exercise, the less than 5th percentile. Does starting over multiple times count?
One thing in which I have persisted: I am sticking to my diet and have lost 8 lb in just under 2 weeks. Hooray! And I'm exercising, honestly - just keep forgetting to do the damned plank. :(
whoa! i needed to lose 8 lbs in just under 2 weeks. i don't think that's gonna happen. just start again....i don't know. are you doing other abs exercises?
2.5 minutes.
There's getting to be a cardio component to this now. I'm breathing pretty hard by the end of the plank.
impress! let's see how i breath when i get there. :p:
OK I have decided the plank challenge is hard because it's boring and takes so much effort to remember, find time, find space..... and then is all over. The preparation is just too much faff! That's my excuse of the day. And I'm not lazy -I went to a 30 minutes Abs class and swam a half mile including my ?4th fastest timed 400y ....but I forgot the plank.
Wow, three minutes sounds absurdly long. Did you start using a book on the floor in front of you, like you planned? Do you feel like it's more abdominal muscles, or leg muscles, that are getting stronger?
It's all in the abdomen. And I do it in the morning listening to radio news. I really focus on the news stories.
It sucks.
But I feel a sense of accomplishment because I really was a weakling when I started.
Wow! I'm shaking at one minute 30 seconds. You're right about concentrating hard on something else. Personally I listen to music.
3.5 minutes.
I keep expecting to not be able to move up to the next level, because the previous one was so hard, but so far it's working.
The last minute is excruciating though. Feeling it in my whole body now.
I got yesterday off, and today is day 27.
I planked for 4 minutes this morning. The first 2 minutes were easy. The third minute was a challenge. And that fourth minute was ridiculous. My form suffered immensely as I got closer to the end. I kept sticking my butt in the air, sagging here and there, trembling, etc. Not pretty. But I did it.
I've got three days left of this challenge. I don't see how I can add another minute in three days. But I'll keep trying.
My abs are noticeably firmer.
Yay! Needless to say, I fell off the bandwagon. Maybe I should just go for the floor next time I try ;)
Wow! Way to go, Glatt! :thumb2:
That's really impressive. Glatt is the planking master!
Plankmaster Glatt and the Cellar Wannabes
I did 45s today so restarting at day 7 which will take me to Chistmas
Gotta do 2min today after a couple screwups.
Day 28. 4 minutes.
I focused on form more this time, and went to 4:10, just to see if I could. I think I can probably do 4:30 tomorrow, but 5:00 the next day seems impossible right now.
Alright, the peer pressure has gotten to me. I did 30 seconds tonight, before I went back and checked the chart and saw I was actually supposed to start with 20. We'll see if I can remember tomorrow...
eeek! after one rest day, i forgot to do my plank. Gonna do it now before heading to bed.
Note here so I won't forget where I am: Day 20 - 2.5 minutes
I attempted 4:30 this morning, but only got 3:30. I was tired and had no energy.
I'll give it a shot this evening before dinner.
One way or another, tomorrow is my last day of the challenge. I'll probably wind up continuing to do 3:00 or so a day after this. Don't want to slide backward. Or maybe I'll mix it up and try holding a pushup pose to work my pecs too.
I skimmed and mis-read "holding a push-up pose at work".
Tried again. 2:30.
I think I've mentally checked out of this challenge.
Tomorrow I shoot for 5:00. Wish me luck.
Good luck, Glatt! Maybe your muscles need to recuperate to strengthen. You could roll back a few days to work up to 5 minutes. :)
This morning I've only managed to plank for 1.5 minutes rather than 2.5 mins. It could be that I just did the ab workout that stressed out my arms and shoulders (plank style exercises). I'll try again tonight. If I still can't make it, I'll roll back to day 14 to build up my strength again.
My plank challenge is OVER!
I didn't reach 5 minutes today. I just haven't been motivated the last two days. I got 3:30. I could have gone longer, but just gave up because I didn't see the point. I knew I couldn't reach 5:00 without a herculean effort.
Still, I'm happy with how I did during the challenge. My longest was 4:10. And starting tomorrow, I'm going to plank every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 6am when my wife gets up to go for a morning jog with the neighbor. I'm going to start by doing some push ups and then rest on my elbows in a plank that I'll hold for 2:00. That's the plan anyway. I may modify it if it feels too easy. I suck at pushups, so I'll try working my way up to doing a bunch.
I've gotten too weak over the years. I don't care about body building and looks, but I want to have some strength. Especially core strength.
I went ahead and bumped up to 45 seconds last night, because I didn't want to arbitrarily stick to the schedule when I knew I could do more. 45 was surprisingly harder than 30, although maybe that's only because I was still subtly recovering from the first night. I have to say, though, I greatly prefer the planking position to sit ups, which have always hurt my back and neck. (Probably because I'm doing them with poor form, but regardless, I like "holding" exercises better than "doing" exercises.)
My kids saw me and wanted to try it--they did two rounds, Minifobette for 15 seconds each time, and Minifob for 20. I was pretty impressed.
Glatt, new user title: What A Plank
I don't plank any more, but I've been doing crunches until I can't do any more (40-50), push ups (about 20), squats (about 15), and I've been doing really slow curls (15 or 20) of 15lbs.
I'm not trying to hit any particular number, just doing some basic strength exercises in a few minute's worth of time.
Then I stretch, which feels wonderful.
During my lunch break at work, I'm walking a brisk walk through residential neighborhoods near my building. Anywhere from 2.5 miles to 4 miles. Depending on how much time I have. The cold weather is great because I don't break a sweat. Not sure what I'll do come summer.
That's my routine these days.