The 30-day plank challenge is a popular fitness routine designed to strengthen your core and improve endurance. It involves progressively increasing the amount of time you hold a plank each day, achieving the a set goal over a month of progression.
Let’s discuss an overview of the challenge and the benefits of planking. A progression schedule will be provided for beginners, along with tips for success! Let’s plank our way up to five minutes!
30-Day Plank Challenge: Overview
The ultimate goal of this plank challenge is to increase core strength and improve stability. The program is designed to slowly increase endurance for the plank position while establishing a consistent exercise habit for those seeking one. This program is simple to scale, and individual ability will improve naturally with small increments of time added every couple of days.
The participant starts with a manageable plank duration. Test something around 20 or 30 seconds to find a start point and go up from there in 5-second increments to find the start point. Adjust the recommended schedule as needed based on this initial number. The participant will increase the time by 5-10 seconds each day or every other day. By day 30, the challenger should be holding a 3-5 minute plank! The results depend on both the starting point and incremental increase.
30 Day Plank Challenge: Benefits
Planking is an amazing overall body exercise. It targets multiple core muscles in tandem. Strengthening the target areas strengthens the core while improving posture, which is known to reduce back pain. Increasing core muscle strength also enhances stability and balance. Participating in the plank challenge naturally fosters mental toughness and improves the participant’s discipline levels. These benefits combined improve overall health and well-being.
30-Day Plank Challenge: The Schedule
As mentioned earlier, the participant will start with a manageable duration, reflecting their personal fitness level. In the schedule below, the challenger will simply adjust the time based on the start point as needed. For the purposes of this schedule, we will start with a 20-second duration and increase time from there. The aim is to perform a 3 to 5-minute plank by day 30. In this schedule, we will reach 5 minutes!
Day 1-2: 20 Seconds. Day 3-4: 30 seconds. Day 5: 40 seconds. Day 6: Rest. Day 7: 45 seconds. Day 8: 50 seconds. Day 9-10: 1 minute, milestone achieved. Day 11: Rest. Day 12: 1 minute, 10 seconds. Day 13: 1 minute, 20 seconds. Day 14-15: 1 minute, 30 seconds. Day 16: Rest. Day 17: 1 minute, 40 seconds. Day 18: 1 minute, 50 seconds. Day 19-20: 2 minutes, second milestone achieved. Day 21: Rest. Day 22: 2 minutes, 15 seconds. Day 23: 2 minutes, 30 seconds. Day 24: 2 minutes, 45 seconds. Day 25: Rest. Day 26: 3 minutes (another milestone!). Day 27: 3 minutes, 15 seconds. Day 28: 3 minutes, 30 seconds. Day 29: 4 minutes! Day 30: 5 minutes (you can do it!).
30-Day Plank Challenge: Tips for Success
When embarking on any new exercise, the first and most crucial step is to master the form. This is not just a recommendation but a necessity to prevent injury and ensure the exercise’s maximum effectiveness. Engage your core, straighten your back, and stabilize your hips. DO NOT stretch. This should be a natural horizontal form. If you feel any pain beyond the expected muscle fatigue, it’s a sign to take a break or adjust your form for accuracy.
Consistency is key to building muscle and improving endurance. The challenger should stick to the schedule as much as possible. If the increment increases are too much it is better to reduce them than to not perform the activity. The participant should also consider including other exercises in the mix. Such things as cardio, flexibility workouts, and strength training will create a well-rounded fitness routine. That’s it! Let’s get this thing going. Good luck!
Disclaimer: This article is intended simply to provide information. It does not replace the medical advice of a physician. Please speak with your doctor if you have any questions or concerns.
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