What is plank?

Written by ladies personal trainer Justina Triasovaite.

Exercises that do not require any special place, environment, equipment or focus are the best ones, plank is one of them. Plank is an exercise that strengthens your entire body – from building your back strong to firming up your lower back. It is a form of exercise similar to a pushup in which you maintain a position for the maximum possible time. Its one of my most favourite exercise for abs.

Muscles engaged

  • transversus abdominis muscle
  • ​gluteus medius and gluteus minimus muscles
  • the adductor muscles of the hip
  • Internal and external obliques

How-to perform 

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There are several forms in plank but the basic one as mentioned above is similar to a pushup. To perform this exercise, get down in apushup position on the floor and bend your arms at 90 degrees resting your weight on the forearms. The position of your elbows should be in a way that they are directly beneath your shoulder . Your body’s position should be in a way that it forms a straight line from head to your feet. You goal  should be to hold and maintain the same position for at least 2 minutes. Few of the other forms of planks are; leg raised plank, one sided plank and elbow plank.

Benefits

  • Improves posture
  • Activates core muscles
  • Enhances appearance
  • Decreases risks of back injuries
  • Boosts metabolism

Common mistakes

It is very important to maintain a perfect form while performing a plank otherwise you will lose all the body benefits.

  • One of the major mistakes that people do while performing a plank is that they let their hips drop. The actual form of your hip should be in a way that it is in line with your heel and head.
  • You do not position your hands in a proper manner, either they are too apart or you stagger them.
  • Another mistake is bending of knees. Bending the knees reduces the effectiveness of your body.
  • People think abs is all about your back and forget that if you tighten your stomach muscles, you can work on your abs.
  • Many people put pressure on their shoulders and round them, this strain your shoulders and neck.

    Variations/progressions


    There are several variations in plank; here are a few of them picked for you by female personal trainer Justina Triasovaite.

    Basic: more like a pushup in which you bend your arms in a 90 degree position resting weight on the forearms

    Plank with a leg raise: similar as a basic plank but each leg has to be raised 5 – 6 inches off the floor one at a time

    Spiderman: start off with a basic plank and then move your knee one by one towards your elbow without twisting or moving upper torso. Then bring back the leg down and do the same with other leg

    Rocking: start with a basic plank position and slowly rock back and forth by moving your head away and towards from your hands.

    Who should do this exercise

      Plank is a form of exercise that can be done by all whether you are at a beginner, intermediate or advanced level. For those who are at the beginning stage of doing workouts a 1+ minute is good for them, for intermediates 3+ minutes and for advanced level 5+ minutes. Give it a go! add extra 10-20 sec each time you atempting to perform this exercise.

      If you enjoyed this article click here for more chest exercises written by female personal trainer Justina

      Need more info? 

      Email: [email protected]
      Mobile (text or call): 07944 916 9906
      Say hello on Facebook!: facebook.com/justinatraining
      Contact Justina: justinatraining.com/contact

      Beginners Upperbody workout: step by step press-up guide

      Written by female personal trainer Justina Triasovaite.

      WELCOME to my simple exercises beginners section. In this blog post I will show you simple way to learn press-ups. This article is going to be  very useful  for beginners because most of the people don't know how to do press-ups.

      For this upperbody exercise you don't need any equipment. Bear in mind you have to warm up before every training.

      About press-ups

      Press-ups or also known as push-ups is One of the most popular body weight exercise for different people. Press-ups  are very well know exercise for a lot different muscles. We have shoulders, arms, chest and whole back involved. There is a lots of different varieties of push-ups and today I'm going to show you the easiest way to master press-up.

      Good to know! 

      Push-ups can be great warm up for advanced people.

      Rules to follow

      Here are the rules you need to follow:

      FIRST RULE - Keep your body paraler to the floor.
      SECOND RULE - Work both arms equally 
      THIRD RULE - Keep your abs engaged all the time
      FOURTH RULE - Use special handles for press-ups if you have inflexible wrists.

      Places where you can do it

      EVERYWHERE: gym, park, at home, anywhere you like.

      Benefits of Press-ups

      • Increased overall upperbody strenght 
      • Visibly defind muscles
      • Stronger core muscles
      • Better control over your body

      Common mistakes

      Sometimes is very tempting to use your hips instead of upper body strength. Use your legs just as a upper body holder. It should not be included in push-up. 

      General nutrition

      for any nutrition enquiry please contact me directly via contact form or any social media. Feel free to text/call.

      Ready to give it a go?

      Start with 100 press-ups a week increase by 20 every week in order to get stronger gradually 🙂 

      SEE RESULTS

      Please leave me your comments below. What did you think of the exercise? What is easy enough for you? Is there anything else you would have wanted me to cover? What other exercises would you like me to teach you? I'm all ears! 🙂

      Beginners buttox workout : Work your buttox at home

      Written by female personal trainer, London based, Justina Triasovaite.

      WELCOME to my simple exercises beginners section. In this blog post I will demonstrate you easy way to work your booty at home. Working out at home is easy and it can really be fun too! 

      For this booty workout you need to have a training mat. Bare in mind you need to warm up before starting workout.

      About this booty routine

      This can be your first  booty workout  if you are very new to the fitness world. No gym or special equipment needed as you can see here. Why not to try and give it a go even in front of TV every evening? In our busy life routine sometimes is very hard to squeeze in a trip to gym. More and more workouts are being done from the comfort of our homes. And that’s exactly what I am showing you here.

      Remember:

      These beginners exercises can be the perfect warm up before a heavy squatting session.

      Rules to follow

      Here are the rules you need to follow:

      FIRST RULE – With kickbacks is very important keeping your hips straight and tight – don’t twist. SECOND RULE – With bridges make sure you squeeze your gluteus as much as you can during movements.
      THIRD RULE – Make sure your back is not arched during both exercises
      FOURTH RULE – Second exercise (bridge) has to be performed as continuos movement. Don’t drop your bum on the floor after every rep. 

      Places where you can do it

      EVERYWHERE: gym, park, at home, anywhere you like.

      Benefits of this booty workout

      Common mistakes

      It’s very simple exercises, so you cant really go very wrong. Start slowly, complete full range of movement, view the example video a few times until you will feel confident on how to perform this routine. 

      General nutrition

      Wanna know what you should be eating? Contact me for personalised plans and advice. 

      Ready to give it a go?

      You need to perform this exercise at least 4 times a weeks in order to SEE RESULTS in around 6 weeks.

      SEE RESULTS

      Please leave me your comments below. What did you think of the exercise? What is easy enough for you? Is there anything else you would have wanted me to cover? What other exercises would you like me to teach you? I’m all ears! 🙂

      Helpful Resources:

      https://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/ss/slideshow-build-a-better-butt

      https://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/features/truth-about-toning-shoes#1

      https://www.healthline.com/health/tight-glutes

      https://www.wikihow.com/Get-Your-Legs-and-Butt-in-Shape

      https://www.acefitness.org/

      https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/exercise/10-minute-firm-butt-workout/

      https://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/features/fitness-challenge-abs-and-glutes

      https://blog.nasm.org/sports-medicine/piriformis-syndrome-stretches/

      ​

      Mum and baby Workout: Full body with your little one

      Written by female personal trainer, London based, Justina Triasovaite.

      WELCOME to my simple exercises beginners section. In this blog post I’m going to present you simple but very effective exercise which you can perform with your baby. 

      Before performing this exercise you need to perform quick dynamic warm up (light jog, shoulders rotation,..)

      About this cardio exercise

      New mums usually struggle to find time for anything else than looking after the little angels. To find time for gym or even home workout can be a real mission. 

      Why not try exercising with your baby? This amazing compound exercise includes two most important movements – squats and shoulder press.  

      Remember 

      You can contact me anytime for more exercises and training ideas.

      Rules to follow

      Here are the rules you need to follow:

      FIRST RULE – pick up your baby, hold her/him close to your chest
      SECOND RULE – stand with legs bit wider then shoulders apart
      THIRD RULE – squat as deep as you can and lift baby up whiles return up from squatting
      FOURTH RULE – Squeeze your gluteus all the time, keep them as active as you can

      Places where you can do it

      EVERYWHERE: gym, park, at home, anywhere you like.

      Benefits of this exercise 

      Common mistakes

       It can be really hard to perform this exercise 100% right first time. Take it slow, pay attention to the rules above. Most common mistake is not going low enough whiles squatting,  try and improve your squating technique every time you do this exercise.

      General nutrition

      For any nutrition enquiries please contact me directly and visit my fb site for food ideas and much more www.facebook.com/justinatraining

      Ready to give it a go?

      You need to perform this exercise at least 3-5 times a week to see a visible results in 4 weeks.

      SEE RESULTS

      Please leave me your comments below. What did you think of the exercise? What is easy enough for you? Is there anything else you would have wanted me to cover? What other exercises would you like me to teach you? I’m all ears! 🙂

      Beginners Workout: Stronger Lower Back

      Written by female personal trainer Justina Triasovaite.

      WELCOME to my simple exercises beginners section. In this blog post I’m going to give everything what you need to know about lower back strengthening. This is very good for beginners because both demonstrated movements are very easy to complete. 

      For this exercise you need to have training mat or you can do it on the carpet. Bear in mind you MUST warm up before training.

      About this lower back exercises 

      Long hours sitting down in the office can cause serious lower back pain. You can avoid it by doing this two simple exercise. Great combination of superman and back hyper extensions will strengthen your lower back muscle with no risk of injury.

      Remember to:

      Remember, you can contact me anytime for more information about lower back pain management.

      Rules to follow

      Here are the rules you need to follow:

      FIRST RULE – Keep you core engaged while performing superman
      SECOND RULE – Keep you head facing down
      THIRD RULE – Contract your gluteus while performing back extensions

      Places where you can do it

      EVERYWHERE: gym, park, at home, anywhere you like.

      Benefits of this lower back workout 

      Common mistakes

      Arching back
      Arching neck
      Not engaging core

      General nutrition

      Protein is essential for muscle building, so keep it up. However, every person is very individual. Please contact me directly for more information about nutrition. 

      Ready to give it a go?

      You need to perform this exercise at leas 4 times a weeks in order to SEE RESULTS in around 6-8 weeks.

      SEE RESULTS

      Please leave me your comments below. What did you think of the exercise? What is easy enough for you? Is there anything else you would have wanted me to cover? What other exercises would you like me to teach you? I’m all ears! 🙂

      Beginners Bodybuilding Workout: Strong Shoulders

      Written by female personal trainer Justina Triasovaite.

      WELCOME to my simple exercises beginners section. In this blog post you will learn how to build strong shoulders with very simple movements (only three).This is very good for beginners because because there is very low risk of injury and very easy to complete.

      For this bodybuilding exercise you need to have 2 dumbells or 2 bottles of water. You can be creative choosing your own weights. Bear in mind that the correct weight is very important (I explain how to choose your weight below).

      About this bodybuilding shoulders exercise

      This bodybuilding shoulder workout works free major deltoid muscles which are responsible for shoulders shape and your posture. 

      Remember to:

      1) Challenge yourself whilst choosing weights
      2) Start with weight where you can complete maximum 12 repetitions
      3) Complete three full sets of 12 repetitions to start with

      Rules to follow

      Here are the rules you need to follow:

      Stand with your legs apart same width as that of your shoulders 
      Bend your knees slightly
      Neutral spine and retracted shoulders
      Head straight forward

      Places where you can do it

      EVERYWHERE: gym, park, at home, anywhere you like.

      Benefits of this bodybuilding shoulders workout

      Common mistakes

      Trying to lift weights that are too heavy
      Don’t use both arms equally (for example, your right arm might be stronger)
      Giving up too early!

      General nutrition

      Protein, protein, protein!

      Ready to give it a go?

      You need to perform this exercise at least twice a week for 6 weeks in order to SEE RESULTS.

      SEE RESULTS

      Please leave me your comments below. What did you think of the exercise? What is easy enough for you? Is there anything else you would have wanted me to cover? What other exercises would you like me to teach you? I’m all ears! 🙂

      Beginners Kettlebell Workout: Full Body Workout With One Movement Only

      Written by female personal trainer, London based, Justina Triasovaite.

      In this beginners kettlebell workout exercise I’m going to show you how to work your full body only with one movement. This is very good for beginners because all you need is to know a few simple rules.

      For this kettlebell exercise you need to concentrate. Bear in mind you need some gym experience or some sort of exercising experience for this type of training.

      About this kettlebell exercise

      This kettlebell workout movement called “kettlebell swing” is the first first movement where you should learn before starting doing any other exercise with kettlebells. It works for your full body, starting from hamstrings followed by gluts, lower back, trapecious and deltoids.

      So, as you can see, it covers the biggest muscles on your body which is essential to daily living. ​

      Remember to:

      Remember to warm up hips and shoulders before doing this exercise. 

      Rules to follow

      Here are the rules you need to follow:

      FIRST RULE – Power comes from the hips.
      SECOND RULE – No matter what, keep your legs straight!
      THIRD RULE – Keep hinging through your hips.

      Places where you can do it

      EVERYWHERE: gym, park, at home, anywhere you like.

      Benefits of this kettlebell workout

      Common mistakes

      Swinging using lower back instead of hipsUsing shoulders to lift kettlebells instead of hipsUsing too low weight for your exercise

      General nutrition

      High protein intake and moderate carbohydrate intake will be the best mixture to achieve a healthy looking physique.

      Ready to give it a go?

      You need to perform this exercise at least twice a week for 15/20 minutes in order to SEE RESULTS in around 4 to 6 weeks time!

      SEE RESULTS

      Please leave me your comments below. What did you think of the exercise? What is easy enough for you? Is there anything else you would have wanted me to cover? What other exercises would you like me to teach you? I’m all ears! 🙂