Stomach Flattening Exercises: The Plank

This is one of my favorites stomach flattening exercises of all time. Not only is it great for the long term, but it is also great on the short term. Immediately after you finish the exercise look at yourself in the mirror and you will notice a fitter stomach in seconds! Okay… then the tightness will go away and things will be back to normal, but with determination and repetition you can get some pretty amazing results!

I first did the plank when Pilates exercises became famous. I assume this exercise existed long ago but I had not heard of it before. Why is this one of the best stomach exercises? Well, to start, it works your inner ab muscles, the transverse abdominus. This is one of the overlooked zones in your everyday stomach workout, however it is also very important.

As you may know, our stomach and back form the core of our body. On those muscles our balance and performance rely. This means that whenever we exercise our core section we will be contributing to our performance in all sports and other “fun activities” if you know what I mean…

Okay, so you may be wondering how to perform it. I have broke it down in easy to follow steps :

Step 1. Lie face down on the floor or exercise mat, rest on your forearms and keep your hands palm down flat on the floor.

Step 2. Push-up and off the floor, raising up onto your toes and resting on them and your elbows.

Step 3. Keep your body aligned with your back flat, assuming the tightness of a plank – hence the name!

Step 4. Make sure you keep your abs firm, and hold the position for 30 seconds.

Step 5. Repeat three times.

The plank is one of those stomach flattening exercises that may look easy. It is simple, but at the same time is hard as hell if you are just starting out. Don’t be surprised if you can’t hold the plank position for more than 15 seconds! But don’t discourage you are working out your stomach to keep it in shape. After some days you will find your stomach muscles much stronger, and maybe working your way up to 60 seconds holds!

Here I also added a great video that demonstrates how to perform the plank stomach exercise. It is well explained in video, replicate and get rid of your belly fast!