Modifying Plank

In most of our Tips & Tricks, we offer a way that you can modify the pose, but we don't dive too deep into it. This month, we want to focus more on modifications. Next week, we'll be sharing our thoughts and ideas around modifications in our "From the Coaches." Until then let's jump right in with our first pose!

Plank is in every one of our classes right now. This is a great full-body pose because, when practiced correctly, you engage nearly every muscle! It does require a lot of core strength and it unassumingly puts a lot of pressure on your core as well.

The main modification for this pose is to lower your knees straight down from high plank. Imagine a straight line from your knees to the crown of your head. But you can also change your hand positioning or skip it entirely depending on your needs during class! Here are times when you may want to consider modifying plank and how:

1. If you are working on building core strength and notice that your hips lifted up or start to drop toward the ground, lower your knees to the mat. You can also have one knee down and one leg fully extended, just remember to alternate sides as you move through practice.

2. If you have wrist pain, consider bringing your hands into fists and placing the flat part of your fists directly below your shoulders. You can also bring your forearms onto the mat, with your elbows directly below your shoulders and your palms pressed down.

3. If you have abdominal separation (Diastasis Recti), skip plank altogether. Plank puts a lot of pressure on your core and can worsen the abdominal separation. Instead, opt for table top and/or meet in the next pose.