Side Plank Raise

What is Side Plank Raise:

The Side Plank Raise exercise is a bodyweight movement that strengthens and stabilizes the core, primarily targeting the obliques. It involves holding a side plank position and raising and lowering the hips in a controlled manner.

Key Benefits:

  • Muscle Size and Definition: Consistent practice of this exercise can enhance the muscle size and definition of the obliques, potentially leading to a more sculpted appearance relative to the individual's body composition.
  • Core Strength and Stability: This exercise effectively targets and strengthens the obliques, leading to a stronger core, which is crucial for various activities, improved posture, and potentially mitigating back pain.
  • Hip Mobility and Stability: Strengthens the hip abductors and adductors, improving mobility and stability and potentially aiding injury prevention.
  • Convenience: This exercise can be performed virtually anywhere without equipment, making it accessible and convenient for most individuals.

Variations:

  • Heel Tap: A simple obliques exercise that involves lying on your back and crunching your obliques by tapping your heels / lateral flexion.
  • Russian Twist: A core exercise that targets the obliques through controlled twisting motions of the torso.
  • Copenhagen Plank Raise: A similar exercise with differences in the leg position and more demand in the hip adductors.
  • Floor Windshield Wiper: A core exercise that primarily targets the obliques performed lying on your back and moving the lower body sideways, like a windshield wiper.

How to perform Side Plank Raises:

  • Starting Position: Begin in a side plank position with your arms straight or on your forearms flat on the floor, as well as with your feet stacked or staggered and your body in a straight line.
  • Execution: Relax your core and lower your hips towards the ground, then engage and raise them back up to the starting position, holding the top position briefly.
  • Repetition: Repeat the movement for your desired number of repetitions.

Breathing Technique:

Proper breathing is crucial for maximizing performance and maintaining stamina throughout the exercise. Experiment with what you're comfortable with and let you perform your best. For starters, you can try the following:

  • Inhale: Inhale at the starting position and at the relaxed/bottom position before starting the concentric phase.
  • Exhale: Exhale at the end position.
  • Stability Issue: The point of the exercise is to challenge the obliques through spinal lateral flexions and not the instability of the body position. So, feel free to use your non-supporting arm and both legs to support your body if needed.
  • Scapular Engagement: Maintain scapular depression with neutral protraction/retraction throughout the movement to make the exercise execution more efficient.
  • Shoulder Rotation: Maintain slight shoulder external rotation for more efficient and safer exercise execution.
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    Additional Information:

    Ways to make it easier:

    • Decreasing the Range of Motion - partial reps, only go as far as you can handle
    • Doing it with your other hand on the ground or holding onto something for support
    • Elevating your upper body
    • Regressing to an easier variation/exercise

    Ways to make it harder:

    • Playing with the Tempo & adding an Isometric phase (pause/hold)
    • Contracting your obliques as much as possible
    • Elevating your feet until your body is horizontally aligned
    • Doing it on your elbow
    • Adding resistance - holding a dumbbell or something on your side
    • Progressing to a harder variation/exercise