4
YOUR
SIDE PLANKS
FUNCTIONAL-FITNESS
MOVES q
INNER SEPTUAGENARIAN WISHES YOU WOULD DO
WHAT IF there were a park bench where you could sit and visit with your 70-year-old self ? What a fascinating conversation you might have . You might talk at first about your family and career , but eventually the conversation would probably turn to quality of life . The ability to enjoy life to the greatest extent possible is a concern for many elders . As we age , our fitness level , perhaps more than any other factor , directly determines our freedom to live independently .
What if , at 70 , you could easily rise up off the floor , recover from a stumble without falling , and engage your abdominal muscles so effectively that you were free of back pain ? Building a bulletproof core takes years of attention and consistency , and yet the core is one of the first functional muscle groups to disengage when neglected . Your core is the quartermaster of the whole postural stabilization system ; if it is weak or imbalanced , everything else suffers . Side planks engage deep-core musculature and also strengthen your shoulders and gluteal muscles . They are excellent for recruiting your key postural muscles — in particular , the Quadratus Lumborum muscles , which help stabilize the lower back .
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TO PERFORM
START BY LYING ON YOUR SIDE WITH YOUR FEET TOGETHER , WITH ONE FOREARM DIRECTLY BELOW YOUR SHOULDER , PROPPING YOU UP .
ENGAGE YOUR CORE AND RAISE YOUR HIPS UNTIL YOUR BODY IS IN A STRAIGHT LINE FROM HEAD TO FEET .
HOLD THIS POSITION ( WITHOUT LETTING YOUR HIPS DROP ) FOR THE ALLOTTED TIME FOR EACH SET , AND THEN REPEAT ON THE OTHER SIDE .
AIM FOR 30 SECONDS WHEN STARTING OUT , WITH AN EVENTUAL GOAL OF ONE MINUTE PER SIDE . SHOOT FOR THREE SETS DAILY .
© CAN STOCK PHOTO / DOLGACHOV
10 October 2017 Paleo Magazine Insider