Exercise
Front Elbow Plank
How to Perform - Front Elbow Plank
- Start on your hands and knees, then place your forearms on the ground with elbows directly under your shoulders and arms parallel to each other.
- Extend your legs behind you one at a time, supporting your weight on your forearms and toes while keeping your body in a straight line from head to heels.
- Engage your core by drawing your navel toward your spine and slightly tucking your pelvis to maintain a neutral spine position.
- Keep your neck in a neutral position by gazing at a spot on the floor about 6-12 inches in front of your hands, avoiding any head drooping or lifting.
- Squeeze your glutes and quadriceps to help stabilize your body and maintain proper alignment throughout the exercise.
- Breathe normally during the hold, focusing on deep breaths that expand your rib cage laterally rather than allowing your belly to sag.
- Check that your shoulders are directly above your elbows and that your weight is evenly distributed across both forearms.
- Hold this position for the prescribed time, maintaining tension throughout your body and keeping a straight line from head to heels.
Important information
- Make sure your elbows are positioned directly under your shoulders to prevent shoulder strain and maximize stability.
- Keep your hips level with your shoulders and ankles, avoiding the tendency to pike up or sag down in the middle.
- If you feel any pain in your lower back, slightly tuck your tailbone to engage your core more effectively and maintain a neutral spine.
- For beginners, start with shorter hold times (10-20 seconds) and gradually increase duration as your core strength improves.
Primary Muscles
Muscle Groups
Mechanic
Risk Areas
Built for progress
Take the guesswork out of training
Create personalized AI-powered workout plans that evolve with you. Train smarter, track every rep, and keep moving forward, one workout at a time.
The Front Elbow Plank stands as a quintessential core exercise that has earned its place in fitness routines across the spectrum, from high-intensity interval training to bodybuilding and recovery protocols. This intermediate-level movement primarily targets the abdominal muscles while simultaneously engaging the erector spinae, creating a comprehensive core strengthening experience that builds both stability and endurance.
What makes the Front Elbow Plank particularly valuable is its remarkable efficiency – it requires no equipment, minimal space, and delivers maximum results. The exercise creates constant tension throughout your midsection, forcing your core muscles to work continuously to maintain proper alignment. This isometric hold challenges your body's ability to resist the pull of gravity, which translates to improved posture and reduced risk of lower back pain in everyday activities.
For those focused on aesthetic goals, the Front Elbow Plank contributes significantly to developing that coveted six-pack appearance by strengthening the underlying musculature. However, its benefits extend far beyond surface-level results. The exercise builds functional strength that carries over to athletic performance, enhances spinal protection during heavy lifts, and improves overall movement efficiency.
The adaptability of the Front Elbow Plank makes it suitable for various training methodologies. In HIIT workouts, it serves as an intense core-focused station; for bodybuilders, it helps develop the stabilizing muscles needed for heavier compound movements; and during recovery phases, it offers a low-impact way to maintain core engagement without excessive strain.
What truly distinguishes this exercise is how it simultaneously challenges muscular endurance and mental fortitude. As the seconds tick by and your core begins to fatigue, the Front Elbow Plank becomes as much a test of mental resilience as physical strength. This dual challenge explains why this seemingly simple position has endured as a staple in fitness programming for practitioners at virtually every level of ability.
FAQ - Front Elbow Plank
The Front Elbow Plank primarily engages your core muscles, specifically the rectus abdominis (six-pack muscles) and transverse abdominis (deep core stabilizers). It also activates the erector spinae (lower back), shoulders, chest, and glutes as secondary muscle groups that work to maintain proper alignment.
Beginners should aim for 20-30 second holds with proper form, gradually building up to 60 seconds. Quality always trumps quantity—maintaining perfect alignment for 30 seconds is far more beneficial than holding a sagging position for 2 minutes.
The three most common mistakes are: letting your hips sag toward the floor (which stresses your lower back), raising your hips too high (which reduces core engagement), and forgetting to breathe naturally throughout the hold. Focus on maintaining a straight line from head to heels with your gaze directed slightly forward.
To make it easier, drop to your knees while maintaining a straight line from knees to shoulders. To increase difficulty, try extending one limb at a time, adding small movements like shoulder taps, or using an unstable surface like a stability ball or suspension trainer under your forearms.
You can safely perform Front Elbow Planks 3-5 times per week, either as part of your core-specific training or integrated into full-body workouts. Give your core at least 24 hours of recovery between intense plank sessions to allow for proper muscle adaptation and growth.
