The plank walkout (aka inchworm) is a full-body move you can get creative with, said Jill Brown, a certified functional strength coach and personal trainer. From the plank position, she said, you can "add a push-up or a variety of planks like leg lifts, knee tucks, knees to elbows, swivels, the scorpion, hip lunges, and so on." Here's how to do the basic move.
- Stand at the back of your mat, and circle your arms out to the sides to reach toward the ceiling. Look up, and feel your chest opening up.
- Keeping your back straight, bend forward, hinging at your hips to bring your hands to the mat. This position brings length to the back of your legs. If your hamstrings are tight, bend your knees a bit to take tension off the muscles.
- Walk your hands forward, moving into a plank, and hold each step to stretch your calves a bit. This warms up the shoulders and hands nicely.
- Hold the plank for a few seconds to really wake up your core.
- From your plank, walk your hands back to your feet until you are in another forward bend. Slowly roll up to standing, letting your head hang and keeping your neck relaxed until you're fully upright.
- This counts as one rep.
If you have space: instead of walking your hands back to your feet from plank, walk your feet forward to your hands and continue moving forward in a straight line.
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