Two static holds that teach you to keep your trunk stiff while your arms and legs are long. The plank is a face-down hold on your forearms and toes with your body rigid and straight. The hollow body is a face-up hold with your lower back pressed into the floor and your shoulders and legs lifted, a conditioning staple in gymnastics for bar work and tumbling. Both are judged on how well you keep the position, not on reps.
The plank
Lie face down with your elbows directly under your shoulders, about shoulder-width apart, forearms flat on the floor. Legs straight, toes tucked under.
shoulders stacked over elbows.
Brace your abs to stiffen your torso, then lift your whole body onto your forearms and toes, keeping your torso and legs rigid and your knees straight.
one solid piece, lifted all at once.
Hold a straight line from shoulders through hips to heels: no sag in the low back, no hips poking up. Keep your shoulders over your elbows without shrugging, and keep breathing.
steady breathing while everything stays tight.
Lower with your torso still stiff and your knees straight, then relax. Short, high-quality holds beat long sloppy ones: a well-tested scheme is 10-second holds, 5 in the first set, then 4, 3, 2 and 1.
you end each hold before your shape breaks.
The hollow body
Lie on your back. Press the small of your back into the floor by squeezing your glutes and tucking your pelvis under, so the front of your torso shortens.
no gap between your low back and the floor.
Reach your arms straight overhead so they cover your ears, and lift your shoulder blades off the floor.
your abs doing the lifting, not your neck.
Keep your legs straight and together and raise your heels only a few inches (about 10-20 cm) off the floor. Only your lower back and seat should touch the ground.
a shallow banana shape, low back still glued down.
Start with holds of about 20 seconds and build up gradually. End the hold the moment your low back starts to peel off the floor.
shaking abs, flat back.
Scale the leverage
Hollow too hard? Bend your knees. Start in a dead bug hold with hips and knees bent to 90 degrees and your low back flat, then extend your legs further as you get stronger.
a position you can hold flat, not one you fight.
Plank too easy? Lengthen the lever. Place your elbows closer together (about 15 cm apart) at nose level instead of under your shoulders, squeeze your glutes as hard as you can, and draw your pubic bone toward your belly button.
your whole front working much harder for the same hold.
Feel it
In the plank, your torso and legs feel like one stiff board, shoulders stacked over elbows, breathing calmly. In the hollow, your ribs pull down, your pelvis tucks under and your low back stays pressed to the floor the whole time. If the back lifts, the hold is over: shorten the lever (bend your knees or raise your legs a little) until you can keep it flat.
Fix-its
- Your low back sags in the plank Brace your abs, squeeze your glutes and draw your pubic bone toward your belly button to bring your hips back into line.
- Your hips rise up in the plank Lower your hips until shoulders, hips and heels are in one line, and keep your knees straight.
- Your low back peels off the floor in the hollow Raise your legs slightly or bend your knees (dead bug hold) until your back stays flat; lower them only as you get stronger.
- Your feet are too high in the hollow (an L shape) Lower your heels toward a few inches off the floor, but only as far as your low back stays down.
- Your shoulder blades stay on the floor in the hollow Reach your arms long past your ears and curl your shoulder blades up with your abs.
Drill
- Forearm plank ladder: 10-second holds, 5 in the first set, then 4, 3, 2, 1, resting between sets.
- Dead bug hold: hips and knees at 90 degrees, low back flat; extend the legs further as it gets easy.
- Hollow hold: start with about 20 seconds, legs low but back flat, and add time gradually.
- Long-lever posterior-tilt plank: elbows close together at nose level, glutes squeezed, holds of up to 30 seconds.
- Film from the side to check a straight shoulder-hip-heel line in the plank, and shoulders and heels off the floor in the hollow. If either hold causes low back pain, stop.
Sources
- ACE — Exercise Library: Front Plank
- Schoenfeld, Contreras et al. — An electromyographic comparison of a modified version of the plank with a long lever and posterior tilt versus the traditional plank exercise, Sports Biomechanics (2014)
- Lee & McGill — Effect of long-term isometric training on core/torso stiffness, J Strength Cond Res (2015)
- ActiveSG Circle (Sport Singapore) — Conditioning your body for gymnastics
- Bret Contreras — The Hollow Body Position and PPT Straight Leg Bridge (2013, updated 2016)
- Emily Beers (Breaking Muscle) — The Hollow Body: The Most Important Skill to Master
Last checked 2026-10-26.