Side plank: how to do it

Main muscles: Obliques. Helpers: Upper abs, Gluteus medius. Below: step-by-step form, common mistakes, a muscle map, reps and rest, and what to swap it for.

Equipment

Bodyweight

Reps

1–3

Rest

60 s

Muscle group

Core

How to do it

Elbow under the shoulder, body in one line, hips lifted.
Hold the position without rolling forward or back.
A repetition is a hold until the form breaks, then switch sides.

Common mistakes

Hips sagging, torso rotating, holding the breath.

▶ Form video on YouTube

Muscles worked

Front

Back

primary·secondary

Primary: Obliques
Secondary: Upper abs, Gluteus medius

A secondary muscle gets roughly half the stimulus of a set — that is also how the log’s stats count it.

Programs that use it

Home, 3 days3 × 1–3

Alternatives: similar exercises

Plank Bodyweight · Upper abs, Lower abs Ab wheel rollout Bodyweight · Upper abs, Lower abs Bicycle crunch Bodyweight · Obliques, Lower abs Russian twist Plate · Obliques Farmer's walk Dumbbells · Forearm flexors, Upper traps, Obliques Cable crunch Cable · Upper abs

Log your sets — the app suggests the next weight

GymAssist tracks the load on each of 40 muscles, paints it on a body map and uses double progression to tell you when to add weight.

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