The Front Plank on Elbows is a beginner-friendly bodyweight strength exercise that targets the abdominals, with the shoulders, glutes and quadriceps working alongside. Here's how to do it right — and what to stop doing.
Primary musclesAbs
Secondary musclesShoulders, Glutes, Quads
EquipmentBodyweight
LevelBeginner
TypeStrength
3D demo in the EGON app
01 Execution
How to do the Front Plank on Elbows
Lie face down on a mat with your elbows directly under your shoulders and your palms flat on the floor.
Tuck your toes under and set your feet about hip width apart.
Brace your abdominals and squeeze your glutes so the trunk becomes one rigid segment.
Push through the forearms and toes to lift your hips and knees clear of the floor.
Hold the straight head-to-heel line while breathing steadily, keeping the neck long and the ribs down.
Lower your knees and hips back to the mat under control to finish the set.
02 The payoff
Why it earns its spot
Builds isometric trunk endurance without loading the spine into flexion.
Trains the glutes and quadriceps to hold a neutral pelvis under fatigue.
Needs no equipment, so it scales to home, hotel and rehab settings.
03 Don't do this
Common mistakes
Letting the hips sag toward the floor, which loads the lumbar spine instead of the abdominals.
Piking the hips up into an inverted V, which shortens the lever and removes the anti-extension demand.
Drifting the elbows forward of the shoulders, which shifts load onto the shoulder joint and shortens the hold.
Holding your breath to stay rigid, which raises intrathoracic pressure and ends the set early.
EGON Put it on record
Track it in EGON.
Log every set of the Front Plank on Elbows, get your PRs detected automatically, earn aura for the work — and climb five leagues of statues, from Stone to Ego.
