Twisting Plank: Exercise that Cinches Your Waist

Nov 27, 2012

Twisting Plank

The Twisting Plank, or Side Plank with a Twist, exercise helps work your abs and obliques. Also, the twisting plank will train your shoulders, glutes, and quads. Use this exercise typically after crunches or other upper and lower ab exercises.

Twisting Planks are amazing because they can tone your waist. They do this by strengthening the muscles in your core. Celebrity fitness trainer, Ramona Braganza, says that with the Twisting Plank you can cinch your waist:

This is an excellent exercise for both the obliques (your side ab muscles) and the transverse abdominus, the muscle that acts like a girdle and cinches your waist.

An advanced version of twisting planks is to do them with dumbbell resistance. However, most twisting planks are done with just you focusing on your core. Here are the muscle diagnostics for the Twisting Planks exercise:

Main Muscle Used: Abs, Obliques
Secondary Muscles: Shoulders, Glutes, Quads
Equipment Required: Exercise Mat (optional)
Movement: Isolated
Exercise Type: Twist

Here’s a video explanation of the Twisting Plank Exercise:

Here’s another video showing you how to do the twisting plank exercise:

How To do the Twisting Plank Exercise:

Starting in plank position, have your hands beneath your shoulders, and arms straight.
Lie down on your right side, with your elbow under your shoulder.
Your hips should be stacked, so that you can now lift up with your hips.
Stretch up with your left arm above your shoulder, reaching toward the sky.
Now, bring your left arm down, under your body, performing a twist.
Repeat, this time using your right arm and lying on your left side.

Do these exercises 3 times per week, doing 3 sets or more each time. Aim for 10 to 12 reps. Make sure to breathe in and out each rep, and focus on tightening your core, not your neck, through each repetition. Make sure to focus on your form each lift as well. Stop the exercise if you feel any pain, especially in your shoulder. If this occurs, try doing the twisting plank with your hips resting on the ground. After you build enough core strength, you can try the hips aligned position.

Popular Twisting Plank Workouts:

The Jessica Alba workout uses the twisting plank exercises during her abs routine, as it helps to tone your waist. Using the 3-2-1 workout, she does this exercise 3 times a week.
The Marisa Miller workout uses twisting planks to cinch her waist.
The Zac Efron workout uses twisting plank exercises during his 3-2-1 workouts, as he also worked out with Braganza while filming “Charlie St. Cloud” and “17 Again.” He goes for 20 reps.
The Miranda Kerr workout featuring the Victoria’s Secret model uses twisting planks. She alternates between a normal plank, and twisting planks for 15 minutes at a time! On other days, she uses total body circuits designed by her trainer, Justin Gelband.
The Matthew McConaughey workout uses Twisting planks during his ab workouts. He does 2 abs exercises, then rests for 15 secs before doing the next set.
The Jay-Z workout, and the Beyonce workout, both use the Twisting Plank. Their trainer, Marco Borges, is all about exercises that work multiple joints and corresponding muscle groups.

About the twisting plank, celebrity personal trainer Marco Borges says:

Using your obliques, (on the side of your abdomen), drop your hip to the floor, as close to the ground as possible. Contract your obliques and return to starting position. Beginners may want to start by resting their elbow on the ground and work their way up to a fully extended arm.

Side Plank with a Pulse

In this video, Harley Pasternack talks about how to do a Side Planks with a Pulse. It is the 2nd exercise in the video. He uses this exercise during the Katy Perry workout.