IF YOU DO ONE THING TODAY... DO THE TWISTER PLANK

BORED of doing the plank? I don’t blame you. Yes, it’s a great exercise to train the core, lower back, arms and improve balance, but it’s bit static. So I like to challenge clients with this variation named after the famous game in which you tie your body in knots by trying to place your feet and hands on a combination of coloured dots. This is devilishly hard, but also good fun… Choose eight markers (two of each number from one to four) and place them in a circle on the floor, as shown above. If it were a clock face, the two ‘ones’ should be directly overhead at 12 o’clock, and the two ‘fours’ below your feet at 6 o’clock. The two ‘twos’ are at 2 o’clock and 10 o’clock, and the two ‘threes’ at 5 o’clock and 7 o’clock. I use different numbered dumbbells but you could just use pieces of paper. Make sure there’s enough room in the middle to do a plank. Shoulders should be above your wrists, and your glutes should be engaged. Your hips must not sink towards the ground, allowing the spine to compress because this will lead to injury. The aim is to lift either arm off the floor and point it towards your target, such as 2L or 1R. You will also do the same with either leg. Different combinations offer different degrees of difficulty. Hold for 20 to 30 seconds, and then return to a neutral plank. Start easy and then try some more difficult combinations: ‘Right one, left four, and hold,’ or ‘Left two, right three, and hold,’ and back to neutral. See how long you can keep going for before you collapse in a heap!