Plank your way to 100 quid of free gym credit

Plank your way to £100 free gym credit with payasUgym.com

There is no need to be ashamed if you Plank in private (everyone does it, no matter what they say) but with our simple guide you can quickly achieve the body that every Planker dreams of!

Just follow our simple 3 week plan and soon you will be able to Plank in public places like the bus, at work, at parties and in front of your friends and family!

What is Planking?

Basically, Planking is the act of lying face down in a rigid but amusing manner.  Once you have developed the core strength to hold your body rigid you simply find a location to Plank (safe/legal locations only please*) and then get a friend to take a photograph of you.  Sounds easy right?  Well it’s not! 

Remember, a legitimate Plank must be done face down, your legs must be straight and your toes pointed, hands by your side, you must hold the Plank for 5 seconds....and finally you MUST PLANK SAFELY AND LEGALLY!

Benefits of Planking?

There are loads of benefits of Planking which include:

• Improved core strength
• The ability to maintain a stiff Plank for longer
• Improved horizontal posture significantly enhances vertical posture

How do I improve my Planking technique?

With our simple 3 week plan you will soon become a real Planker.  Please make sure you seek the advice of your GP before commencing any Planking activity.

Week 1:  Every night before you go to bed lie down and don’t move for 30 seconds.  Repeat 5 times per Set for 3 Sets.  Make sure you are properly warmed up before attempting this and please ensure you do it at ground level.  Focus on staying really still and don’t forget to breathe.  Remember “in through the nose, out through the mouth”.   Say it out loud if it helps.

Week 2:  Continue with the routine from Week 1 but try and extend each Rep to 60 seconds.  During the last Set try co-contracting your Transversus Abdominis and multifidus (?) by sucking your belly in as if you are trying to squeeze through a narrow gap.  Feels good right?!  This will enhance your core strength which will be required for the longer and more public Planks in Week 3.

Week 3:  By now you are probably beginning to see some results so the last week is much more about refining and honing your technique.  To do this you will need a friend to ‘spot’ you during your workout, take photos and shout encouragement.  Find a photogenic location, assume the Plank position and focus intently on being rigid and not moving.  Get your friend to take a photograph so you can check if you were moving – if you did, then try again.  Repeat until perfected.

If you follow this plan you should now be a proper Planker and we want to see how you got on!

Your chance to win!

We want to find London’s biggest Planker and we need your help.  Just post your best Planking photos on the payasUgym.com Facebook page and then get your friends to ‘like’ them.  Whichever Plank gets the most ‘likes’ will win £100 of credit to use at any of our participating gyms in London!

www.facebook.com/payasugym

The closing date for entries is 31^st July 2011.

* Please only ever Plank in safe (and legal) locations!  payasUgym.com takes no responsibility for crazy acts of Planking which may result in prosecution, personal injury or harm of any kind.  Be nice to old people too, they deserve our respect.