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Alternate Hand Extension in High Plank

This drill takes the high plank and removes one point of support — you reach one arm straight out at ear height while everything else fights to stay dead still. It is an anti-rotation core exercise dressed up as a shoulder move, ideal once standard planks stop feeling hard. Coached by Maddy (NASM-CPT) — these are the exact form cues he gives on every client's first week.

Muscles worked

Abs · rectus abdominis Deep core · transverse abdominis Obliques Lower back · erector spinae Front shoulders · anterior deltoid

Sets & reps by goal

Goal	Sets × Reps	Rest
Strength	3–4 × 3–6 per arm (slow, feet narrow)	90 s
Muscle	3 × 9–12 per arm	60–90 s
Endurance	2–3 × 18–27 per arm	45–60 s

Rep ranges per Helms 2014 · Schoenfeld 2016.

Level — Intermediate

Intermediate — earn it with a solid 40-second high plank and clean shoulder taps first.

Proper form — 5 cues

Set your feet wider than hip width — the wider the base, the more honest the hold.
Push the floor away hard with the supporting hand before the other one leaves the ground.
Reach the moving arm forward to ear height, thumb up, over a slow 2 seconds.
Keep your hips so level a glass of water could sit on your lower back.
Place the hand back under its shoulder quietly — no dropping onto it.

Breathing: Breathe steadily throughout the hold; exhale gently on each reach — never hold your breath.

The 3 mistakes Maddy corrects most

Hips swinging side to side with each reach. The obliques are supposed to resist that rotation — letting it happen deletes the exercise's purpose. Fix: Widen the feet, slow the reach to 2 seconds, and squeeze the glutes throughout.

Lower back sagging toward the floor. The load transfers into the lumbar spine instead of the abdominal wall. Fix: Tuck the pelvis slightly and brace before each reach; reset if the line breaks.

Shifting all the weight onto one side before reaching. The big lean makes the rep easy and teaches a lurching pattern. Fix: Reach with minimal weight shift — if you cannot, regress to shoulder taps first.

Common questions

Is this harder than a normal plank?

Considerably. A standard plank is a static hold on four points; the moment one hand leaves the floor, your core has to resist rotation as well as extension, and the supporting shoulder works overtime. If a regular high plank is not yet a comfortable 40-second hold, build that first before adding the reach.

My hips keep twisting — how do I fix it?

Three levers, in order: widen your feet, slow the reach right down, and shrink the reach itself — even lifting the hand two centimetres off the floor counts while you build control. Twisting is not a failure, it is feedback that the current version is a notch too hard. Progress the range as the hips quiet down.

How many reps of plank hand extensions should I do?

Quality caps out fast on anti-rotation work, so think in short, sharp sets: 6–10 controlled reaches per arm, 2–3 sets. The set should end when the reach speeds up or the hips start to sway — grinding out sloppy extras just rehearses the mistake you are trying to train out.

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