It can be cumbersome to find ways to add load to the plank pattern, and it usually takes a partner to help with that, so here’s a better idea: Change your base of support.  

Feeling frazzled? These empowering yoga poses will bring you back to the present.

One of our favorite ways to switch things up is to level up our current routines, and that’s where the following four exercises come in. These graduated versions of tried-and-true go to’s can change everything you thought you knew about their basic movement patterns, while spicing things up and opening up a world of new challenges. 

Iron Cross Plank

The standard plank can become a little redundant, and by now, we know that adding more time to the plank is hardly an indicator of how strong or good quality that plank might be. 

Push-Up with Single-Arm Deficit

Instagram and TikTok have us all drinking the Kool-Aid to some degree. Though we know deep down that these platforms are sometimes riddled with misinformation, the daily promise our news feeds provide us of a certain body type in a short time frame can weigh us down in terms of goal setting.

• Quadricep stretch
• Standing hamstring stretch
• Figure-4 stretch
• Shoulder stretch

End every workout on a high note

Not only does proper performance mean fewer injuries and better recovery, but it also helps with your mindset. When we get stuck in the rep or max rabbit hole (where we put more weight on the bar and finish the set regardless of form), our mindset also suffers.

And while being a modern-day superwoman is certainly within our wheelhouse, the pressures can sometimes mean we don’t always feel empowered in our own bodies.