All rights reserved. You should also strive to keep the legs together, as this will work your leg adductors more efficiently. If youre still not comfortable with that, you may need to do side planks (from the knees is fine) to build up your core strength, and look elsewhere for adductor exercises. Oh look, a neat little table of contents. If you're performing the exercise with your right arm on the floor, for example, you'll. As the Copenhagen plank aims to strengthen the hips, it would be ideal to start by performing some hip mobility exercises to warm the muscles up and improve the range of motion. Being able to master the Copenhagen plank will help you in other aspects of your workout, as strong adductors are essential for stabilization and balance, as well as helping to prevent injury. You can also check out his Instagram, he's pretty easy on the eyes. In addition to strengthening the adductors, the Copenhagen plank also contains the elements of a normal side plank, meaning it has a side effect of strengthening a variety of core muscles, including your obliques. Due to these groin related injuries, there are a significant number of athletes being taken out of games, missing seasons, or even having to retire early. As well as hip adduction, Copenhagen planks will also help develop overall core strength by engaging the abdominals and obliques. Here's the breakdown. In team practices, a partner can stand up and hold your leg while youre doing the exercise. Benefits of the Copenhagen Plank. This is a super challenging move, but thats the idea.. This will challenge the stabilizer muscles in the core and strengthen your shoulder muscles, making it an excellent alternative for Copenhagen Plank. For more exercises to target your adductors, use a fitness app to help you build the perfect inner thigh workout. Lift your hips mostly with the top leg, but use some support from the bottom leg to help. Your bottom leg can be straight if using a chair or bench, or it can be bent if the surface prevents you from straightening the leg, such as when using an ottoman or couch. This can be achieved by positioning yourself further away from the bench, or closer if you want to decrease the intensity. Some of these muscles also have secondary actions, including hip flexion (adductor brevis and gracilis), internal rotation (adductor longus, adductor brevis, and pectineus), and extension (anterior head of adductor magnus). Great view of my childhood trophies here. , Your email address will not be published. The human body doesnt cope with imbalances very well in fact, imbalances are a recipe for disaster when it comes to injuries. Clam shells, for example, along with lots of glute exercises, will help strengthen these outer hip muscles which is undoubtedly important. This will increase the resistance on your deep core muscles, making it more challenging to hold the position for longer. But instead of stacking or staggering your feet on the floor, youll prop one foot on top of a bench (or couch, chair, or another stable surface that's about 18 inches tall). Youll also notice that youre actually set up in a position that mirrors a runner's stride, so be aware of reinforcing a good, high-knee position, and make sure you can own it in the sagittal plane. On exhales, our body moves towards flexion and internal rotation. This variation will target the core muscles more intensely than the regular side plank. You can make the Copenhagen Plank harder by elevating your feet on a box or bench, lifting one arm off the ground, and using a resistance band around the legs. Hearst Magazine Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Some of the most common exercises to target the inner thighs include. Ishoi et al in 2016 had 24 male soccer players perform the Copenhagen adduction exercise two times a week, while progressively increasing the number of sets and repetitions over the course of 8 weeks (starting with 2 sets of 6 each and ending with 3 sets of 15 each). If thats you, the first thing to ask is whether you were in a straight line (no hips sagging) with your abdominals engaged. But what makes the Copenhagen special is that you do not rest your feet or knees on the ground. 1. However, instead of your feet on the ground, place the top foot onto a chair, bench or another stable surface, while holding the bottom leg off the ground. The Copenhagen plank works your arms, shoulders, core, and adductors.
Build Serious Abs Strength with this Side Plank Series Because we're going to work a lot of lateral stability in this plank, you're going to start to get a lot of hip effect, Samuel says. The best way to do a Copenhagen Plank: Method, Advantages, and Variations - Global. The adductor group's action is to well, adduct the leg which means bringing your leg closer to the midline. Repeat on both sides for 10-15 seconds, rest for a few seconds, and do the exercise again. This is a surprisingly big jump from regular Copenhagen planks and a great target for those looking to really leverage the benefits of the exercise. Why Mastering the Pistol Squat Should Be Your Next Fitness Goal, 6 Triceps Extension Variations to Strengthen Your Arms, No Matter Your Fitness Level or Abilities, The Best Exercises for Sculpting Your Glutes, The Z Press Will Challenge Your Upper-Body and Core Strength Heres How to Do It, The 10 Best Hamstring Exercises to Strengthen Your Lower Body, How to Improve Your Flexibility with Stretching Exercises, How to Do Dead Bugs to Strengthen Your Core, The Kettlebell Windmill Is the Stability Exercise Your Core and Shoulders Need Heres How to Do It. All these variations are excellent alternatives to the Copenhagen Plank that you can use to challenge your core and build stability in different ways. This information highlights the importance of hip adduction strength for reducing the risk of groin related injuries and maximizing the function of the hip and groin. That's what makes this a great plank, Samuel says. our rundown of the best bodyweight exercises that actually build strength, made male soccer players adductors stronger, Dipping the hips toward the ground and back up, repeatedly (This can be done in either position.
Exercises You Should Be Doing: Copenhagen Side Plank Shenanigans Here, you place your top knee on the bench and keep your bottom leg bent too. Stronger adduction means you can move your leg with more power and precision. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform.
Copenhagen | History, Population, & Facts | Britannica Remember to breathe normally throughout the exercise. For non-athletes, the exercise can simply help to create better hip stability, which is associated with reduced risk of back, hip and knee injuries as well as better posture. Hold this position. How Long Do You Really Need to Hold a Plank? If so, there is good news stretches can help improve your toe point. EMG evaluations of hip adduction exercises for soccer players: implications for exercise selection in prevention and treatment of groin injuries. prohockeystrength.com., the official website of the Strength and Conditioning Association of Professional Hockey. The first level is to just hold the plank at the top position. Registered Dietitian Nutritionist, Certified Personal Trainer, Certified Dietitian/Nutritionist in NYC, Certified Diabetes Care and Education Specialist, WELLTECH APPS LIMITED, Karaiskaki 13, 3032, Limassol, Cyprus, How to Do the Copenhagen Plank: Technique and Popular Progressions, Copenhagen side plank: technique, tips, and progressions, 10 Core Yoga Poses for Abs, Hip, and Lower Back Strength (With Sequence), Rear Delt Fly: Technique, Muscles Worked & Variations to Try. Copenhagen Plank - Exercise demonstration video and information for Olympic weightlifting - The Copenhagen plank is a simple exercise for adductor strength and hip stability. Crow JF, et al.
This Side Plank Leaves Every Part of Your Core on Fire Maintaining a straight body while doing Copenhagen plank is essential to ensure that your core and glutes are engaged and maximize the exercises effectiveness. Think about squeezing both shoulder blades and glutes. This will create additional stability challenges, including challenging your shoulder stability like in a Turkish Get-Up. Copenhagen Plank. Once you can hold a given position for about 30 seconds, you can increase the difficulty by moving the point of contact on your leg further down, which lengthens the lever and increases the demands on the adductors. Imagine your heels, butt, and back of your head are all touching a wall and your body forms a straight line in order to get the most benefit out of the exercise, she suggests. Coachs Tip Ensure you use a bench or raised surface that is roughly the same height as your head when you hold the side plank. Squeeze your inner thigh muscles hard so that right thigh . The origin of the exercise is a bit of a mystery, but it's safe to say it was invented way before the early 2000s. It is also important to keep your legs wide when performing Copenhagen plank, as this will target the adductor muscles more effectively and add an extra challenge to the exercise. Similar to a standard side plank, your obliques are required to help create stability as you hold the position. Our product picks are editor-tested, expert-approved. Make sure to maintain proper form with a neutral spine throughout the exercise and stop immediately if you feel any pain or discomfort. So you need to keep your workout progress with more advanced dip progressions. The Copenhagen plank or Copenhagen adduction exercise is a side plank variation that targets the muscles of the inner thigh and groin, the adductors. Planks arent that easy to add weight to. Here's why you should be mixing Copenhagen planks into your routine and how to do so with perfect form. Youll notice the closer you get your knee to the bench, the easier it becomes as youre working with less lever. Additional information: Adductor longus and pectineus will also contribute to hip flexion, while adductor magnus (posterior head) also contributes to hip extension. Holding your breath can cause you to become dizzy and affect your form, so make sure to keep breathing steadily while doing the Copenhagen Plank. Its essential to be aware of common mistakes when doing the Copenhagen Plank exercise: Make sure to squeeze your legs together correctly when doing the Copenhagen Plank. The Copenhagen plank hold, which is the static version of this exercise, is the main variation used in rehab programs targeting the groin muscles. The exercise is isometric and involves a squeezing movement to keep your legs together. How often have you dismissed the plank? Here are some options: Also known as the Vasisthasana in yoga, the side plank is excellent for strengthening the core muscles and activating stabilizer muscles. Similar to a side plank, start on your side with the forearm on the ground, hips and shoulders stacked, and legs straight. To begin with start with your knee on the chair. Thorborg K, et al. Strengthening the obliques helps to better stabilize the torso and spine, helping to promote better posture, as well as rotational strength. In essence: All in all, this is a great exercise that can provide excellent results and help prevent injuries in the groin area; therefore, it makes a great addition to any resistance training or conditioning program for anyone aiming to improve their inner thigh strength. JOSPT. Now you're not only like working the adductors in the leg that's on top of the bench, but you're also using your hip flexors to bring the bottom leg [up to] 90 degrees, she explains. Check out some of our other similar blogs: Adductor Strain,Groin Pain Rehab, Nordic Hamstring Curl. The Copenhagen plank, or Copenhagen adduction exercise, is a side plank variation that targets the muscles of the inner thigh and groin- the adductors. Watch Ros demonstrate the move below. It is also great for improving core strength and stability, especially in the obliques. We last saw Copenhagen planks in our rundown of the best bodyweight exercises that actually build strength. The adductor group contains a bunch of muscles, the specific names are not important because we want to focus on them as a group. The Copenhagen plank is a unilateral exercise, meaning it targets just one side of the body at a time. The Copenhagen plank, also known as the Copenhagen adductor plank due to its target muscles, or the Copenhagen plank hold, is a more challenging side plank variation. Important consideration: Some groin problems may have a secondary related abdominal issue. Promise, a little bit goes a long way with this bodyweight exercise. How are we going to fix it? The adductor strengthening programme prevents groin problems among male football players: a cluster-randomised controlled trial. This banded adductor exercise is a good place to start, and you can also do single-leg movements like step-ups to work the adductors alongside other leg muscles. 2. Serner A, et al. For this progression, you will hold the same side plank position but move your chest toward the ground in a slow, controlled movement. Ultimately, the scientific research around Copenhagen planks is very positive and suggests athletes can improve performance and avoid injuries by including the exercise into their fitness routines. Jeff Tomko is a freelance fitness writer who has written for Muscle and Fitness, Men's Fitness, and Men's Health.