Reading and Planking

It's time for another zany marrying of literature and exercise! Woop woop!

This time, let's work on those abs. Planking became the new fitness craze in 2014 when numerous people uploaded pictures to Facebook of them resting on their toes and forearms, body straight, with the strapline “14 mins!!” and we took their word for it because a Facebook video would have been too dull.

Well, you're going to have to take my word for it that I'll be spending a long time in plank position over the next few weeks. I'll be attempting this whilst reading- from cover to cover- the shortest book in my to-read pile, Men's Sexual Health: Fitness for Satisfying Sex by Barry McCarthy and Michael E. Metz.

Don't ask.

So: planking. As Greatist explains, there are a few different methods of doing this. I'll be working on the forearm plank, the one in which I can hold a book in my hands. It might take a bit of adjustment, but it's possible. As long as it works the core muscles, this should improve my abs.

So how would I know if my abs are actually stronger?

I'll still be using the gym regularly, so I'll notice any extra fatigue. During weights sessions I do cable crunch, so it'll be interesting to see how planking affects me there. I'm hoping to perform more reps than ever. I should be more knowledgeable about, well, other things too...