A high plank is a plank held on straight arms. You take your weight on your hands and toes and keep one straight line from your shoulders to your heels for a set time. It works your stomach and trunk muscles, while your shoulders and arms carry more of the load than in the forearm version.

How to do the high plank

Start on your hands and knees on a mat, with your hands flat, fingers pointing forward and your wrists directly under your shoulders.
Tighten your stomach, then step one foot back and then the other, so your legs are straight and you rest on your toes.
Press the floor away through your hands so your upper back stays full rather than sinking between the shoulder blades.
Line up your shoulders, hips and heels. Look at the floor a little ahead of your hands to keep your neck long.
Hold the position and breathe steadily. Lower your knees to the mat to rest.

What you should feel

Your stomach and trunk working to keep you straight, with effort in your shoulders, arms and the front of your thighs. Your lower back should stay comfortable.

Common mistakes

Hips sagging toward the mat, which strains the lower back.
Hips piked up high, so the stomach does less.
Hands placed well in front of the shoulders, which loads the shoulders more.
Locking the elbows hard. Keep the arms straight without jamming the joints back.
Holding your breath.

How often

Many programs begin with 3 to 5 holds, each lasting 10 to 30 seconds, with a short rest between them, a few days a week. Your physio will adjust this.

Stop and check with your physio if

Sharp pain in a wrist or shoulder, or pain, tingling or numbness running down an arm.
Pins and needles in your arm or hand that do not go away after you stop, or part of your arm or hand goes numb. Get medical advice the same day. If one side of your face or body suddenly goes numb or weak, or your speech becomes slurred or muddled, call emergency services, even if it goes away.
Lower back pain that increases as you hold.
Chest pain or pressure, dizziness or feeling faint, a racing or irregular heartbeat, or being far more out of breath than the effort should cause.

From the clinic

This is the straight arm version of the forearm plank. Being up on your hands lifts your upper body higher, and your arms and shoulders take a bigger share of the work. For an easier start, hold the same line with your knees down, as in the kneeling plank. The video shows a steady hold, and the voice guide adds how to get there from hands and knees.

Your wrists stay bent right back under your body weight for the whole hold. Spreading your fingers wide spreads that pressure, and if your wrists still complain, the forearm plank takes them out of it. After shoulder surgery or a shoulder dislocation, or if you have ongoing shoulder or wrist pain, check with your physio before you hold a high plank.

The stomach wall works hard to hold you up here. If you are pregnant, have recently given birth, have had abdominal surgery or have a hernia, ask your physio or doctor before you plank. If you have high blood pressure, breathe steadily through every hold and never hold your breath. With a heart condition or high blood pressure, check with your doctor before you start.

If chest pain, pressure or tightness does not ease quickly when you rest, spreads to your arm, neck, jaw, stomach or back, or comes with sweating, feeling sick, feeling light-headed or being short of breath, call emergency services straight away, as this can be a heart attack. If it eases quickly and none of these happen, get medical advice the same day, and do not exercise again until you have been checked. If you faint while exercising, call emergency services, even if you feel fine again quickly.

Written and checked by the PocketPhysio editorial team. Last updated 2026-09-28.

This page is general education, not a diagnosis or a personal treatment plan. If you have pain, an injury or a health condition, see a physiotherapist or doctor before starting new exercises.

High plank