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Exercises

Isometric core exercises: planks, side holds and anti-rotation work

Published October 29, 2026

The best isometric core exercises are the plank, long-lever plank and hollow hold for the front of your trunk, the side plank, dumbbell side plank and Copenhagen plank for the sides, and the Pallof press and suitcase carry, where your trunk holds still while your arms or legs move. Train each direction once or twice a week: 2 to 3 holds of 20 to 45 seconds per exercise, stopping while your position is still clean. When a hold passes 45 seconds, switch to the harder version instead of holding longer.

  1. Plank Abs
  2. Side Plank Abs
  3. Plate Hollow Hold Abs
  4. Pallof Press Abs
  5. Dumbbell Suitcase Carry Abs, Quads
  6. Long Lever Plank Abs
  7. Copenhagen Plank Adductors, Abs

Holds for the front of your trunk

These resist your lower back arching. They go from easiest to hardest: plank, long-lever plank, hollow hold, then the L-sit, which adds your arms and hip flexors to the job.

Abs, anti-extension

Plank

Abs

Start here to learn the two things every core hold needs: ribs pulled down and glutes squeezed. Once you can hold 45 seconds that way, it has done its job and you can move on.

How to do it

  1. Set your forearms under your shoulders and your feet behind you, body in a straight line.
  2. Squeeze your glutes and pull your ribs down toward your hips.
  3. Hold, breathing normally, without letting your hips sag or rise.
  4. For the harder version, reach one arm forward and lift the opposite foot, hold, then switch sides.

Cues

  • Ribs down
  • Glutes tight
  • Straight line

Common mistakes

  • Hips sagging toward the floor: that hangs on your lower back.
  • Holding for minutes at an easy level: make it harder instead.

Swap for: Long Lever Plank, Plank Shoulder Tap

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Abs, harder plank

Long Lever Plank

Abs

With your elbows ahead of your eyes, the lever on your abs gets much longer, and a plank you could hold for a minute ends well short of it. It is the next step for anyone whose plank has become a test of patience.

How to do it

  1. Get into a forearm plank, then shift your elbows forward until they sit a few inches in front of your eyes.
  2. Squeeze your glutes and tuck your tailbone slightly so your lower back flattens.
  3. Hold your body in a single line, head to heels.
  4. End the hold when your hips begin to sag, rest, and go again.

Cues

  • Glutes tight, ribs down
  • Elbows forward, not wide
  • Short, hard holds

Common mistakes

  • Raising your hips to take the strain off: keep the line and hold for less time.
  • Holding your breath: breathe short and steady through the hold.

Swap for: Plank, Plate Hollow Hold, Ab Wheel Rollout

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Abs, hollow body

Plate Hollow Hold

Abs

Lying on your back with your lower back pressed down trains the same anti-arching job as the plank, from the other side. Start with no plate and bent knees, then straighten your legs and add the plate.

How to do it

  1. Lie face up holding a light plate with straight arms above your chest.
  2. Press your lower back into the floor.
  3. Lift your shoulders and straight legs, pushing the plate up over your chest.
  4. Hold the shape without letting your back lift.

Cues

  • Back flat
  • Long and tight
  • Breathe shallow

Common mistakes

  • Letting the lower back peel up.
  • Starting with legs too low: raise them to make it easier.

Swap for: Dead Bug, Landmine Hollow Hold

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Abs and hip flexors, support hold

L-Sit Hold

Abs

The hardest hold on this page for the front of your trunk: your abs hold your legs up against gravity while your arms hold everything else. Tucked knees on two chairs is a fair start.

How to do it

  1. Set a hand on each parallette, low dip bar or sturdy chair, arms straight.
  2. Push down hard through your hands so your shoulders drop and your body lifts.
  3. Raise your straight legs in front of you so your body makes an L, and hold.
  4. Lower your feet and rest when your legs start to drop.

Cues

  • Push the floor away
  • Knees locked, toes pointed
  • Tuck one knee to start

Common mistakes

  • Shrugging your shoulders: press down until your neck looks long.
  • Holding past the point your legs fall: short, clean holds build it faster.

Swap for: Hanging Knee Raise, Dragon Flag, Jackknife

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Holds for the sides of your trunk

Your obliques and the muscles along your spine stop you from bending sideways. The side plank is the base, a dumbbell on the hip adds load, and the Copenhagen plank brings in the inner thighs.

Obliques, side hold

Side Plank

Abs

It is the side-to-side partner of the plank, and most people find one side noticeably weaker. Start every session with the weaker side so it never gets the leftovers.

How to do it

  1. Lie on one side with your elbow under your shoulder and your legs stacked.
  2. Lift your hips until your body is straight from head to feet.
  3. Hold, then switch sides.

Cues

  • Hips high
  • Stacked feet
  • Elbow under shoulder

Common mistakes

  • Letting the hips drop toward the floor as the hold goes on.
  • Rolling the chest forward or back.

Swap for: Dumbbell Side Plank, Copenhagen Plank

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Obliques, weighted side hold

Dumbbell Side Plank

Abs

A dumbbell on your top hip lets you keep adding load to the side plank in small jumps, instead of chasing two-minute holds that train endurance more than strength.

How to do it

  1. Lie on your side, elbow under the shoulder, legs stacked, and place a dumbbell on your top hip.
  2. Lift your hips so your body forms one straight line.
  3. Hold, keep breathing, then lower and switch sides.

Cues

  • Hips up
  • Hold the weight still
  • Straight line

Common mistakes

  • Letting the hips sag as you tire: end the hold there.
  • Starting with a dumbbell so heavy the hold lasts under 15 seconds.

Swap for: Side Plank, Copenhagen Plank

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Obliques and adductors, side hold

Copenhagen Plank

Adductors, Abs

Holding yourself up by your top leg on a bench works your obliques and inner thighs in one position. For core work, keep the knee on the bench until you can hold 30 seconds, then move to the ankle.

How to do it

  1. Lie on your side next to a flat bench or sturdy chair, propped on your bottom forearm with the elbow under your shoulder.
  2. Lay your straight top leg on the seat so the inside of your foot and ankle rest on it; tuck the bottom leg under it or let it rest on the floor.
  3. Press the top foot down into the seat and raise your hips until your body runs in one line from head to feet.
  4. Hold for the set's time or lower and raise your hips for reps, then turn over and do the other side.

Cues

  • Push the seat away with your top foot
  • Hips stacked, not rolled back
  • Breathe while you hold

Common mistakes

  • Starting with the foot on the seat before you can hold a side plank: rest your knee there instead until 30-second holds feel solid.
  • Hips drifting backward so the plank turns into a pike: keep your hips in line with your shoulders.

Swap for: Band Hip Adduction, Cossack Squat, Balance Board Lateral Squat

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Holding still while your arms or legs move

In daily life and in lifting, your trunk rarely holds a pose on the floor. It holds still while something pulls on it. The Pallof press resists twisting, and the suitcase carry resists leaning while you walk.

Abs and obliques, anti-rotation

Pallof Press

Abs

The cable pulls you sideways and your trunk refuses to turn, which is the job your core does on every one-arm lift and every swing of a bat or racket. The two-second hold at full extension is where the work happens.

How to do it

  1. Set a cable at chest height, stand side-on to it and grip the handle two-handed at your chest.
  2. Step away until the cable pulls, feet hip-width.
  3. Press the handle straight out, hold for two seconds without turning, then bring it back.

Cues

  • Hands on the midline
  • Don't turn
  • Hold it out

Common mistakes

  • Standing too close, so the cable barely pulls.
  • Letting the arms drift toward the stack.

Swap for: Cable Woodchop, Landmine Twist

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Obliques, carry

Dumbbell Suitcase Carry

Abs, Quads

One heavy dumbbell tries to pull you sideways with every step, and your trunk has to stay tall. It is the most loadable core isometric on this page, with heavier dumbbells available long after bodyweight holds stop progressing.

How to do it

  1. Pick up one heavy dumbbell and stand tall with it at your side.
  2. Walk with short, steady steps without leaning toward or away from it.
  3. Set it down, switch hands and walk back.

Cues

  • Shoulders level
  • Tall walk
  • Grip hard

Common mistakes

  • Leaning away from the weight to balance it.
  • Picking a dumbbell so light that nothing has to work.

Swap for: Farmer's Walk, Dumbbell Single-Arm Overhead Carry

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Put them together: example sessions

Each session below picks from the exercises above for one situation, with the sets, reps, rest and RIR filled in.

Session 1

First core routine, floor and a chair

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts3× a week
  • Working sets30 a week
  • Per workout~20 min
  • EquipmentBarbells

Planks feel hard or new, you train at home, and you want a core routine you can repeat three times a week.

Three trunk directions get 2 to 3 holds each, 10 holds in about 15 minutes. Holds this short recover quickly, so three sessions a week give you plenty of practice without leaving you sore.

Core holds
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
PlankSeconds per hold. 3 × 20–45 2 1 min
Side PlankSeconds per side. Weaker side first. 2 × 15–30 2 1 min
Plate Hollow HoldSeconds per hold. No plate, knees bent. 3 × 15–30 2 1 min
Copenhagen PlankSeconds per side. Knee on the chair. 2 × 10–20 2 1 min
How to run it
Do the routine three times a week on any non-consecutive days, alone or after a walk. Rest as long as you need between holds so each one starts fresh.
How to progress
Add 5 seconds to a hold when every set reaches the top of the range with your hips still level. Then move up a version: plank to long-lever plank, knees bent to legs straight in the hollow hold, knee to ankle in the Copenhagen plank.
Open in the session builder

Session 2

A stronger brace for squats and deadlifts

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets16 a week
  • Per workout~20 min
  • EquipmentAdjustable Cable, Dumbbells, Barbells

You lift in a gym, your trunk is what gives out first on heavy squats, deadlifts or one-arm rows, and you have a cable station and dumbbells.

Heavy lifts already load your trunk, so this plan adds the directions they miss: twisting and side bending. Each day is 8 sets after your main lifts, 16 a week, enough to progress without tiring you for the next session.

Day A: Twist and lean
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Pallof PressPer side, 2 s hold. 3 × 8–12 2 1 min
Dumbbell Suitcase CarrySteps per hand. 3 × 20–40 2 90 s
Long Lever PlankSeconds per hold. 2 × 15–30 2 1 min

Open Day A: Twist and lean in the session builder

Day B: Side and front
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Dumbbell Side PlankSeconds per side. 3 × 20–40 2 1 min
Pallof PressPer side, 2 s hold. 2 × 8–12 2 1 min
Plate Hollow HoldSeconds per hold. Add the plate when 40 s is easy. 3 × 20–40 2 1 min

Open Day B: Side and front in the session builder

How to run it
Add Day A to the end of your lower-body day and Day B to your upper-body day. Keep at least two reps or a few seconds in reserve so your trunk is not exhausted before your next heavy session.
How to progress
On the Pallof press, add one plate when all sets reach 12 reps with a clean two-second hold. On the carry, add 5 pounds when every set reaches 40 steps without leaning. Grow the plank holds by 5 seconds until the top of the range, then add a dumbbell to the side plank.
Open in the session builder

Session 3

A one-minute plank is already easy

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets17 a week
  • Per workout~20 min
  • EquipmentBarbells, Dumbbells

You can hold a plank and side plank for a minute or more and want core holds that are hard again in 20 to 30 seconds.

Longer holds at the same difficulty mostly build endurance, so this plan uses harder levers and loads at short times. Day 1 has 9 sets and Day 2 has 8, about 20 minutes each.

Day 1: Front
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
L-Sit HoldSeconds per hold. 3 × 10–25 2 2 min
Plate Hollow HoldSeconds per hold. With a plate. 3 × 20–30 1 90 s
Long Lever PlankSeconds per hold. 3 × 20–30 1 1 min

Open Day 1: Front in the session builder

Day 2: Sides and carry
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Dumbbell Side PlankSeconds per side. 3 × 20–30 1 1 min
Copenhagen PlankSeconds per side. Ankle on the bench. 3 × 15–30 2 1 min
Dumbbell Suitcase CarrySteps per hand. Heaviest dumbbell you can keep level. 2 × 30–40 1 90 s

Open Day 2: Sides and carry in the session builder

How to run it
Do the two days on non-consecutive days, either on their own or after other training. Start each day with the hardest hold while you are fresh.
How to progress
Add 5 seconds per hold until every set reaches the top of the range, then make it harder: straighter legs in the L-sit, a heavier plate on the hollow hold, a heavier dumbbell on the side plank, and the ankle instead of the knee on the Copenhagen plank.
Open in the session builder

Make it fit you

Questions

Are isometric core exercises good for you?

Yes. They train the core's main job, which is keeping your spine still while your arms and legs produce force. That is what you need for lifting, carrying and most sports. Combine holds for the front, sides and rotation for a complete core.

What are the top 3 isometric core exercises?

The plank, the side plank and the Pallof press. Together they cover the three directions your trunk resists: arching, bending sideways and twisting. Add the suitcase carry when you want to load all three while standing.

What are signs of a weak core?

In training, the common signs are a lower back that arches on overhead presses, hips that sag in a plank within 20 seconds, leaning away from a heavy dumbbell held on one side, and a big strength gap between your left and right side plank.

Can isometric exercises give you visible abs?

Holds build the muscle under the fat, but whether it shows depends on your body fat, which comes down through overall weight loss. The hollow hold and L-sit are the holds that challenge your abs the most.

How long should I hold a plank?

Aim for 20 to 45 seconds with good form, for 2 to 3 sets. Past a minute, a plank mostly trains endurance. Switch to a long-lever plank or a hollow hold rather than chasing longer times.

Are there isometric core exercises with weights?

Yes: the hollow hold with a plate, the side plank with a dumbbell on your hip, the Pallof press on a cable, and the suitcase carry. Weights let you keep the holds short and hard instead of longer and easier.