Side Plank
How to Do It
Lie on your side, forearm under the shoulder, legs stacked. Brace and lift the hips so the body forms a straight line from head to feet, supported on the forearm and the side of the lower foot. Keep the hips high and the top shoulder stacked over the bottom. Hold for the prescribed time, then switch sides.
Why It Works
Trains anti-lateral-flexion — the lateral core (obliques, quadratus lumborum) and lateral hip stabilizers must resist the hips collapsing toward the floor, building frontal-plane trunk and hip stability.
Hockey Transfer
Builds the lateral core and hip stability that keep the torso stacked over a single skating edge and resist being knocked sideways in contact; supports balance during one-leg loading and turns.
Coaching Cues
- "Hips high, body in a line"
- "stack the shoulders and hips"
- "brace, don’t sag"
Common Mistakes
Hips sagging toward the floor; rotating the torso; shoulder not stacked over the elbow
Progression / Regression
top leg raised, reach-through, or add a hold/load
from the knees or shorten the hold
Primary Muscles
Energy System
Strength/neural (isometric)
Put it to work
on the ice.
This exercise is part of a fully periodized 12-week off-ice program — built by a sport scientist who coaches at the national level.
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