I am trying to add a few things I can do at home in short bursts of time while my LO is napping. I have added some planks into these small activities, but I don't know if I am doing them correctly (I am better using my hands down vs my lower arms down). I am not super in shape and I can hold the position for about 20-25 seconds. During this, my arms are a bit fatigued, my core is ok. Afterwards my core feels a bit sore, but nothing horrible. It's like I found a new muscle and it said hello and life goes on.

What should I be striving for? As in time to hold and how many should I do in short period of time. This is not something I have done before so any pointers would be good. TIA!

Planks are good. You can try to hold them for longer or take short breaks in between doing sets of your 20-25 seconds each. You can alternate hands down versus lower arms. Raise one leg on top of the other and vice versa. Or, in your position, try a few press ups at the end of your plank.

Form is quite important. Engage those abs and keep that butt down so you are straight. I see a lot of ladies looking like hump-backed bridges when trying planks with their butts in the air (women tend to have less upper body strength than men so this is entirely understandable)! But keeping straight is the aim.

Endless variety.

Thanks Ian - I will try your suggestions and see what works.

I've only done planks a few times myself, so I'm not terribly familiar with them either. Would it be helpful to run a search of google images - ex. "correct plank form" and/or youtube? Searching for the most common form breaks (ex. "common plank errors") can be insightful as well.

Actually, a great way to engage your core is to plank starting from the "cat" yoga position, so your back is a bit arched. Engage your core and shoulders, not your legs and arms, to hold you. Every time you plank, add 2-5 seconds and soon you'll be a master.

plank is one of the most effective moves. But aside from building muscle, if you want to lose weight, like that extra fluff around your belly, doing cardio will help burn calories. So try these cardio plank moves to maximize the calorie-burning effects of this basic must-do move.