Star Side Plank
obliques
What moves the load, and what it costs
3.5MET
ఒబ్లీక్స్ is the prime mover, with the glutes, abs assisting. Adds a hip-abduction demand to the side plank. Balance becomes as much of a limit as strength.
Cue: From a straight-arm side plank, lift the top leg and top arm to form a star shape and hold.
మూలం·2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities·FILED UNDER CALISTHENICS, LIGHT·జూలై 2026న సమీక్షించాం
SHARED AXIS · SEVEN VALUES FROM ONE TABLE · HIGHLIGHTED ROW IS THIS MOVEMENT
The compendium files star side plank under a category, not a lift. Read the ladder as position, not precision: this is heavier work than sitting quietly by a factor of 3.5, and middling for conditioning work.
Turning that MET value into a real energy cost
- Map the movement to a published category. The compendium measures categories of conditioning work, never individual lifts, so star side plank is filed under Calisthenics, light or moderate effort, general (e.g. back exercises).
- Take the category's MET value — 3.5. One MET is the cost of sitting quietly, so this is 3.5 times resting metabolism.
- Multiply by 3.5 to get millilitres of oxygen per kilogram per minute, the unit the MET is actually defined in.
- Multiply by your bodyweight in kilograms and divide by 200. The result is kilocalories per minute of work.
- Count working minutes only. Under load, not under the roof — a set of eight is about 25 seconds of the hour you were there.
kcal/min = MET × 3.5 × body mass (kg) ÷ 200 Star Side Plank: 3.5 × 3.5 × 70 ÷ 200 = 4.29 kcal/min
మూలం·ACSM metabolic equation + 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities·REFERENCE BODY MASS 70 KG·జూలై 2026న సమీక్షించాం
What is actually doing the work
| Muscle | Role | What it does here |
|---|---|---|
| ఒబ్లీక్స్ఎక్స్టర్నల్ మరియు ఇంటర్నల్ ఆబ్లిక్లు | Prime mover | మొండెంను తిప్పడం మరియు పక్కకు వంచడం, అలాగే తిరగకుండా నిలవరించడం. ఒక వైపు ఉన్న ఇంటర్నల్ ఆబ్లిక్, మరో వైపు ఉన్న ఎక్స్టర్నల్ ఆబ్లిక్తో కలిసి పనిచేస్తుంది. |
| GlutesGluteus maximus, medius and minimus | Synergist / stabiliser | Extends the hip (maximus), and abducts and stabilises it (medius and minimus). The strongest single muscle group in the body. |
| AbsRectus abdominis | Synergist / stabiliser | Bends the trunk forward and, more usefully, resists it being extended backwards. Both a crunch and a plank load it — differently. |
The prime mover produces the movement against the resistance; synergists assist and stabilisers hold a joint still without moving it. An exercise trains the whole muscle it loads — there is no way to work only part of a muscle, and no exercise removes fat from the area around it.
Set up, then earn the rep
Bodyweight. Held for time, not counted in reps — the set ends when the position breaks, not when the clock does.
PATTERN · BRACE
- Lie on your side with the elbow directly under the shoulder and the feet stacked or staggered.
- Lift the hips until the body is in a straight line from ear to ankle.
- From a straight-arm side plank, lift the top leg and top arm to form a star shape and hold.
- Press the bottom shoulder down away from the ear and keep the top hip stacked over the bottom one.
- Hold, breathing normally, then lower under control and switch sides.
- Match the time on both sides to the weaker one.
Where this one breaks down
Not theory. These are the faults you correct on a gym floor, and the correction that actually works.
Hips dropping or rolling forward.
Stack the hips and squeeze the top glute. If the position sags, drop to the bottom knee.
Sinking into the bottom shoulder.
Actively push the floor away.
Only training the stronger side properly.
Side-to-side differences here are common and worth fixing. Set the time by the weaker side.
Regress it, or progress it
Regress — earn it first
Progress — the next demand
This sits at the top of its progression here. Add load, add range, slow the tempo or go single-limb before you go looking for a new exercise.
Prescription: load, reps, rest
Read off the goal, then hold the technique constant as the load climbs. Derived from the movement's mechanics, not invented for this page: a held position is measured in seconds, and the set ends when the position breaks.
| Goal | Sets | Hold | Rest | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Learning the position | 2–3 | 15–20 sec | 45–60 sec | Stop the set when the position breaks, not when the timer does. |
| Building capacity | 3–4 | 30–45 sec | 60 సెక | Add time before you add load, up to about a minute per set. |
| Strength (loaded) | 3–4 | 20–30 sec | 90 సెక | Past a minute of easy holding, add resistance rather than more seconds. |
| Fat loss / circuits | 3–4 | 30–40 sec | 20–30 sec | Short rests keep the heart rate up; the position still has to hold. |
Time under load, in kilocalories
Read these as minutes of work, not minutes in the building. A set of eight takes about twenty-five seconds; the rest of the hour is rest, chalk and queueing.
Mapped category: Calisthenics, light or moderate effort, general (e.g. back exercises) — 3.5 MET. That is the published category this movement is filed under, not a measurement of this specific lift.
Worked at 3.5 MET × 3.5 × 70 kg ÷ 200 = 4.29 kcal per working minute for a 70 kg adult. Scale it by your own bodyweight; the equation is linear. The full activity dataset lives at BurnLab.
మూలం·2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities·CATEGORY VALUE, NOT A PER-EXERCISE MEASUREMENT·జూలై 2026న సమీక్షించాం
If the rack is taken
Substitutes train the same prime mover through the same pattern with different kit. Computed from the muscle and pattern data on this card, not hand-picked to fill a grid.
This one needs no equipment at all, which is why it belongs in every travel and home programme. Every no-equipment movement is listed together.
Where it sits in a week
One movement is not a programme. The twelve templates put these in order, including 6 that need no gym at all.
The questions that come up on the floor
What muscles does the star side plank work?
Star Side Plank is an isometric hold in which the obliques is the prime mover, assisted by the glutes, abs. Rotate and side-bend the trunk, and resist rotation. The internal oblique on one side works with the external oblique on the other.
Is the star side plank good for beginners?
No. It rates 4 out of 5 for technical demand — real technical demand — worth having someone watch your first sessions. Build to it through the easier progressions on this page; the side plank with hip dip is the usual step before it.
What can I do instead of the star side plank at home?
Nothing is needed — the star side plank already requires no equipment at all, which is why it belongs in any home programme.
How many sets and reps of the star side plank should I do?
For muscle size, 3–4 sets of 30–45 sec with 60 sec rest. For strength, 2–3 sets of 15–20 sec with 45–60 sec rest. In your first month, 3–4 sets of 30–40 sec, stopping well short of failure. Total weekly hard sets per muscle group matters more than the exact rep number in any of these ranges.
Does the star side plank burn fat from the obliques?
No. No exercise removes fat from the area it trains — spot reduction has been tested repeatedly and does not happen. Training the obliques builds the muscle underneath; where body fat is lost from is decided by an overall calorie deficit and by your genetics, not by which exercise you chose.
Muscle roles follow standard kinesiology references and are described by joint action rather than by gym convention — see how this site is built. Energy figures are derived from the 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities. Every reference is named and dated on the sources page. General information only — not medical or coaching advice. Load, form and progression should be adjusted to your own experience and any injury history. When in doubt, get coached in person.
మూలం·Published exercise references·MUSCLE ROLES ASSIGNED BY JOINT ACTION·జూలై 2026న సమీక్షించాం
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