An impressive feat can be achieved in five hours. For example, flying non-stop from Toronto to Vancouver or completing a full 18-hole round of golf. It’s a significant amount of time. Now, picture holding a plank, one of the most challenging core exercises, for the duration it takes to cook a Thanksgiving turkey.
DonnaJean Wilde, a 61-year-old grandmother of 12 and retired teacher from Welling, Alta., recently set a new world record for the longest time holding an abdominal plank position by maintaining the pose for five hours at the Huntsman World Senior Games in Utah. This achievement surpassed her previous record of four hours, 30 minutes, and 11 seconds set in 2024.
Wilde expressed her enjoyment for planking and mentioned that it becomes easier with practice. An abdominal plank involves holding the body straight like a plank of wood. Most adults can sustain a plank for 20 to 60 seconds, according to Health magazine.
To break the record officially, the individual must keep their forearms and toes in constant contact with the ground while keeping the rest of the body lifted and straight throughout the duration, as per Guinness World Records guidelines.
Wilde shared that she started planking about 15 years ago after breaking her arm and wanting to stay fit. She discovered she could still plank even with a cast on and developed a love for the exercise. She gradually increased her plank duration over the years with encouragement from her family, leading to her record-breaking accomplishments.
In addition to her plank record, Wilde also achieved another Guinness World Record in 2024 by completing 1,575 pushups in one hour, the most pushups in one hour by a female. She attributed her pushup success to her daily routine of doing 500 pushups as part of her plank training.
Wilde now planks daily for several hours while multitasking with activities like reading, writing, and pursuing her master’s degree. She even authored a book titled “From Minutes To Hours: I Wrote This Book While Planking,” which was released last year.
CBC News did not attempt to write this story while planking.