Balance Trainer Shoulder Tap Planks
The Balance Trainer Shoulder Tap Plank is an intermediate core stability exercise performed on a BOSU ball that challenges your balance and anti-rotational strength. By balancing on an unstable surface while lifting one hand, you force your deep abdominal muscles and shoulder stabilizers to work harder than in a standard floor plank.
This exercise demands high neurological engagement for balance, meaning your performance correlates heavily with your recovery status. Our AI analyzes your HRV and sleep quality to determine if your central nervous system is recovered enough to maintain stability without compensating; if you are fatigued, the app may suggest a floor-based regression to protect your lower back. Additionally, by tracking RPE, the AI learns your stability threshold, ensuring you stop the set before form breakdown occurs due to stabilizer muscle fatigue.
Form Cues
- Place hands on the flat side of the balance trainer directly under your shoulders
- Brace your core tight as if expecting a punch to the stomach
- Squeeze your glutes to keep your hips level and stable
- Tap the opposite shoulder slowly with control
- Keep your gaze slightly forward to maintain a neutral neck alignment
- Don't let your hips rock side-to-side as you lift your hand
- Don't allow your lower back to sag or arch excessively
- Don't rush the movement; speed reduces the stability benefit
- Don't let your shoulders shrug up toward your ears
Common Mistakes
- Excessive hip rotation
- Sagging lower back
- Rushing the shoulder taps
- Placing hands too far forward
- Holding breath during exertion
Muscles Worked
This exercise primarily strengthens the entire core complex, specifically training the obliques and rectus abdominis to resist rotation and extension. The instability of the balance trainer also forces the anterior deltoids, triceps, and scapular stabilizers to engage significantly more than they would on a stable surface to keep your upper body steady.
Primary
Secondary
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