Every now and then I am at the gym and just get the urge to rep out as many push ups as I possibly can.
After I do those push ups, I immediately rep out as many pull ups as I can, then rest and then repeat. I will do this until I am pretty beat. It feels amazing and it is a quick and effective workout.
HOW TO DO A PUSH UP
Push ups are an amazing exercise to help you develop your upper body and get your chest and arm muscles looking strong.
Push ups are a simple exercise that you can literally do anywhere. Whether you’re at work, in a bathroom (wouldn’t recommend a random bathroom), going for a walk in the woods, or watching your kids play at the park, drop down and do some push ups every 10 minutes.
Like I said, LITERALLY ANYWHERE!
So in this quick read, I am going to teach you how to do a push up.
GET READY!
All you need is a flat surface and enough space around you.
Step 1. You are going to get down on your hands and knees, like a puppy.
Your hands will be flat on the floor, a bit wider than shoulder width apart.
Step 2. Straighten your legs out behind you so your body forms a straight line from your head to heels.
Keep your feet close together.
Step 3. Once you are in this straight arm plank position, you are slowly going to start bending your elbows and lowering your body DOWN towards the floor.
Now, it is important to go slow and in control. Don’t just drop down quickly, you may hurt yourself.
Make sure to keep your body in a straight line from head to heels.
Slowly lower yourself until your chest almost touches the floor.
Continue to look down at the floor to keep a straight and neutral spine.
Step 4. Once you are at the bottom of the push up, continue to keep your body as straight as you can and push the floor away from you with your hands.
Once you are back at the top of the push up (in the starting position), where your arms are straight and extended, be sure to keep a soft elbow. You do not need to lock out the elbows completely.
Step 5. Repeat the process. Control yourself while lowering your body down towards the floor, and then push the floor away from you as your body comes back up, remembering to keep your body straight from head to heels.
PUSH UP TIPS:
- Keep your body straight like a plank from your head to your heels the entire time.
- Don’t let your back sag or stick your butt up in the air.
- Breathe in as you lower your body down, and breathe out as you push back up.
- If regular push-ups are too hard, you can: do them on your knees instead of your toes or use a wall or squat rack instead of the floor.
Now that you know how to do perfect push ups, these are the muscles you are using:
- Your pecs (upper chest area).
- Anterior deltoids (front part of your shoulder).
- Your triceps (the back of your arm).
- Your abs and obliques (you engage these in that straight arm plank position, in order for you to keep your body in a straight line).
- Spinal erectors (the muscles all along your spine, also engaged in the straight arm plank position).
Overall, push ups are a great, simple body weight exercise that you can do to make your muscles strong and develop a baseline of strength that you can build off of.
By following these steps and practicing regularly, you can become a push up aficionado in no time!
BONUS PUSHUP WORKOUT
If you are at home, pick a doorway. Every time you walk through that particular doorway, get down and do 1-3 perfect push ups (straight line, head to heels).
Do that for one week.
The following week, double whatever you did the previous week.
This is a quick and easy way to practice doing your push ups and getting consistent with it.
Enjoy your new muscles!