Perfect Push-Up Form

Looking for a total body exercise that works your upper body as well as your core? Step away from the bench press and start doing pushups.

The question you hear flying around gyms everywhere is; “How much can you bench?” I have 17-19 year old kids walk into my weight room every year preaching about how much weight they can move but there are two scary things that typically come hand in hand with this: 1) they have no idea how to bench, and 2) they can’t perform a simple pushup. I’m a huge advocate of keeping it simple in training. I also want my athletes to be good at what they do. So with that in mind we train to become good at performing the pushup before they progress to big movements, like the bench press.

Now I know what you’re saying, “Jay, it’s just a pushup, what are you talking about?” That is where the problem lies. The pushup is a very complex total body exercise that not only works on upper body strength, but also trains core stability when done properly. Here is a step-by-step approach to looking at the body and how you should perform the pushup to gain strength and build muscle.

Hands: Your hands should do more than just lie on the floor like the bottom of a table. Try turning your hands slightly outwards away from your body, digging your hands and fingers into the ground. This creates tension that will transfer throughout your entire body.

Elbows: Most people think that you just lower yourself to the bottom and push yourself up. This isn’t the case. Your elbows should travel at a 45 degree angle and end somewhere even with your ribs. You don’t want them fly straight out.

Shoulder Blades: When lowering yourself, tuck your elbows, pull your shoulder blades back. Think about pulling yourself to the ground. You can’t pull anything if you’re not connected to it right? So this ties directly into the hands portion.

Hips and Abs: You’ve probably heard the saying “engage your core” when you do a push-up. What this means is squeeze your abs and butt as hard as you can. This will avoid two major problems that occur with this exercise which are pushing your butt way up in the air, or reaching to the ground with your hips. The second puts way to much stress on your lower back and is no good.

Finish the Rep Both Ways: I see a ton of head bobs that athletes try to call a push up, both at the top half and the bottom half. Lower yourself all the way down to the floor and lock out at the top with your elbows straight. This is a full rep. Otherwise you’re not only cheating the rep, but you look like a fool. If you need a depth gauge, use a tennis ball and put it in a 2.5 pound plate to make sure it doesn’t move. It’s an easy way to ensure consistency and to gauge how far you have to go.

So to answer your question of what I’m talking about, that’s exactly what I’m talking about. The pushup is actually a very complex multi joint movement, and when done properly can really be a great strength training tool.

If you can’t do a pushup through the full range of motion, try putting your hands on a bench. Do everything else the same, just take a little of your body weight off and work your way to the floor. When you can do 3 sets of 10, look for a shorter object and work towards the goal there. Just make sure to do everything as prescribed above to ensure you’re getting your money’s worth for the time you’re putting in.

Now, if you can do a pushup that’s great. Once you can do 3 sets of 20, I think you’re ready to move onto “big” exercises using dumbbells and barbells. But don’t desert the push-up. Use it as a secondary exercise and add resistance to it by using bands, plates, chains or a good looking person in the gym. By working on this your core strength will improve and your pressing strength will increase with it.

To maximize your results after performing pushups, 1R would recommend the following supplements:

1. Gaspari IntraPro - This post workout protein shake that's loaded with BCAAs, L-Glutamine, and Taurine, will help you recover, and build lean muscle, faster after workouts
2. Cytosport Creatine - By increasing your body's ATP production creatine will help you become more explosive, more powerful, and more athletic when taken before or after workouts
3. Optimum Nutrition Fish Oil – These tasteless fish oil pills will help you burn fat, improve joint health, and reduce inflammation associated with hard training