The push-up is one of the greatest exercises ever invented. Not only can it be done anywhere with zero equipment, but it’s also one of the most effective exercises you can do to gain muscle and strength.
Almost everyone knows what a push-up is. If you haven’t done one at some point in your life, you at least have seen someone else due one. Sylvester Stallone banging out one-arm push-ups in Rocky 1 comes to mind.
The problem is that the vast majority of people I see doing push-ups are doing them wrong! They are rushing through each repetition and trying to do as many as they can.
This is the wrong way to go about it. Unless you are doing them for a fitness test, you are more than likely doing push-ups because you want to add muscle and get stronger.
Blowing through every rep as fast as possible isn’t going to do that. You need to change your mindset. The focus when you do push-ups should be time under tension. You want to make them as hard as possible to get the most out of them.
Most people have no idea how to do this. They are so used to focusing on the total number of reps that they never stopped to consider the actual goal of push-ups. You want to build a big and toned freaking chest!
I’m going to break down the correct way to do a push up into 4 simple stages so that you can stop wasting your time and start seeing results
The setup stage
This is the beginning of the push-up. For most, things begin going wrong during this stage.
To start off in this stage, get down on your knees on your mat or floor. Lean forward while stretching your arms out straight until they touch the ground.
In relation to where you put your hands down, you should imagine a line going through the middle of your chest or “nipple line”. The middle of your palm should be right on top of that line.
The width of your hand placement should be slightly wider than your shoulders. You may have to adjust a bit depending on your body, but do not place your hands too wide. This is a common mistake.
Once you have the perfect hand placement, you can pick your knees up and get into the starting position. You need to think of your body as a straight line. From your heels up to the top of your head, your whole body should be in line.
Since your arms are going to force your upper body higher off of the ground than your feet, this line will be angled upwards. Just remember to keep everything in line.
At this point there is one final step and that is shoulder adjustment. Since we are looking to increase the tension on our chest muscle, the shoulders have to be moved slightly.
To do this, pull your shoulders back slightly (like a row) and down against the top of your lat muscle. This begins to add a stretch to your pec muscle and will maximize the amount of tension you can put on it. This is important!
Your whole body should be tight at this point. All of your muscles should be working together. If something feels too loose, like your abs or glutes, squeeze it.
The lowering stage
Now that you know and understand the setup stage, you are ready to get into the meat and potatoes of the exercise.
Most people will lower and push their body up as quick as possible in this stage. Don’t be like them.
We are looking to add as much tension as possible to your chest, shoulders and arms. Blowing through each rep like Santa blows through dessert isn’t going to help you.
You need to lower your body in a smooth and controlled movement. At the same time, you should put your weight slightly forward towards your hands to increase the tension on your chest.
It will take some experience, but eventually you will able to feel the tension and how it changes. Your focus should be on your pec muscles the whole time.
2-3 seconds is a good amount of time to take your body from the top to bottom position.
At this point, keep lowering until your chest touches the floor. If your chest isn’t too large, you might be able to touch your chin on the floor. Just go as low as possible.
Your chest should kiss the floor however, you should not rest it against the floor at any time so that it would decrease the tension on your chest muscles. This isn’t a rest!
The pause stage
Now that your chest is ever so slightly touching the floor while the tension is remaining on your chest and shoulders, you are officially in the pause stage.
Most people completely skip this stage. The second they go down, they immediately start pushing back up and totally miss out on the opportunity of the pause.
Spending 1-2 seconds in the pause position is the proper way to do it. It will keep the tension on your muscles while eliminating the temptation to push your body back up in a hasty manner.
In the pause stage, remember to keep everything tight while keeping your body in a straight line. There should be no sagging here. The only thing touching the ground should be your chest or chin and neither should be resting.
The pushing stage
This is the fourth and final phase of the push-up.
After you have paused at the bottom for 1-2 seconds, it’s time to finish the exercise and start pushing up.
Just like when you lowered your body down, you should push your body up in a smooth and controlled manner. Just like when you lowered, 2-3 seconds is a good time frame in which to push back up.
Remember to keep your shoulders back and down while putting your weight forwards towards your hands. Feel the tension in your chest and adjust accordingly if there isn’t enough.
Once you get to the top, you are back to the setup stage and have completed a push-up the correct way. Congratulations!
One final note at this stage is don’t lock your elbows out! This will take the tension off of your chest and put it into your arms. It will allow your chest to get a break. You don’t want that unless you absolutely need it.
Going forward
There are a thousand and one different ways to do a push-up, but this is the correct way to do the standard push-up.
While you are going to find you are not going to be able to do as many reps as you can when you do each rep as fast as possible, you are going to get a lot more out of it.
You are going to be keep constant tension on your chest and shoulders which is going to help you maximize the potential of the push-up.
While it’s not as sexy as versions like clapping push-up or one-arm pushups, you are going to find a whole new respect for the push-up if you invest the time into doing them like this.
Until next time,
Dan
P.S. Do you incorporate push-ups into your fitness routine? I’d love to hear your thoughts on them and answer any questions you have about the correct way to do them below.
I was glad to see you set aside an entire section to the setup. I don’t think a lot of people appreciate that a pushup is really just a dynamic plank. Anyone who has ever taken a yoga class knows a good deal of time can be spent on perfecting the plank, and yet that element of the pushup is often given very little attention.
As a personal trainer (part of my wellness business), I do think care has to be taken in encouraging people to touch their chest to the floor. Some people have shoulder mobility issues and it’s just not possible or even safe for them to do so. That said, I think you are right to encourage as great a range of motion as possible. I actually think that if care is taken, people can build their shoulder strength and flexibility up over time so maybe they can get deep enough to touch their chest to the floor.
And I totally get your steering people away from “fast” pushups or the plyometric-style clap pushups. For me, these moves do have legitimate purposes (muscular endurance in the former, power training in the latter) but I think the problem is first, many people don’t understand that and so they don’t understand what they are training for, and second, because they haven’t read, say, your post here, they do it incorrectly. And there are few things more dangerous than doing fast or plyometric pushups incorrectly!
Thanks for devoting so much time and effort to what many consider a simple, almost throwaway move. It really is important to get the basics right!
Hi Jon,
I absolutely agree with you and I think it fully deserves an entire post! In fact, I think I could write a whole book just on the pushup alone LOL. Yes of course care needs to be taken when going super low and I assumed people wouldn’t force themselves to go lower than physically possible but perhaps I should have explained it better. Many people lack the strength and flexibility in the beginning when they are new to pushups however, overtime if they stick with it they can usually go all the way down. I love the fast pushups as well and I think they are great for power and speed, but when it comes to using the pushup to gain muscle and strength I don’t think that the standard pushup can be beaten. You made some really great points Jon. I can tell that you have a lot of experience with the pushup as well! You’re very welcome my friend. Anytime. Thank you so much for the helpful comment and thanks for stopping by!
I guess I rest in the group that never even knew about the pause stage. Despite me being of average build, I can barely do any pushups for some reason. My arms seemingly just can’t take it. So hopefully with a more refined technique, I can make it to 3 or even *gasp* 4 consecutive pushups soon.
Hi Caldero,
A lot of people skip over it, but you should definitely take at least a second or two to hang out there. It will add more tension to the muscle and actually make you stronger overtime. Sometimes I will do ones where I stay in the pause stage for 5 seconds or more. They are really a killer on the chest and triceps. If you stick with it and work hard I know that you can eventually pump out way more than 4 pushups. Don’t give up! Thanks for your comment and thanks for stopping by.
Honestly I am glad to hear that it isn’t about doing it fast or how many you do. I’ve been doing more lady like push ups where I am on my knees and not on my feet, if that makes sense? And I can do about 6 before I start taking strain. Yes very unfit and not very strong… but I have been trying to build my strength up the last few months. I include a few push ups in my workouts twice a week.
Hi Lynne,
There’s nothing wrong with those and many start out with those. Hell, even when I’m tired I will go back to those. It allows you to move in a very controlled fashion while keeping constant tension on your chest. That’s great to hear! A lot of people don’t do them at all and I think that’s a mistake. Stick with it and I know you will be able to do more or even full pushups in the near future. Thanks for your comment and thanks for stopping by!
I love Fitness and exercice and Push ups really helped me develop my Chest, but with this check list I guess it will be even more gains and better performances. Push ups helped me develop also my bench press.
I saved this page in my favorites on my browser !
Hi Aurelien,
Awesome. Funny you should say that about the bench press. I attribute pushups as the # 1 thing I used back in the day to build a big bench. When I was a teenager, I used to do them every night. During that time, my bench press went through the roof and I eventually won a state championship in the bench press at 18! I would never have done it if I didn’t devote all that time to pushups. They are such an amazing exercise. I’m glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for your comment and thanks for stopping by:)
Focusing on the muscle groups your working is half the battle lots of people miss out on. You can’t just go into the gym and half a$$ it.
Well, you can but you will see much more satisfying results if you do your training correctly and focused. Cool article thanks for the read.
100 % correct Doc! You need to put the effort in. I see too many people in the gym just standing around looking at their phones without doing any actual work. I can’t think that they leave the gym after doing that for an hour and actually feel satisfied with what they did. It’s a shame where the gym culture today has gone. Too much distraction! I’m glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for stopping by and thanks for your comment!
I ‘ve always been incapable of doing push-ups. Is it just me or is it a common problem for women? I mean ordinary, everyday women with ordinary training programs. Reading your article I realized my way was wrong. Above all, I was trying to do as many as possible in a short period of time. I couldn’t do it and was discouraged. I am proud to announce to you that after “studying” your advice, I managed to do 5 of them. Hurray! It’s an achievement and you are responsible for it, Dan. Thank you!!!!
Hi Effie,
Pushups are a big problem for many people. I see fit adult males often have problems with full pushups. Women also have problems with pushups and usually have to start doing them on their knees. So many people focus on doing a certain number when they should be focusing on doing perfect reps. Perfect practice is what’s important! I am so happy to hear that! Awesome job! Now just stick with it and overtime I know that you will see the great results that pushups can bring you. Thanks for your comment and thanks for actually putting my advice to work!