17 Push-Up Variations for Muscle Growth and Strength

If you wish to hit a great deal of muscle tissue in a single rep, you may’t do significantly better than an ordinary push-up. However the base transfer is just the start. To see new positive aspects in energy, muscular growth, and mobility, there are dozens of push-up variations to strive.

Push-ups are available many various kinds, making it easy to advance (or dial again) the traditional train as wanted. Numerous hand positions, physique angles, props, and add-on strikes work and emphasize totally different muscle tissue, preserving the transfer contemporary and efficient.

Strive for your self with the next push-up variations.

Muscle tissues focused: Chest, shoulders, triceps, and core

• Assume a high-plank place along with your ft collectively, your physique straight from head to heels, and your arms according to (however barely wider than) your shoulders. Have interaction each your glutes and your core to lock your physique into place.
• Holding your elbows tucked towards your physique (your physique ought to type an arrow when considered overhead) and your head impartial, decrease your torso till your chest is inside just a few inches of the ground.
• Pause, after which push your self again as much as the beginning place as rapidly as doable.

Muscle tissues focused: Together with the triceps and shoulders, this simpler expression of the transfer shifts emphasis to the decrease chest

• Place your arms barely wider than shoulder-width aside on a bench or different steady, elevated floor, and assume a push-up place.
• Holding your again flat and core engaged, decrease your chest to inside just a few inches of the bench.
• Pause, after which push your self again as much as the beginning place.

Muscle tissues focused: This tougher push-up hits the standard muscle tissue, with added emphasis on the triceps

• Assume a low-plank place along with your forearms, palms, and balls of your ft on the ground, and your physique straight from head to heels. Your ft must be shoulder width, your fingers unfold huge, and your forearms parallel.
• With out shrugging your shoulders towards your ears, or letting your hips sag or carry, shift your weight onto your left forearm and place your proper palm flat on the ground under your proper shoulder.
• Nonetheless sustaining a wonderfully straight physique, shift your weight onto your proper palm, putting your left hand flat, and straightening each arms to imagine a high-plank place.
• Reverse the transfer, reducing your proper forearm after which your left forearm again to low-plank place, preserving your physique straight the entire time.
• Repeat the motion, this time putting your left hand in push-up place earlier than your proper hand. After each arms are in high-plank place, decrease your left arm to low-plank place earlier than your proper arm.
• Proceed the motion, alternating the initiating arm with every rep.

4. Diamond Push-Up

Muscle tissues focused: The nearer hand positioning calls for extra of the triceps on this extra superior push-up with nonetheless loads of pressure on the chest and shoulders

• From a push-up place, convey the information of your thumbs and index fingers collectively so that they’re touching (see the diamond?). That is the beginning place.
• Holding your elbows tucked (don’t allow them to flare), decrease your torso till your chest flippantly touches the backs of your arms. (Or so far as you may go with out compromising type.)
• Pause, after which push your self again as much as the beginning place.

5. Single-Leg Push-Up

Muscle tissues focused: The lifted leg challenges core stability along with the chest, shoulders, and triceps

• Assume a push-up place, lifting your proper leg off the ground.
• Holding your elbows tucked towards your physique, decrease your torso till your chest is inside just a few inches of the ground.
• Pause, after which push your self again as much as the beginning place as rapidly as doable.
• Full all reps on one aspect, then repeat on the opposite, performing equal reps on each.

Muscle tissues focused: Strolling your arms ahead locations further pressure on the belly muscle tissue and spinal erectors as you stabilize your backbone, subsequently working your triceps, chest, and shoulders

• Stand tall along with your ft hip-width aside and your arms at your sides.
• Holding your core engaged and again flat, hinge ahead at your hips and place each palms on the ground. Bend your knees barely if mandatory.
• Stroll your arms ahead till you assume a high-plank place. Your wrists must be immediately beneath your shoulders and your physique must be straight from head to heels.
• Decrease your physique, bringing your chest inside just a few inches of the ground, after which return to high-plank.
• Reverse the motion, strolling your arms again towards your ft, to return to the beginning place.

7. Large-Arm Push-Up

Muscle tissues focused: Shifting your arms out farther to the perimeters shifts emphasis to the muscle tissue of the chest

• Assume a push-up place, putting your arms on the ground twice shoulder-width aside.
• Holding your elbows tucked towards your physique, decrease your torso till your chest is inside just a few inches of the ground.
• Pause, after which push your self again as much as the beginning place as rapidly as doable.

Muscle tissues focused: Shifting to at least one arm on the high of the push-up locations higher pressure on the shoulder and triceps of the planted hand, and challenges core stability — notably the obliques — with the rotational motion

• Assume a push-up place.
• Holding your elbows tucked (not flared), core engaged, and head according to your backbone, decrease your physique till your chest is inside just a few inches of the ground.
• Pause, after which push again as much as the beginning place.
• As soon as you come to the beginning place, shift your weight onto your left hand, stack your proper foot on high of the left, roll your proper hip again, and prolong your proper arm towards the ceiling (the one elements of your physique on the ground will probably be your left hand and the skin fringe of your left foot). Hold your physique straight all through the motion.
• Carry your proper hand and foot again all the way down to the ground, and repeat the sequence, switching sides on the subsequent aspect plank. Proceed alternating sides on every rep.

Muscle tissues focused: Elevating your ft shift extra weight onto your arms, growing work on the entire standard muscle tissue engaged in a push-up

• Assume a push-up place along with your arms on the ground and your ft elevated on a sturdy bench or field.
• Holding your physique straight and core engaged, slowly decrease your chest as near the ground as doable.
• Return to the beginning place.

Muscle tissues focused: Including a “bounce” along with your arms helps construct explosive energy within the chest, shoulders, and triceps

• Assume a push-up place.
• Holding your elbows tucked, decrease your torso till your chest is inside just a few inches of the ground, after which push up with sufficient drive in your arms to go away the bottom.
• Land softly, transitioning instantly into your subsequent rep.

11. Staggered Push-Up

Muscle tissues focused: Offsetting hand positions locations higher weight on one arm, difficult stability and selling practical energy

• Begin in an ordinary push-up place, after which transfer your proper hand barely ahead and your left hand barely backward.
• Do two push-ups.
• Swap hand positions and repeat.
• Proceed alternating hand positions each two reps.

12. Spider-Man Push-Up

Muscle tissues focused: Bringing your knee to your elbow on the backside of the transfer will increase time beneath pressure for the customary push-up muscle tissue, whereas introducing challenges to hip mobility and the glutes

• Assume a push-up place.
• Holding your hips degree, convey your proper knee as shut as doable to your proper elbow. Pause, after which step again to the plank place.
• Decrease your physique, bringing your chest inside just a few inches of the ground, after which return to the beginning place.
• Carry your left knee as shut as doable to your left elbow. Pause, after which step again to the plank place.
• Carry out one other push-up and repeat the sequence, performing equal reps on either side.

13. Mountain Climber Push-Up

Muscle tissues focused: Pumping your ft additional emphasizes your core, requiring greater than isometric engagement out of your belly muscle tissue

• Assume a push-up place.
• Raise your proper foot off the ground and draw your proper knee towards your chest, ensuring to maintain your again flat, your butt down, and the remainder of your physique stationary.
• Return your proper foot to the beginning place, and instantly repeat with the left leg.
• Decrease your physique till your chest is just a few inches from the ground, after which return to the beginning place.

14. Modified Planche Push-Up

Muscle tissues focused: Positioning your arms farther again targets the shoulders whereas nonetheless working the chest and triceps

• Lie face down on the ground, putting your arms on the bottom beside your ribs.
• Participating your core and glutes to make sure your physique stays straight, preserve your elbows tucked towards your physique and push your self as much as excessive plank. That is the beginning place.
• Decrease your physique till your chest is inside just a few inches of the ground, after which push your self again as much as the beginning place.

Muscle tissues focused: Including a bounce on the high of the transfer turns a push-up right into a full-body train and introduces a hellacious dose of cardio

• Stand tall along with your ft hip-width aside and your arms at your sides.
• Bend your knees, hinge at your hips, and squat down, putting each palms on the ground.
• Bounce your ft again to a push-up place.
• Decrease your torso till your chest is just a few inches from the ground, after which rapidly push again up.
• Bounce your ft again to your arms, after which explode upward, leaping into the air.
• Land softly and instantly start your subsequent rep.

16. Stability Ball Decline Push-Up

Muscle tissues focused: This model of the decline actually challenges your core as you’re employed to stabilize your self on the ball

• Assume a push-up place along with your toes on high of a stability ball. Brace your core and squeeze your glutes to maintain your physique in a single straight line from head to toes for the complete transfer.
• Decrease your chest towards the bottom, preserving your elbows tucked near your physique. They need to type a forty five diploma angle to your torso when considered from above.
• Push your self again as much as the beginning place.

Muscle tissues focused: Performing the transfer on an unstable med ball promotes steadiness throughout each side of your physique

• Assume a push-up place along with your arms elevated on a medication ball. Place the medication ball immediately beneath your chest along with your arms on both aspect of it.
• As this push-up variation might be powerful on the wrists, place your arms in exterior rotation on the medication ball — level your thumbs towards your head and your draw your fingers out to the perimeters (away from the heels of your arms).
• Place your ft huge for steadiness. Have interaction your core and squeeze your glutes to maintain your physique straight.
• Bend your arms and decrease your torso towards the medication ball. Hold your head down and your elbows near your sides.
• Pause as soon as your chest is inside just a few inches of the medication ball. Then, push your self again as much as the beginning place.

What Muscle tissues Do Push-Ups Work?

As touched upon above, these are the first muscle tissue you’ll have interaction to some extent throughout any push-up.

Chest

Your pectoral muscle tissue (often known as your “pecs“) work to attract your higher arms towards your physique. You’ll really feel them throughout the elevating and reducing parts of the push-up.

Shoulders

The deltoid muscle tissue help your pecs in bringing your arms towards your physique throughout the reducing portion of the push-up, and pushing the ground away throughout the elevating portion.

Triceps

Your horseshoe-shaped triceps muscle tissue — positioned on the backs of your higher arms — work in partnership along with your shoulders and chest to decrease and lift your physique within the push-up.

Core

When achieved proper, the push-up will have interaction your rectus abdominis (a.ok.a. the six-pack muscle), in addition to the transverse abdominis, which is the deep core muscle that lies beneath it. Collectively, these core muscle tissue work to maintain your trunk steady all through the motion.