It was one of the most famous race finishes: Meb Keflezighi, who had taken home the Olympic silver medal in 2004 and won New York (2009) and Boston (2014), had a difficult 2016 Olympic marathon trial. At the very end, and about to come in 33rd, he slipped on the wet street. Rather than falling, he placed his palms just over the finish line and demonstrated to all runners exactly how to do a perfect push-up and that a strong upper body is part of an elite runner’s toolkit.
“Upper body strength helps runners in two ways,” Yusuf Jeffers, a USATF Level 1 coach and an NASM-certified performance enhancement specialist in New York City explains to Runner’s World. “First, it helps you maintain good posture while you run and it also improves your arm drive when you make an effort. You need both to stabilize yourself and increase your speed.”
To that end, Jeffers recommends the tried-and-true push-up—a move that offers many benefits, as long as you know how to do a push-up properly. “It’s an easy investment, high-return exercise,” Jeffers says. “It strengthens the muscles in your upper body while it engages almost all of your other musculature. It mimics the type of engagement you need when you stand and run.”
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The push-up and all its variations (we have six of them below) target several muscle groups, including those that make up the front of the body (pecs a.k.a. chest muscles) and back of the body (deltoids or shoulder muscles, and trapezius and rhomboids or back muscles). You also get help from the triceps, quadriceps, and even the glutes and abs. That’s a lot of bang for your buck!
Another benefit of learning how to do a push-up? There are so many ways to do them that whether you’re a beginner or an expert or somewhere in between, you can vary your push-up routine. Here, everything you need to do just that, including how to do a push-up—the right way.
How to Do a Push-Up Properly
This is a traditional straight-leg push-up. Working your way up to doing 3 sets of 10 reps of this version is the ultimate goal.
Set-Up:
Start in a high plank position with shoulders stacked directly over wrists. Spread fingers and point them forward, making sure pointer fingers and thumbs are flat on the floor. Engage core and glutes to keep hips level; body should form a straight line from head to heels. Draw shoulder blades back and down so shoulders aren’t rounded forward. Keep neck and head in line with torso.
Lower Down:
Inhale, then bend elbows to lower chest to the floor; resist just falling to the floor. Your arms should bend at a 45-degree angle from torso. They may angle out a bit, but make sure your elbows don’t flare like goalposts. Lower body as close to the floor as possible.
Push-Up:
Exhale and slowly straighten elbows to push back up to a plank. That’s one rep.
Tips to Perfect Your Push-Up Form
According to Jeffers, the perfect push-up is one in which you keep your body in a long straight line—that includes your neck. Don’t look at your chest. Instead, keep your eyes focused on the floor about a foot ahead of you.
Another thing to keep in mind: The down is just as important as the up. “The first thing I teach people is that the lowering phase is as important as the actual push-up,” says Jeffers. “You want to control your descent and lower yourself to the ground slowly.”
If you typically do push-ups on your knees, start doing one or two with your legs straight, then go to your knees. Doing a hard version at the beginning of your workout will help you progress.
Engage your core muscles, as well as your legs, in the plank throughout the entire exercise. Push-ups are a great core exercise, specifically for the transverse abdominis, as long as you focus on engagement. Engaging your glutes and quads will also help keep you steady and maintain strong form.
Common Mistakes People Make When Doing Push-Ups
Sacrificing form can make push-ups hurt, rather than work their magic on your muscles. Jeffers says common mistakes include:
- Placing your hands a lot wider than your shoulders, which puts stress on your shoulders and wrists
- Flaring the elbows out too far, placing extra stress on the shoulders (they should be near your body)
- Dropping your head which strains the neck
- Not using the core to keep your body in one long line (this shows up in the hips piking up or dropping down)
- Stopping before you’re close to the floor
3 Push-Up Variations to Work Up to the Full Exercise
Start with a set of 10 reps of a push-up variation in which you don’t lose your form, says Jeffers. You can also start your workout with a hard version and when you feel yourself compensating or not keeping your form, try an easier variation, explains Jeffers.
“You can add them to your workout three times a week,” he adds, suggesting you go for 3 sets of 10 reps.
Wall Push-Up
Stand facing a wall and place hands directly in front of you, wrists in line with shoulders, hands shoulder-width apart. Take a step back—the farther your feet are from the wall, the harder the move. This is your starting position. Bend the elbows and lower body to the wall. Keep spine neutral and core engaged. Push back up to starting position.
Incline Push-Up
Start in a high plank position with hands on the edge of a bench, step, or couch, shoulders over wrists, and core, glutes, and legs engaged. Bend elbows to lower body toward the bench in one straight line. Keeping core engaged and hips in line with the rest of the body, push back up to plank.
Knees Down Push-Up
Start in a high plank position, shoulders over wrists, core, glutes, and legs engaged. Place knees on the floor, tucking pelvis slightly forward to activate core. Bend elbows to lower chest to the floor. Be sure to keep core engaged and hips in line with the rest of your body. Push back up to starting position.
3 Ways to Progress Your Push-Up
Diamond Push-Up
Create a diamond shape with hands (pointer fingers and thumbs touching) directly under chest (not neck or chin as that will put too much strain on the shoulders). Bend elbows to lower body to mat. Keeping core engaged and hips in line with the rest of your body, push back up to plank. This variation works your triceps and chest and challenges your shoulder mobility.
Hand Release Push-Up
Start in a high plank position, shoulders right over wrists. Maintaining a straight line from head to heels, lower entire body to the floor very slowly. When body is on the floor, lift hands off the ground. Then place them back under shoulders, and still maintaining one straight line, push back up to plank. Repeat.
Plyo Push-Up
Start in a basic push-up position then lower yourself as usual. As you press back up to a plank, make it explosive, so hands come off the ground. Then land with bent elbows, lowering right back into another rep. Short for plyometric, this push-up adds a cardio challenge and extra resistance to the move.
Donna Raskin has had a long career as a health and fitness writer and editor of books and magazine articles. She bikes in a nearby county park, lifts weights, takes Zumba, and loves to walk/run with her dog, Dolly.
