Let’s be honest: push-ups aren’t as easy as they seem. It takes a lot of upper body and core strength to push your body weight up off the floor while staying in a plank position.
Before I started strength training, I was a long-distance runner with a weak upper body. I know what it’s like to start over. It will take time, but you can get there if you keep practicing.
I have two changes that will help you reach your goal of doing this bodyweight move. To get stronger and practice the movement pattern, you’ll work the same muscles but in a different way.
You might like a woman lying on her back on an exercise mat on a wooden floor, with her legs bent at 90-degree angles. There are plants and glass walls behind her.
You might want to just start with the first move and then add the second one once you get stronger, depending on how strong you are right now.
1. Push-up with a negative
You can move on to a negative push-up, also called an eccentric push-up, if you can hold a high plank with a stable core and good form for 30 to 60 seconds.
This move is all about the descent. If you learn how to lower yourself slowly and with control, you’ll get stronger and be able to do a full push-up.
How to do it:
YouTube video of the Eccentric Push-Up with Full Reset
Watch On: 3 Sets of 5–8 Reps
What to read next: a woman doing a glute bridge on a yoga mat
No sit-ups or planks—I’m a personal trainer and these are the five moves. I think that everyone who is just starting out should train their deep core with
A woman in a park is smiling and holding a resistance band.
This standing exercise has changed my core strength in just six months. A woman holds a high plank at home.
If I only had five minutes and no equipment, I would do this circuit to build core strength.
- Get into a high plank position with your shoulders over your wrists and your body in a straight line from your shoulders to your feet.
- Get your shoulder blades, core, and buttocks to work.
- To lower yourself to the floor in a controlled way, bend your elbows and keep them close to your body.
- At the end of your range, drop your knees to the floor.
- Put your arms out to push yourself back up.
- To get back to a high plank position, lift your knees.
- If you can’t get all the way to the floor, try the incline version. Put your hands on a box or chair instead of the floor to make it easier on your shoulders and arms. Keep doing this until you can easily do three sets of five to eight reps.
2. Hold a low push-up
This is an isometric move where you hold the bottom position of the push-up, right before your chest hits the floor.
I like this move because it makes the hardest part of the push-up stronger. Also, it’s easy to change the difficulty level by holding lower or higher while you’re still building strength.
How to do the move:
Low Push Up Hold – YouTubeLow Push Up Hold – YouTube Watch On Sets: 3 Reps: 5–8
- Your shoulders should be directly above your wrists when you start in a high plank position. Your body should be in a straight line from your shoulders to your feet.
- Get your shoulder blades, core, and buttocks to work.
- To lower yourself to the floor with control, bend your elbows and keep them close to your body.
- Stop at a depth that you can hold for three to five seconds.
- Put your knees on the floor and then push yourself back up with your arms.
- To get back to a high plank position, lift your knees.
- If you can’t control the bottom position, do the move from your knees to make it easier.
