If your arms are spread out to the side, this puts a huge pressure on the tissue structure as well as the ligaments and shoulder joint. While this may be true, safety should always come first. Overtime the more you practice, the more strength you will build and the easier pushups will become. So remember: always keep your elbows close to your body. Another Freeletics fact: Ever wondered why we want your chest to touch the ground with every repetition?
Yes, pushups primarily work the large chest muscles as well as the triceps. But, keep in mind that there are many more muscles involved, making the pushup a great total body exercise. Cookies at Freeletics. Accept all cookies Accept only required cookies. Pushups primarily work the triceps and large chest muscles, but there are many more muscles involved. Read more to find out what they are. What are pushups? The anatomy of the pushup Which muscles are involved when performing a pushup?
See the muscles here: pectoralis minor muscle small chest muscle serratus anterior muscle deltoideus muscle shoulder muscle Besides these, the so-called antigravity muscles red muscles in the shoulder girdle are also involved to keep the shoulder, as well as the shoulder blade, in the right position. Try Freeletics now. The more pushups a person does, the more calories they burn. Raising the heart rate during exercise helps strengthen the heart muscle, enabling it to pump more oxygenated blood to the lungs and throughout the body.
Tiny blood vessels called capillaries, which supply blood from arteries to tissues and organs, also widen to allow for better blood flow. Doing exercise that raises the heart rate can help :. When people use the correct technique, pushups can help build up strength in the muscles around the shoulder joint.
The muscles and tendons in the shoulder hold the upper arm bone in the socket. When the muscles are weak, stress or injury to the shoulder can result in damage to the muscles and tendons. Pushups are a simple exercise that requires very little or even no equipment, so a person can easily do them as part of an at-home workout.
There are also many pushups variations to suit people of different strengths and abilities. Below is a guide to eight different types of pushup. The exercises are in order of difficulty from the easiest to the most challenging. Wall pushups are suitable for beginners or anyone with a shoulder injury.
This type of pushup helps build shoulder and chest strength but places a reduced load on the muscles. Try to do 3 sets of 12 repetitions, reaching a total of 36 pushups. Take a short break between sets. The modified pushup is for people who want a more challenging exercise than the wall pushup but are not quite ready for a standard pushup. When doing this pushup, focus on tightening all the muscles to maintain a stiff, straight body.
Repeat the exercise 12 times and then do an additional 2 sets, with short breaks between them. This will make a total of 36 pushups. The standard pushup requires more work than the modified pushup because it does not involve using the knees to help support the body weight. The wide pushup is only slightly different to the standard pushup. It involves widening the distance between the hands, which places more focus on the chest muscles.
The narrow pushup is another variation of the standard pushup, but it is usually more difficult. Bend your elbows at a degree angle with your torso, rather than allowing them to flare out to the side. Most importantly, keep your trunk stable and straight as you push up and down.
This means no hiking of the hips or sagging into the lower back. This cheats your core from working and puts your shoulders and elbows at risk of injury.
If you find it too hard to lower your chest to the floor without sagging, simple brace your knees in the mat to build the initial strength. The way you do the push-up affects how much activation each of the primary muscles gets. Try these to add dimension to your upper body and introduce additional challenges:. Inclined Push-Ups: Usually slightly easier than a standard push-up, especially if you choose a high incline. You'll work the sternal portion of the pectoralis muscle most with this move.
Declined Push-Ups: Place your feet on a box or weight bench to put greater emphasis on the anterior deltoids and upper, or clavicular, pectoralis major. Diamond Push-Ups: When you keep your hands close together under your chest and hug your elbows in against your torso as you press up and down, your triceps brachii get more activation. Unstable Push-Ups: Push-ups done against a stability ball or other unstable surface makes your core work harder to stabilize you. Fitness Workouts Chest Exercises.
By Andrea Boldt Updated May 31, Aubrey Bailey is a Doctor of Physical Therapy with an additional degree in psychology and board certification in hand therapy. Bailey is also an Anatomy and Physiology professor. Andrea Boldt. Andrea Boldt has been in the fitness industry for more than 20 years.
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