Foundational Movement | The Pushup

By: Coach Mysty

We are talking about the Push Up for this week on Wellness Wednesday! Here are some reminders, movement cues and tips from Coach Mysty.

The push up works chest, shoulders, back, arms, core and glutes. Start by lying on the floor - placing hands shoulder width apart & slightly behind shoulders. Wide fingers spread apart will help with pressure on wrists.

Turn your hands into the ground as if screwing the top of a can - this will help drive elbows back. We don’t want elbows flared out in a pushup.

Squeeze shoulder blades, contract quads (this will force legs to go straight), squeeze butt & tighten core - this will place your body in a straight line. Try squeezing feet together to help contract quads in your push up position.

Remember, we don’t want an arched back, high butt or saggy hips.

Full range of motion in your push up is key!

From the plank position, or top of your push up, lower your body until chest meets the ground, then raise body until arms locked out, all while keeping a straight line with the body from head to toes. Keep your neck straight and try to avoid reaching for the ground with your nose first. Hips and chest should be moving in unison.

Quality over quantity is key! Faster isn’t always better.

If you are still working towards a push up, instead of touching your chest to the floor, try elevating your target. This means doing a push up with your hands on the wall, a box, bench, ottoman in your living room ;) Whatever you might have available! The goal is to be able to have your chest meet the object you’ve chosen while on an incline. Once you can do 10 good reps unbroken then you can progress to a lower incline.

Exercises to help strengthen core

* High Plank Hold 

* Shoulder Taps 

* Walking Plank 

* Plank Twists