Why am I not getting any better at push-ups?
I posted before that I have been getting back into a fitness routine in the last few months. My focus has been on building muscle and strength. This is a relatively new approach, for me, as my fitness “history” was always focused on cardio, I was always big on running, and most of my strength training came from yoga and light weights (I’m female and the conventional advice for a long time was light weights lots of reps.)
I’ve seen steady progress in everything that I’ve been doing, I’m able to lift much heavier weights than when I began, I went from doing a handful of bodyweight squats to hundreds, or being able to add and increase weight, everything is going as expected… except for push ups. I am still stuck on an incline push up (one stair), and I can still only do about ten, ten, before I’m shaking and losing my form. My form is good to begin with, elbows close to the body, hands wide, I’m not relying on gravity to do the work, I just can’t seem to get any better. What gives? How do I get over this hump?
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7 Answers
Try bench pressing lighter weights and working your way up in weight. That might help build your arm strength.
Try some kettlebell workouts. I know some people who have transformed their bodies with kettlebells. I’d stick with someone known and respected for kettlebells, like Lauren Brooks. I know there are many pop instructors out there who do not demonstrate proper form.
Its hard to give an exact answer without seeing you train, but here are some things to try:
1. Mix up your routine. For a long time I didn’t progress with chin-ups, because I was doing back exercises earlier in the routine. My back muscles were already tired, so although my arms were fine, I couldn’t keep going.
2. Strengthen the muscles required for pushups separately. Do wood-chop exercises with pulleys to build core strength and pectoral strength, and military presses to build tricep strength.
3. Do variations of the pushup – try a set with your hands touching each other directly under your chest, or maybe T-pushups.
4. Smash a boxing bag between each type of exercise that you do. In between your squats and running, hit the bag. This builds endurance all through your arms, shoulders and chest, and teaches you to be more explosive with each movement, rather than gradual.
Do you try to do the push ups in sets? I did incline until I boosted myself to 30 (3 sets of ten). Then I began again on the floor.
I’d start with 3 set of 5, since you haven’t noticed a change. The next day, try for 3 sets of 7….and boost up from there.
Besides being able to do more pushups, I’m now able to hold planks for longer & longer periods of time.
Maybe try a chair for the incline, or work on wall push ups to strengthen and build up the reps. I used the arm of a strong wood chair to help me build the repetitions up.
Husband did this method starting about a year + ago and is now doing all sorts of fancy push ups and pull ups.
@SpatzieLover no, but maybe multiple sets of 5 is a smart approach.
Thanks for the good advice, all.
you plateaued.
you had reached the farest that you musclesc can accomodate at the moment.
Check with a trainer on how to fix.
Use indian clubs, try doing the push ups with a weight on your shoulders, make sure you get a balanced work out. Make sure you do not neglect other muscles. Basically, your muscles may have become incorrectly proportioned, For fitness, care for the entire body.
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