Why pushups are good

According to LaReine Chabut, "When you do a push-up, you recruit your core muscles to help keep your back straight and assist you in pulling your belly button toward your spine. A Strong Core - If you're looking for washboard abs and a strong core, then push-ups might just be the perfect starting point.

By core, we mean the abdominal section, waist , side of the waist and everything right down to the pelvis. Strong core muscles allow you to do physical activities with ease, help with back problems and maintain good posture.

A video posted by rawcalisthenics on Mar 14, at pm PDT Tips to Doing Push-ups Watching someone do a push-up makes it seem real hard, but it doesn't have to be. Read these tips before you attempt one and with a little practice, you'll be swift in no time. Don't Rush - Yes, it does matter how many push-ups you can get through, but not when you're doing them in the wrong motion. One Straight Line - Make sure your legs, hips, neck and head are in one straight line.

Slowly, but gradually lift them off the floor and come back down in the exact same position. If you can't go all the way up and come back down then try one of the variations to see which one you can follow to the T. Lift Those Hips - Weight distribution changes with difference in the angle of your body so don't let your hips loose.

Keep them tight and aligned with your neck and feet. Any kind of weight distribution can hamper with the kind of resistance you're trying to build. When your shoulders are aligned with your feet, your arms are working more than your feet. And when your body assumes an upward slant moving up from your feet , you lower body is building more resistance. Main Navigation. Log in Profile. Saved Articles. Contact Support. Log Out. Your cart is empty. Our online classes and training programs allow you to learn from experts from anywhere in the world.

Explore Classes. Contributing writer By Jenny McCoy. Contributing writer. Jenny McCoy is a contributing writer at mindbodygreen. She earned a B. Last updated on August 31, In This Article. Health benefits of pushups. Here are five reasons you should be doing pushups regularly:. Improved upper-body strength. Improved core strength and stability. They can double as cardio. Supports strong bones. Improves posture. Should you do pushups everyday? How to do a pushup.

Get on all fours with your shoulders over your wrists and your knees underneath your hips. Make sure your knees are open as wide as your hips. Walk your hands forward several inches, and then shift your body forward so that your shoulders are over your wrists again.

Your hips will now be in front of your knees. Keep your fingers together and extend them forward as you press down through your palms. From here, pull your bellybutton in toward your spine and tuck your toes under to lift your knees up off the ground and come into a high plank position. Note: To better engage your core stabilization muscles, Zetlin suggests moving your heels together. Make sure your heels are directly over your toes and your wrists are still underneath your shoulders.

Your neck should be in line with your spine don't tuck your chin or crane your head up , and your shoulders should be pulled back and down away from the ears. Make sure your upper back and glutes are aligned. Squeeze your quads and glutes. This is the starting position.

Breathe in as you bend your elbows at a degree angle to your sides, and lower yourself down toward the ground, squeezing your shoulder blades together and keeping your core and quads braced. Lower yourself as far down as you can even if it's just a few inches for two to three counts while still maintaining good form—don't let your hips sag or your butt hike up.

Your body should be in one long straight line from the crown of your head to your heels. At the bottom of the movement, push down through your palms and breathe out as you push yourself back up over one count to the starting position.

This is one rep. Pushup variations. How to avoid plateauing. Potential risks to keep in mind. The bottom line. Jenny McCoy Contributing writer. Throughout the movements of a push up, you recruit a wide array of primary and stabilizing muscles. As a young man or woman, your body pumped out large concentrations of this specialized hormone to support the natural growth of your entire body.

However, as you age the natural release of HGH declines, which makes building muscle a challenging task for older adults. By calling upon such a wide array of muscles, the production of HGH is triggered, which ultimately results in muscle hypertrophy — or muscle growth. To maximize push up benefits, you must incorporate this exercise into your regular strength training program. One of the most debilitating, and common, injuries for older individuals is a rotator cuff injury.

While the severity of this injury is based upon a host of unique circumstances, protecting this delicate part of your body must become a priority. The standard push up has been found to be among the most effective ways to safeguard your shoulder joints from injury; especially in older adults. Because push ups call upon stabilizing muscles, which surround the rotator cuff joint, this area of the body is strengthened and conditioned for dynamic movements.

By supporting the strength and health of primary and secondary shoulder muscles, the likelihood of debilitating injuries significantly lowers. Whether you sit at a computer all day or simply ignored the nagging recommendations from your mother or teachers, improper posture can destroy your health and comfort as you age. One of the most common reasons for a lack of proper posture is weak core muscles. In order to properly hold your shoulders and back, your entire core must be strong enough to support its vertical positions.

When push ups are properly executed, the muscles responsible for supporting posture are strengthened and fine-tuned. Moreover, as you regularly engage in push ups, your body will naturally lean toward proper posture. This is one of the most influential passive benefits of push ups. There are few injuries as debilitating as a lower back injury.

As mentioned earlier, pushups call upon your entire torso to stabilize its movements. By doing so, you strengthen this vulnerable part of the body.