How to make push-ups harder? Technique, video

Among the most accessible and effective exercises, push-ups are at the top of the list. They perfectly strengthen the muscles of the back, chest, shoulders and abs, increase endurance and do not require special equipment. To perform the exercise with your own weight, you only need a firm, flat surface.

Some experienced athletes may find the classic push-ups from the floor too easy. In order to diversify the workout and test their strength, many gym-goers complicate the already familiar exercise. We’ve selected five types of push-ups that not everyone can perform and talked to wellness coach and Champion expert Andrei Semeshov about whether it’s necessary to switch from classic push-ups to more sophisticated ones.

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Do you need sophisticated push-ups?

Before answering this question, you need to define the goal you are setting for yourself. If your goal is to simply work on muscle mass, you can probably do without the complex types of push-ups.

Andrei: If your list of priorities is focused on developing the muscles of the body, then the optimal choice would be the “classics”. Of course, over time, regular push-ups may not be enough – your muscles will adapt. In this case, it would be logical to perform push-ups, for example, as a “top-up” after bench press or any other exercise for the same muscle groups. You can also use different methods of increasing intensity: manipulate the rest time, the number of repetitions, use additional weights (for example, a vest). Another thing is that classic push-ups will not impress the viewers of YouTube videos.

If you are already in good physical shape and confidently perform strength exercises, complicated types of push-ups will be a great way to test your strength. We tell you which techniques are difficult even for experienced athletes.

Diamond push-ups

The difficulty of diamond push-ups lies in the fact that the hands should be maximally brought together in front of the body. The index finger and thumb of both hands touch in such a way that they form the shape of a diamond or triangle. When performing the exercise, it is necessary to tense the hips and buttocks, slightly retract the abdomen and control the deflection of the lumbar region. In general, these rules resemble the plank technique, only in dynamics. Tilt the body as low as possible, so that if possible it touches the hands.

The main load in diamond push-ups falls on the shoulder and elbow joints, pectoral muscles, the anterior bundle of the deltoid muscle and the triceps muscle of the shoulder.

Superman push-ups

These are worth starting if you are confident in doing explosive push-ups. The main difficulty of the superman technique is that you need to simultaneously lift your torso and legs into the air, pushing off with your hands and helping with pelvic movements. After you get off the ground, you need to extend your arms and legs in a straight line. This pose is just like the flight of Superman.

Before performing the exercise, do not be lazy to take the time to warm up your hands, so as not to injure them when landing.

Push-ups on fingers

When performed regularly and correctly, this exercise develops a strong grip, so it is perfect for fans of martial arts. In addition, push-ups on the fingers – it is also a prevention of specific diseases of the joints.

You probably won’t be able to master such a complex technique right away. To begin with, you need to learn to stand on your fingers, leaning on your knees, and then – on your toes. For backup, you can put any convenient object under your palms: a small hemisphere, a boxing glove or a twisted cloth belt.

Such push-ups give additional load on the forearms, as well as on the muscles and joints of the hands and fingers.

Andrei: If you perform push-ups holding the balance, for example, on two fingers, the load on these joints will be the limiting factor that will force you to complete the exercise. The muscles of the arms or chest could still work, receive a much greater load and respond with growth.

Spiderman push-ups with weight

If you can’t perform 15-20 classic push-ups, this advanced exercise will definitely be beyond you. First, you will have to do it with a weight on your back. Dumbbells or even a bag of sand for convenience can be put in a backpack. Secondly, the Spider-Man technique is dynamic. Your task – on bent arms to pull the knee to the elbow and then straighten the leg. After which it should be bent again and change in a jump to another.

Never hold your breath while doing the exercise. Keep the rhythm and do not spread your arms too wide. This will help you keep your balance.

The main load in spiderman push-ups is on the chest muscles.

Aztec push-ups

Before moving on to Aztec push-ups, you need to confidently do 20-30 reps in the classic style and 10 – in the explosive style with a bounce off the ground. After that, we move on to push-ups, during which we try to touch the opposite knee with our hand. The next level is touching the knees with both hands in the air. And only after that you can properly master the Aztec technique, in which it is important to stretch with the fingertips to the toes.