As previously mentioned in my blogs, you don’t need a gym or fanciful equipment to build strength, muscle, cardio or simply keep fit. All you need is your own body-weight to create enough resistance.
Skip irrelevant gym workouts and expensive memberships - keep fit within the confines of your very own home and space.
Hereby, challenge yourself or anyone who can chest-bench-press a 100 kg barbell to do the following push up variations.
These variations involve plenty of total body mobility, flexibility and of course, relative strength. Therefore, I’m not surprised if a ‘steroid-enhanced’ body-builder or even a conditioned individual struggle to perform even one rep on any of these movements below.
Note:
1. Before attempting any of these push-up variations below, you must be able to perform at least 25 push-ups with proper form. (kindly insert link to previous blog, “How to do real push-ups and get results”)
2. You must have the required mobility and flexibility of your hips and shoulders.
Level of Difficulty: 1 (Beginner) to 5 (Advanced)
1. Judo or Hindu Push Up
Target: Anterior and lateral deltoids, triceps and chest.
Begin in a push-up position except with your hips all the way in the air and your shoulders in a straight line with your hips and hands.
Keep your legs as straight as you can, but be aware that if you have tight hamstrings, you’ll need to bend your knees slightly.
Lower the top of your head towards the ground, keep your hips high, then quickly drop your hips, swoop your torso up and look in the air. Keep your arms straight as you press your hips back to the start position to begin the next rep.
2. Spider-man Push Up
Target: chest, anterior deltoids, triceps, hip flexors, obliques and abs.
Take a regular stance push up.
When you go down, concurrently bring one knee close to the elbow or to touch.
Turn your pelvis so your knee doesn’t touch the floor .
3. Archer Push Up
Target: chest, anterior and lateral deltoids, triceps, obliques and abs.
Begin in a plank position on your palms with your hands placed very wide and slightly turned out to the sides.
From here, keep one arm straight while you bent the other arm so your body slides toward that side.
The archer push-up moves laterally as well as up and down.
You may need to rotate the hands of your extended arm as you lower to the bottom of each rep.
4. Komodo Walk
Target: shoulders, chest, triceps, core and hip muscles.
The Komodo walk is a moving push up sequence.
Take a step forward with every push up.
The leg position resembles the Spider-man Push Up except your legs are allowed to touch the floor.
Turn from the pelvis so your knee doesn't touch the floor.
5. One-arm Push Up
Target: shoulders, chest, triceps, core and hip muscles.
Get into a plank position on one arm with your feet spread apart and your hand right beneath your body rather than off to the side.
Your other arm can be held at your side or behind your back.
Keep your elbow close to your side, lower your chest to your hand and press yourself back up while keeping your entire body rigid.
As a general guide, the closer your feet are positioned to each other, the harder the exercise becomes.
6. Lizard Crawl
Target: shoulders, chest, triceps, core and hip muscles.
You must be able to perform one-arm push ups before attempting this very advanced movement.
This movement mimics the movement of a lizard.
Like the Komodo Walk except here you stay low to the floor the entire time.
When you move forward, you are supporting with one arm while taking a step with your other arm and leg.
Move your non-supporting arm in an arc-like form forward while supporting your entire body with the other.
Stay low and focus on control.
Move More. Stay Safe.
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