Push-up

A press up or push up is a common strength training exercise performed in a prone position, i.e. while lying horizontal and face down, raising and lowering the body using the arms. They develop the pectoral muscles and triceps, with ancillary benefits to the deltoids. Press ups are a basic exercise used in civilian athletic training or physical education and, especially, in military physical training.

US Marine recruits performing push-ups. (Note: it is generally considered poor form to round the back while performing the exercise).

Record Breakers/Attempts

The World Record for non-stop pushups is 10,507 by Minoru Yoshida of Japan on October, 1980..

Variations

In the full press up, the back and legs are straight and off the floor. Several variations are seen, besides the common push up. These include bringing the thumbs and index fingers of both hands together (a diamond pushup) as well as having the elbows point towards the knees. These two variations are intended to put greater emphasis on the triceps rather than the shoulder and chest muscles. When both hands are unbalanced or on uneven surfaces, this exercise also works the body core.

Hindu press up

The Hindu pushup [1] is a calisthenic exercise called dand used by Indian wrestlers to develop upper-body strength, along with flexibility. It was popularized in the United States by fitness entrepreneur Matt Furey. The starting posture for the hindu press up differs from the full press up. The body must form a V-shape. The body is then lowered in a circular arc ending with the back arched and the chest upwards.

The Mantis press up begins with the same starting position as the Hindu press up. However the body is lowered forward using the arms and then the body is slid forwards, keeping the feet and hands on the floor. This places emphasis on the shoulders and triceps.

Less difficult versions

There are some less difficult versions, which reduce the effort by supporting some of the body weight in some way. One can move on to the standard press up after progress is made.

"Wall press ups" are performed by standing close to a wall and pushing away from the wall with the arms; to increase the difficulty, move your feet further from the wall.

"Three-quarter" press ups are performed by supporting the lower body on the knees not the toes. Three-quarter press ups are often used in women's fitness programs.

Plyometrics

There are also a number of plyometric versions of the press up that can be performed.

The aim of the 'clap press up' is to explosively push the body into the air for enough time to clap the hands together, then bring them back into position to cushion the fall.

In another type of plyometric press up, the drop push, two platforms are placed on either side of the trainee. The exercise begins with the hands on either platform supporting the body, then the subject drops to the ground and explosively rebounds with a push up, extending the torso and arms completely off the ground and returning the hands to the platforms.

Another is simply an explosive press-up where a person attempts to push quickly and with enough force to raise their hands several centimeters off the ground, with the body completely suspended on the feet for a moment, a variation of the drop push.

With press-ups, the possibilities for customization and increased intensity in the exercise are endless. Some examples are: One hand can be set on a higher platform than the other or be farther away from the other to give more weight to the opposite arm/side of the body and also exercise many diverse muscles. One can perform press ups by using only the tips of the fingers and thumb. This is known by some as "marine-style". For increased difficulty, press ups can be performed on one arm and/or using only four digits or less. Weights are also frequently added. These forms may cause pain or lead to joint damage if performed incorrectly or excessively.

Non-training purposes

They are also rather commonly used as a fitness test or as a mild (somewhat embarrassing) physical punishment on the spot, to show off physically or as demonstration of submission (as in hazing, sometimes abusive).

In a competitive or disciplinary context especially, it is not rare to use 'nastier' variations, e.g. in mud, snow or dirt, divested, and/or to make it physically harder, as by putting one's foot or a weight on the performer's back (possibly with sanctions if equilibrium is lost, such as spilling a glass) or to do the exercise resting on the knuckles or not use all fingers (not counting the thumb).

Men's Fitness Levels

United States Army

See [2]

Age	Pass basic training	99th Percentile
17-21	42	71
22-26	40	75
27-31	39	77
32-36	36	75
37-41	34	73

United States Navy

Age	Probationary	Satisfactory (Post-Boot Camp)	Good (Boot Camp grad)	Excellent	Outstanding
17-19 [3]	42	46-49	51-68	76-82	86-92
20-24 [4]	37	42-45	47-64	71-77	81-87
25-29 [5]	34	38-41	44-60	67-73	77-84
30-34 [6]	31	35-38	41-57	64-69	74-80
35-39 [7]	27	33-35	37-53	60-65	70-76
40-44 [8]	24	29-32	34-50	56-61	67-72
45-49 [9]	21	25-28	32-46	52-57	63-68
50-54 [10]	19	23-25	30-43	49-53	59-64
55-59 [11]	10	12-14	16-38	46-52	56-60
60-64 [12]	8	10-12	14-32	44-48	52-57
65+ [13]	4	6-8	10-25	36-41	44-48

Women's Fitness Levels

United States Army

See [14]

Age	Pass basic training	100th Percentile
17-21	13	42
22-26	11	46
27-31	10	50
32-36	9	45
37-41	6	40

See also

• Sit-up
• Bench press
• Calisthenics
• Jumping Jack
• Handstand pushup

External links

• Illustrations of how to do proper push ups
• Press Ups Guide and one minute press up test.
• Descriptions and pictures of press ups and variations
• Bruce Lee demonstrates the two-finger push up
• World records
• Different types of Push Up