The Push-Up Challenge 2021: How to do a proper push-up

When it comes to any exercise, it’s always best to warm up first. “You want to build into it,” Todd says. “Go through an elevated push up against a wall or some resistance band pull aparts. If you don’t have any equipment, try a simple shoulder activation movement, such as a cat-cow sequence, to loosen the muscles.” 

The perfect push-up begins with proper hand placement. “Usually people go too wide, too far away from the body or too far out in front,” Todd explains. “You want to bring your hands in line with your chest/pec area and have them positioned just outside the width of your shoulders, almost grazing the side of your body.” 

Ask yourself this, Todd says. “If you had one chance to push something as hard as you could, where would you put your hands and how would it look? Everything comes a bit tighter because that is your strongest position.” 

When you’re starting out on a path to push-up perfection, Todd says it’s best to begin with your feet shoulder width apart, rather than together. “You want to have four points of contact with the ground,” he says. “This helps to spread the load, stabilise and take some of the tension from your chest and arms.” 

You want to keep a long, neutral spine when doing a push-up. That means you’re basically starting in a high plank position. “You want to be strong as steel from head to heel and maintain a perfect straight line as you lower your chest,” Todd says. “Often when people haven’t built up enough strength, they compensate by moving their forehead to the ground. “The aim should be to get chest to touch ground in between the hands rather than trying to headbutt the floor. If you can’t do this, the safer option is to go to your knees.”

One of the biggest mistakes Todd sees when it comes to poor push-up form is flared elbows. “It’s worse to flare than to graze the body,” he says. “Your hands should be flat on the ground, facing forward, with your fingers stretched out.

Despite popular belief that push-ups are all about chest and biceps, when performed correctly, this exercise should recruit all your muscle groups. Your core should be braced, and glutes and hamstrings engaged. “There should be tension everywhere,” Todd says. “The more muscles you can recruit, the better, so give it all you’ve got.” 

If you don’t have the strength to do a standard push-up to start, or you have an injury, Todd says it’s always better to modify your push up than to do it with poor form. “Find the right progression or regression for you,” he says. “You could try starting on your knees or, if you have knee or wrist problems, start with an elevated position. That could mean using a wall, the kitchen bench or even the back of your couch to push-up against.”

It’s always a good idea to stretch after any exercise. “If you’re a desk worker, your natural position is hunched over so participating in a push-up challenge is going to further feed this problem. “For every push you do, you want to counteract it with a pull to balance the muscles,” he says. “Use whatever you’ve got around the house, like soup cans or water bottles, and do some sort of row. Even shoulder stretches to make sure the shoulder blades are doing their job.” He says shoulder stretches, rolling out your wrists and rolling out your chest on a massage ball are also helpful.

Whatever level of fitness you’re at, Todd says the key is to just do it. “One push-up better than no push-ups so just do whatever is achievable for you,” he says. “As long as you are consistent that is all that matters.”