I can't do a proper pushup

VitaminAmy

I'm a fitness noob... I've lost some weight (yay!) but now I'd like to put the effort into getting in shape.
I have very little arm/upper body strength and don't go to the gym (yet?).
I do cardio exercises via Xbox Fitness and have no equipment.
I feel like my legs are strong but my arms are pathetic.

Do I need actual strength training with weights or just keep up the cardio and focus on moving arms.

What would you recommend a very beginner can do at home to build up upper strength/endurance?

Thanks bunches to all the nice people out there.

dbmata

Bodyweight is a good place to start, as is pushups.

A good way to start with the pushup is to get on your knees and do one, or do as much of one as you can. You can also do halfs, which have you lay on the ground, then push yourself up into proper position.

I've found planks also helps make the whole experience a lot more comfortable.

LemonLizard

I do the kind of push up where you're on your knees and hands, instead of your toes and hands. Make sure to keep your back straight though, you don't want your booty in the air. I think I'm slowly working towards "real" push ups this way, I'd recommend it. I've also been following 30DS, which incorporates weights which I really like.

gypsy_spirit

Before I started lifting, I used NerdFitness.com. They have an awesome beginner body weight strength circuit program. I haven't been on the site in a while, but there is progression in adding more circuits.

It really helped me. I had very little upper body strength then. Little or no equipment needed. He teaches how to start doing push ups so that you can progress. Better to start with elevated push ups, as the form will be consistent to doing a proper push up.

Good luck.

beautifulwarrior18

If your goal is fitness you absolutely need to strength train!

PetulantOne

http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2009/12/09/beginner-body-weight-workout-burn-fat-build-muscle/

^That is a good place to start. Browse their website in general. There's a lot of good info there.

As far as pushups go, start on your knees. When that becomes easy move to the wall, then work your way down. I went from the wall to a dresser, then the bathtub, until I could do a standard pushup on the ground. That method worked faster than anything else I had tried in the past.

shooting_star27

seconding nerdfitness! I've been having a little trouble keeping proper form with push ups as well and found this handy link. http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/02/15/proper-push-up/

Also I find that starting with your hands curled into fists instead of spreading your fingers can help you keep a little more stable. good luck!

David_AUS

There are heaps of exercises you can do for now I would recommend starting at just holding the Plank position 30 secs on 30secs off instead of push ups. This will help build shoulder strength. If you really cannot handle the full 30 secs then as long as you can - just start with 3 sets, if you can hold longer great - still stick with 3 sets just hold for a longer period each time keeping rest at 30 secs. It is low impact and more intense then you would imagine if you make sure you keep your back side down. It is important that you hold correct form for any exercise you do otherwise you place strain on other areas which can result in injury.

just4nessa

Another vote for nerdfitness.com. I started using the beginner program a little over a year ago but couldn't do one proper pushup. I can now do 10 (although 9 & 10 are still a bit of a struggle) and my upper body strength has increased dramatically. I've also read that elevated or wall pushups are a good way to start; just make sure you are challenging your muscles.

Myhaloslipped

In January, I could only do push-ups on my knees. Now I can do about 50 standards push-ups in a day. Just keep at it, and you will get there.

VitaminAmy

I didn't even think about wall push ups :O

I can hold a plank for 30 seconds... barely, I'll keep doing those too.

Thanks for the Nerd Fitness site... I'll have to check it out!

val16villar

I agree. My whole life I have never been able to do one proper push up (and when I was a kid I was far more of a sporty kid than I am now). I have been working at it for the passed 3 months and can actually do 5 (which I am very proud of). So you'll get there!

rybo

Start with a wall or countertop pushup. As you get stronger keep lowering your hands until you are down on the floor. It will be better for you in the long run compared to going to your knees.

AlyRoseNYC

Start with a wall or countertop pushup. As you get stronger keep lowering your hands until you are down on the floor. It will be better for you in the long run compared to going to your knees.

I agree 100%

sunburntgalaxy

I agree with the wall or countertop pushup - that is what I am doing now. I am down from the kitchen counter to the bathroom counter - progress! I plan to keep going lower and lower. My knees aren't great so knee push ups don't sound fun, but countertop are great because you can do them when you are waiting for something to cook, or at work if you have a place to do it. Bathroom counter push ups you can do while you are rinsing with mouthwash for a minute too - so multitasking!

Cerakoala

My trainer taught me to do pushups by putting my knees on the ground putting my feet up as close to my butt as I can and start pushing Its a little bit less of an angle and allows me to actually do a pushup and i still feel the weight

katerams

I know the feeling - i still struggle with push ups, and i do a lot of strength training.
You need to not only build your arms but your BACK and your CORE.
Planks and mountain climbers are perfect for core, try doing tabata (20 seconds on, 10 seconds off. There are lots of free apps).
You can also do halves; lie on the floor and push yourself up into push up position. From this i then SLOWLY lower myself back to the ground.
I also incorporate squat thrusts/burpees and pike press into my training, which works your arms and shoulders.
Bent over rows will help build your back up (just use something heavy, you could even use a child if you have one and make it a game).
You could also try man makers and inch worms.

There are so many body weight activities you can use to build muscle without heavy weights but eventually you will need to use them.

Galatea_Stone

Start with a wall or countertop pushup. As you get stronger keep lowering your hands until you are down on the floor. It will be better for you in the long run compared to going to your knees.

I agree 100%

Ditto.

scarlettesong

There's actually a ton of good advice here already, so I'll summarize a bit too.

Since I'm in the military we have to do pushups. You get better by doing more pushups! If you can't do one yet, get started in these ways:
* Angled Pushups - Start at a countertop, then a chair, and slowly get lower to the ground until you can do a full pushup!
* Knee Pushups - These are best when you've tired yourself out on regular or angled pushups.
* Pushup but rest on the ground - This sounds crazy, but when we were in basic training and put on our face (doing pushups) but too exhausted, our drill instructor had us keep going by doing this. Slowly lower yourself to the ground from a full pushup position (hands and toes), then keeping your whole body straight like in a plank, push all the way back up from the ground. The key is keep that core tight. Don't let your upper body come off the floor first. It all goes up at once!
* Planks!

Form matters most! Everyone and their mothers have videos of pushup form including nerdfitness and even medical sites! Basically you should be in a perfect plank throughout the entire pushup. No bobbing of the head, no movement in the hips. Watch some videos and do them in front of a mirror as much as possible to make sure you're doing them right. An incorrect pushups can cause all kinds of issues, especially in your shoulder/neck/spine if done incorrectly.

I actually love planks and bridges because I have back problems, and back pain is more likely to fail me on a pushup than my arm strength. As far as building up, find a program you like and stick with it. Others seem to like nerdfitness, which I'd never heard of but will take a look. I liked the 100 pushups program. Even though I never progressed through all the weeks up to 100, I saw a significant improvement in 8 weeks. http://hundredpushups.com/

Another easy one we do in the military all the time is alternate days. One day, give yourself a goal like 100 pushups and 100 tricep dips. Don't freak out! You have all day to do this, and do them 5 or 10 at a time. The next day do some legs and abs. We like squats, pushups, and situps because we can do them right there next to our desk.

Edit: Also, there are different kinds of pushups. In the military, more women do wider pushups with their elbows going farther away from the body, which works the chest more. The men prefer tricep pushups with the arms very close to the body.

VitaminAmy

Great advice! Love this community :flowerforyou:

Alassonde

I've been doing body weight exercises for about 2 months now and it's been great. I got the book "You are your own gym" and love it. It has exercises from easy to very difficult.

BruceHedtke

Lots of great advice given! I'll just add that you can also download pushup apps that will help you build up to a goal of 50 to 125 continuous pushups. I've used the Rittr Labs app and thought it worked great!

yirara

Argh! I cannot do pushups either and I also suck at kneeling pushups. It's really my arms or shoulders that cannot cope with this exercise, not my core. I try to do normal pushups regularly, and do a few push offs at the kitchen counter at the office each day. I can kind of do half normal pushups now, but as soon as I go lower my arms give up and I crash down. It's not like they get a bit wobbly and I just need to push through, but they simply go limb and that's it. The same happens with kneeling pushups, but to a lesser extend.

I mean: I do all sorts of bodyweight exercises and use weights as well. I did russian getups for the first time ever on Sunday, with a kettlebell weight I'd never used before for anything - I was being optimistic. It worked (well, I was panting heavily). I finally manage to do situps with a strong lordosis, there's improvement everywhere, apart from those pushups. Argh!

amy8400

I agree with everyone who recommends starting with the wall or counter push-ups. You'll build confidence as you start to see success. Then when you're ready, move to the floor and try the knee push ups.

yirara

Actually, there's something (in my case) with inclined pushups: It seems to be physically impossible to do pushups on a chair for example. I don't know if that's the reason but I have relatively long arms relative to the abdomen (buying a bike with a great horizontal length and small frame size was a nightmare!) and it feels like there's more arm than I can 'fold away' physically possible. If I use something this high: http://www.womenshealthmag.com/files/wh6_uploads/images/olympic-arms-3.jpg and a similar arm angle when up the bench ends up near my belly button when down. With the hands so far away from the shoulders I guess you lack the strength to push yourself up again. It's less extreme on the floor though.

splashtree2

I'm a fitness noob... I've lost some weight (yay!) but now I'd like to put the effort into getting in shape.
I have very little arm/upper body strength and don't go to the gym (yet?).
I do cardio exercises via Xbox Fitness and have no equipment.
I feel like my legs are strong but my arms are pathetic.

Do I need actual strength training with weights or just keep up the cardio and focus on moving arms.

What would you recommend a very beginner can do at home to build up upper strength/endurance?

Thanks bunches to all the nice people out there.

Buy a pair of dumbells and look up on cross fit video with weights or firness blender video on youtube, is full of good exercises!!!

47Jacqueline

My instructor shows beginners how to do a push up standing up and using the wall. For people with no upper body strength it's a good start.

I have been working out for years and still cant get down all the way if I do it with my body straight, but I'm getting better.

EndCat

Here's a link to the Push-Up Progression from Nick Janvier at Start Bodyweight.

http://www.startbodyweight.com/p/push-up-progression.html

The first step is the Wall Push-Up. Once you master that, then move onto Step 2. Once you've mastered Step 2, then move on to Step 3, etc.

My own experience was that once I mastered the Wall Push-Up (Step1), I added my own Step 1b Kitchen Countertop Push-Up.
Then I moved on to Step 2 Box Push-Up.

Nick outlines a nice logical progression where the changes in leverage (one of the keys of bodyweight training) are not that drastic between steps.

Hope this helps.

chivalryder

If your goal is fitness you absolutely need to strength train!

So not true. You can be fit without strength training.

That being said, strength training is really, really good for you. It all depends on your goals.

chivalryder

Here's a link to the Push-Up Progression from Nick Janvier at Start Bodyweight.

http://www.startbodyweight.com/p/push-up-progression.html

The first step is the Wall Push-Up. Once you master that, then move onto Step 2. Once you've mastered Step 2, then move on to Step 3, etc.

My own experience was that once I mastered the Wall Push-Up (Step1), I added my own Step 1b Kitchen Countertop Push-Up.
Then I moved on to Step 2 Box Push-Up.

Nick outlines a nice logical progression where the changes in leverage (one of the keys of bodyweight training) are not that drastic between steps.

Hope this helps.

QFT!!!!

Jenn728

I have great leg strength and little upper body strength. Used to, I couldn't do a single pushup and it was rough even on my knees. I can now do 2 good push ups and then I bring it down to my knees for the remainder.

What about yoga? The different variations of planks seems like it would help build shoulder and arm strength.