Push-ups

"girl" pushups are a great way to start you need to build up the strength in your arms (especially triceps), chest, shoulders and core to do a proper pushup. Pushups don't just work the chest like commonly believed it is a great full body exercise when done correctly. Take your time don't get discouraged and you'll get there. You could also do other variants a good example I use to increase my pushup count is start with a regular position and do as many as I can, then once fatigued go wide grip once i hit fatigue again go super wide rest 1-2min then work my way back in. Do this in the girl pushup position for now and eventually you'll get to the regular pushup. Other options are the wall pushup as well. Hopefully that might help a little bit. Best of luck with your training.

There's only one kind of push-up (that's my trainer talking). LOL. I would forget the girl push-ups if I were you. RELEASE YOUR INNER POWER!!!! Hee.

Sorry.

Anyhow, do some upper body strength training and core exercises, then try them again. I couldn't do ONE before. Then I could do 5. Now I am up to 22. It feels amazing and you will be SO PROUD when you accomplish it!!

"girl" push-ups will get you to the point where you can do real push-ups. You can do some dips too. They will strengthen your arms, shoulders and chest.

if she cant do push ups she deff cant do dips...

i would do really slow negatives and then do modified (aka girl) push ups to failure.. after about a week or two you should be able to do atleast 1-3 regular push ups.. at that time stop doing modified push ups and do as many regular pushups you can and your last one do negative again, rest for 1-2min and repeat about 5-6 sets... ull be able to do them np very quickly this way!

Don't do girl pushups (on your knees). Do pushups on an incline. Start at the wall if that's all you can do at first. Lower the incline until you get all the way to the floor.

Don't do girl pushups (on your knees). Do pushups on an incline. Start at the wall if that's all you can do at first. Lower the incline until you get all the way to the floor.

I was just about to say this... Also practice, practice, practice... pick a spot in your house. Every time you walk in that area, do some push ups...

Go to

http://hundredpushups.com/


It's a fun easy way to work up to being a pushup badass.

Good site, checked it out. Safe way to increase your upper body strength. I'm rusty and crusty so this looks like it will work for me. Thanks for the info.

The only way to learn to do something, is to practice doing the thing itself. Walking is a great cardio exercise, but just because it looks awfully similar to running, it really doesn't prepare you for running, beyond general conditioning.

I grew up in the 80's and 90's when girls "only" did modified pushups. All those years of modified pushups never prepared me to do even one regular pushup. There's nothing wrong with modified pushups, its just that, like walking and running, they're really just two different exercises.

So if you want to train for a regular pushup, then you can either do a sets of 1-2 pushups and build up from there. Or, you can practice the static motions...sets of planks where you hold yourself "at the top" of the pushup, and sets where you hold yourself "at the bottom" of the pushup. I did the first option, starting from sets of *1* . But in a week, I had already progressed to sets of 5.

Twenty years of modified pushups got me 1 regular push. One week of practicing the thing I wanted to do, which was a military pushup, got me to 5.

Make sure you have the correct form though!!!

bump

for me girl push ups werent any help to being able to do real push up. id advise doing straight leg from the beginning but start off doing them at different heights.

first against a wall, thenn your kitchen cabinet, then some steps, your couch, then the floor

I will add to the recommendation to do them on an incline instead. I started by doing them on the end of my bed and moved progressively lower. I felt this trained me better to move to regular ones than the girly pushups. For some reason I find it easier to cheat with the knee ones -- I don't feel it works my muscles as well as even doing them off the end of the bed.

Bump for the tips

I disagree that you can't do dips if you can't do push ups ( I am a classic example) but I do find negatives to be helpful + doing normal then going to "girl" after that.

"girl" push-ups will get you to the point where you can do real push-ups. You can do some dips too. They will strengthen your arms, shoulders and chest.

if she cant do push ups she deff cant do dips...

You got that right. Dips are much more challenging. (unless they meant girl dips from a chair, not a dip station)
And one day I'll do them without someone giving me assistance.

From my own personal experience, do the hundred pushup challenge. I have been doing this in addition to the Jillian Michaels 30DS. I have been doing the girl pushups - and I can tell you - I am getting stronger. I decided to complete the 100 push up challenge, girl style, and then start the program over again doing regular push ups. When I did the original push up test, I couldn't do ONE. Today I am doing 24. Plus all the pushups in the 30DS. DO it!!! You won't regret it!!!

I apologize if I wasn't clear about the dips. In no way did I mean a dip machine. unless, it's adjustable to lower and utilize the legs for assistance.

Not every one is in as good of shape as many of theses posters replies. Also, not everyone, no matter how bad they want to, can physically do exercises even remotely in the same fashion.

If a person weighs 300lbs doing a dip, a pull-up, a squat might only be possible with some type of assistance. We have to rehabilitate first. Not just do anyway and expect results in a week. Don't set people up for failure.