The traditional push up is one of the best exercises one can perform to build upper body strength and nice toned arms, and the best part is that no equipment is required!  Push ups can be performed anytime and anywhere because all you need is your own body weight and some ounce of desire to get buff looking arms for the summer.  The push up allows you to hit the muscles of the chest, arms, and shoulders all at once, in turn burning more calories with rep.

The videos provided below show two alternatives to performing the traditional push up in order to further challenge your strength and get even more “bang for your buck” because you will hit even more muscle groups per rep.  Once you are able to perform 10 full reps of the traditional push up, give one of these exercises a try!  The videos show progressions from easy to more difficult, so choose a starting point depending on your strength level and build up to the more difficult versions.

Try this push up workout to build a strong core, strong upper body, and lean looking arms for the summer:

– 1 set of as many traditional push ups you can do with good form (off of     toes or knees, depending on strength level).  Once proper form is lost the set is complete (see form tips below).

–          BREAK X 30 SECONDS

– 1 set of 10 plank to push ups (10 with left arm leading & 10 with right arm leading)

–          BREAK X 30 SECONDS

– 1 set of 10 Spiderman push ups (see last exercise in Spiderman push up video).

–          BREAK X 2 MINUTES & REPEAT CIRCUIT 2 MORE TIMES!

Try doing this program 3 days per week and watch the magic happen!  Be sure to keep track of how many push ups you are able to do with each round of the circuit and try to beat that next time you do the workout to track progress J

Form Tips:

• Be sure to keep your shoulders over your hands throughout the entire set
• Keep your core tight and maintain a flat back, your bum should not be sticking up in the air nor should your lower back be caving in.
• To complete a full rep be sure to bring your head down until your nose is 1-2 inches from touching the ground.
• If you are not able to perform either of these exercises off of your toes, try performing the push up off of your knees until you are strong enough to perform them off of your toes.