The push-up is the base of all calisthenics pressing: your whole body holds a rigid plank while your arms lower you to the floor and press you back up. Owning the body line and the full range here carries over to dips, handstand push-ups and planche work. Film from the side: that view shows your body line and your depth most clearly.
Build the plank
Place your palms flat, about shoulder-width apart (or a little wider), fingers pointing forward or turned slightly in.
your hands sit just under the outside of your shoulders.
Walk your feet back, toes tucked under, and shift forward until your shoulders are directly over your hands.
Straighten your body from head to heels: no bend at the hips or knees, core braced, glutes and quads tight, head in line with your spine.
one rigid piece, looking at the floor just ahead of your hands.
Lower as one piece
Bend your elbows and lower your whole body together, keeping your upper arms under about 60° from your body: anywhere from close to your sides to partway out, not flared straight out in a T.
your chest and hips arrive at the floor together.
Go down until your chest (or chin) touches the floor, without letting your hips sag or lift.
Press and lock out
Push the floor away and press back up until your elbows are fully straight, holding the same straight line all the way.
a full press with nothing moving except your arms.
Optional: at the top, keep pushing so your shoulder blades spread apart and your upper back rises slightly (a "push-up plus") before the next rep.
your upper back gets a little rounder and wider at the top.
Feel it
Chest, shoulders and triceps do the pressing while your trunk, glutes and legs just hold a plank. Think "push the floor away" on the way up. If your hips start to sag or pike, or you can't reach the floor, stop the set or raise your hands onto a bench rather than cutting the range.
Fix-its
- Your low back sags Brace your abs and squeeze your glutes before each rep. If it still sags, move to an incline push-up you can hold straight.
- Your hips hike up Lower your hips until shoulders, hips and heels are in one line; tighten your quads so your legs stay straight.
- Your elbows flare out to shoulder height Bring your upper arms closer to your body, well under shoulder height; arms raised high on a push-up may put the shoulder blade in an impingement position.
- Half reps Go chest-to-floor and back to straight arms each rep. If you can't, raise your hands on a bench until you can do full range.
- Your head drops first Keep your head in line with your spine and let your chest reach the floor before your face does.
Drill
- Hold the top of the push-up as a straight-arm plank until you can keep the line without sagging.
- Incline push-ups with your hands on a bench or box: the higher your hands, the less load. Lower the height as full-range reps get easy.
- Knee push-ups are another lighter option; keep a straight line from knees to head.
- Push-up plus: from the top, let your chest sink a little between your shoulder blades, then push them apart again, arms straight.
- Film from the side at floor height and check a straight line, chest to the floor and straight elbows at the top.
Sources
- ACE — Exercise Library: Push-Up
- Suprak et al. — Scapular kinematics and shoulder elevation in a traditional push-up, J Athl Train (2013)
- Kowalski et al. — Shoulder electromyography activity during push-up variations: a scoping review, Shoulder & Elbow (2021)
- Wurm, Ebben et al. — Kinetic analysis of several variations of push-ups, ISBS Proceedings (2010)
Last checked 2026-10-26.