The 3-Step Secret to Perfect Push-Ups (Even If You Can't Do One Now)

If you can’t do a push-up, you aren’t alone. Many people struggle to execute the OG move, which requires a lot of back and arm strength. However, you can learn, according to one expert. Cori Lefkowith started a company, Redefining Strength, to help people achieve their diet and fitness goals. In one of her videos, she maintains that anyone can master the “picture-perfect’ pushup. “Pushups are one of these bodyweight exercises that everybody sort of feels entitled to do from their toes, but very few of us have truly mastered the picture-perfect form that we want,” she says. “I wanna talk about how if you can't do a full pushup yet, how you can modify this movement to really build up to that perfect pushup while making sure that you're engaging the correct muscles to avoid injury.”

Start By Going Off an Incline

If you can't do a pushup, what should you be doing? “The best way to modify that full pushup from your toes is to go off an incline,” says Lefkowith. “The best part about using an incline is you can modify it to fit your exact needs as you progress over time. So when you're first starting out, you might start with a push-up off the wall.”

Continue Lowering the Incline

“Over time, you might lower that incline to use the bench or a table or a couch, or if you even have a squat rack or a Smith machine where you can adjust the bar, you can lower that bar over time to fit your exact needs,” she continues. “As you progress, you can make the movement harder. With the incline pushup, you have to set up the exact same way you would for that full pushup off the ground. This is a great way to really learn how to engage everything correctly so that as you progress and as you build up strength, you do not have to learn how to go from your knees to your toes. You're simply lowering the incline towards the ground as you build up strength.”

There Are Three Cues to Help You Engage Your Muscles Effciently

“How can you learn how to master this picture-perfect pushup from your toes and learn to engage everything correctly off of the incline?” she asks. She maintains there are “three key cues to help you really engage everything efficiently and effectively” because “a big part of getting stronger is actually becoming more efficient at movements, and this means that we're recruiting everything correctly. It's not that we're just getting stronger and our muscles are building up, but we're actually establishing that mind-body connection to use muscles the way they should be used.”

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1. Drive Back Through Your Heels

Number one is to drive back through your heels. “When you're doing that pushup, you wanna make sure that you're engaging everything from your head to your heels,” she says. “A lot of times, we focus on our upper body because it's an upper body exercise, but we have to remember that the full pushup is actually a moving plank. So when you're doing your planks, you wanna think about driving back through your heels to engage your legs to support your core.”

Flex Quads and Squeeze Glutes

“Getting stronger is about becoming more efficient with movements. The reason we can run faster or lift more weight is because we're able to recruit those muscles correctly and efficiently to perform the movement. So when we're doing pushups, it's not just about getting our upper body stronger. It's about properly engaging our core,” she continues. “Yes, the pushup is an upper body move, but we wanna flex our quads and squeeze our glutes to support our core properly. This can help us prevent that worm movement or our hip sagging, or our butt going up in the air. It will also allow us to use our upper body better to perform a stronger press-up. So if you want a more powerful press, and if you wanna use your upper body more efficiently, make sure you're driving back through your heels when you're doing your pushups.”

2. Grip the Ground with Your Hands

Number two is to grip the ground with your hands. “You wanna create that tension at your foundation, and your hands are that connection to the ground. When we focus on our grip on the ground, it's going to better activate the muscles of our upper body,” she says. It will also help you avoid compensations and overload. “If you tend to rock out on your hands, you're going to end up letting your elbows flare, which is also going to shrug your shoulders and even put more strain on your neck and shoulders. So, if you've ever had neck or shoulder pain, or even elbow pain from pushups, it might be simply because you're not creating that proper connection with the ground. You want to make sure that you're really gripping with your entire hand. This will create a better movement pattern all the way up your arm.”

Engage Your Chest

“By also focusing on your grip on the ground. You can actually engage your pec or your chest more during the pushups,” she says. “We have to remember that our chest has worked during horizontal abduction, which means when our hands come together in front of our chest, if you actually focus on pulling your hands together as you press up, not only will you have a stronger press, but you'll more effectively engage your chest for that powerful press up. So if you've wanted to target your chest more during pushups, make sure you're actually focused on the connection to the ground.”

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3. Engage Your Back

Number three is to focus on engaging your back. “We think about our triceps, our shoulders, our chest during pushups. We have to remember that our back actually plays an important role in stabilizing our shoulders,” she points out. “When you set up for that pushup, you want to make sure to pack your shoulders. A lot of times, we end up with neck or shoulder pain because we don't have proper shoulder mobility. We're also not properly supporting our shoulders during the pushup.”

And, Make Sure Your Shoulder Blades Are Moving Correctly

“Proper scapular movement and back activation during the pushup are more important than we give it credit for. So while this is a chest, shoulder, and tricep exercise, you need to engage your back and make sure that your shoulder blades are moving correctly to support your shoulders,” she adds. “It will make it a more powerful press and allow you to engage those other muscles correctly. It will also, again, help you prevent compensations and overloading your neck or shoulders as you perform the pushup. Think about that scapular movement. As you lower your chest towards the ground, you want your shoulder blades to come together towards your spine, and as you press the ground away, and yes, think, press the ground away. As you push back up, you actually want your shoulder blades to protract or come away from each other. This scapular movement will protect your shoulders and help you avoid those aches and pains.”

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Anyone Can Do a Pushup, Just Start This Way

Bottom line? Anyone can master a push-up. “If you aren't yet able to do that full pushup from your toes, use the incline to help you master the form so that you can build up,” she concludes. And if you enjoyed this article, don't miss12-3-30 Walking Method: 20 Proven Tips to Lose Weight Faster.