Push-ups and presses
Pseudo push-ups
- Kit
- No kit
- Works
- front delts · chest
- Also
- triceps · serratus · abs
A pseudo push-up is a push-up with the hands set low, by your waist, and fingers turned slightly out, so your shoulders lean forward past your wrists. That forward lean shifts load onto the front delts and upper chest and teaches the straight-arm strength used in planche work. It suits anyone who already holds a clean push-up and wants a harder pressing variation without equipment.
Form
How to do pseudo push-ups
- 1Set up in a plank with hands beside your lower ribs or waist, fingers pointing out to the sides, arms straight and elbows locked.
- 2Lean your shoulders forward so they sit well ahead of your hands, and squeeze your glutes and abs so your body stays one straight line.
- 3Bend your elbows and lower your chest toward the floor while keeping the forward lean, breathing in as you descend.
- 4Press back up along the same path, pushing the floor away and protracting your shoulder blades at the top, breathing out through the effort.
- 5Keep the lean throughout: if your shoulders drift back over your hands, reset before the next descent.
- 6Work at a steady pace for the whole set and stop the movement, not the clock, if your hips start to sag.
Watch for
Common mistakes
Hands placed under the shoulders, which turns it into a standard push-up.
Fix: Walk the hands down to your waist so the shoulders sit clearly in front of them.
Hips sagging or piking as fatigue sets in.
Fix: Brace your abs and squeeze your glutes before the first descent and hold that tension between efforts.
Wrists loaded painfully because the fingers point straight ahead.
Fix: Turn the fingers out to the sides, or use fists or handles, and warm the wrists up first.
Variations
Easier and harder
Sessions
Put it in a workout
None of the fixed workouts uses it. Pick a workout for your kit, or start today's session on /gym.