Push-ups and presses

Tempo push-ups

Kit
No kit
Works
chest · triceps · front delts
Also
abs · serratus · glutes

A tempo push-up is a standard push-up performed with a deliberately slow lowering phase, roughly three seconds down, a brief pause at the bottom, then a controlled press back up. Slowing the descent keeps the chest, shoulders and triceps under tension far longer than a quick rep, and it exposes any sag or drift in your plank. It suits anyone who can already hold clean push-up form and wants more from bodyweight alone.

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Form

How to do tempo push-ups

  1. 1Set your hands slightly wider than your shoulders, under the chest, and walk your feet back into a straight line from heels to head. Squeeze your glutes and brace your midsection.
  2. 2Bend your elbows and lower for a slow count of three, keeping your elbows angled back at roughly 45 degrees from your ribs rather than flared wide. Breathe in as you descend.
  3. 3Pause with your chest an inch or two above the floor, still braced, without resting your hips or thighs down.
  4. 4Press back up at a normal speed, pushing the floor away and breathing out through the effort. Keep your head in line with your spine, eyes on the floor a little ahead of your hands.
  5. 5Lock out without letting your shoulders shrug up, then begin the next slow descent immediately and keep that rhythm for the whole effort.

Watch for

Common mistakes

  • The hips sag or pike as fatigue builds, turning the slow descent into a back bend.

    Fix: Squeeze your glutes and ribs down before the first rep and reset your plank at the top of every rep.

  • Rushing the lowering phase so the set becomes ordinary push-ups.

    Fix: Count the descent silently and accept fewer reps in the time available.

  • Elbows flaring straight out to the sides, which loads the shoulders and shortens the range.

    Fix: Point your elbows back toward your hips so your arms form an arrow shape, not a T.

Variations

Easier and harder

EasierKneeling push-upsNo kit
HarderArcher push-upsNo kit

Sessions

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