Push ups are a great way to develop strength in your chest and triceps, but many athletes sacrifice technique when doing push ups. Elite Athlete Power Band Push Up Progression will allow you to develop a stronger chest and triceps. Resistance bands are great for progressing into push ups with good technique and reducing your risk of injury. Use the front press exercises from the Elite Athlete Foundations Workout Guide to help you learn this progression.
Single arm front press will give you a stronger core and stabilizer muscles that are required for transferring your strength into athletic performance and real world applications. Use Elite Athlete Power Bands to perform 2 sets of a single arm front press per arm at a resistance level where you can perform 16 -20 reps before getting fatigued or struggle to maintain good technique. The first set is with squared hips and shoulders and the second set is in an athletic stance. Be sure to keep elbows slightly lower than shoulders to reduce the risk of shoulder impingement. Also, the resistance and number of reps for each arm should be the same to develop good muscular balance. Continue doing this as part of your training routine twice a week.
Once you are comfortable with single arm power band front press, start alternating sets of single arm front press and double arm front press. During your work out do one set of single arm press with squared hips and shoulders, then one set of double arm press and finish with a set of single arm press in an athletic stance. If you can already do more than 15 push ups with good form, you can replace double arm press with push ups right away.
Continue doing front press exercises as part of your normal work out routine once or twice a week. When you are able to perform 3 total sets of 20 reps with only a little soreness in your chest and triceps the next couple days, then add a fourth set of double arm press or push ups. Once you have been doing these 4 sets of alternating single and double arm power band presses for a few weeks, you will see results in improved push ups and other related athletic movements.
If you have been doing push ups, then you can start to progress to more advanced push ups that are mentioned below. If not, you should perform assisted push ups using a Light - Cruzer Weight Elite Athlete Power Band until you can perform more than 15 normal push ups with good technique. Do this by looping the band to an Elite Athlete Door Anchor at the top and middle of a door frame or to a pull up bar above you. When performing push ups, only perform as many as you can with good technique; quality over quantity is always the rule. It’s important not to let your hips sag or stick up in the air. Engage your core and tilt your pelvis forward to help reduce poor form. As you become stronger at performing push ups, you can incorporate more advanced push ups like power band resistive push ups, tricep push ups, wide push ups and a variety of dynamic push ups. Advanced exercises like these will be published in an Elite Athlete Advanced Workout Guide.
For best results, perform the workouts twice a week and do not strength train the same muscles two days in a row in order to allow your muscles time to recover. Developing proper technique and strength takes consistency and time and workouts should be tailored to your personal fitness level and goals. This is why I always recommend working out with a certified personal trainer or coach.
Train Smart, Work Hard, Be Elite!!!
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