The elbow push-up is a relatively unknown variant of the normal push-up. However, this is certainly not right! Especially for beginners, the elbow push-up is a very good variant to get better at normal push-ups. In this article, we are going to teach you everything you need to know about the elbow push-up!
Table of Contents
- How do you perform the elbow push-up?
- What muscles do elbow push-ups work?
- What are the advantages of an elbow push-up over a normal push-up?
- A warm-up for the elbow push-ups
How do you perform the elbow push-up?
First, we explain how to correctly perform the elbow push-up. We do this in a step-by-step plan to make it as simple as possible for you.
- Start in the ‘standard push-up position’. Place your hands a little further than shoulder-width apart and line them up in a straight line under your shoulders. Position your feet in such a way that your body is completely in a straight line.
- Now lift your right hand off the ground and place your right forearm on the ground. Make sure your upper arm is still in a straight line under your shoulder. Your elbow is now in the position where your right hand was in step 1.
- Now do the same with your left arm.
- Now lift your right forearm off the floor and position your hand again the same as in step 1.
- Now do the same with your left arm.
If you have gone through this step-by-step plan, you have completed 1 repetition! Switch sides after each repetition.
In the second repetition, you first place your left forearm on the ground and then your right forearm. Next, lift your left forearm off the ground first, followed by your right forearm until you’ve returned to the starting position and completed one more repetition.
What muscles do elbow push-ups work?
You might not immediately expect it when you see this variant of the push-up, but in this exercise, you mainly use your abdominal muscles. You use your abdominal muscles to keep your body stable in a straight position. So it is really an exercise that will strengthen your core.
Other muscles you use are:
- Triceps : Especially when you lift your forearms off the floor and place your hands back on the floor.
- Shoulder muscles : You mainly use your shoulder muscles for stability.
- Pectorals : It is striking that during the elbow push-up you use your chest muscles very little compared to a normal push-up, but you do use them.
- Lower back muscles : Like your abdominal muscles, you mainly use your lower back muscles to keep your body in a straight line.
What are the advantages of an elbow push-up over a normal push-up?
An important question is of course why you should do elbow push-ups and not just normal push-ups, so we share some benefits with you!
- Elbow push-ups are easier to perform : Elbow push-ups will be easier for most people to perform than normal push-ups. That is why it is an ideal exercise for beginners who are not yet good at normal push-ups. Because of this exercise you strengthen the muscles you need for a normal push-up and you also get used to the correct posture. This will make you better at performing the normal push-up.
- Elbow push-ups focus on other muscles : In a normal push-up, the main focus is on your pecs and triceps. The elbow push-up focuses more on your abs. This makes the elbow push-up easy to combine with other exercises with respect to the normal push-up.
A warm-up for the elbow push-ups
Before you start the elbow push-ups, it is important to do a warm-up. In this warm-up, I would focus primarily on your shoulders. If your shoulders are not properly warm, they can be a limiting factor for the exercise. You may have noticed this before when you did planks and needed to stop because of the pain in your shoulders. Therefore, wave your arms sufficiently beforehand.
In addition, your abs will generally suffer the most during the exercise. To prepare your abs for this effort, take a few deep breaths and hold at the deepest point for a few seconds.
Lifestyle coach [5+ years of fitness experience]