Last week I offered up a simple push-up challenge meant to strengthen you both mentally and physically while also requiring minimal time commitment to complete.
Although many exercises would have been acceptable options, I chose push-ups to eliminate almost every excuse for not participating in the challenge. They require no equipment other than your body (and perhaps an elevated countertop), can be done without needing to perform other warm-ups beforehand, and are easily adjustable for an extremely wide range of ability levels.
That doesn’t mean push-ups are foolproof, however. Here are two of the most common mistakes made when practicing them. Whether you’re doing 31 Simple or just occasionally add push-ups to your training regimen, make sure to avoid these two issues for the best results.
Choosing a variation that is too challenging
This is arguably the most common mistake made when performing any body weight exercise including push-ups. With exercises that use external resistance (e.g. dumbbell, barbell, kettlebell), almost everyone recognizes when they’ve chosen a weight that is too heavy and subsequently opts for a lighter option.
But we all seem to have a stubborn streak when it comes to body weight exercises. (Yes, even—or especially—coaches.) Instead of readjusting the leverage when we choose an option beyond our abilities, we often let our bodies move in ways that make it look like we’ve performed the exercise while actually shifting the work to different areas of the body.
With push-ups, this usually shows up in one of three ways:
- A hanging head, when your forehead gets closer to the ground than your chest.
- Sagging hips, when your hips drop below the straight line between your shoulders and heels and get closer to the ground than your chest.
- Piked hips, when your hips are raised above the straight line between your shoulders and heels and are nowhere near the ground in the bottom position.
The best way to avoid any of these cases is to start at a variation that is far too easy for you, gradually change the leverage, and go back to the previous variation when you notice your head or hips starting to do “weird” things. (See the video below for a recommended progression.)
To make hip adjustments easier to notice, squeeze your butt and lock your knees throughout the movement. When you finish a repetition and realize that you had stopped paying attention to your butt and knees during the rep, that variation is probably just beyond your current ability.
Positioning hands and feet too far apart
In my observation, the second most common push-up mistake occurs when the hands are positioned too “high” (i.e. too far away from the feet). Re-watch the video above and notice that my hand(s) end up at chest-height or below on all of the variations.
If your hands end up at shoulder or chin height (or higher!) at the bottom of your push-ups, re-position your hands a couple inches closer to your feet before the next rep if you’re on the ground. If you’re practicing with your hands elevated, move your feet closer to the box instead. Of course, if you’re unable to complete the next rep from that position, refer back to mistake #1!
In any case, positioning your hands in the optimal spot will not only make you stronger in the long run but also keep your shoulders safer & healthier throughout the process.
Putting it into practice
If you’re doing 31 Simple, double-check that you’re using the correct variation for your ability and that your hand placement is correct. Then carry on.
If you’re not doing 31 Simple, what are you waiting for? It probably takes you longer to get dressed in the morning! 😉
OK, seriously (even though I wasn’t really joking), refer back to this tip whenever you do add push-ups to your routine. Whatever the volume of the program you follow, your results will improve when you confront your personal stubbornness tendencies, and your shoulders will thank you both then and in another 20 years.