Push Up Training

1. Increase Functional Strength via Full Body Activation

As  you lower your body to the floor and the familiar “burn” begins to  encompass your muscles the last thing you’re thinking about is the  number of muscles you’re using. However, this is one of the top benefits  of pushups. As you engage in this exercise, literally every major  muscle in your body is called upon to execute the movement.

Major muscle groups, such as your biceps, core muscles, triceps,  anterior deltoids and lower body muscle groups are activated to support  your body while stabilizing your movements. Classified a a compound  exercise – meaning multiple muscle groups are called upon – you train  the most important muscles throughout your body. Have you ever wondered  by a standard bench press is so easy when compared to a standard push  up? This is why.

2. Muscle Stretching for Health and Vitality

One of the most underrated benefits of doing push ups is the stretch  it provides to your biceps and back muscles. As you lower yourself to  the floor, your back muscles are effectively stretched, and as you push  yourself to the starting position your biceps obtain a full stretch.  This not only improves your flexibility, which helps prevent injuries,  but a well-stretched muscle feature a solid and attractive appearance.

3. Enhance Your Cardiovascular System

As stated earlier, push ups are classified as a compound exercise as  it calls upon multiple muscle groups. When you simultaneously engage  large muscle groups, your heart must work harder to deliver oxygen-rich  blood to muscle tissue. Ultimately, this activity results in an  effective cardiovascular exercise, which supports heart health and  promotes the reduction of stored body fat.

4. Increase Whole Body Muscle Definition – HGH Promotion

Throughout the movements of a push up, you recruit a wide array of  primary and stabilizing muscles. The more muscle mass that’s utilized in  a strength training exercise, the greater the production and release of  a specialized hormone known as HGH, or human growth hormone.

As a young man or woman, your body pumped out large concentrations of  this specialized hormone to support the natural growth of your entire  body. However, as you age the natural release of HGH declines, which  makes building muscle a challenging task for older adults.

By calling upon such a wide array of muscles, the production of HGH  is triggered, which ultimately results in muscle hypertrophy – or muscle  growth. To maximize push up benefits, you must incorporate this  exercise into your regular strength training program.

5. Protect Your Shoulders from Injury

One of the most debilitating, and common, injuries for older  individuals is a rotator cuff injury. While the severity of this injury  is based upon a host of unique circumstances, protecting this delicate  part of your body must become a priority.

The standard push up has been found to be among the most effective  ways to safeguard your shoulder joints from injury; especially in older  adults. Because push ups call upon stabilizing muscles, which surround  the rotator cuff joint, this area of the body is strengthened and  conditioned for dynamic movements.

By supporting the strength and health of primary and secondary  shoulder muscles, the likelihood of debilitating injuries significantly  lowers.

6. Improve Your Posture

Whether you sit at a computer all day or simply ignored the nagging  recommendations from your mother or teachers, improper posture can  destroy your health and comfort as you age. One of the most common  reasons for a lack of proper posture is weak core muscles.

In order to properly hold your shoulders and back, your entire core  must be strong enough to support its vertical positions. When push ups  are properly executed, the muscles responsible for supporting posture  are strengthened and fine-tuned. Moreover, as you regularly engage in  push ups, your body will naturally lean toward proper posture. This is  one of the most influential passive benefits of push ups.

7. Prevent Lower Back Injuries

There are few injuries as debilitating as a lower back injury. This  essential part of your body supports practically every movement, so if  it’s damaged or injured even the simplest of tasks can become  excruciatingly painful. As mentioned earlier, pushups call upon your  entire torso to stabilize its movements. By doing so, you strengthen  this vulnerable part of the body.

By developing strength in this specific portion of your body, you  cultivate muscles responsible for reducing lower back pressure, which is  imperative to prevent and treat low back injuries.

8. Save Time While Cultivating a Strong Body

When surveys are conducted to determine why an individual does not  exercise more the most common answer is a lack of time. We live  increasingly busy lives, and while exercising is essential for a healthy  body, it’s most commonly the first activity eliminated from a daily  list of chores.

Although you may not have time for a traditional strength training or  cardiovascular workout, if you have five minutes you can achieve a  full-body workout with push ups. Want to add variation to this swift and  potent exercise movement? Delve into the many different hand and feet  placements to target muscles from different angles, which supports rapid  strength and size development.

9. No Cost for a Full Body Workout

Although you may have a desire to join a world-class gym, their  monthly dues may not fit in your tight budget. Thankfully, you don’t  need an expensive gym membership – or even any equipment – to obtain an  effective and thorough full body workout.

By engaging in push up exercises, you effectively fatigue major and  minor muscle groups, which provide the same benefits as a traditional  full body exercise performed at the gym on expensive and cumbersome  equipment.

10. Increase Testosterone and Reduce Osteoporosis Development

As men and women age, the concentration of various hormones begin to  dwindle. For men, the most prominent loss is the reduction of  circulating testosterone. While preliminary evidence requires further  investigation, several studies suggest the simple movements within a  standard push up promotes testosterone production, which is essential  for a healthy body in both men and women.

Moreover, weight bearing exercises, such as the standard push up,  supports stronger, more dense bones. This increase in bone density may  ward off debilitating skeletal system disorders, such as osteoporosis.