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Basic push-ups alternatives

In this article, we want to share 5 types of push-up exercises ideal even for beginners.

Note – This article has been asked by one of our Core Course practitioners on Patreon (see how to attend our home study classes here Learn Kung Fu online: a beginner-to-expert course).

Important premises:

Let’s do some stretching before starting (read Basic soft stretching and How to correctly perform stretching)
If we are already able to do more than 10 push-ups and if we do not exaggerate with the intensity (repetitions, etc.) these exercises can be performed as a warm-up (read How to correctly perform warm-up)
Train safely, do not train what is in pain (read also Safe training: the 3 errors rule)
If we are overweight or completely out of practice we can do only the light version of exercise 1, 2 and 3
Push-ups must be synchronized with the correct breathing realted to martial arts (read The 6DKF’s combat breathing)

The exercises

Exercise 1

Push-ups from standing against the wall:

Good for arms / ankles warm-up, pushing hands preparation (and eventually for fingers strengthening)
This exercise is useful to get used our arms to bend
We start from a standing position in front of a wall
The distance from the wall must be at least 1m (the greater the distance, the greater the effort)
Our feet must be parallel and attached
We have to symmetrically lean the palms of our hands on the wall
The arms must be slightly flexed and perpendicular to our body
The hands and feet, respectively, never come off the surface of the wall and the floor
Let’s bend our elbows and with a rigid body we flex the ankles to approach the wall
When we arrive near the wall we have to imagine to push away the wall with our hands to return in the initial position
Let’s repeat the movement regulating the speed in relation to the result we want to obtain (slow for resistance, fast for explosive power, middle for warm-up, etc.)
Intermediate practitioners can gradually increase the distance from the wall

Exercise 2

Kneeling push-ups:

Ideal for wrists / elbows / shoulders warm-up (and eventually for fingers strengthening)
We start on the ground with our stomach pointing down
Let’s symmetrically lean on the ground with the palm of our hands and knees
Our feet should be raised, our legs attached together and our elbows slightly bent
We simply have to flex our elbows until we are near to the ground
In coordination, our feet have to raise
Then we have to return to the starting position and repeat the movement
Intermediate practitioners can insert a sequence of punches between each push-up

Exercise 3

Push-ups with the upper body:

Ideal for arms warm-up, abdominals and recovery after injuries (in this case let’s remember to contact a specialized physiotherapist)
We start on a mattress of a bed with our stomach pointing down (a too rigid surface would limit too much the workout)
Our arms, our shoulders and must be outside of the surface of the mattress
The greater the percentage of the body outside the mattress, the greater the effort
Let’s symmetrically lean on the ground with the palm of our hands
Our elbows are slightly bent and our legs are open
We must be at a height that allows us a certain range of movement (up and down)
We simply have to flex our elbows until we are near to the ground
Then we have to return to the starting position and repeat the movement
Intermediate practitioners can lean even only with the feet on the mattress (this make the practice harder than the normal push-ups)
The exercise can be performed also on the ground (with the legs fully leaning and lifting only the upper part of the body)
On the ground, the exercise can be executed also without the arms (using the abdominals muscles only)

Exercise 4

A “wrong” version of the normal push-up:

Ideal as an education to the real push-ups
We start on the ground with our stomach pointing down
Let’s symmetrically lean on the ground with the palm of our hands and our toes
Our legs are attached together and our elbows slightly bent
We simply have to flex our elbows until we are near to the ground
Bending our arms we have to maintain our buttocks up, they have not to go down with us (this drastically reduce the effort)
Then we have to return to the starting position and repeat the movement

Exercise 5

The “normal” push-up:

Ideal for stamina and power development
We start on the ground with our stomach pointing down
Let’s symmetrically lean on the ground with the palm of our hands and our toes
Our legs are attached together and our elbows slightly bent
We simply have to flex our elbows until we are near to the ground
Bending our arms we have not to maintain our buttocks up, they have to go down with us
Then we have to return to the starting position and repeat the movement

A note by Master Kongling – For a total beginner, these exercises can be performed even only for 1-2 minute but without pauses or slowdowns. We can do specific sessions of each of them or we can divide the amount of time dedicated for executing altogether (eg. 5 of each).

Variations

These are safe and extremely simple push-ups exercises ideal for beginners (or as a warm-up) but, with the right adaptations, they can be performed also by advanced practitioners.

Let’s see some interesting variations (not for novices):

Use a weighted vest (15-25 Kg) or an opposing force (eg. a partner that pushes us down) to make the exercise harder
Insert a hand clap between each repetition, on one arm, etc. (more about this later)
Lean on the ground with fingers, knuckles, the back of the hand (etc.) instead of the palm
Advanced practitioners can also receive punches on the back or kicks on the ribs (regulating power with the conditioning level, read Conditioning check for the impact)
…

In the next article of this series, we will see more advanced push-ups exercises.

In-depth video courses

Basic 6 Dragons Kung Fu Exercises – A visual explanation of the fundamental 5 exercises you need to gain real martial skills
Advanced speed and reflexes training – How to build real execution speed for combat

In-depth articles

5 jumping exercises ideal for beginners / warm-up – 5 simple types of jumps that everyone can perform
5 running exercises ideal for beginners / warm-up – 5 running training methods at everyone’s reach

Questions

Reply in the comments and share your experience:

How many push-ups can you perform without interruption?

Author: Master Kongling

Founder of 6 Dragons Kung Fu.

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