9 Fun Push Up Variations for Shoulders, Arms, & Chest
Are you suffering from poor posture (and back pain) caused by sitting at a desk all day? Or maybe youāre working for that hourglass figure? Are you wanting to look in proportion?
If you answered āhell yes!ā to any of the above, youāll want to focus on a healthy amount of upper body work (in this case, push up variations!).
Balancing out your workouts with a split of upper body and lower body days with help to create that āX,ā or hourglass shape (āVā shape for men).
Whether youāre in the gym or working out at home, pushups are a fantastic exercise that you can easily incorporate into your workout routine.
There are so many push up variations that youāll never get bored since you can keep increasing the level of difficulty.
Benefits of Push Ups and Push Up Variations
Push ups are a compound movement when executed properly. This means they work several muscle groups at once. For example, the traditional push up works the upper body, core, and lower body.
With a few different variations youāll be able to work the chest (pecs), shoulders (delts), triceps, upper back, abs, and even the legs.
More push up benefits
- Increased cardiovascular health: this compound movement is challenging and employs multiple muscle groups. Thus, raising your heart rate and increasing cardiovascular health.
- Head to toe muscle definition: As stated earlier, push ups work multiple large muscle groups at the same time. This can increase overall muscle definition.
- Shoulder injury prevention: Shoulder and rotator cuff injuries are some of the most common injuries among older populations. Since pushups work the stabilizing muscles in the shoulder, performing them as part of your workout routine can help to safeguard against shoulder injuries.
- Improved posture: Having a strong upper body to keep the shoulders in place and an equally strong core to keep you upright and stabilized is the foundation of good posture.
Important Cues
With all exercises, in order to gain the most benefit and prevent injury, youāll want to set yourself up properly with good form. The ādrop and give me 50ā is a sure way to hurt yourself.
When it comes to resistance training in any capacity, going slowly with proper form is always more beneficial and safer than cranking out sloppy reps quickly (cough, cough, crossfit, cough cough).
While itās not impossible to do resistance exercises quickly, itās important to keep in mind that it takes time to get to a point where you can safely do so, and in the meantime youāll reap more benefits if you listen to your body and take your time to learn proper form.
For the traditional push up and push up variations the key to proper form is to:
- Point the fingers forward
- Keep the elbows close to the body. Visualize an arrow shape, rather than āTā your arms out
- Engage the core
- Activate the quads, hamstrings, and glutes
- Look straight down at the ground. Resist the urge to sag the neck or look up. Instead, tuck the chin.
9 Push Up Variations For Shoulders, Arms, & Chest
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Traditional Push Up
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Perfect the form on the traditional push up before trying some of the other push up variations as this will be your foundation. Many of the push up variations will have the same set up or be very similar.
Targeted Muscles
- Serratus anterior
- Triceps brachii
- Biceps brachii
- Anterior deltoid
- Upper and lower pectoralis major
- External oblique
- Rectus abdominis
Cues
- Start in high plank
- Arms straight & shoulders stacked over wrists
- Fingers pointed forward
- The body should form a š¬šš«šš¢š š”š š¢š§šš„š¢š§šš š„š¢š§š from head, shoulder, hip, knee, and ankle. šš° šÆš°šµ šµš³šŗ šµš° š¢ššŖšØšÆ šµš©š¦ šµš°š± š°š§ šµš©š¦ šØšš¶šµš¦š“ šøšŖšµš© šµš©š¦ š“š©š°š¶šš„š¦š³š“ š¢š“ šµš©šŖš“ šøšŖšš š¤š¢š¶š“š¦ š“š¢šØšØšŖšÆšØ. The šØšš¶šµš¦š“ šøšŖšš š±š°š± š°š·š¦š³ šµš©š¦ š“šµš³š¢šŖšØš©šµ ššŖšÆš¦ šŖšÆ š±š³š°š±š¦š³ š§š°š³š®.
- Keep the ššØš«š šš§š šš šš & šššš¢šÆššš šš”š šŖš®ššš¬ to keep hips aligned
- Slowly bend elbows & lower chest towards floor while š”š®š š š¢š§š šš„ššØš°š¬ close to the body. šš° šÆš°šµ let arms āTā
- Hover over the floor before pressing upwards back to high plank
Knees Down Push Up Variation
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If youāre someone who finds the traditional push up too challenging, start with this push up variation. This is the only push up variation I would recommend for someone to try as a prerequisite to the traditional push up.
Keeping the knees down on the floor lowers the overall workload.
Targeted Muscles
- Upper and lower pectoralis major
- Anterior deltoid
- Biceps brachii
- Triceps brachii
Cues
- Start in high plank
- Arms straight & shoulders stacked over wrists
- Fingers pointed forward
- Keep the ššØš«š šš§š šš šš & šššš¢šÆššš šš”š šŖš®ššš¬ to keept hips aligned
- Gently lower knees down on the floor
- Adjust hand placement so your wrists are stacked under your shoulders
- Slowly bend elbows & lower chest towards floor while š”š®š š š¢š§š šš„ššØš°š¬ close to the body. šš° šÆš°šµ let arms āTā
- Hover over the floor before pushing back up
Wide Grip Push Up Variation
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This push up variation will work the chest muscles and pecs.
Targeted Muscles
- Triceps brachii
- Pectoralis major
- Anterior deltoid
Cues
- Start in high plank
- Arms straight
- Keep the ššØš«š šš§š šš šš & šššš¢šÆššš šš”š šŖš®ššš¬ to keep hips aligned
- Place hands wider than shoulder width (exact distance will be different for each individual)
- Fingers pointed forward
- The body should form a š¬šš«šš¢š š”š š¢š§šš„š¢š§šš š„š¢š§š from head, shoulder, hip, knee, and ankle. šš° šÆš°šµ šµš³šŗ šµš° š¢ššŖšØšÆ šµš©š¦ šµš°š± š°š§ šµš©š¦ šØšš¶šµš¦š“ šøšŖšµš© šµš©š¦ š“š©š°š¶šš„š¦š³š“ š¢š“ šµš©šŖš“ šøšŖšš š¤š¢š¶š“š¦ š“š¢šØšØšŖšÆšØ. The šØšš¶šµš¦š“ šøšŖšš š±š°š± š°š·š¦š³ šµš©š¦ š“šµš³š¢šŖšØš©šµ ššŖšÆš¦ šŖšÆ š±š³š°š±š¦š³ š§š°š³š®.
- Slowly bend elbows & lower chest towards floor while š”š®š š š¢š§š šš„ššØš°š¬ close to the body. The arms may āTā or flare out a little more with this hand placement. Resist the urge to totally flare out the arms
- Hover over the floor before pushing back up
Close Grip Push Up Variation
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The close grip push up is one of the more challenging push up variations. Youāll feel the burn the the triceps the most.
Targeted Muscles
- Anterior deltoid
- Pectoralis major
- Triceps brachii
Cues
- Start in high plank
- Arms straight
- Keep the ššØš«š šš§š šš šš & šššš¢šÆššš šš”š šŖš®ššš¬ to keep hips aligned
- Bring hands closer so the thumbs are almost touching
- Fingers can point forward or turned slightly inward
- The body should form a š¬šš«šš¢š š”š š¢š§šš„š¢š§šš š„š¢š§š from head, shoulder, hip, knee, and ankle. šš° šÆš°šµ šµš³šŗ šµš° š¢ššŖšØšÆ šµš©š¦ šµš°š± š°š§ šµš©š¦ šØšš¶šµš¦š“ šøšŖšµš© šµš©š¦ š“š©š°š¶šš„š¦š³š“ š¢š“ šµš©šŖš“ šøšŖšš š¤š¢š¶š“š¦ š“š¢šØšØšŖšÆšØ. The šØšš¶šµš¦š“ šøšŖšš š±š°š± š°š·š¦š³ šµš©š¦ š“šµš³š¢šŖšØš©šµ ššŖšÆš¦ šŖšÆ š±š³š°š±š¦š³ š§š°š³š®.
- Slowly bend elbows & lower chest towards floor while š”š®š š š¢š§š šš„ššØš°š¬ close to the body. šš° šÆš°šµ let arms āTā or flare out
- Hover over the floor before pushing back up
Staggered Grip Push Up Variation
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The staggered grip push up can be one of those fun push up variations as your brain gets used to what your body is doing. The trick is to try to keep your back as leveled as possible.
Targeted Muscles
- Upper and lower pectoralis major
- Anterior deltoid
- Biceps brachii
- Triceps brachii
Cues
- Start in high plank
- Arms straight
- Keep the ššØš«š šš§š šš šš & šššš¢šÆššš šš”š šŖš®ššš¬ to keep hips aligned
- Place one hand on the floor slightly in front of the shoulder and one hand on the floor slightly behind the shoulder
- Fingers pointed forward
- The body should form a š¬šš«šš¢š š”š š¢š§šš„š¢š§šš š„š¢š§š from head, shoulder, hip, knee, and ankle. šš° šÆš°šµ šµš³šŗ šµš° š¢ššŖšØšÆ šµš©š¦ šµš°š± š°š§ šµš©š¦ šØšš¶šµš¦š“ šøšŖšµš© šµš©š¦ š“š©š°š¶šš„š¦š³š“ š¢š“ šµš©šŖš“ šøšŖšš š¤š¢š¶š“š¦ š“š¢šØšØšŖšÆšØ. The šØšš¶šµš¦š“ šøšŖšš š±š°š± š°š·š¦š³ šµš©š¦ š“šµš³š¢šŖšØš©šµ ššŖšÆš¦ šŖšÆ š±š³š°š±š¦š³ š§š°š³š®.
- Slowly bend elbows & lower chest towards floor while š”š®š š š¢š§š šš„ššØš°š¬ close to the body. šš° šÆš°šµ let arms āTā or flare out
- Hover over the floor before pushing back up
Stacked Feet Push Up Variation
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Stacking the feet in a push up brings an extra challenge to your core as your body works to stabilize itself. This is a great push up variation that will work those deeper core muscles.
Targeted Muscles
- Upper and lower pectoralis major
- Anterior deltoid
- Biceps brachii
- Triceps brachii
- External oblique
- Rectus abdominis
Cues
- Start in high plank. Arms straight & shoulders stacked over wrists
- š š¢š§š šš«š¬ š©šØš¢š§ššš ššØš«š°šš«š
- The body should form a š¬šš«šš¢š š”š š¢š§šš„š¢š§šš š„š¢š§š from head, shoulder, hip, knee, and ankle. šš° šÆš°šµ šµš³šŗ šµš° š¢ššŖšØšÆ šµš©š¦ šµš°š± š°š§ šµš©š¦ šØšš¶šµš¦š“ šøšŖšµš© šµš©š¦ š“š©š°š¶šš„š¦š³š“ š¢š“ šµš©šŖš“ šøšŖšš š¤š¢š¶š“š¦ š“š¢šØšØšŖšÆšØ. The šØšš¶šµš¦š“ šøšŖšš š±š°š± š°š·š¦š³ šµš©š¦ š“šµš³š¢šŖšØš©šµ ššŖšÆš¦ šŖšÆ š±š³š°š±š¦š³ š§š°š³š®.
- Keep the ššØš«š šš§š šš šš & šššš¢šÆššš šš”š šŖš®ššš¬ to keept hips aligned.
- The toes of one foot will be stacked on the heel of the grounded foot
- Slowly bend elbows & lower chest towards floor while š”š®š š š¢š§š šš„ššØš°š¬ close to the body. šš° šÆš°šµ let arms āTā
- Press upwards back to high plank
Single Leg Push Up Variation
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Similar to stacking the feet, having one leg raised in this push up variation will place an extra challenge on the core muscles.
Targeted Muscles
- Upper and lower pectoralis major
- Anterior deltoid
- Triceps brachii
- External oblique
- Sartorius quadriceps
- Hamstring
- Gluteus maximus
Cues
- Start in high plank. Arms straight & shoulders stacked over wrists
- š š¢š§š šš«š¬ š©šØš¢š§ššš ššØš«š°šš«š
- The body should form a š¬šš«šš¢š š”š š¢š§šš„š¢š§šš š„š¢š§š from head, shoulder, hip, knee, and ankle. šš° šÆš°šµ šµš³šŗ šµš° š¢ššŖšØšÆ šµš©š¦ šµš°š± š°š§ šµš©š¦ šØšš¶šµš¦š“ šøšŖšµš© šµš©š¦ š“š©š°š¶šš„š¦š³š“ š¢š“ šµš©šŖš“ šøšŖšš š¤š¢š¶š“š¦ š“š¢šØšØšŖšÆšØ. The šØšš¶šµš¦š“ šøšŖšš š±š°š± š°š·š¦š³ šµš©š¦ š“šµš³š¢šŖšØš©šµ ššŖšÆš¦ šŖšÆ š±š³š°š±š¦š³ š§š°š³š®.
- Keep the ššØš«š šš§š šš šš & šššš¢šÆššš šš”š šŖš®ššš¬ to keept hips aligned.
- Keep one leg raised
- Slowly bend elbows & lower chest towards floor while š”š®š š š¢š§š šš„ššØš°š¬ close to the body. šš° šÆš°šµ let arms āTā
- Press upwards back to high plank
Knuckle Push Up Variation
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This push up variation is not for the faint of heart. Placing all of the upper body weight into the fists creates an interesting sensation. Youāll notice your arms working a little harder without the extra stability that flat palms offers in the traditional hand placement.
Targeted Muscles
- Upper and lower pectoralis major
- Anterior deltoid
- Triceps brachii
Cues
- Start in high plank. Arms straight & shoulders stacked over wrists
- Move hands into a fist shape
- Place knuckles down on the floor
- The body should form a š¬šš«šš¢š š”š š¢š§šš„š¢š§šš š„š¢š§š from head, shoulder, hip, knee, and ankle. šš° šÆš°šµ šµš³šŗ šµš° š¢ššŖšØšÆ šµš©š¦ šµš°š± š°š§ šµš©š¦ šØšš¶šµš¦š“ šøšŖšµš© šµš©š¦ š“š©š°š¶šš„š¦š³š“ š¢š“ šµš©šŖš“ šøšŖšš š¤š¢š¶š“š¦ š“š¢šØšØšŖšÆšØ. The šØšš¶šµš¦š“ šøšŖšš š±š°š± š°š·š¦š³ šµš©š¦ š“šµš³š¢šŖšØš©šµ ššŖšÆš¦ šŖšÆ š±š³š°š±š¦š³ š§š°š³š®.
- Keep the ššØš«š šš§š šš šš & šššš¢šÆššš šš”š šŖš®ššš¬ to keept hips aligned
- Slowly bend elbows & lower chest towards floor while š”š®š š š¢š§š šš„ššØš°š¬ close to the body. šš° šÆš°šµ let arms āTā
- Press upwards back to high plank
Clap Push Up Variation
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This is a power push up variation and it will get your heart pumping! Itās also great for chest growth.
Targeted Muscles
- Serratus anterior
- Triceps brachii
- Biceps brachii
- Anterior deltoid
- Upper and lower pectoralis major
- External oblique
- Rectus abdominis
Cues
- Start in high plank. Arms straight & shoulders stacked over wrists
- š š¢š§š šš«š¬ š©šØš¢š§ššš ššØš«š°šš«š
- The body should form a š¬šš«šš¢š š”š š¢š§šš„š¢š§šš š„š¢š§š from head, shoulder, hip, knee, and ankle. šš° šÆš°šµ šµš³šŗ šµš° š¢ššŖšØšÆ šµš©š¦ šµš°š± š°š§ šµš©š¦ šØšš¶šµš¦š“ šøšŖšµš© šµš©š¦ š“š©š°š¶šš„š¦š³š“ š¢š“ šµš©šŖš“ šøšŖšš š¤š¢š¶š“š¦ š“š¢šØšØšŖšÆšØ. The šØšš¶šµš¦š“ šøšŖšš š±š°š± š°š·š¦š³ šµš©š¦ š“šµš³š¢šŖšØš©šµ ššŖšÆš¦ šŖšÆ š±š³š°š±š¦š³ š§š°š³š®.
- Keep the ššØš«š šš§š šš šš & šššš¢šÆššš šš”š šŖš®ššš¬ to keept hips aligned.
- Slowly bend elbows & lower chest towards floor while š”š®š š š¢š§š šš„ššØš°š¬ close to the body. šš° šÆš°šµ let arms āTā
- At the bottom of the movement push with enough force to get some air at the top of the push up
- Quickly clap the hands before planting them back onto the floor.
- Slowly lower and repeat
42 Comments
hari
wow! never knew there are so many varieties in push ups.
when I read this post, I felt like you were guiding me all along to make me learn with every push up type.
thanks for sharing this awesome post!
Nathalia
So happy you found it helpful!
Kay Uimari
These are awesome variations of push ups, I’m surprised that there are so many I’ve never heard if before! Thank you for including pictures!
Nathalia
You’re so welcome! This is just scratching the surface.
Maria
This is awesome. I love the variations. Always looking for arm exercises
Nathalia
Happy you found it helpful!
Bjha
It has been tough to cope up with exercise regime at home during Covid, these push ups are simple and very motivating to take a dive!
Nathalia
I’m with ya! Exercising at home has become a bit of a challenge.
Tina Rach
Great Post. I love working out at home so will add these on my routine
Nathalia
Glad you like the post š
Giangi Townsend
wow!! Thank you for such a clean and clear explanation. I am barely doing 2 minutes of plank and 30 push ups and I am dead. Although I must admit since I have started my shoulders have been feeling great, I have rotator cuff issues, and with no pain.
Great post.
Giangi
Nathalia
That’s so great to hear, Giangi! I’m doing about 50 pushups every day broken up in 10’s.
Mel
This is a sign that I should try it.. I have been thinking of starting home exercises and this is the answer. Thank you for sharing!
Nathalia
You’re so welcome!
Anitha
Thank you for posting pictures along with the description. They helped me understand those pushups better. Loved going through your article
Nathalia
Glad the pictures helped you! I woke my partner up from a nap to snap them š
Kathleen Wonders
Wow! The last few ones seemed super intense. I have to focus on building my strength and doing more reps before getting to that point! As of now I can do just a few basic push ups on my feet but the rest will have to be on the knees. Haha. Thanks for sharing this, I will definitely challenge myself to do the other variations!
Nathalia
Those clap push ups are definitely a challenge. I take my time between those to mitigate injury. Push ups are one of those exercises that are very challenging and take time to build. Keep at it!
Kristen
I love these. Exercises that you can do without equipment are great for those of us choosing to work out at home.
Nathalia
Totally!!
Jamie
Thank you for sharing these! Pushups are difficult for me and these help.
Nathalia
You’re so welcome! You can start with a few knees down push ups.
Heather
Great explanation. There is definitely something for everyone, and this really shows it.
Nathalia
Glad you found it helpful!
Cassie
Before breaking my wrist last year, I was pretty good at push ups. They are such a great way to tone your whole upper body to get a nice figure overall, like you said. I have yet to get back to my push up ability I had before my wrist, but I am definitely determined to try these out and work on them each day to get better and better. Thank you for sharing these ideas!
Nathalia
So sorry to hear about your wrist. Injuries always require special attention.
Hannah
Great post! This is really inspiring as I always thought there are no variation when it comes to push up! Guess now it’s a prefect time to train my arms and chest again!
Nathalia
This is just scratching the surface!
George McMillan, Jr.
Wow. That was such a detailed description of pushups. I’ll have to try a few of these variations since I’m not back to benching yet (had a surgery) and just doing pushups at home. This was my first time hearing about the staggered grip variation.
Nathalia
Wishing you a smooth recovery! The staggered grip is interesting. It can feel strange which is where the challenge lies.
Tegan
This is such a fantastic resource! I hurt my neck and had been doing wide pushups for quite some time to keep some pressure off, but I also love the staggered ones and triangle ones to really activate those triceps!
Nathalia
So glad you found it helpful!
Robyn Jones
We do every variation of these in my barre classes except the clapping one, and we do one additional one, which I guess is more of a plank where we alternate tapping each shoulder before piking up to tap each shin and repeating. I am so glad to know the benefits of pushups. Very informative. š
Nathalia
Glad you found it helpful! Push ups with shoulder taps are so great! So glad to hear that you do these in barre.
Charline
I love this Nathalia! When I started working out again a few months ago I started working with my friend (who also doubles as my personal trainer) on pushups. When I started I could barely do one knee down pushup but now I can do 7. He brought me through a lot of these transitions too.
I bookmarked it for future reference though because lord knows I always need help with pushups!
Love,
Charline
http://www.charlineliu.com
Nathalia
Congrats, Charline! It’s really amazing how the body gets stronger over time. What once seemed impossible is now something you can do 7 times over! It’s so cool!
Leeandra
I always struggle with regular pushups! I had no clue there were so many variations.
Nathalia
This is just a few of the many variations š
Jessi
Awesome variations and info! Iām a workout freak so Iām going to link this on my site too – http://www.theramblingraccoon.com/
Thank you!
Nathalia
Awesome! Love the sharing š
Jimmy Clare
who knew how many pushups they are
Nathalia
There are so many others too!