A well rounded chest workout, or in the case an entire upper body workout, should have some variety and should work the muscles in different ways. Each of the variations below is built from the foundation of the classic pushup. Make sure you get that right.
It's nice when you find fairly simple (but not necessarily easy) modifications to basic exercises that add a whole new challenge. They will keep you moving forward and pushing right through plateaus in your workouts.
Get in a classic pushup position and simply raise one leg. Either hold the leg in the air so the foot is off the ground, or stack your feet. That is put the toe of your raised foot on the heel of the foot that is on the floor.
It’s amazing what this little variation will do. This exercise still works the chest, triceps, and shoulders like a classic pushup. But it also activate your lower back, hamstrings, glutes, and core As far as bodyweight exercises are concerned, this one is hard to beat.
Do a half of a set with one leg raised, and
finish the set with the other leg raised.
The T Pushup combines the classic pushup with the plank and the side plank. Raising to the side plank position works the core and shoulder muscles.
Start from the plank position and do a classic pushup. When you have pushed back up to the plank position, raise your right arm to a side plank position with your right arm vertical.
Return to the plank position, do another pushup, and raise the left arm high.
Repeat. It's nice to add shoulders and core to your chest workout.
This exercise is great for the shoulders and the core. Start from the plank position. Walk your arms to the right by bringing your left hand next to your right hand. Then move the right hand out to the normal plank position – hands just wider than the shoulders.
Do a pushup.
Walk the hands back to the left and do
another pushup. Continue to alternate to
the right and left.
This exercise gets just a little bit more advanced. Like any plyometric exercise, the idea is explosive, powerful movements.
Start in the classic pushup position and push up with enough power so that your hands come off the ground. When you land, go directly down into the next pushup – no pause at all.
Keep an eye on safety. It goes without saying, but I'll say it anyway. Do NOT bounce your face off the ground. If you are new at these, practice a few on a padded mat or the grass – a surface that is going to be somewhat forgiving.
Also, pay close attention to form. Stay rigid and keep the body in a straight line.
With an explosive move like this, there is a temptation to break form and let your midsection do its own thing. Keep it tight.
Think of this as an extension of the plyo pushup. While your hands are off the ground you clap. It’s the same idea, but incorporating the clap forces you to spend that extra split second in the air.
You have to push up with enough force to allow time to clap your hands and then get them back into position before making contact with the ground.
This is a fairly advanced exercise to add to your chest workout. Being able to do clap pushups right is a strong indication of an excellent strength to bodyweight ratio.
You need really strong triceps to do one arm pushups. Actually you need to be pretty tough all around if these are going to be part of your chest workout.
To do this exercise, start in the classic pushup position and then spread the feet so they are a little bit wider than shoulder width. Put one hand behind your back. Remember your form – don’t sag.
To help with balance, rotate your body slightly so your head is almost aligned with where the hand behind your back used to be when it was on the ground. Lower yourself until you are just a few inches off the ground and push up.
Now you know how to build an intense chest workout that you can do anywhere, and that doesn't require waiting for the bench to free up at the gym.
If you do these chest exercises right, and you do sets of them until failure, you WILL see results at least as good as you would see from benching.
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