6 Push-Up Benefits For A Toned And Stronger Body

Effective, fast learning movements sustained the test of time — this is how you could describe push-ups. This fundamental exercise transforms your body shape by strengthening your core and upper body, as well as engaging your leg muscles. This makes push-ups the whole body exercise suitable for people with different fitness levels. Versatile variations of push-ups target multiple muscle groups simultaneously, which keeps you from getting bored with the same movements. Their benefits start with a free-equipment policy to improve cardiovascular health. This article focuses on the six scientifically-backed push-up benefits for a toned and stronger body, its variations, and possible risks.

What Are The Benefits Of Push-Up?

Amateur sportsmen or experienced athletes are aware of the benefits push-ups can bring after incorporating them into their exercise routines. 

If you think that push-ups benefit upper arms strength only, you’ll be surprised to unravel the seven amazing benefits you get with the right technique and regularity. 

Push-ups activate multiple muscle groups. It’s a compound training that targets different parts of your body, such as: 

• Chest (pectorals)
• Arms (triceps and biceps)
• Stomach muscles (abdominals)
• Hips‌ (glutes)
• Legs (3)

This means you don’t train only your upper body but also utilize other muscles perfectly. Push-ups help you build muscle. Some of its variations put more emphasis on your triceps or biceps. Of course, the following result comes only with the correct performance. 

Push-ups improve your cardiovascular health. The more push-ups you can do, the more you promote a better work of your heart. One study published in JAMA Network found that between men who completed at least 40 push-ups in under 30 seconds and those who can only do 10 or fewer, the former can reduce the risk of cardiovascular problems, including heart attack and heart failure, compared to the latter. Still, it’s important to highlight that this study involved middle-aged active men. Further research should be conducted to identify if the associations are the same for older males and females. 

Push-ups play a big role in joint support. Push-ups effectively strengthen the muscles around the shoulder joints. Nonetheless, you need to increase the number of push-ups gradually to build up sufficient strength in the muscles. Abruptly overloading weak muscles can only lead to muscle and tendon injuries (5).

Push-ups improve balance and posture. When you do push-ups you engage your core too, which may be good for your posture (3). By strengthening your shoulders, back, and abs, push-ups can help you improve your posture and enhance coordination. Poor posture can lead to back pain, headaches, and impaired breathing. It is also associated with low energy and muscle fatigue, which can limit your exercise performance.

Push-ups make you more flexible. Every push-up you do transforms your disobedient body into a flexible mass. Flexibility improves your physical performance and decreases the risk of injuries. It also helps your joints move in the full range of motion and improves your ability to perform everyday activities (4).

Read More: The Ultimate Incline Push-Ups Guide For Beginners

Push-ups help you burn calories (3). Let’s face it, both easy and advanced variation of a push-up requires effort. The more effort you make, the more energy you exert, therefore, the more calories you get rid of. Besides, speeding up your push-ups may lead to burning more calories. However, speedy push-ups may provoke health risks, like elbows or wrists arching. 

Push-up is a free-equipment exercise. This is probably one of the most convenient benefits of push-ups. And you don’t need science to prove this point. No one likes messing with sporting props and has a hard time choosing the right loads or resistance bands. With all the push-up variations, you don’t need this stuff. You may need a sturdy chair, bench, floor, yoga mat, etc. It depends on the push-up itself. 

To sum up, a push-up is a tremendous whole-body training that aids your posture, bone health, and flexibility, and enhances your heart work. You need no equipment for the push-up, only the correct technique to avoid injuries and get the most out of the exercise.

How To Properly Do Push-Ups?

The right technique is the key to all the push-up benefits. It prevents you from possible injuries and assists in proper performance, which later leads to the execution of advanced exercises. Therefore, if you do everything right, you become stronger and gradually move to complicated exercises. 

Training requires challenges, not only in enhancing the number of repetitions and sets but  also trying out more difficult activities. 

If you’re new to push-ups and have no clue how to execute them properly, check out these simple steps: 

• Get in a plank position, creating a straight line with your body. Put your palms on the ground with your arms straight at the shoulder-width.
• Keep your feet together with your weight on the balls of your feet. 
• Ensure your back is straight and your weight is evenly spread out. 
• Lower your body toward the ground, keeping your gaze down and using controlled movement, until your elbows are at 90-degree angles. Then push back up to a plank position. 
• Lower your body slowly and push up quickly. Try taking 2 seconds to lower down and then 1 second to push up to the plank position (3).

What Will 50 Push-Ups A Day Do?

There is no limit to the number of push-ups a person can perform. It depends on your fitness level and general strength. Some individuals execute the 50 push-ups challenge daily. If you follow the proper technique you can expect your shoulders, back, chest, and arms to get stronger. 

Those who slouch can even improve their posture with daily push-ups. With 50 push-ups a day, you will eventually stand taller. Finally, your cardiovascular health will get better, and you will increase your overall fitness level. 

How Many Push-Ups Before Bed?

It is not advisable to do vigorous activities before heading to bed because it may impair your sleep. But for some people, nightly push-ups have the opposite effect and may even reduce insomnia. 

When it goes to the number of reps and sets, everything depends on your fitness levels. Beginners can start with 2-4 incline push-ups for 4 sets. Incline push-ups are performed on an elevated surface. You place your hands on the sturdy chair, bench, or even your bed. 

Advanced athletes can perform regular push-ups in 5 sets, with 10 push-ups in each set. It is enough as a jumpstart. Gradually, they can upgrade to 12-14 for 5 sets, etc. 

Please note, there is no right and fixed number for everyone. Make sure the last 2-3 reps are difficult for you, and then you may stop and hit the bed.

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What Are The Benefits Of Doing Push-Ups Everyday?

Performing push-ups daily can tone your body and transform you into a stronger person who’s capable of many challenging activities. 

Let’s shortly summarize the basic benefits you can expect from daily push-ups: 

• You will sustain your joint health (5).
• You will end up with a stronger upper body.
• You will improve your core stability. 
• You will promote your physical performance. 
• You will train multiple muscle groups. 
• You will get a better posture. 
• You will burn calories. 
• You will improve your flexibility. 
• You will protect your lower back and shoulders from injuries (3).

There is a flip side of daily push-up practices known as potential risks. Performing push-ups everyday may evoke numerous health risks, such as lower back pain and other injuries. Remember not to ignore any pain or irritating feeling during the activity. Instead, stop the workout and contact your doctor for support. 

Is It Beneficial To Do Push-Ups Everyday?

Daily push-ups have two sides: benefits and risks. They can help you build muscle tone and strengthen your upper body. Plus, they lead to improved cardiovascular health and support around shoulder joints. 

On the other hand, our body needs some rest. Besides, studies suggest that our body needs at least 48 hours to recover during resistance training. Hence, people are recommended to do push-ups every 2-3 days instead of daily. 

Overloading your body with push-ups may lead to potential risks, like lower back pain, wrist pain, and elbow injury (5). Rather don’t force yourself and let your body recover. Interestingly, proper rest results in better performance and mood. 

Are Push-Ups Good For Females? 

Push-ups are good for everyone as they work out the entire body. Push-up benefits for ladies are numerous. If you’re a female who desires to have a firm chest, toned arms, and stabilized core muscles you need to incorporate push-up variations into your sporting routine right now. 

As a beginner, you may take advantage of incline push-up benefits for promoted coordination, upper body strength, and increased stability. Besides, they are easy but not less effective. Plus, with incline push-ups, you’ll be able to perform more challenging variations in the future. 

Are Push-Ups Good For Men? 

Yes, push-ups are a perfect exercise for males too. Push-up benefits for men target the muscles in their arms, chest, and shoulders. If you’re a man who yearns to boast bulky arms and toned muscles, advanced push-up variations are your right choice. 

Of course, as a beginner, you should start with simpler versions, like kneeling or wall push-ups and eventually end with tougher alternatives, for example, decline push-ups. 

Decline push-ups are the opposite of incline as they keep your lower body on the elevated surface while your arms are on the floor. 

Decline push-up benefits your upper body by focusing on the chest, shoulders, back, and arms. By doing decline push-ups, you can improve your performance in certain sports. 

Overall, decline push-ups promote upper body strength, which is essential for daily activities, like lifting or carrying a backpack.

Read More: How Many Push-Ups Should I Do To Get My Body In Tip Top Shape?

What Benefits Will I Get From Plank To Push-Up? 

Plank to push-up benefits like other push-up variations builds full-body strength. They are relatively easy, even for intermediate athletes. You start with the plank position on your elbows, which you alternate with a regular push-up. The push-up phase trains your biceps, triceps, and anterior deltoids. During the second phase (plank), you put stress on your abdominals, glutes, and hamstrings. 

Therefore, it’s a full-body strengthening activity without equipment. You can easily integrate it into your home workout regime. 

The Bottom Line

Push-up is a perfect exercise for both men and women that gives the body spectacular benefits. In this article, we have uncovered the 6 scientifically-backed push-up benefits for a toned and stronger body. This free-equipment exercise can promote your athletic performance, therefore, leading to a desired body shape. However, we should note that daily push-ups offer both benefits and risks, such as lower back/wrist pain and elbow injury. Thus, people are advised to do push-ups every 2 or 3 days.