Pushups Give Your Upper Body and Core a Good Workout

Few exercises strengthen the muscles of the chest, arms, and core like pushups do. When done correctly, “they will help you to integrate the strength of your upper body with stability through your trunk,” says Robert Turner, PT, OCS, a board-certified orthopedic clinical specialist and advanced clinician in the Sports Rehabilitation and Performance Center at the Weill-Cornell affiliated Hospital for Special Surgery. “That allows you to do things like pushing a heavy door open or pulling open a stuck window without injuring your back or shoulders. Moving furniture, carrying groceries, and other daily activities also will be easier.”

Adapt and Progress

If you don’t feel comfortable doing a pushup against a wall, place both hands slightly wider than shoulder width apart on a kitchen counter. Engage your core and keep your back aligned, as described below, and lean into the counter, aiming your chest toward the ledge of the counter. Note that the farther away you keep your feet from the wall or counter, the more difficult the exercise becomes. As you get stronger, experiment with different distances.

When you are ready to progress further, be sure you can get down to and up from the floor with ease. You might want to start the floor pushup with your knees bent (put a pillow or blanket under your knees for comfort, if needed) instead of with straight legs. Again, engage your abdominal muscles to maintain a straight line from the top of your head through your buttocks; don’t let your buttocks rise up. When you are confident you can do two sets of 10 consistently with good form, you are ready to do the floor pushups with legs extended.

The post Pushups Give Your Upper Body and Core a Good Workout appeared first on University Health News.

Read Original Article: Pushups Give Your Upper Body and Core a Good Workout »

Powered by WPeMatico