Plyo Push-Up
Trains the Pecs.
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Mechanic
- Compound
- Force
- Push
- Level
- Beginner
How to do it
- Set up in a push-up position with your hands just wider than the shoulders and the body in a straight line.
- Lower the chest towards the floor under control.
- Drive up hard enough that the hands leave the floor at the top.
- Land with the elbows slightly bent, absorbing the landing rather than catching it stiff-armed.
- Sink straight into the next repetition, using the landing as the start of the next lowering.
- Keep the stomach braced so the body stays in one line through the take-off and the landing.
Common mistakes
- Landing with locked elbows. The elbows are soft when the hands touch down; a straight-arm landing sends the impact into the wrists and shoulders.
- Bending at the hips to get airborne. The whole body rises together; if the chest pops up and the hips stay down, the drive came from the back rather than the arms.
- Pausing at the top or the bottom. The point is the quick turnaround from landing to take-off; a rest between repetitions turns it into an ordinary push-up with a hop.
- Trying it before the ordinary push-up is easy. If the chest cannot be pushed away hard enough for the hands to leave the floor, the landing will be uncontrolled.