Improve your push-ups and hunches to increase your relative strength!

Push-ups and lunges increase your relative strength, or your ability to move your own body. This is a true comparison of your strength and size.

Most training programs focus on absolute strength and barbell exercises, but completely neglect relative strength. Regardless of your goals, push-ups and pull-ups should form the foundation of your program! They will grow your arms, back, chest and forearms.

Relative Strength Standards

• Every man should be able to do 20-30 push-ups and 5-10 crunches without a break.
• Every woman should attempt 5-10 push-ups and 2-4 crunches in one go.

If you've been training for a while, and you're still not mastering this, it's time to rethink your approach to training. These exercises can also be used as a measure of progress over time.

Here are 6 ways to take your push-ups and crunches to the next level. Choose one of the methods and practice it 1-2 times a week for at least 3-4 weeks. Then move on to the next one. This will give your body time to adapt to the new load and see what works for you.

1. Engage the center of the body

Not many people know this, but push-ups and sit-ups aren't just arm exercises. To get the most out of them, you need to engage your whole body. Tension in the body increases your strength potential and ability to generate power.

Think bench or squat. Are you as supple as gelatin during a series? No. The same goes for exercises with your own weight. If you're a noodle at them, they won't be as effective.

That's how you engage the center of the body

1. Keep your pelvis slightly tilted to keep your lower back in a neutral position (like a sad dog tucking its tail between its legs).
2. Clench the buttocks.
3. Keep your rib cage down and your mid-body contracted, as if someone were about to punch you in the stomach.

2. Exercise isometrically

Isometric repetitions load the muscles without moving the joints. You hold the position. Such training improves your training position and muscle engagement. It also keeps the muscles under tension longer.

Whether you're trying to do your first push-up or push-up, or you want to take it to the next level, isometric exercises build core strength.

The isometric push-up

1. Pull yourself up, keeping your chin above the bar.
2. Squeeze your armpits together and keep your chest closed.
3. Hold tension throughout the body and do not move.

Isometric click

1. Start at the top and lower yourself until your chest is almost on the floor.
2. Hold the bottom position and tension throughout your body.

Damage to the joints is minimal because they do not move in any way. Plus, it's great practice for technique and muscle engagement.

Try holding each repetition for 30-60 seconds, or practice multiple short holds.

3. Exercise the eccentric parts slowly

The eccentric part is when your muscles stretch under tension. Thus, the lowering during the push-up and the curl. Since you are stronger in this part of the exercises, you can tolerate higher loads and longer time under tension.

The push-up with a slow eccentric part

1. Start at the top.
2. Lower yourself until your body is completely on the floor.

Shift with slow eccentric part

1. Pull yourself up (or jump up). Your chin will be above the bar.
2. Lower yourself slowly until your arms are fully extended.

Here you will overload your muscles by absolutely concentrating only on the eccentric part of the exercises. Try to run for 20-30 seconds, or practice more short runs.

4. Practice positional isometric exercises

Positional isometrics involves adding a pause to the exercise at a certain point.

Positional isometric push-up

1. Start at the top. Lower down and hold in the middle.
2. Bring your chest almost to the floor and hold.
3. Push up to the middle and hold again.
4. Push yourself all the way up and start again.

Positional isometric hunch

1. Start in a lunge position and pull yourself halfway up so you have a 90° angle at the elbows. Hold there.
2. Pull your chin up over the bar and hold.
3. Lower to halfway and hold again.
4. Lower yourself all the way to the hang and start again.

This method is brutal and will improve the places where you usually get stuck. Strength gains usually occur at about a 10° angle in the joint . So if you have a problem at the bottom or middle of your hinge, this method might help with that.

5. Practice repetitions with absolute stop

At the end of the repetition, get into a completely resting position. This will limit the swing and force you to perform strictly. It will also improve your ability to generate power.

Absolute stop push-ups

1. Start at the top and lower yourself with your chest to the floor.
2. Come to a complete stop with your chest touching the floor.
3. Push yourself up and repeat.

Optimally, your body should move upward as one solid unit.

Shift with absolute stop

1. Grab a trapeze bar with your feet on the ground (if you can't reach, stand on a discus or crate).
2. Practice the push-up and get back down with your feet on the floor.

It is common to help yourself with the swing when you are tired with the push-ups. However, this does not help you to get stronger. Stopping will prevent that, and you'll have to finish the set with strict technique

6. Practice reps with weight

If you're a beast, add weight. This can be done with a belt (for crunches), a weighted vest, a single-arm, a discus, a rubber band, or you can hang onto someone.

Weighted push-ups

Click with rubber

Summary

The use of these methods will depend on your goals and capabilities.

• Whatever you do, engage the center of the body and keep the tension there for the entire series.
• If you have technique issues or want to get stronger in the hardest parts of these two exercises, use isometric execution or positional isometric training.
• Eccentric reps will overload the negative part of the exercises, but you will get stronger with them in the concentric part.
• The full stop is great for technique training and increases your ability to generate power.
• Adding weight remains the best strength method of all.

Source: www.t-nation.com - 6 Ways to Master Your Push-Up and Chin-Up Game
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