push ups

kangadolphin

will u develop enuf upper body strength and definition and bulk from doing push ups alone??? iv heard it somewhere that it can be enuf..... i mean being able to do a significant amount of push ups .....

cowzerp

you'll gain enough strenght for push ups but not much else, i dont rate them too highly for men, there very easy if your average strenght or above..for ladies full push ups are a good exercise.

tman

They're all I do and I'm happy enough with the way my body is turning out... My bewbs are slowly taking shape and I'm actually confident enough to wear sleeveless tops these days (I'm a seriously skinny mofo and would have looked ridiculous in one a year ago)

If you want to turn into a meathead with rippling biceps as big as your head, then you'll obviously need to do more

gnolan

kangadolphin wrote: »

will u develop enuf upper body strength and definition and bulk from doing push ups alone??? iv heard it somewhere that it can be enuf..... i mean being able to do a significant amount of push ups .....

The trick is making 'em harder as you progress, like everything else. Try work up to 3x20 if you're not already there. Then go for feet elevated, try them on pushup stands and keep you're elbows in nice and close to your hips, don't flare them out so that theres a 90 deg angle between your upper arms and torso.

Anything above 20 is less likely to give you any more size or strength. You can keep elevating your feet, working up to handstand pushups, which will concentrate more on your shoulders, or you can add weight - a backbck with weight plates, wrap chains around yourself, buy an x-vest, resistance bands, do them on rings and lots more. I'm sure rubabdub will be along with some advice at some stage with practical advice on how to go about increasing the resistance...the innovative bastard!

numanuma

Try the 100 pushups program. hundredpushups.com

kangadolphin

cheers...gnolan... im not all that interested in uturning into a big bulging meathead as someone put it...just to gain more upperbody strength and firmness... i play gaa and am big enuf just need to firm up for the hits, etc.... im 6ft 3 and 14 stone but doing mad weights only f**ks up my ability to train 3nights a week with the team, sprints, etc.... bn doing push ups a lot and getting some results just wanna no how far i can go with it....raising the legs to work te shoulders is an idea i hadnt thought off...

kangadolphin

cowzerp.... what u mean??? il gain enuf strength for push ups but not much else???? i can do 50 at a time at the mo up from 40 2 weeks ago....

numanuma

I started from 10 pushups and now can do 23 doing that program. on week 3 now..

gnolan

kangadolphin wrote: »

cheers...gnolan... im not all that interested in uturning into a big bulging meathead

Going down a dangerous road sayin' that sh!t round here, take note - if you add more weight to your pushups, you might just explode out of your t-shirts....like....srsly

raising the legs to work te shoulders is an idea i hadnt thought off...

It'll only work them a little more, but AFAIK handstand pushups will work primarily the shoulders

floggg

kangadolphin wrote: »

cheers...gnolan... im not all that interested in uturning into a big bulging meathead as someone put it...just to gain more upperbody strength and firmness... i play gaa and am big enuf just need to firm up for the hits, etc.... im 6ft 3 and 14 stone but doing mad weights only f**ks up my ability to train 3nights a week with the team, sprints, etc.... bn doing push ups a lot and getting some results just wanna no how far i can go with it....raising the legs to work te shoulders is an idea i hadnt thought off...

No expert, if you want to gain strength to withstand tackles, surely core and trunk strength would be just as important if not more so. I imagine upper body strength is more for holding off opponents, but its core and legs that help you withstand a big shoulder, no?

rubadub

gnolan wrote: »

I'm sure rubabdub will be along with some advice at some stage with practical advice on how to go about increasing the resistance...the innovative bastard!

Yes, pushup stands as you mention allow you to go really deep which make it much harder. I put plates in a backback too, wrapped in a towel for comfort and distribute the load more evenly. You can do inclined ones, I like doing them on my stairs. Or one armed. Another way is resistance bands, you can use a mountain bike inner tube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4n1eLNPUZQ

There are some big gymnasts out there who do pretty much mainly BW exercise.

You can do pike pushups

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTnMUg-iqkE

I am working up to handstand pushups, I do handstands and do mini ROM shrugs. I am going to try these next.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1okSA32sFWs

Or for the very advanced

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PcnQ9GJIZY4

A gymnastic coach's quote here.

How strong is it possible to become with bodyweight exercises? Amazingly strong. In fact I would go so far as to say, done correctly, far stronger than someone who had trained for the same amount of time with free weights. Want some concrete examples? One of my former students, JJ Gregory (1993 Junior National Champion on the Still Rings) developed such a high degree of strength from my bodyweight conditioning program that on his first day in his high school weightlifting class he deadlifted 400lbs., and this at the scale breaking weight of 135 lbs. and a height of 5’3”.

http://www.dragondoor.com/articler/mode3/229/

kangadolphin

flogg..... ya well my core is fairly ok n my opinion...nthen again its relative to what???!!! holding off opponents too is a major reason i didnt add.... im 6ft 3 and 14 stone so have the size just need to add a bit of firmness and strength to it... thanks for the feedback, will take it aboard!!!

Magic Eight Ball

tman wrote: »

I'm actually confident enough to wear sleeveless tops these days (I'm a seriously skinny mofo and would have looked ridiculous in one a year ago)

Blokes wearing sleeveless tops outside the gym is ridiculous regardless.

floggg

Trevor Coulahan wrote: »

Blokes wearing sleeveless tops outside the gym is ridiculous regardless.

Not when you're ripped like Mr Muscle

chave

rubadub wrote: »

Yes, pushup stands as you mention allow you to go really deep which make it much harder. I put plates in a backback too, wrapped in a towel for comfort and distribute the load more evenly. You can do inclined ones, I like doing them on my stairs. Or one armed. Another way is resistance bands, you can use a mountain bike inner tube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4n1eLNPUZQ

There are some big gymnasts out there who do pretty much mainly BW exercise.

You can do pike pushups

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTnMUg-iqkE

I am working up to handstand pushups, I do handstands and do mini ROM shrugs. I am going to try these next.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1okSA32sFWs

Or for the very advanced

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PcnQ9GJIZY4

A gymnastic coach's quote here.

http://www.dragondoor.com/articler/mode3/229/

That last vid was unbelievable. What an athlete!!!

entropi

Insane stuff in that last clip...woah!! talk about hard work...

davey_j_c

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=us5brQHZl48

That my friends is how its done! Unbelievable

Goldigga

OP - Push ups can be beneficial when performed correctly. Use full range of motion. That means 'chest to floor' and locking your arms out at the top. Anything less is not a real push up!

arybvtcw0eolkf

kangadolphin wrote: »

cowzerp.... what u mean??? il gain enuf strength for push ups but not much else???? i can do 50 at a time at the mo up from 40 2 weeks ago....

I'll try answer part of that.

In the Defence Forces pushups are part of our annual fitness test.

They're a measure of the soldiers local muscular endurance and nothing else and thats why with practice you can now do ten more than you were doing two weeks ago, ie you've built up your local muscular endurance.

.

Brian?

kangadolphin wrote: »

cheers...gnolan... im not all that interested in uturning into a big bulging meathead as someone put it...just to gain more upperbody strength and firmness... i play gaa and am big enuf just need to firm up for the hits, etc.... im 6ft 3 and 14 stone but doing mad weights only f**ks up my ability to train 3nights a week with the team, sprints, etc.... bn doing push ups a lot and getting some results just wanna no how far i can go with it....raising the legs to work te shoulders is an idea i hadnt thought off...

The way you write is very hard on the brain.

If you're 6ft 3in and 14 stone you're not exactly 'big'. Seán Óg O Hailpin is 2 inches shorter than you and the same weight. He doesn't have a pick of fat on him as well. Same goes for Tadhg Kennelly for Kerry, 6ft 1 and 14 stone. (Its hard finding the weight of GAA players on google I tell you.)

You might want to go and find out how the people at the top in GAA workout and follow that rather than just relying on push ups.