Viewer mail: pushups & tricep strength.

by

I’m having trouble doing push ups correctly.  Can you recommend any particular exercises to increase wrist and tricep strength.

My biceps rock from running with weights, but because pushups are great for back and chest muscles I would like to do them more often. My husband says to just keep building up the number I can do but it’s lame not being able to do other exercises related to wrist strength like bridge poses for any length of time.
Thanks.

Ahh pushups.

I love to loathe them and YES strong triceps & wrists will help make them a bit easier.

First, check out here for a video of MizFit Works Out In Her Kitchen tricep exercises, here & here for a few easy at-home ways to increase your triceps strength.

In addition, you might try doing push-ups with your hands close together.

This shift in placement will not only work your chest but also put a great deal of stress (in a good way) on your tricep muscles.

Your email also makes me curious as to whether you are doing full-pushups or bent knee.

When I started doing pushups I didnt have the chest strength for full and, as you imply above, my triceps gave out far before my chest even had the chance to grow fatigued.

I started with bent knee push ups and focused on sheer volume (around 3 sets of twenty reps) and maintaining perfect, perfect form (keep that core tight & dont “lock out” at the top.)

With regards to wrist pain I have a few ideas and am hoping the rest of you will chime in with your thoughts as well (not so subtle hint).

I used to experience exactly what you describe when I did yoga: Im fatigued nowhere else but I need to stop for a few moments to give my wrists a break.

The first thing that helped me was to focus on placing my weight on my bottom knuckles/the ‘roots’ of the fingers and spreading my palm. Just this minor adjustment took the bulk of my weight off my wrists.

Next (and this sounds silly but it works) it was suggested to me to do the following exercise:

Clench my hand into a tight fist and move in circles first one direction and then the other.

I did this exercise a few times a day and now my wrist pain (during things like bridge pose) is virtually gone.

(If Im misunderstanding your email & your wrists ache during push ups you mightcould try these. Ive never used them but people oft sing their perfect-praises.)

Two other thoughts came to mind when I read your message (and thanks so much for it as Im confident you’re not alone):

Push ups should not be felt in your back muscles. While they do, technically, work your chest, triceps and front deltoid or shoulders—they do not work your back.

If you’re feeling muscle tension, for example, between your shoulder blades when doing push ups focus on relaxing that area and *connecting* mentally with the parts of your body which are doing the work (chest/tri/shoulders).

If you feel tension in the low back area check to be sure you aren’t sticking your butt glutes in the air when pushing upward (check out the push up link above if you’re unsure what Im describing).

Also, in my opinion there is never a reason to run with weights.

Beyond the joint injuries which can occur one builds muscle efficiently by doing 8-12 repetitions to exhaustion not by carrying lighter weights around for an longer time period.

Yoga MizFits? Got any better wrist tips?

Any RunWithWeights’Fits who wanna show me the light and motivate my ass me to hit the road with the 5 pounders?

Im waiting.

Please to hit us all up in the comments.

POSTS BY EMAIL

Never miss a post. Enter your email to get my latest posts delivered to your inbox.

Comments

  2. Oh, great question and a great answer – it is a comfort to know that the wrist thing happens to others as well.

    Lots to try there!

    And, running with weights? Ha, me 60lbs ago, lol!

  3. Just swinging by before work to say hello.
    Now I am off to the kitchen to try those arm dipthings. If I never return I have fallen off the chair!!

  4. I have a neighbor whom I see running with weighs all the time.
    I’ve always been curious if that was multitasking or a bad idea 🙂

    She looks like she’s in pain so I kind of thought BAD IDEA.

    Have a great Tuesday!

  5. Good advice. I think push ups are just one of those things you have to keep working at. Correct form really helps build strength. Concur on the thoughts about running with weights (or pretty much any form of cardio with weights for that matter). Hope you’re having a nice morning

  6. I needed the push up video like because I am FINALLY not doing wall push ups, Miz!!!

    Onward (downward?) to the bent knee.

  8. Mizfit seems to have covered all the push-up advice. If your wrist strength is what’s lagging, I suggest you work directly on wrist strength exercises. Just google the phrase, you’ll come up with a ton.

  10. Ah, I was going to suggest wall push-ups to help for beginners.

    I like your advice on clenching the fist etc. In addition to the perfect push-up, you can try doing push-ups with 2 dumbbells on the floor vs. your hands. It might help with the wrist pain. I also think just flexing the wrist up & down and doing the wrist circles as you explained might help too. Even squeezing a soft small ball like you do if you want to increase grip strength might also help with the wrists.

    People also suggest knuckle push-ups if the wrists bother you but that is a whole other thing & some people find that hurts too.

    Miz, I think you covered it.

  11. You definitely covered the physical aspects of it. I totally agree with what Miz says on all fronts. And if all else fails, then I have found in that my diet also effects my joint function. When I’m eating processed foods or just generally not all together good, I find it overloads my liver and other organs that then don’t fully flush out the bad toxic stuff in my system and then I get build up in the joints. I know it sounds weird, but diet really does effect the joints. Easiest way to fix it? Load up on healthy lean proteins and lots of yummy green veggies, accompanied with mucho water and some green tea, your system will be purring along in no time…and you may find that a majority of joint pain, including in your wrists is gone. Can’t hurt to try it? What do you have to lose but a gunked up system.

  12. I don’t believe in running with weights, either. It throws of your natural form and balance and can cause injuries, as you’ve mentioned. I do, however, believe in doing exercises with weights that mimic running (if you want to improve your running economy, etc.). For example, mimicking the running arm motion (while standing still) using weights.

  13. Long time reader first time caller 😉

    NEVER RUN WITH WEIGHTS.

    Always do push ups in a gradual progression (wall to bent knee to floor).

  14. For me the wrist pain was more about having inflexible wrists rather than weak ones. I added wrist stretches to my daily stretching routing and that really helped. Also, I have to agree that the Perfect Pushup thingies do make it easier on my wrists! Or doing pushups on my knuckles or balanced on two dumbbells.

  15. I agree with you about the running with weights! If you just gotta do it, wear a weighted vest, otherwise you are just an orthopedic injury in the making!

  16. My lovely carpal tunnel (in both wrists!) puts me in a lot of wrist pain while exercising. There are a number of stretches suggested for CT sufferers, and I bet they’d do a lot to alleviate wrist pain for others as well. If I do them regularly, I have less achyness in the wrists, and also less pain in my elbows and shoulders (the pain and tightness can spread if it’s really bad. Fun.).

    Running with weights is a bad idea. It alters you’re normal stride and puts undue stress on the joints. Same goes for walking with those strap on ankle weights.

  18. Agree with all the MizFitz before me. Do NOT walk/run with weights unless you’re crushin’ on your orthopedist.

    Also-that placing the weight on the base of fingers does help tremendously with push ups and wrist pain, though someday I just may break down and get me a perfect push-up.

  19. I used to struggle with wrist pain when I was doing push ups until I got my iron gym. ( Yeah that as seen on TV deal that shows guys doing pull ups from their door frames). I had points to use at Dicks and ended up with it cause I wasn’t needed anything really but was about to loose the points. Anyway you can do push ups on it using the hand grips. You can do them in a couple different hand grip ways. Since using it to do my push ups I have no wrist pain. You probably could accomplish this using dumbbells to act as handles too I would imagine. Another cool thing is that you can do tri-dips with it as well so you can work on that triceps strength. I’m trying to work up to those pull/ chin ups but it’s going to be a while I think.

  23. i have learned to love push ups…….I found body Pump helped me to do full pressups. my latest thing is doing a few but prefectly rather than millions of crap ones!

  25. Excellent post! I especially agree with focusing on perfect form, and keeping the core locked. If you focus less on the number you can execute and more on the form, you’re going to get so much more out of the exercises, including actually targeting the right muscles as opposed to cheating and using tangential muscles to help out.

    Also, yes on using dumbbells as grips! I have wrist problems due to a truly annoying wrist ganglion cyst, and was about to give up until I made that simple switch.

  26. I’ve found if I do pushups with my feet up on an exercise ball I can do more, as I can roll the ball in and make it easier when I’m nearly done…gets in some more. I am not a huge fan, but I need upper arm strength for bellydancing, so I’m nack at it again. Ow.
    I’m surprised at how quickly you can do more once you start 🙂

  27. Ever use pushup bars? They do seem to ease my wrist problems as a guitarist, I have issues.

  28. I love/hate pushups (love I can do them, love how they work me, hate actually DOING them). This is a “well, duh” tip, but I found doing them on a softer surface (yoga mat/mat at the gym) felt better than just on the carpet.

  30. Thanks so much for this Mizfit -pushups are the bane of my existence! (aside from jumprope, that is)

    I keep at it. But I haven’t made what you could call stellar progress. I’m gonna try your tips.

  31. Good to know about the wrist thing. Mine always hurt after a while.

    *sigh* I should probably think about getting back to pushups sometime soon . . .

  32. I know this isn’t the question but 😉 why is it so hard for me to motivate to do any push ups at all???

  33. The only reason I would run with weights would be if I were running away, first of all, and secondly if I needed to bash someone in the head with the weights. I could see my ape-arms.

    Sometimes I do the kitchen counter pushup thing. The counters refuse to move (even granite).

  34. The only reason I would run with weights would be if I were running away, first of all, and secondly if I needed to bash someone in the head with the weights. I could see my ape-arms.

    Sometimes I do the kitchen counter pushup thing. The counters refuse to move (even granite).

  35. I broke my left hamate bone about 12 yrs ago and since I type so much, I tend to get carpal tunnel. So doing pushups can really hurt my wrists. I like to know I’m giving up because I my biceps are getting shaky, not because my wrists are screaming at me. So I am one of those weirdos who do knuckle pushups. It takes a LOT of pressure off my wrists. I won’t lie – it doesn’t really feel natural and I will sometimes alternate and do regular pushups for 3 or so, then knuckle pushups for 3. I don’t know about everyone else, but it works for me!

    Running with weights? I got enough extra weight to haul around as it is, thanks. I love my joints too much to add some more. Bad idea.

  36. woah, running with weights?? took me a sec to get past that 😉

    i’ve got bad wrists from tennis and bowling, so i’m likely no help… i still struggle with tricep pushups though. on the wall, no prob, i got up to doing a couple ones on my knees, but it’s the pushing up where i get stuck!

Trackbacks

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This