Chest exercise
Plyometric Push-UpHow to do it, with form in numbers
- Main muscles
- Chest
- Also works
- Triceps, Front delts
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Level
- Advanced
How to do it
How do you do the Plyometric Push-Up?
- Set up in a strong plank, hands just wider than your shoulders.
- Dip quickly until your elbows reach shoulder height.
- Push explosively so your hands leave the floor.
- Land softly with bent elbows, then reset at the top.
Cues
- Explode up, land soft
- Body stays one plank
- Hands land where they left
Common mistakes
- Landing on straight arms: keep the elbows soft on contact.
- Hips sagging on landing: brace your stomach and buttocks hard.
- Pushing with the hips: let the arms drive the body up.
Form in detail
What does good form look like?
Starting position
Plank on the floor. Hands flat, under or just outside the shoulders (about 1.1× shoulder width; accept 1.0–1.2×), fingers forward. Feet hip- to shoulder-width apart on the toes. The body is one straight line from head to heels, abdominals and buttocks braced hard, head in line with the spine. At rest about two-thirds of the body weight is on the hands and one-third on the feet. No clap: the hands simply leave the floor and land again.
The movement
(1) Fast, controlled dip to the turnaround. (4) Land on the same spot with the elbows already soft (about 20–30° flexion), absorbing into about 60° flexion. (5) Press calmly back to the straight-arm start. The hips stay in the body line throughout: they do not lead the push or sag on landing.
End position
(turnaround point): The bottom of a quick dip. Elbows bent until the elbows are about level with the shoulders, upper arms roughly parallel to the floor, elbow flexion about 90° (accept 80–100°); chest about 5–8 cm above the floor. Upper arms about 45° out from the torso (accept 30–60°). No pause here: the dip turns straight into the push.
Tempo
Dip 0.6 s, push-off 0.3 s, flight 0.25 s, landing absorb 0.3 s, return to straight arms 0.6 s, hold 0.5 s.
Form in numbers
What are the angles and distances?
| Measure | Target | Good range | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hand width | 1.1× shoulder width | 1.0–1.2× | |
| Foot width | hip-width | hip to shoulder width | |
| Body line (hip angle) | 180° | 170–185° | |
| Elbow at start | 172° | 165–180° | |
| Elbow flexion at turnaround | 90° | 80–100° | |
| Chest-to-floor gap at turnaround | 6 cm | 5–8 cm | |
| Upper arm from torso at turnaround | 45° | 30–60° | |
| Elbow flexion at landing contact | 25° | 20–30° | |
| Elbow flexion at end of absorb | 60° | 45–75° | |
| Dip / push / flight / absorb / return | 0.6 / 0.3 / 0.25 / 0.3 / 0.6 s | ±30% |
The targets our 3D demo was built to, from the references below. Bodies differ, so treat the ranges as a guide for your own build.
For coaches
Use this demo in your clients’ programs
The Plyometric Push-Up is in Trainaq’s exercise library. Add it to a workout, and your client sees this demo in the free Trainaq app above the sets they log.
Sources
