Pushup Standards

Since we've all been talking about pushups the past couple months, I figured I'd share a handy dandy “Pushup Standards Chart.”

I have ALL my clients (except 2) do SOME form of pushups (and pullups) in some way, shape, or form. (There's always a regression or progression for everybody).

This chart helps guide our goals. It provides a good north star.

There has been some drama, though. I have several clients over the age of 70 – most of which do pushups – and they are very distraught that the chart ends at 69.

I'm no chart reading expert, but, I have enough gumption to look these fine young clients in the eyes, give a shrug, and tell them that obviously they don't exist and are living on borrowed time. We then agree to hold them to the standards of the 60-69 year olds.

For the record, my best pushup pupils (as far as form and technique are concerned) are a 71 year old woman – a former rock climber, triathlete, and school teacher – and a 72 year old counselor/therapist, former career FBI agent. And I train people of all ages (currently 15-84) many of which are quite fit (I live in a very healthy, outdoorsy, recreationally-oriented city). I even train a couple college baseball players, so it's not like these 2 70+ year old clients are competing against a bunch of schmucks.

I share this to remind you all that age is truly just a number. Don't use it as an excuse. Don't use age as a crutch. You can always learn new skills, increase muscle, strength, and improve athleticism. You just have to be willing to do the work and embrace the process. Health doesn't have to decline just because we reach a certain number of years on Earth.

Start incorporating pushups into your training (and your life). Use this chart to guide you when setting goals. Always focus on form and quality first, though, and then work toward slowly building up to higher reps. 

Even when doing higher reps, you should be sure to maintain a deliberate tempo — slow on the way down, brief pause in the bottom, explosive but controlled on the way up, lock out the arms and pause briefly at the top. Pushup handles and those rotating "perfect pushup" handles are awesome and make pushups even more challenging and effective while also saving your wrists. 

I've been using the perfect pushup handles (V2) for the past year, and it forces me to slow down the movement and also increases my range of motion by 2-4 inches (the handles are about 4 inches tall). I find that rotating from a pronated grip  to a neutral grip throughout each rep makes the exercise brutal for my chest, shoulders, and triceps. Using these handles literally cuts my pushup numbers in half, but my sets are so much more muscularly stimulating. If you're pretty good at doing standard pushups, I recommend looking into getting handles or perfect pushup handles.