How to Do Reverse Pushups to Strengthen Your Arms and Don't Hurt Your Shoulders

What are back push-ups and should you do them?

Reverse push-ups are an exercise in which a person places their palms on a support behind the body, and then bends and unbends their arms at the elbow joints.

This exercise cannot be called ideal: it has both pluses and minuses. Below we will take a closer look at both.

Why are reverse push-ups good?

Here are some of the benefits of the exercise:

1. Good load on the triceps. This is the triceps muscle on the back of the shoulder, which is responsible for extending the arm at the elbow. According to a small researchACE Study Identifies Best Triceps Exercises / ACE Fitness, back push-ups activate triceps 87-88% better than french press lying and extending arms on a block simulator and with dumbbells above your head.
2. Opportunity to exercise outside the gym. For reverse push-ups, you only need a low support like a stable chair or bench in the park.
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3. Ease of learning. Unlike the option on the uneven bars, any healthy person can handle reverse push-ups. They do not require a long development of technology and are easily modified to the physical capabilities of a beginner.

What's wrong with back push-ups

During reverse push-ups, the humerus moves forward and rotates inward, stretching the joint capsule and reducing its ability to stabilize.

If you strongly bend your arms, and even relax at the bottom of the exercise, repeated stress can result in injury to the soft tissues around the joint.

Push-ups from the floor do not carry such risks, and the triceps load even better than the reverse ones. But still it is impossible to recognize the latter as completely useless and dangerous.

Firstly, unlike regular push-ups, reverse push-ups do not load the muscles of the rest of the body so much, which means that beginners will be able to do more repetitions and pump triceps well. Second, the risk to the shoulders can be reduced by following the technique and not exceeding the joint's natural range of motion.

However, you still should not do this exercise if you already have problems with your shoulders or elbows. In this case, it would be more rational to use classic push-ups from a support or with knees.

How to do reverse push-ups

In his video on YouTube, famous trainer and bodybuilder Jeff Cavalier advises doing reverse push-ups with your fingers turned to the sides.

Due to this setting, the humerus will not rotate inward, the joint capsule will not stretch, and you will move in a safe range.

Find a stable support about 50 centimeters high and turn your back to it. Place your hands on a raised platform, turning your fingers to the sides, bend your knees and press your feet to the floor.

Straighten your shoulders and lower your shoulder blades. Bend your elbows and move down to the edge of your range. Do not try to parallelize the shoulders with the floor if this causes discomfort in the area. joint.

Keeping your body rigid and your shoulders back, straighten your arms, returning to the starting position, and repeat again.

Make sure that the body moves parallel to the support. The pelvis should rise and fall in a straight line - not at an angle.

Perform the exercise smoothly, and at the top point, additionally strain the triceps to pump it better.

How to make back push-ups harder

If you can do 10-15 reps without any problems, try increasing the load on the muscles by slightly changing the exercise.

Straighten your legs

In the starting position, straighten your knees and lean on the floor with your heels. Make sure that the body is still moving parallel to the support.

Put your feet up

Find another support, similar in height to the first, and put straight legs on it. Perform reverse push-ups, observing all the technical points listed above.

Add weight

Sit on an elevated platform, place your feet on a support, and place a barbell disk or other weight, such as a bag of things or a canister of water, on your knees.

Perform reverse push-ups, keeping an eye on the position shoulders. If the weight makes you unable to control your range of motion and sinks too deep, take a lighter weight or work without it.

How to Add Reverse Pushups to Your Program

Do this exercise on your upper body workout day, or once or twice a week if you're strengthening all muscle groups in every workout.

If your program also includes the usual pushups or a low support, place them first. So you can give it your all and do more repetitions, and then “finish off” the triceps with the reverse variation.

Do three or four sets of 10-15 reps. If you can do more, change the exercise to a more difficult one and consider purchasing parallel bars. Push-ups on such a projectile will load the triceps and pectoral muscles much better than the version on the support, moreover, without any weights.

Iya Zorina