Every once in a while, I notice movements that are NOT up to standard.  The latest culprit - push-ups.  During warm-ups and workouts over the last few weeks, we have completed a number of push-ups.  Many of those push-ups just plain sucked!  Yes, yours too.  Not one of us is immune.  I have noticed 3 issues:

Bent body – Your body should be perfectly straight while performing a push-ups. Never let your belly and lower back drop down. Push-ups performed with a good technique not only train your chest, shoulders and triceps but also strengthen your abdominal and inner muscles that surround the spine.  I have seen too many push-ups where the upper body moves and the belly/hips never do.

Dropped head – Don’t drop your head. Many people have the tendency to lean their heads forward trying to reach the ground while doing push-ups. You MUST keep your spine and body in alignment – absolutely straight and that includes straight neck too. By dropping your head, you may tighten your neck muscles or even bump your head against the ground, both of which can cause injury.

Poor range of motion – never fully extending one’s elbows  - I get it…the clock is running and you want to go as fast as possible or you want to rep out 100+ push-ups.  I don’t care!  While full range of motion will add time to your WOD, it is a MUST if you want to get stronger - it is a MUST as it is our standard!  So stop the “chicken wing” flip and or the 3 inch chest bump! 

Top of push-up

Bottom of push-up

Simply put, if your push-ups don’t look like the ones above, YOU ARE DOING THEM WRONG! Be honest with yourself and work to get better!