In fact, a 2019 study found that pushups may be linked to living longer and better cardiovascular health. JAMA Network OpenOne. Active middle-aged men who could do at least 40 pushups had a significantly lower risk of heart disease over a 10-year follow-up period compared to men who were unable to do more than 10 pushups at baseline. .
However, it's worth noting that the study was only conducted on men, and we don't necessarily know if someone's ability to do push-ups is the only reason they do or don't get heart disease. That said, pushups still offer many benefits, including building muscle and bone strength and improving heart health, so they're worth adding to your workout sessions.
Going from having no push-up experience to doing 40 push-ups can be a difficult task for anyone. So, start your push-up journey at home or at a commercial gym with the help of this essential tool: looped mini bands or resistance bands. —Following this trick can make pushups easier, but still effective.
How to Make Pushups Easier Using Resistance Bands
Lindsay Ogden, CPT, certified personal trainer and master trainer at Life Time in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, makes movements like pushups accessible while providing exercise for people at all stages of their wellness journey. They are good at adapting.
To complete this pushup modification, follow these steps:
- Start in a tabletop position with a mini-band of desired resistance wrapped around your arm, just above your elbow. Your hands should be under your shoulders and your knees should be under your hips.
- Lean your feet back and straighten your legs to maintain balance on your hands and toes. Your body should be in a straight line from head to heels and your hands should be directly below your shoulders.
- Bend your elbows at a 45-degree angle to your body, then lower your body to the floor and lean against the mini-band, using the middle part of the mini-band to support your diaphragm area to prevent your chest from sinking.
- Press your palms and the floor away from your body to come back up to a high plank. Use the resistance of the band as a brace for your arms to help propel your body upward while maintaining good posture.
- repeat.
“It’s clear that push-ups can be intimidating. This is why it's good to know how to modify the standard unassisted pushup. Modifications will help you build strength and build confidence in your ability to correctly complete push-ups with or without a mini band.” —Lindsey Ogden, CPT
Advantages of modified push-ups using mini bands
Push-ups may seem inaccessible at first. This is especially true if upper body strength isn't your thing. Modified pushups provide a good starting point for progressing to unassisted pushups and can also help you prevent injury and understand the fundamentals of proper pushup form.
Would you like to learn more about the benefits of push-ups using mini bands?
1. Helps with the hardest part of the push-up.
This mini-band trick will help you where you need it most: the bottom of the pushup when your body is close to the floor.
“Ideally, when you do a pushup, you get full range of motion with your chest touching the floor. But the chest-to-the-floor position is also the hardest part to get out of a pushup,” says Ogden. “If the mini-band is tightest or most stretched at the bottom of the push-up, it helps with ‘bouncing’ up to the top of the push-up, making it easier on the upper body and core. ”
2. Helps promote good push-up posture.
Many of us have tried to do push-ups but found that our backs arched or sank toward the floor, our elbows flared, or our hands were too wide to do them effectively. Doing a few pushups with substandard form may not be harmful, but doing them habitually can lead to injury or long-term pain.
Using a mini band can help promote proper pushup form, Ogden says. So even if you're a pushup veteran, it might not be a bad idea to revisit these tips often.
“A common mistake in pushups is the elbows flaring outwards away from the body, which should maintain a 45-degree angle as they lower towards the ground,” says Ogden. “Mini bands help keep your elbows close to your body and give your arms support during the push-up movement. This also helps target your triceps, a key muscle you need to strengthen when doing unassisted pushups.”
3. Improves your push-up confidence.
Fear of injury or the judgment of others may hinder your push-up progress, but these mini band push-up tips can improve your confidence in this difficult exercise.
“It’s clear that push-ups can be intimidating,” says Ogden. “This is why it’s good to know how to modify the standard unassisted pushup. Modifications will help you build strength and build confidence in your ability to correctly complete push-ups with or without a mini band.”
How to Choose the Right Mini Band Resistance Level for You
Mini bands and resistance bands come in a variety of resistance levels, and brands often color the bands based on how much they stretch.
It may be tempting to go straight to the hardest resistance level to maximize your pushup workout, but this isn't a wise idea. Using a resistance level that is too easy or too difficult can lead to improper form, ineffective pushups, and even injury.
The thicker the band, the more resistance it will provide and the more support it will provide during pushups, Ogden says. However, thicker bands make it more difficult to keep your arms in the correct position. When you do a push-up, it should be flush with the side of your body.
“If you have a hard time stretching the band enough to get it across your biceps without it going up your arm or pulling your arm in and narrowing it unnaturally, I would say the band is too tight,” says Ogden.
Conversely, if the band is too loose or doesn't provide enough resistance, you won't be able to maximize this push-up technique because the mini band won't provide enough help to lean back and hold your body in place. Ogden says your arms are in the correct position when you press upward into the floor.
Choosing a band that is easy to put on and provides enough assistance to offset the difficulty of holding your biceps and pressing into the floor in a plank position with your arms shoulder-width apart is a good place to start in terms of resistance level. You have to choose.
How to progress to standard push-ups
Before using the mini band pushup technique, Ogden likes to start her clients' pushup journey with incline pushups, which elevates the front of the body to reduce the distance you have to lower.
“I like to use things like a Smith machine or an adjustable barbell for clients who are learning how to do push-ups,” says Ogden. “This reduces stress on the shoulders and wrists and reduces the distance the client must lower and push up while practicing the correct basic plank position for pushups.”
If the barbell height or high surface becomes too easy, you can progress to a less high surface. Ogden recommends having clients do at least three unassisted pushups before adding bands or making further modifications to ensure clients understand which muscles to use as they move up and down through the movement and how to maintain proper pushup form. Say you want to see it done.
“Once the client is able to support and push their own body weight for at least three pushups, consider adding a resistance band,” says Ogden. “You can also add additional modifications, such as eccentric pushups where you lower yourself to the ground and then explode upward over three to five seconds, while maintaining proper pushup form.”
Ogden says he doesn't like doing pushups on his knees, except in unique personal circumstances. That's because he'll end up losing too much weight to reap the true benefits of pushups, and it'll prevent him from learning ideal pushup form.
Speak with a certified personal trainer or coach to understand which modifications and progression are right for you.
The best mini band to help you do pushups
There are more mini bands on the market than we can test. Websites like Amazon have inexpensive sets of mini bands, but it's usually best to choose a name brand.
Cheaper mini bands may be made from lower quality materials. This means they can wear out and provide inaccurate resistance levels, or they can spontaneously break down if too much resistance is applied.
Instead, Ogden suggests investing in a set of mini bands from a respected brand. She recommends the TRX, Rogue, and SPRI mini bands. These brands have been well-respected for decades and have established themselves in commercial gyms across the country. This means that it can withstand consistent use without failing.
Well+Good articles reference scientific, credible, recent and robust research to support the information we share. You can trust us on your wellness journey.
- Yang J, Christophi CA, Farioli A, Baur DM, Moffatt S, Zollinger TW, Kales SN. Association between push-up exercise capacity and future cardiovascular disease in active adult men. JAMA Netw Open. February 2019 1;2(2):e188341. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2018.8341. PMID: 30768197; PMCID: PMC6484614.
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