Push-ups are a time-tested calisthenic exercise familiar to most people. To do a push-up, lie facing the ground, arms extended with your weight resting on your hands and toes. Lower your body until your arms are bent at a 90-degree angles with your upper arms parallel to the ground. Though they are often thought of as a euphemism for punishment, push-ups are also proficient at building your chest muscles.
Significance
Push-ups are designed to work much of the upper body, including the shoulders, triceps and chest. According to the American Council on Exercise, the pectorals are the muscles specifically targeted in the chest. There are two large pectoral muscles, pectoralis major and pectoralis minor. Together, they account for much of your chest's size.
Anatomy
The pectoralis major muscles are located in the front of the rib cage. They originate on the breastbone in the middle of the chest and attach to the humerus, the long bone in the arm that runs to the elbow, near the shoulder joint. These muscle fibers are assembled like a fan across the chest. The pectoralis minor muscles originate on the middle ribs, beneath pectoralis major, and attach to the scapula, which is part of the shoulder blade.
Function
Many people like to work out their chest for aesthetic purposes, but both muscles are integral to the movement and strength of the arms. The pectoralis major allows the humerus to move in a wide range of planes, such as across the chest. The pectoralis minor helps the shoulders to move forward and back.
Routine
Push-ups are a useful exercise for building the chest muscles because the pectorals take much of your weight while holding the body up. Perform push-ups every other day at most, preferably three times a week. There are many different ways to structure the workout. For instance, you can do 12 to 15 reps in three sets with a two- to three-minute rest in between.
Considerations
To specifically target the chest muscles, you can perform a wide push-up in which your arms are wider than shoulder width. This will concentrate much of the force on the chest. However, push-ups are somewhat limited in nature, so it is best to treat them as a supplement to the bench press, cable crossovers and other exercises that also work out the chest.
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