When you are a frequent traveler or despise the idea of joining a gym, you need to resort to creativity to get a good workout. Your body weight comes in handy in these situations. Pushups fit well into the scheme of things -- you do not need dumbbells, barbells or weight machines. The results you achieve depend on certain variables.
Stretching
Pushups predominantly work your upper body, but your lower body is still involved. If you were to lie down on the floor and start cranking out reps without loosening up, you risk pulling a muscle. Dynamic stretches, which are performed in motion, can prevent this by loosening up your connective tissue. Perform stretches like arm crossovers, arm circles, side bends, shoulder shrugs, spinal rotations and forward bends.
Variations
A basic pushup particularly targets the middle portion of the chest. To maximize chest muscle recruitment, perform pushups from multiple angles. This requires the use of a chair or stationary object that is equivalent in height. Perform decline pushups with your feet on the chair to target your upper chest and place your hands on the chair to target your lower chest. If you are just starting out, the chair might be too high for decline pushups. Use a step stool or stack of books and gradually increase the height of your feet as you get stronger.
Execution of Good Form
If you do pushups with bad form, you can injure yourself or creating muscle imbalances. The technique is the same with each pushup. The only difference is the angle of your body. To do a basic pushup, lie flat on your stomach with your hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart, fingers pointing forward and feet together. Keeping your core tight and back straight, push yourself off the floor until your arms are fully extended. Slowly lower yourself down by bending your elbows and stop when your chest is right above the floor. Push yourself back up in a steady motion and repeat. Maintain a straight back throughout the pushup, inhale as you lower yourself down and exhale as you push yourself up.
Work Volume
To get the best results, you need to perform pushups on a regular basis, but you do not want to overtrain. This can cause weak muscles and can slow down your growth potential. Aim for 10 to 15 reps, do four or five sets of each variation and take at least one day off between workouts.
Other Muscles Worked
The chest is the main area that gets targeted with pushups, but others get activated too. The triceps and deltoids are two examples. The triceps are located on the back of the upper arms and the delts are on the sides of the shoulders. You also work your abs isometrically when you engage them to maintain good postural alignment.
Adding Resistance
After you have reached a point where 15 reps is easy, consider adding weight to your body to spark new growth. The best way to do this is by wearing a weighted vest. You can easily adjust the resistance by sliding small weights into pouches on the vest.
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