The diamond push-up is a challenging close-grip pushup variation. All push-up exercise variations work the triceps muscles to some degree, but the diamond push-up not only works the triceps, the muscles on the back of your upper arm, it targets the triceps over the chest and shoulder muscles.
Diamond Push-up
The diamond push-up has the same basic motion as a regular push-up. The only difference is your hand and upper arm position. For a diamond push-up, bring your hands close together so they set below the middle of your chest. Position your pointer fingers and thumbs so they just touch each other. This hand position forms a diamond shape in the space between your hands, giving this exercise its name. As you lower your body, keep your upper arms tucked-in close to your sides.
Triceps
Your triceps muscles are made up of three heads: the long head, the lateral head and the medial head. The long head originates on your scapula, or shoulder-blade and the other two heads originate on the humerus, your upper arm bone. All three heads attach to your ulna, one of the bones in your forearm. The triceps are mainly responsible for elbow extension, or straightening your arm.
Muscles Worked
As you press up during a diamond push-up, you extend your arms by straightening your elbows, making the triceps muscles the primary movers. Tucking your elbows into your sides minimizes movement at the shoulder, reducing the amount of work your chest does. However, the chest and front shoulders are still active during a diamond push-up; they become secondary movers instead of primary movers. The diamond push-up targets your triceps, but it also works your chest and front shoulders.
Variations
Since your triceps muscles are smaller and weaker than your chest muscles, the diamond push-up is more challenging than a regular push-up. You can do incline or bent-knee diamond push-ups to make the exercise easier, but still keep the focus on your triceps. Set your hands on an object that is higher than your feet or place your knees on the floor to reduce the amount of body weight you are lifting and make the exercise easier.
Member Comments