# how much do pushups help?



## awfulness (Jul 13, 2009)

so i'm a scrawny guy

how much would pushups help me in getting in shape? would it just make me even skinnier because it's basically just cardio/toning?


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## 266x (Jun 30, 2011)

In my opinion, one of the best exercises for you. If you add weight and use it like other exercises (Bench press) where you use low reps, I'm sure you would build a strong physique, and not only that but a more well-rounded one because you use more muscles with the pushup. You should also do pull-ups to work the back biceps and forearms. 90% of it is your diet though, if you eat a lot, you'll gain more in strength and mass.

or rippetoes or a 5x5 program. should get you bigger, but again the key is diet.


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## shadowmask (Jun 22, 2009)

They wouldn't make you skinnier, but it's not the ideal exercise for gaining mass. If you don't have access to weights, it's better than nothing, though. Throw in some bodyweight squats, crunches, and pullups.


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## awfulness (Jul 13, 2009)

266x said:


> In my opinion, one of the best exercises for you. If you add weight and use it like other exercises (Bench press) where you use low reps, I'm sure you would build a strong physique, and not only that but a more well-rounded one because you use more muscles with the pushup. You should also do pull-ups to work the back biceps and forearms. 90% of it is your diet though, if you eat a lot, you'll gain more in strength and mass.
> 
> or rippetoes or a 5x5 program. should get you bigger, but again the key is diet.


about that eating more thing, a while back i tried to gain mass and ate a lot and I guess I didn't work out enough so all the fat went to my stomach..

so I don't think you can say 90% is in the diet

on the bright side my appetite is a lot higher now so I'll have an easier time eating more


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## 266x (Jun 30, 2011)

http://www.ironworkout.com/20_rep_squat.htm


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## 266x (Jun 30, 2011)

awfulness said:


> about that eating more thing, a while back i tried to gain mass and ate a lot and I guess I didn't work out enough so all the fat went to my stomach..
> 
> so I don't think you can say 90% is in the diet
> 
> on the bright side my appetite is a lot higher now so I'll have an easier time eating more


Diet is KEY. Obviously you won't go anywhere if you don't work out and train HARD. But the key to it all is really in the diet. I don't know any big guys that haven't told me that the way they got to be as big as they are is from eating a couple bananas and a 3-4 protein shakes a day, I mean they told me they ate 3000-4000 calories a day.

My example is that when I usually start up a work out routine (from being lazy and not finishing the last one) my bench starts off at around 115lbs. (LAME) 3 weeks ago, when i just started this routine, my bench started at 150lbs. That's a HUGE difference. I'm up to 170lbs now on bench.

Diet is the most important aspect of muscle mass gain, but don't forget to train H.A.M (Hard as a mofo), and get lots of rest.


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## Kennnie (Oct 21, 2010)

just take steroids


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## Lachlan (Jul 3, 2008)

how many can you do? how heavy are tall are
you?


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## 266x (Jun 30, 2011)

Kennnie said:


> just take steroids


Or you can do this and you can hope to god allah or biology that your testicles don't invert.


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## awfulness (Jul 13, 2009)

266x said:


> Diet is KEY. Obviously you won't go anywhere if you don't work out and train HARD. But the key to it all is really in the diet. I don't know any big guys that haven't told me that the way they got to be as big as they are is from eating a couple bananas and a 3-4 protein shakes a day, I mean they told me they ate 3000-4000 calories a day.
> 
> My example is that when I usually start up a work out routine (from being lazy and not finishing the last one) my bench starts off at around 115lbs. (LAME) 3 weeks ago, when i just started this routine, my bench started at 150lbs. That's a HUGE difference. I'm up to 170lbs now on bench.
> 
> Diet is the most important aspect of muscle mass gain, but don't forget to train H.A.M (Hard as a mofo), and get lots of rest.


I see, thanks.



Kennnie said:


> just take steroids


Thinking about it in the future if I turn out to be hopeless.



Lachlan said:


> how many can you do? how heavy are tall are
> you?


I can do 20 slow pushups if I try really hard. i'm 145 5"10 but like 15lb is all in my stomach because I look almost exactly the same as when I was 125lb aside from my stomach.


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## Kennnie (Oct 21, 2010)

266x said:


> Or you can do this and you can hope to god allah or biology that your testicles don't invert.


+1
yea you best do this too just to be sure


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## Lachlan (Jul 3, 2008)

from my experience, if you do enough of them to work your muscles enough on a regular enough basis, then should naturally gain strength, assuming you are eating adequately. In order to gain strength, your muscles have to change, and you should be able to see some of this change.


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## HurryUpHarry (Jul 28, 2011)

awfulness said:


> so i'm a scrawny guy
> 
> how much would pushups help me in getting in shape? would it just make me even skinnier because it's basically just cardio/toning?


Push ups are great for toning your chest. Like someone said though, they won't build any real muscle mass.

If you're looking to put a bit of weight on in that area but don't have access to a bench, try dumbell presses whilst lying on your back. The next best thing to having a bench. Try some super sets, 10 rep flys then straight into 10 rep presses. Rest, repeat.

Practice with the dumbell bar without any weight on so you're comfortable with the movement at first. Oh and put a towel down, tis slightly more comfy


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## Lisa (Jul 8, 2006)

266x said:


> Or you can do this and you can hope to god allah or biology that your testicles don't invert.


Or that you dont end up with permanent kidney or liver damage


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## JimmyDeansRetartedCousin (Nov 28, 2009)

Find some activity that you really enjoy and go eat a sh*tload of food. Drink mucho H2o!


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## TheoBobTing (Jul 8, 2010)

awfulness said:


> I see, thanks.
> 
> Thinking about it in the future if I turn out to be hopeless.
> 
> I can do 20 slow pushups if I try really hard. i'm 145 5"10 but like 15lb is all in my stomach because I look almost exactly the same as when I was 125lb aside from my stomach.


If you do 20 per set you're mainly going to be building endurance in your muscles. You could try doing push-ups with your feet propped up on a bench or something. Perhaps then you could only do around 8-12 reps per set, which would probably be better for building muscle.


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## jamesd (Feb 17, 2011)

Push ups are too light to be useful imo. Pullups, standstand push ups and dips are useful if you only have your bodyweight to use. Even then it gets light after awhile.


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## uffie (May 11, 2010)

Im not saying you should do steroids, but all these people who talk bad about them dont know what they are talking about. Under a doctors care, steroids are very safe and very effective in gaining muscle mass.


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## awfulness (Jul 13, 2009)

uffie said:


> Im not saying you should do steroids, but all these people who talk bad about them dont know what they are talking about. Under a doctors care, steroids are very safe and very effective in gaining muscle mass.


i hear you


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## sapientiamagna (Jul 17, 2011)

Almost any exercise will help build muscle if you push yourself to muscle failure. When you do lighter exercises, it's easy for it to become so tedious that you trick yourself into thinking you've gotten a better workout than you have. I'd suggest varying the routine, and try doing types of pushups. For instance, switch to a plyometric exercise, like pushup-claps, for a week or so, then try doing pushups with your legs elevated, etc. An important thing to remember is that muscle responds to intensity more than a specific number of reps or amount of weight. So, if you're actually pushing yourself to the point where you can barely do any more you're going to see results.


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## jonny neurotic (Jan 20, 2011)

Get a chinning bar. Seriously, one of the best pieces of equipment. Once you have conditioned your back muscles and other shoulder stablizers you will have much more power for pushups which means more gains. Also chin ups strengthen the abs nicely...


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## awfulness (Jul 13, 2009)

i have a chinup bar but i can't do more than 5 pull ups and that's after trying really hard. i don't think my body is strong enough to gain muscles from chinups..


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## jonny neurotic (Jan 20, 2011)

Iso-metrics. Start with the arms at full extension. Elbows should be slightly bent(never lock out your elbows). Hold it for as long as you can while counting the seconds. Rest for a minute or two. Then get a box or chair to stand on and do the same with your chin at the bar level. Try to hold for the same amount of time as the previous position. Rest then do the same half way down, again holding for the same amount of time. Pay close attention to your form as you do this. Make sure both shoulders are in the sam position nad that your torso does not twist or lean to the side. Do this 3 times a week. You will notice that you can go for longer as time goes by. It may take months before you can do 10-15 seconds in each position but that doesn't matter, so long as you make progress. Once muscles start to develop stamina you can do more work which means that gains will come more quickly but there may be a period of almost going no where. Once you are at about 15-20 seconds each position then go back to doing the dynamic exercise.

Iso-metric pushups are good too. They follow the same pattern. Start of with you chest just off the floor. Then do full extension(it seems to be the opposite way around but in terms of the work to the muscles this is the same as the pull ups). Then do half way down. Other iso-metric exercises for the pecs that are good involve clasping your hands together and pushing firmly one againts the other. You can do this at various positions to work the muscles differently. Just play around you will get the idea.

Protein is very important. Buy a propriety muscle and weight gainer type. It will have the right balance of protein and carbs and good ones have chromium in them. Chromium is essencial for insulin sensitivity and this together with the carb loading stimulates the uptake of amino acids into the muscle cells.

Do back ups to to keep your posture in good order. Again, these can be done iso-metricaly if you chose but it is always good to do the dynamic exercise at some stage. Also for your posture it is a very good idea to stretch. You can stretch. Look into pilates or yoga.

[edit] Oh yeah, and eat LOTS of green veg. Healthy muscles respond better to training...


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## mrdeez (Jul 29, 2010)

Chinups/pullups are one of the best exercises out there. Do you mean you can do 5 in a row? Or can you only do 5 after struggling for like 30min? If you can do 5 in a row you are golden, just do 5 sets of as many reps in a row as you can. If you can only do 5 total, try the "greasing the groove" method. Everytime you walk by that pullup bar do 1 pullup. You will see your pullup strength go up and you'll also get bigger if you are eating and resting correctly. 

I would also follow the suggestion about propping your feet up for pushups until they get harder. 20 slow pushups seems like it is too easy for you.

Figure something out to work out your legs. It sounds like you are working out at home so you can try bodyweight squats (or add some weight with whatever you can, books in a backpack maybe), lunges, one legged bodyweight squats. Building muscle on your legs will make the muscles on the rest of your body grow as well. If you pack on a crapload of muscle on your legs, it will help to burn that fat off your belly because your leg muscles will require more calories just to maintain themselves.


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## guppy88 (Nov 12, 2010)

Lachlan said:


> how many can you do? how heavy are tall are
> you?


i know people who can do over 100 and they are 150 at 5'11. pretty skinny.


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## offbyone (May 5, 2010)

guppy88 said:


> i know people who can do over 100 and they are 150 at 5'11. pretty skinny.


This is a good thing to point out. Pushups get easier when you drop weight, especially if you've been holding it higher up on your body (arms, chest). The more weight you have on your upper body, the more effort it takes.

So keep that in mind and don't get too discouraged if you are heavy and can't do very many. Just start from the bottom and work your way up.


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## ryobi (Jan 13, 2009)

push-ups work my shoulders more than my chest

I usually do them after doing bench press


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## Marakunda (Jun 7, 2011)

I've actually heard push-ups are one of the best upper body workouts to do. Dunno if it was legit though.

They work my delts, triceps and pecs nicely though so, whatevs...


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## sandradavis (Nov 15, 2011)

Doing Push-ups will build you strength and musculature in the chest, arms, back, shoulders, traps and abs. Doing them in various positions build even greater strength cause you're working different muscles. Start with 3 different types of push-ups and progress up. Be creative. The more variations the less reps to do, you do not want to do like 100 reps with 9-10 variations, its OK but its also exhausting. work up to like 5 or 6 variations at 10-25 reps per set. If you're a real stud you can work up to as much as 500 push-ups a day and if you're practically superhuman a thousand to 1500 a day would do you wonders work pull-ups into the mix so you're gaining strength both from the back and the front.


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## Heyrayray (Oct 24, 2011)

Bench press, squats, pullups and deadlifts. Enough said.


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## guppy88 (Nov 12, 2010)

Please plp. Push-ups are worthless if you can do over 25 of them and you're trying to get stronger. End of story.


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## Chrome (Jun 19, 2008)

FOrr me they don't help because they hurt my wrists. I do them slowly to stretch my chest, but when I was in jail dudes got a big chest from them.


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