Fast and Furious Fitness

Dear Reader,

After the squat, and it’s variations, the next exercise that should be in everyone’s routine is the pushup. This one exercise alone will strengthen your entire body from head to toe, and is well worth the time and effort invested in performing the exercise - which, if done correctly, is not a lot of time at all. I get a 100 odd pushups in about 10 minutes or so, and that ain’t a long time to train.

1. Pushups train the ENTIRE body - when done in all it’s variations, pushups train the forearms, fingers, arms, wrists, shoulders, traps, entire back and - gasp - even your legs (thighs, hips, buttocks, and calves). Your feet get work as well, so this is literally an “entire body” exercise.

2. The “pushing” movement involved while doing pushups builds strength throughout the ENTIRE body. Pushups, when done correctly give you a solid cardiovascular workout as well. Try doing a 100 pushups (or, however many sets it takes you to get there) in GOOD form in 10 minutes or less. It ain’t easy. And the deep breathing involved while doing pushups makes you get stronger throughout your entire body.

3. Pushups can be done by virtually anyone, and require NO equipment except your body. And due to the fact that your entire body participates in this exercise, it is often easier to do for trainees that are just starting out, or trainees that are slightly overweight.

You may not be able to do too many pullups - but, the pushups is something just about anyone can work up to.

And NO, pushups are not the “easy” exercise they are made out to be. They DO have major strength benefits. You’d think this would be obvious; the Marines do a huge number of these on a regular basis, and last time I checked, a Marine was pretty damn strong. Likewise for boxers and wrestlers - pushups done in high repititions along with squats and bridging form the basis of their workouts as well.

Pushups give you REAL, FUNCTIONAL strength that just cannot be gotten from other pushing exercises involving weights. And that’s something you can’t beat.

Here is a 10-12 minute workout that’s guaranteed to get the lungs pumping, and the entire body working as a whole: -

- 25 regular pushups
- 20 tablemaker pushups
- 5-10 Reverse pushups
- 10 Arms extended pushups
- 15 regular pushups
- 10-15 tablemaker pushups
- 5-10 reverse pushups
- 10 arms extended pushups
- 10 fingertip pushups

(Information on how to do the exercises can be found on the site - see “information section” for same)

So, about 110 - 130 odd pushups, in about 12 minutes or so. I cannot also emphasize enough the importance of FORM and BREATHING; do either of these incorrectly, and you might as well not do the routine.

And for those of you that are wondering - yes, I’ve used this routine. Used it in today’s workout, as a matter of fact. . .

And if you can do that without breaking too much of a sweat (though I’ll be honest - I don’t know too many people that can), then no problem. Let me know, and I’ll put together a routine for you that’ll have you puffing in on time - and, it will involve nothing other than pushups.

Bottom line - train your pushups hard, and without fail! The rewards you reap in terms of physical strength, conditioning and fitness will be well worth it.

Rahul

All,

Many trainees often wonder whether it is better to complete their workout by paying paramount attention to form, or by focussing on how fast they finish their reps.

The answer to this is - they are both essential. However, your body will only reap the full benefits of an exercise if it’s done in correct form. If you don’t pay attention to form (and breathing, as well), then you might as well not do the exercise in the first place. Period. Yes, it is THAT important.

Now, am I saying go slow in between reps/sets? No. I am not advocating you complete a set of 100 squats in 30 minutes - that would pretty much be useless again. BUT, and this is important, ALWAYS remember that form is paramount. If correct form means you take a little bit longer to do the exercise, then so be it. Just make sure you aren’t wasting time in between reps/sets, and you’ll do just fine.

I’ll give you an example from my own training. I’ve been doing reverse pushups for a while now, and can crack off between 10-15 at a shot - no big deal, really (again, this is because I have been doing them for a while - when I first started, I could barely get my butt off the ground). However, I have been noticing as of late that I have been “going through the motions” in a way on this exercise, and thereby neglecting perfect form, instead, concentrating on the rep number and the time taken. And, something didn’t quite feel “right” about the exercise later. Sure, my back was being hit, but it wasn’t being hit the same way when I started initially. Today, I did this exercise (along with my other exercises) in letter perfect form. Arms extended fully, pause at the top, then come down slowly in perfect form to the bottom, pause, and go again.

The result?? My triceps are hammered, and my back feels like it’s been worked over - in a GOOD way. And THAT sort of workout is what ultimately leads to gains in strength, rather than simply counting the reps.

A similar case occured with extended arms pushups a while ago. I was focussing more on the reps than the actual movement, and was therefore not getting all the benefits that I should have been out of the exercise. Slowed down, focused more on the movement instead of rep count - and felt it in my muscles in a different, and better way - instantly!

Yes, I know I should be concentrating more on these things - especially given I’m blogging about it on an almost daily basis. But, I’m human too - and need to step back and look at what I’m doing once every so often, just like you do.

So - concentrate on form, first and foremost. Speed is important, but get the form down pat - and, speed will follow shortly.

All for now!

Get fit - FAST!

Rahul