Do you struggle with performing narrow push-ups? Do you often find yourself flaring your elbows outwards, causing strain and discomfort in your shoulders? Don’t worry, you’re not alone. Many people face this issue due to poor technique or lack of strength. It’s completely normal to struggle with certain exercises, especially when starting out. But the good news is that there are ways to improve your form and build up your strength. In this blog post, we will provide you with tips and tricks to perfect your narrow push-up form and avoid common mistakes. So, let’s dive in and strengthen those arms!
Narrow Push Up Summary
- Primary Muscles: Pectoralis Major – Sternal
- Secondary Muscles: Deltoid – Anterior, Pectoralis Major – Clavicular, and Triceps Brachii
- Equipment: Body Weight
- Mechanics Type: Compound
- Force: Push
- Utility: Basic or Auxiliary
Narrow Push Up Instructions
- Get down in a prone pushup position with your hands narrower than shoulder width and your elbows in.
- Lower your body to the floor by bending your arms and keeping your elbows close to your body.
- Raise your body off the floor by pressing with your arms and keep your body straight.
- Continue your Narrow Push Up for a full set.
Video Tutorial
Narrow Push Up Muscles
Target (Agonist)
- Pectoralis Major – Sternal
Synergists
- Deltoid – Anterior
- Pectoralis Major – Clavicular
- Triceps Brachii
Dynamic Stabilizers
- Biceps Brachii – Short Head
Stabilizers
- None
Antagonist Stabilizers
Benefits of Narrow Push Up
The Narrow Push Up is an excellent exercise for targeting the pectoralis major – sternal muscle. This exercise helps to increase strength, stability and range of motion in the chest, which can help to improve posture and reduce the risk of shoulder and back injuries. The narrow push up also works the triceps, anterior deltoids and core muscles, allowing for a full body workout that can help to improve overall fitness. Additionally, this exercise helps to build lean muscle mass, which can help to increase metabolism and calorie burning potential.
Tips for Performing Narrow Push Up
Your at the right place if you’re motivated to enhance your narrow push up execution. Using these tips can allow you to maximize the advantages of this amazing exercise. Concurrently with building your chest muscles, increasing mobility, and even a reduced possibility of injury can all be accomplished with this exercise. Let’s get started and see what these tips can accomplish for you.
- Place your hands Shoulder-Width Apart: Placing your hands shoulder-width apart helps you to maintain proper form and reduces the risk of injury. This will also ensure that you are targeting the right muscles, helping you to get the most out of your exercise.
- Keep Your Core Engaged: Engaging your core helps to keep your body in a straight line, ensuring that you are using the correct muscles and getting the most out of each repetition. This also helps to reduce the risk of injury.
- Don’t Forget To Breathe: Focusing on your breathing helps to keep your body and mind relaxed, allowing you to perform each repetition with maximum efficiency. Remember to exhale as you push up and inhale as you lower yourself back down.
Benefits and Tips Video
Frequent Mistakes To Avoid
When executing narrow push up, avoiding typical errors is usually the difference between an effective workout and a debilitating injury. From bad form to not engaging your core, these errors can reduce the productiveness of the exercise and may even put you at risk for injury. But relax, it’s not as challenging as it might seem. By knowing the errors to avert and taking the appropriate actions, you can execute the activity securely and successfully. So it is time for you to maximize your results from this exercise and experience the advantages of a successful workout.
- Not keeping the elbows close to the body when performing the push-up: Keeping the elbows too wide can decrease the difficulty of the exercise and provide less of a challenge for the muscles.
- Not using a full range of motion: Not using a full range of motion means that the muscles are not being fully activated, so you won’t get as much benefit from the exercise.
- Allowing the lower back to sag: If the lower back sags during a narrow push-up, it can put strain on the spine and cause lower back pain. It is important to keep your core engaged and maintain a straight line from head to toe during the exercise.
Find More Bodyweight Exercises Here
Variations and Complementary Exercises
There are several variations, complementary, and alternative exercises that can be performed to supplement the narrow push up. These exercises target the same muscle groups as the narrow push up, and can be used to increase intensity or to add variety.
Push Up
The Push Up is a classic exercise that is a great alternative or complementary exercise to the Narrow Push Up. It works the chest, shoulders, triceps, and core muscles to help improve strength and stability. The Push Up is performed by starting in a plank position and then lowering your body to the ground while maintaining a straight line from head to toe. The movement is then reversed by pushing up and returning to the starting position. The Push Up can be modified to vary the difficulty level, making it suitable for all fitness levels. It can also be used as part of a circuit training program to help improve overall muscular strength.
Push Up On Grips
Push Up On Grips is a great complementary or alternative exercise for the Narrow Push Up. This exercise requires you to place your hands on two handles that are placed shoulder-width apart, and then lower your body until your chest touches the handles. This exercise works the chest, shoulders, triceps, and core muscles in a similar way to the Narrow Push Up, but it allows for greater range of motion and more stability. It also helps to target more specific muscle groups, such as the lats and rotator cuff muscles. Push Up On Grips is a great way to challenge yourself further if you feel comfortable with the Narrow Push Up exercise.
Push-Ups With Bands
Push-Ups With Bands is a great complementary or alternative exercise to the Narrow Push Up. It is a variation on the classic push-up that adds resistance with bands. The bands add an extra challenge to the push-up movement, forcing the user to work harder than they would with a traditional push-up. As a result, the user will get a more intense workout and improve their core strength. This exercise can also be used to target certain muscle groups, like the chest and triceps, allowing for a more focused workout. Push-Ups With Bands is a great way to mix up your fitness routine and make sure you are getting the most out of your workouts.
Check Out These Top Bodyweight Exercises
Superman Push Up
Superman Push Up is a great complementary or alternative exercise to the Narrow Push Up. This exercise strengthens the same muscles as the Narrow Push Up but with a different focus. With the Superman Push Up, the arms and back are targeted instead of the chest. The wide grip of this exercise helps to increase the range of motion and the resistance on the arms, shoulders, and back. This exercise can also help to improve posture and stability in the core, making it a great exercise to add to any workout.
Wide Push Up
Wide Push Up is an alternative to Narrow Push Up that targets the same muscles but with a wider range of motion. This exercise puts more emphasis on the chest and shoulder muscles, as the arms are spread farther apart than in a Narrow Push Up. It also allows for a deeper range of motion, allowing for a greater burn and toning of the chest and shoulder muscles. In addition, Wide Push Up can help to improve overall posture, as it works the core and helps to strengthen the back muscles.
Decline Push Up
The Decline Push Up is an exercise that can be used as a complementary or alternative exercise to the Narrow Push Up. This exercise works the same muscles and is performed in the same manner as the Narrow Push Up, except that the hands are placed on an elevated surface such as a bench, step, or box. This increases the intensity of the exercise and challenges the chest, shoulder, and triceps muscles more than a standard push up. Additionally, by elevating the hands, Decline Push Ups can target the lower chest more effectively than Narrow Push Ups. This makes Decline Push Ups a great alternative or complementary exercise to the Narrow Push Up for those who want to add variety to their workouts.
Find More Chest Exercises Here
Opposing Complementary Exercises
Additionally, to complement the narrow push up exercise, you can incorporate a few exercises that target the opposing muscle groups. These exercises will help to ensure that your body is balanced and can help to prevent injury. The following exercises are recommended:
Dumbbell Bent Over Row
The Dumbbell Bent Over Row is a great exercise to complement the Narrow Push Up. It works the opposing muscle group, the back, and helps to create a balanced upper body workout. This exercise involves holding two dumbbells in each hand while bending at the waist and keeping the back straight. The arms are then raised up to the side, towards the chest in a rowing motion, and then lowered back down. This exercise helps to strengthen the upper back and shoulders while also increasing overall core stability.
Dumbbell Palm Rotational Bent Over Row
The Dumbbell Palm Rotational Bent Over Row is an excellent complement to the Narrow Push Up exercise, as it works the opposing muscle groups. This exercise targets the back and shoulder muscles, while the Narrow Push Up targets the chest and arms. The Dumbbell Palm Rotational Bent Over Row requires you to hold a dumbbell in each hand with palms facing in. While keeping your torso bent over at a 45-degree angle, rotate your wrists outward so that your palms are facing up. Squeeze your shoulder blades together and row the dumbbells up towards your chest. This exercise helps build strength in your upper back, shoulders, and arms and allows you to target different muscle groups than those used in the Narrow Push Up.
Dumbbell Supported One Arm Row
The Dumbbell Supported One Arm Row is an excellent exercise to pair with the Narrow Push Up. This exercise works the opposing muscle groups in your back, chest, and arms. With the Dumbbell Supported One Arm Row, you use one arm to pull a weight toward your chest while keeping your back and core engaged. This will help strengthen and tone your back muscles, which are the opposite of the chest muscles that are used during a Narrow Push Up. Both exercises will help build strength and stability throughout your upper body.
Get Toned and Strong with Narrow Push-Ups!
If you’re looking to tone and strengthen your upper body, narrow push-ups are definitely worth adding to your fitness routine. By keeping your hands closer together, this modification of the classic push-up targets your triceps and chest muscles more effectively. Plus, because they’re a bodyweight exercise, you can do them anywhere, anytime – no gym or equipment required! Just remember to engage your core and keep your back straight to get the most out of each rep.
References: Wikipedia | ExRx.net | PubMed.gov | Comprehensive List of Chest Bodyweight Exercises
