By Coach Shawn
Push-ups look like a simple movement…
No barbell.
No fancy setup.
Just you your bodyweight and the floor.
“I got this…no problem…”
And yet… Pushups humble us all.
And don’t you dare make the mistake of thinking you’re weak if you can’t do 1 yet or struggle with pushups. Sometimes it’s not even about strength.
There’s more to pushup than being strong.
So what makes them so hard, let’s unpack it and help you improve them.
Pushup are not just an upper body movement
Most people think:
“Push-ups are chest and arms.”
And yeah, that’s a part of it. But the deeper lens is:
Push-ups are a full-body coordination movement, and without full body coordination you’re bound to run into trouble.
To do them well, you need:
1. Core stability and control → squeezed braced midline
2. Shoulder blade control → proper movement and gliding of scapula
3. Glutes and legs engaged → squeezed quads and butt (maintain tightness)
4. Proper technique – ie hand position / movement engagement (hands in correct place, descent in correct place →staying out of those traps, going all the way down, full range, locking out, full range→ strength in full range!)
5. Breathing under tension
If one of those pieces leaks…the whole system breaks down.
This is why someone can bench press decent weight and still struggle with push-ups.
Because the bench removes:
The demand on your core
The need to control your shoulder blades
The requirement to create full-body tension
Push-ups don’t let you hide.
Pushups are about relative strength
Push-ups are a bodyweight movement.
So the question isn’t only:
“Are you strong?”
It’s:
“Are you strong enough to move your body well?”
For many people, a push-up means pressing a large percentage of their body weight.
That’s not light for us.
And when you start stacking reps and volume – 10, 20, 30+ reps over and over, it becomes less about max strength and more about strength stamina and endurance you can repeat.
AND…Under fatigue checking all the boxes we listed above.
Did you forget them already?
Pushups expose what you don’t have
Push-ups are incredibly honest.
They reveal:
1. Shoulder instability
2. Poor scapular control
3. Limited strength through range
4. Lack of core engagement
5. Fatigue tolerance
6. Attention to detail
7. Upper body Strength through variety of reps (1 rep is different than 30)
And generally, most adults spend a lot of time sitting, forward shoulders /posture, living in less-than-ideal positions.
So when we ask the body to stabilize, control, and move well under load, it struggles.
Slowing Down Reveals
Most people move too fast. Not just in push-ups.
In training.
In life.
In their own bodies.
This leads to being in disconnect.
In a pushup…
They drop, bounce, press, repeat… but they’re not really connected to what’s happening.
“Did I reach full range at the bottom?”
“Did I actually lock out at the top?”
Are my ribs staying down?
“Am I braced?” “Are my hips sagging?”
Are you controlling this rep or just getting through it, going through the motions?
That’s a part of why at Railroad, we coach people to slow things down.
Tempo.
Pauses.
Control.
Because speed can hide a lot:
Momentum.
Shortened range of motion.
Dysfunction.
Lack of paying attention to detail (not being IN your body)
= Poor positions.
=Disconnected movement.
Slow push-ups expose a lot – including weaknesses (aka areas to improve)…
Can you actually control your body through the entire rep?
Push-ups are a moving plank
This is the big one.
Push-ups are not just a press.
Think of them as a moving plank.
And most people don’t fully own a strong plank under fatigue while breathing and moving.
So the breakdown isn’t just arms.
It’s the entire system.
How to Get Better at Push-Ups
Easier than you might think.
And no you don’t need to do 100 push-ups a day.
Actually, for most people, that’s unnecessary and becomes an overuse problem/issue.
You need better awareness, intention and action.
Here it is:
Here are 10 Tips on how
1. Own the Tall Plank
If your plank leaks, your push-up leaks.
Build your Core strength.
:30 second holds. Work to :60 holds.
2. Strengthen your Glutes.
In a pushup you are squeezing your butt and legs.
This stabilization supports body Control.
2-3 sets of :20 glute bridges into :10 glute bridge hold.
3. Train scap push-ups
This supports shoulder function.
Better control = stronger, healthier pressing.
3 sets of 10-12 reps a day. Daily.
4. Incorporate Isometric holds
Hold the Top position. :15
Hold the Middle. :10
Hold Bottom. :05
If you can’t hold it, you don’t own it.
Build your isometric strength.
5. Slow down (negatives aka eccentrics)
Perform negatives only 3–5 sec down.
Control everything.
6. EASY low rep Practice
Try this…
1-5 perfect reps on the hour x8 hours.
Quality > quantity.
This is one of the fastest and easiest ways to improve bodyweight strength.
7. Change the variation
Do a wall pushups. A knee pushup.
Incline surface. Feet elevated. Stagger hands.
8. Build your core daily
Stronger trunk = stronger push-ups.
Planks.
Side planks.
Carries.
Bear Crawls.
9. Increase dynamic stability and core strength
Alternating shoulder taps from the top of a pushup are a great tool.
2-3 sets of 20 reps pausing 2-3 sec on each hold. You’re welcome.
10. Be consistent
If you really want 1 or 10 or 20, you have got to be consistent.
Earn your hard work. Be committed.
Pushup 101
Push-ups are hard because they ask a lot.
Strength. Stability. Coordination. Endurance. Control.
All at once.
Most training separates those qualities.
We don’t.
And that’s exactly why you feel it.
If push-ups are hard for you…Good.
That means there’s something there worth building.
And we’ll build it.
And now you know more than you did before on how to improve them.
Loving you,
Coach Shawn