Stepping Up Your Body-Weight Game

Getting great at pushups is all well and good, and will serve you well in the long run, but to really get the most bang for your chest-building buck, you need a few more go-to exercises. These are definitely more advanced, but are worth learning and persevering with in your pursuit of perfect pecs.

Decline Pushup

This is performed exactly the same as a normal pushup, using all the same technique cues, but with your feet placed on a box or bench. This increases the range of motion, making for a tougher pushup.

Ring Pushups

Want to up your pushup performance even further?

Get hold of a pair of gymnastic rings and perform your pushups on those. The instability and the elevation off the floor makes these a seriously tough move. Be warned – you should be competent at decline pushups before trying these. Ideally you should be able to perform at least 15 perfect decline pushups before trying the rings.

Clap Pushups

This that guy in your gym who does pushups with a clap at the top looks really cool? That could be you.

Start with your hands on a box, push up, clap, then land with your hands on the floor. Once you’re okay with these, start with your hands on the floor. You can progress these by adding in an extra clap, or even trying a clap round the back, or wearing a weight vest.

These are designed to build power, so keep your reps low, but quality high. Five to eight sets of three to five reps is ideal.

Dips

Dips may be seen by most as a triceps builder, but they’re brilliant for your chest too.

The regular parallel bar dip hits your pecs, but to make it more chest-orientated, use a slightly wider grip, and let your elbows flare out just a touch throughout the movement.  A slight forward lean will also take some of the tension away from your tris, and transfer it onto your chest too.

Ring Dips

In the same vein as ring pushups, ring dips add instability. You can get a great stretch across your pecs in the bottom position, but once again, don’t take these lightly. Even the strongest, most advanced trainee will struggle with ring dips at first. Get your ring pushups up to 10 per set before you attempt ring dips.

Floor Flyes

You don’t need a bench and dumbbells to do flyes.

Assume a pushup position with each hand on a duster, cloth or towel. (You’ll need a slippery floor for this – ie. Not carpet.)

Let your hands slide out to the sides, while you lower your torso to the ground as you would for a pushup. Go as wide as you can with your hands, then squeeze your pecs to bring your arms back to the start position. These are the toughest move of the lot!

Chest Squeeze

The chest squeeze is a simple exercise where you stand with feet shoulder-width apart and clasp your hands together in front of your chest.

The goal is to squeeze your palms together as forcefully as possible, engaging your chest muscles. Hold the contraction for a few seconds, then release.

This exercise helps strengthen the chest muscles and can be done anywhere without the need for equipment.

See Also: Push-ups For Strength

Isometric Chest Contractions

Isometric chest contractions are a muscle-strengthening exercise that focuses on the chest muscles without any movement.

To perform this exercise, start by standing upright with your feet shoulder-width apart. Next, press your palms together in front of your chest, positioning them so that the palms are touching, and your fingers point straight ahead. Now, push your palms together as hard as possible, engaging the chest muscles while keeping your arms stationary. Hold this contraction for about 20-30 seconds, then release.

This exercise can be repeated for multiple sets and helps develop chest strength and muscle endurance while also promoting better muscle control and mind-muscle connection.

By now you can see how not only can body-weight chest exercises provide an alternative when you don’t have access to weights every now and again – they can actually be just as effective as pumping the iron.