The military pumps are increasingly present in gyms and social networks. Athletes swear by this form of exercise to build up their arms and chest.
This form of push-up, inspired by US military training, helps strengthen the upper body and gain power. But what is the difference with a classic push-up? ?
How to make a military push-up? What tips can you apply to perfect your movement? How do you progress further by using a super-efficient weight training accessory to go beyond your limits? This article tells you all about military pumps!
What is a military pump?
A military push-up emphasizes the pecs, but also the triceps by keeping the elbows tucked in at the sides. This indirectly induces wider hand spacing than with a standard push-up, as it's more about being able to get your chest to touch the floor, and therefore having the strength enough to go that low.
Keeping your elbows tucked in does indeed create more activation in your triceps, even though no decree from the chiefs of staff indicates this in military training! The ability to do push-ups(along with sit-ups and pull-ups) has long been considered an important measure of an athlete'sfitness. We advise you to read: Weighted vest: How to train to gain power?
And rightly so! Push-ups are a great indicator of upper body strength, especially the chest, shoulder and tricep muscles, but also strength and the general stability of your trunk(abdomen and lower back).
How to do a military push-up?
To begin, assume a classic push-up position with your hands about shoulder-width apart. As for the position of your feet, you are free: they can be spaced out or close together. Test both, and see which works best for you. Your body should form a straight line from your shoulders to your ankles.
To perform a military push-up, bend your elbows and lower your whole body towards the floor, until your arms are at a level parallel to the floor, or even lower. This gives a bit more wiggle room and allows you to touch your chest to the floor. You can also read more: Wooden Parallettes: How to use in calisthenics?
You shouldn't let your back sag or arch, and stay straight. Your arms and abs are working. The most difficult part comes now: you have to return to the starting position. Pressing your hands firmly on the ground, you should lift your body upwards until your arms are straight again.
Your body moves as a whole unit and must remain rigid. Imagine Army Fitness Tests requiring two minutes of perfectly executed military push-ups!
Tips for perfecting your military push-ups?
Warming up and stretching
Before you even do a single military push-up, you need to do a proper full-body warm-up. You need to activate your cardio and your arm muscles. For this, we advise you to start with 25 jumping jacks and 10 classic push-ups.
Next, stretch your triceps, chest and shoulders. To do this, place both arms above and behind your head. Grasp your right elbow with your left hand and pull your elbow towards your opposite shoulder. Lean into the pull-up to stretch your back muscles and obliques as well. Switch arms and repeat. A companion article: Warming up before strength training: tips and exercises
Next, grab a bar or wall with one hand, turn and twist your body to feel a stretch between your chest and shoulders. Pull your shoulders back and stick out your chest. Hold for 15 seconds. Switch arms and repeat.
The right movement and the right rhythm
If you really want to surpass yourself with military push-ups and activate your muscles effectively, here are 3 tips to help you do so:
- Go Fast: Do the push-ups as fast as you can. The slower you go, the more gravity will affect your strength. Be careful though, be careful not to speed up to the detriment of your movement form.
- Respect the correct posture: your hands should be about shoulder width apart or slightly wider apart. In addition, too many athletes place their hands too high or too low, which will greatly weaken your push-ups. Your shoulders, wrists and hands should stay in the same alignment.
- Stay on your toes: the cladding position induced by military push-ups also allows you to strengthen your abdominals and lower back. Once you exhaust yourself, you can drop to your knees to complete the workout.
The combination with basic exercises
As we said before, military push-ups are part of the basic exercises for bodyweight muscle strengthening. You can therefore choose to work in the form of a circuit by alternating two or three exercises.
For example, you can perform a pyramid circuit in a limited time: 15 seconds of push-ups then sit-ups, 30 seconds of push-ups then sit-ups, etc. When you reach the end of the timing, do the same thing, but going back down: 1 minute of push-ups then sit-ups, 30 seconds of push-ups then sit-ups, etc. An article that can help you: Top 6 battle rope exercises to build muscle
This form of strength training is challenging and only takes a few minutes. You can incorporate this workout into your exercise routine 3 times a week, or about every 2 days.
What other forms of push-ups can military push-ups be combined with?
Classic push-ups
The Standard Pushup works the chest, triceps, and anterior deltoids, making it one of the most effective exercises for building a strong and powerful upper body .
This is also a staple of all military training, and you should make it part of your routine if you haven't already. To start, lie on your stomach and place your hands under your armpits, slightly wider than shoulder width apart.
Straighten your legs so that your body forms a straight line from your neck to your ankles. Push your hands to extend your arms. Engage your abs and keep your body straight. Lower your chest to the floor, then come back up.We advise you to read: How many push-ups should I do per day to see results?
Perform 10-20 reps, depending on your strength level If you can't do at least 10 reps, reduce your range of motion or start knees.
To add difficulty, increase or decrease the speed. As with military push-ups, the slower you go, the more gravity you feel.
Wide push-ups
The wide push-ups, on the other hand, put more emphasis on your chest. The difference with military and classic push-ups is that you have to keep your hands up to 30 cm away from your shoulders.
Again, engage your abs and lower yourself to the floor. Perform 8-15 reps.
Again, use speed to add challenge to your exercise. If you feel pain in your sternum (the center of your chest) or elsewhere, shorten your range of motion and bring your hands closer together. We also advise you to read: The crossfit weighted bag: How does it work?
How do you increase the difficulty of your military push-ups?
Perhaps you are already a seasoned sportsman, and you are looking for a simple and effective way to spice up your military pumps? Do not search anymore ! Just add a weighted vest to increase your weight and therefore the mass you need to lift with the strength of your muscles.
The ideal is to choose a jacket with adjustable weights, so that it can adapt to all your forms of training and to different exercises. That's why we recommend the Fitness Super-Humain™ 50kg™ Military Weighted Vest. It goes from 0 to 50 kilos thanks to customizable additional loads.
It has been designed for high performance and for athletes who want to challenge themselves, with intense effort. Comfortable and sturdy with a Velcro system to keep it securely in place on your chest, its size adapts to all body types.
So it's a perfect bodybuilding accessory to progress in your military push-ups!
In summary: military pumps
You will understand: military push-ups are effective for strengthening your chest and arms. Very simple to perform, just slightly change the position of your hands compared to standard push-ups, and touch the ground with your chest on each descent.
We advise you to warm up and stretch well beforehand, and to work in the form of a circuit with sit-ups to muscle your abs, essential for the position ducting of pumps.
Besides, it is also beneficial to combine military push-up training with classic or wide push-ups, in order to work harmoniously your upper body.
And if you need an additional level of difficulty, we recommend the Super-Human Fitness™ 50kg™ Military Weighted Vest. With 50 kg more, your military pumps will really challenge you!
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