Push ups .... I'm stuck!

Nice Adriano!

Yeah i must looked like you a bit with loud breathing

Last reps i had to engage my forearms so hard to get the pressure to push.

Adriano, interesting is that at the top of your push up you are internally rotating your arms - elbow pits facing each other (it also looks a bit like your right arm doesn't get fully straight sometimes, but it may be that camera angle). Most of people rotate arms opposite direction at the top to fully extend them, so basically that elbow pit faces forward. Your way feels bit awkward and you can clearly see what effect it has on your shoulder at the top of repetition (see that change of shoulder alignment esp as you get tired).

piotro said:

Adriano, interesting is that at the top of your push up you are internally rotating your arms - elbow pits facing each other (it also looks a bit like your right arm doesn't get fully straight sometimes, but it may be that camera angle).

I was about to ask the same.

Any difference in doing that?

maolu said:

I was about to ask the same.

Any difference in doing that?

Bit more awkward to get full elbow extension/opening and that unnecessary shoulder move/alignment at the top when you internally rotate arms, clearly seen in example above.

Looking at Adriano's again, it looks to me that this rotation may be an attempt to regain scapula protraction at the top. Now, during i.e. planche (scapula protraction) you wouldn't be rotating them internally, rather externally (that would also help getting lats involved a bit)

just a question by the way: when doing push us and all progressions of them, could i do them instead of flat hands with widespread fingers like here, to get stronger forearms and fingers at one blow?

William said:

just a question by the way: when doing push us and all progressions of them, could i do them instead of flat hands with widespread fingers like here, to get stronger forearms and fingers at one blow?

Refer H1 for for these progressions...

William said:

just a question by the way: when doing push us and all progressions of them, could i do them instead of flat hands with widespread fingers like here, to get stronger forearms and fingers at one blow?

Be careful with that, adding an extra load on your forearm flexors could give you golfer's elbow. If you choose to do it, perhaps just add fingertips for one extra pushup per week. Slow is key.

Personally I prefer static holds for finger training; an easy way is to add a hold at the end of your pushup sets

In regarding to Adrianos video I too find it much easier and more natural to rotate my shoulders inwards when doing push-ups and protraction with hands facing forward but if I rotate my hands out then I find it more natural to externally rotate.

I am experiencing some success with going back a bit and now have quite steady progress. I now do pushups with an incline, not as high as the one I did mastery for PE1 with, maybe 20cm lower. When I master this I will do the same thing but with only about 20 cm incline and then go back to the full PE2 version.

This has helped me focus more on technique and pec activation which is a weakness of mine, I get much more pump in my pecs now and the volume I get I hope will be useful when going back to PE2.

Tomas Johansson said:

I am experiencing some success with going back a bit and now have quite steady progress. I now do pushups with an incline, not as high as the one I did mastery for PE1 with, maybe 20cm lower. When I master this I will do the same thing but with only about 20 cm incline and then go back to the full PE2 version.

 

This has helped me focus more on technique and pec activation which is a weakness of mine, I get much more pump in my pecs now and the volume I get I hope will be useful when going back to PE2.

Sounds like we're using exactly the same approach Tomas. I decided to do this since hitting (and rebounding many times off of) a wall at 5x9/10 floor pushups. I went all the way back to hip height incline pushups, made sure I could master that then dropped the height a bit and re-tested. 5 drops and a month and a half later, I'm now doing 5x15 30cm from the floor. During this time I made sure that I was always working in the high end of the desired rep range (12-15 reps), as I think part of the problem is failing mentally- living in this rep range should (hopefully) make me more prepared when I make it down to the floor again. 

Like you, I'm thinking one more drop to 15-20cm from the floor before trying PE2 again. See you at the finish in a month or two... 

Why instead of reduce the cm dont you go straight to week 1 of PE2? 3x3, c'mon, I don't think you're out of shape as much. The real deal is on the floor, remember that

I add finger tip sets in with my other H1 work.

Though I keep my fingers bent as opposed to flexing backwards like Al there. And I squeeze my fingers when I push up, like I'm trying to tear a chunk out of the ground.

For regular push ups, I actually started to rotate the hands out a fair bit, with my thumbs pointing more towards my head. Like the position they would be in for a p-bar dip. I find it locks in my triceps and forces them to work more. I found when I get tired in a more tradition hand placement, my elbows tend to rise towards my ears and my form gets weird. I'd do the reps, but the critical muscles weren't as involved. When I lock out at the top, the pit of my elbow points forward like in a planche lean.

Doing them like this is what got me to mastery.

Adriano Augusto said:

Why instead of reduce the cm dont you go straight to week 1 of PE2? 3x3, c'mon, I don't think you're out of shape as much. The real deal is on the floor, remember that

When I started F1 some 7 months back I could already do 5x7 pushups with course form (more with less strict form of course ). Started from the beginning and stalled trying to get 5x12. Repeated over and over and then again completely from the beginning, but continued to stall trying to get 5x12, never getting beyond 5x10.

Figured it was time to do things a little differently. It may all be a very bad idea, but I'm actually making measurable progress this way, whereas before I was simply hitting a wall over and over 

ajgregory said:

When I started F1 some 7 months back I could already do 5x7 pushups with course form (more with less strict form of course ). Started from the beginning and stalled trying to get 5x12. Repeated over and over and then again completely from the beginning, but continued to stall trying to get 5x12, never getting beyond 5x10.

 

Figured it was time to do things a little differently. It may all be a very bad idea, but I'm actually making measurable progress this way, whereas before I was simply hitting a wall over and over 

Funny, same with me, was at about 4x12 at PE2 and wasn't able to add another rep after several minicycles. Now I like you am making measurable progress so I will stick with this untli coach says stop.

The simplest approach would just be to add a single pushup for every workout. Doesn't matter which set, just add one. When the volume is up there you can always rearrange the sets. I worked up to something like 20-18-15-12-11. From there it was not too hard to do 5x15.

Adriano Augusto said:

Why instead of reduce the cm dont you go straight to week 1 of PE2? 3x3, c'mon, I don't think you're out of shape as much. The real deal is on the floor, remember that

Actually this is my approach now. I think the problem is real strength and form for me. Correcting the form (continual) and working the low weeks for longer to actually build the strength (low tempo especially in the difficult sections, good rom/form), rather than just one cycle and continuing - then hitting the wall again at around 5x9s. 

Just experiments.

Success!

After 11 full months on HBP/PE2 I finally got mastery today. I did mastery for these about 7 months ago, but questioned my form, and decided to go back to week 9, and then spent 7 months trying to get from 4x12 to 5x15 (with good form). Regressed so many times, and so many times it just seemed like I was so close to 4x15 but it was and would always be impossible. But, I kept at it, trying to at least get 1 extra total rep each workout (which because of regressions I couldn't do always), and this went on for what seemed like foreeeeeeever, and suddenly BAM! today I did 5x15r.

So, just wanted to say there is light at the end of the tunnel, and it does seem that sometimes progression is not linear at all.

Now just give me a few weeks before I start posting threads complaining about how much PPP's suck and I'll never get 5x15r.

HamdiC said:

Now just give me a few weeks before I start posting threads complaining about how much PPP's suck and I'll never get 5x15r.

You won't have to. You'll only need 5x10r

I am going to put this on my fridge for inspiration every time I do RC. 

I am glad to see mention of the non-linear aspect of progress.  

Today was 

HamdiC said:

Success!

 

After 11 full months on HBP/PE2 I finally got mastery today. I did mastery for these about 7 months ago, but questioned my form, and decided to go back to week 9, and then spent 7 months trying to get from 4x12 to 5x15 (with good form). Regressed so many times, and so many times it just seemed like I was so close to 4x15 but it was and would always be impossible. But, I kept at it, trying to at least get 1 extra total rep each workout (which because of regressions I couldn't do always), and this went on for what seemed like foreeeeeeever, and suddenly BAM! today I did 5x15r.

 

So, just wanted to say there is light at the end of the tunnel, and it does seem that sometimes progression is not linear at all.

 

Now just give me a few weeks before I start posting threads complaining about how much PPP's suck and I'll never get 5x15r.

Hmms said:

You won't have to. You'll only need 5x10r

Hey, you're right.

So I'm assuming it means that it sucks 50% less? Is that they way it works?

Jennifer said:

I am going to put this on my fridge for inspiration every time I do RC. 

I am glad to see mention of the non-linear aspect of progress.  

Today was 

I feel your pain Jennifer.

I've been at RC/PE3, stuck between weeks 8-9 for about 6 months now; stuck at MN/PE2 for 12 months; and stuck at SL/PE3 trying to get from 4x24 to 4x30 for the past 5 months. Some weeks it's just too much to bear, going through yet another workout at the same reps or less. Push-ups were particularly stubborn, but it just suddenly broke through. One other thing I did was just study it intensly... reading other descriptions of the exercises from other places and people, watching other videos, seeing how I can make adjustments to what muscles are working and in what way. But yeah, the big thing is that I see now how things can be stuck for a loooooong time and then suddenly progress a bit.

HamdiC said:

Hey, you're right.

 

So I'm assuming it means that it sucks 50% less? Is that they way it works?

Oh no, they suck way more.  Give one a go now, just to see what you'll be up against...

Ppp really do suck but when the reps are low I progress through the strength portion fast. The endurance is a killer. I think ppp 5x10 will be a lot faster for me than push-ups 5x15.