Static Pushup Holds

[hagerwf]

A couple months back I posted a thread on AMM talking about static pushup holds.  A couple of times per week I do the following:  Pushup Hold in Full position 3x1-minute, Pushup hold in 1/2 position 3x30-45 second, pushup hold in low position (3x20-30 seconds).  I take a 1 minute break between each set.

I made this a little more difficult yesterday by trying the low position holds with my feet on the first step of a staircase.  managed to do 3x30 seconds but was really a killer.  I had preceded this with 3x1-minute standard planks.

To add a dynamic (there's that word again) aspect to this workout, try to squeeze out a slow pushup or two at the end of each set.

Do this and women's heads will be turning (actually jerking) as you walk by.  Occasionally thry might even fall off their elliptical exercise machines.

[Bruce Tackett]

Well, I fell off my elliptical just reading this!

So, do you find this to be a more effective method than just doing ordinary dynamic pushups? Strength? Muscle building?

BTW, your posting of Dynamic Isometrics, even though it did create a firestorm of nit-picking, did have beneficial consequences. I've added a couple of those to my experimental isometrics routine. So, from the bottom of my achy breaky heart, I thank you!

[hagerwf]

Nov 8, 2017 17:45:10 GMT Bruce Tackett said:

Well, I fell off my elliptical just reading this!

So, do you find this to be a more effective method than just doing ordinary dynamic pushups? Strength? Muscle building?

BTW, your posting of Dynamic Isometrics, even though it did create a firestorm of nit-picking, did have beneficial consequences. I've added a couple of those to my experimental isometrics routine. So, from the bottom of my achy breaky heart, I thank you!

Bruce, the main benefit for me is the static holds are much easier on my joints.  I have chronic elbow pain and try to avoid doing too many regular pushups.  An interesting thing is that I have "tested" myself with regular pushups and I can still do the same max reps as I did a couple of months back.

[Bruce Tackett]

This is good to know. I have had a problem with my right shoulder for years, and within the last few months it has finally prevented me from doing pushups. Funny thing, though, I can do push out chest iso holds with no problem. I suppose it's the movement that hurts my shoulder. Well, in 7 1/2 more weeks I'll give your static pushups a shot.

I can, however do pushups at about an 18" height with my hands close together and my elbows flared out. I call this Dynamic Flare.

[TexasRanger]

Nov 8, 2017 17:05:44 GMT hagerwf said:

A couple months back I posted a thread on AMM talking about static pushup holds.  A couple of times per week I do the following:  Pushup Hold in Full position 3x1-minute, Pushup hold in 1/2 position 3x30-45 second, pushup hold in low position (3x20-30 seconds).  I take a 1 minute break between each set.

I made this a little more difficult yesterday by trying the low position holds with my feet on the first step of a staircase.  managed to do 3x30 seconds but was really a killer.  I had preceded this with 3x1-minute standard planks.

To add a dynamic (there's that word again) aspect to this workout, try to squeeze out a slow pushup or two at the end of each set.

Do this and women's heads will be turning (actually jerking) as you walk by.  Occasionally thry might even fall off their elliptical exercise machines.

Are you referring to the post that has been on the Push Ups board from Ellington Darden's Classic X site where the guy said he does two sets of SuperSlow pushups and still maintains a physique appealing to the ladies on the beach? 

I have been doing push-ups for years with good results especially when I
apply the principles of training in a slow, controlled manner to failure
as you have long espoused. In fact, for several years I have made
push-ups the core of my upper body workout. I do nothing else for my
pecs, triceps, and deltoids. Of course, this does not give me the body
to be able to enter bodybuilding contests, but I have no desire to and
at age 43 it enables me to keep a respectable physique that can still
turn the heads of the ladies at the beach.

My normal push-up routine consists of doing 2 sets of 15-20 push-ups 3
times a week at the pace of 4 seconds up, 4 seconds down as you instruct
in "Living Longer Stronger." I usually reach failure by the end of the
second set. Sometimes I do the push-ups in the standard Super Slow
protocol of 5 seconds down, 10 seconds up. This causes me to reach
failure within one set. I have also experimented with going real, real
slow such as 30 seconds down, 30 seconds up in order to make the
push-ups even tougher. My favorite push-up workout consists of doing
three-point push-ups at a 10 seconds up, 10 seconds down pace. I bet
that just one set of 10 of these would be a challenging workout for even
the most dedicated weight trainee.

What I like the most about push-ups is that they are the ultimate cost
effective workout and I can do them anytime, anyplace. It also makes me
feel good that it connects me to the past, to a time long before there
were such things as barbells or Nautilus machines and if a man wanted to
develop his upper body he had to use the only resistance available ?
his own body weight. I once read that Ceasar's soldiers trained with
push-ups. Push-ups are the ultimate retro workout. I wish you would
encourage more people to take them seriously.

[TexasRanger]

Nov 8, 2017 18:43:52 GMT Bruce Tackett said:

This is good to know. I have had a problem with my right shoulder for years, and within the last few months it has finally prevented me from doing pushups. Funny thing, though, I can do push out chest iso holds with no problem. I suppose it's the movement that hurts my shoulder. Well, in 7 1/2 more weeks I'll give your static pushups a shot.

I can, however do pushups at about an 18" height with my hands close together and my elbows flared out. I call this Dynamic Flare.

Versus Ric Flair? 

(JP must be envious of Ric's history...his sordid tales of being the Johnny Holmes of Minneapolis in his 20s and 30s pale in comparsion... ) 

[Deleted]

When I was doing some Systema, we had to hold a 1/2 way push-up for 2 mins on our k-nuckles on bare concrete, 9 mins was considered hard-core.  Focus was on the breathing. Also wall wide squat hold with heels against the wall and 45 degree sit-up holds.

[gruntbrain]

Static holds of all kinds serve as a reminder that gravity is your friend and training partner. Remember to thank the Intelligent Designer for creating gravity .

[Mr Average]

Nov 8, 2017 18:53:11 GMT TexasRanger said:

Nov 8, 2017 17:05:44 GMT hagerwf said:

A couple months back I posted a thread on AMM talking about static pushup holds.  A couple of times per week I do the following:  Pushup Hold in Full position 3x1-minute, Pushup hold in 1/2 position 3x30-45 second, pushup hold in low position (3x20-30 seconds).  I take a 1 minute break between each set.

I made this a little more difficult yesterday by trying the low position holds with my feet on the first step of a staircase.  managed to do 3x30 seconds but was really a killer.  I had preceded this with 3x1-minute standard planks.

To add a dynamic (there's that word again) aspect to this workout, try to squeeze out a slow pushup or two at the end of each set.

Do this and women's heads will be turning (actually jerking) as you walk by.  Occasionally thry might even fall off their elliptical exercise machines.

Are you referring to the post that has been on the Push Ups board from Ellington Darden's Classic X site where the guy said he does two sets of SuperSlow pushups and still maintains a physique appealing to the ladies on the beach? 

I have been doing push-ups for years with good results especially when I
apply the principles of training in a slow, controlled manner to failure
as you have long espoused. In fact, for several years I have made
push-ups the core of my upper body workout. I do nothing else for my
pecs, triceps, and deltoids. Of course, this does not give me the body
to be able to enter bodybuilding contests, but I have no desire to and
at age 43 it enables me to keep a respectable physique that can still
turn the heads of the ladies at the beach.

My normal push-up routine consists of doing 2 sets of 15-20 push-ups 3
times a week at the pace of 4 seconds up, 4 seconds down as you instruct
in "Living Longer Stronger." I usually reach failure by the end of the
second set. Sometimes I do the push-ups in the standard Super Slow
protocol of 5 seconds down, 10 seconds up. This causes me to reach
failure within one set. I have also experimented with going real, real
slow such as 30 seconds down, 30 seconds up in order to make the
push-ups even tougher. My favorite push-up workout consists of doing
three-point push-ups at a 10 seconds up, 10 seconds down pace. I bet
that just one set of 10 of these would be a challenging workout for even
the most dedicated weight trainee.

What I like the most about push-ups is that they are the ultimate cost
effective workout and I can do them anytime, anyplace. It also makes me
feel good that it connects me to the past, to a time long before there
were such things as barbells or Nautilus machines and if a man wanted to
develop his upper body he had to use the only resistance available ?
his own body weight. I once read that Ceasar's soldiers trained with
push-ups. Push-ups are the ultimate retro workout. I wish you would
encourage more people to take them seriously.

So a lithe sculptured physique then? (rofl)  Does he also not train his legs, because they may get tooooooooooooooo big?  

[hagerwf]

Nov 8, 2017 18:53:11 GMT TexasRanger said:

Nov 8, 2017 17:05:44 GMT hagerwf said:

A couple months back I posted a thread on AMM talking about static pushup holds.  A couple of times per week I do the following:  Pushup Hold in Full position 3x1-minute, Pushup hold in 1/2 position 3x30-45 second, pushup hold in low position (3x20-30 seconds).  I take a 1 minute break between each set.

I made this a little more difficult yesterday by trying the low position holds with my feet on the first step of a staircase.  managed to do 3x30 seconds but was really a killer.  I had preceded this with 3x1-minute standard planks.

To add a dynamic (there's that word again) aspect to this workout, try to squeeze out a slow pushup or two at the end of each set.

Do this and women's heads will be turning (actually jerking) as you walk by.  Occasionally thry might even fall off their elliptical exercise machines.

Are you referring to the post that has been on the Push Ups board from Ellington Darden's Classic X site where the guy said he does two sets of SuperSlow pushups and still maintains a physique appealing to the ladies on the beach? 

I have been doing push-ups for years with good results especially when I
apply the principles of training in a slow, controlled manner to failure
as you have long espoused. In fact, for several years I have made
push-ups the core of my upper body workout. I do nothing else for my
pecs, triceps, and deltoids. Of course, this does not give me the body
to be able to enter bodybuilding contests, but I have no desire to and
at age 43 it enables me to keep a respectable physique that can still
turn the heads of the ladies at the beach.

My normal push-up routine consists of doing 2 sets of 15-20 push-ups 3
times a week at the pace of 4 seconds up, 4 seconds down as you instruct
in "Living Longer Stronger." I usually reach failure by the end of the
second set. Sometimes I do the push-ups in the standard Super Slow
protocol of 5 seconds down, 10 seconds up. This causes me to reach
failure within one set. I have also experimented with going real, real
slow such as 30 seconds down, 30 seconds up in order to make the
push-ups even tougher. My favorite push-up workout consists of doing
three-point push-ups at a 10 seconds up, 10 seconds down pace. I bet
that just one set of 10 of these would be a challenging workout for even
the most dedicated weight trainee.

What I like the most about push-ups is that they are the ultimate cost
effective workout and I can do them anytime, anyplace. It also makes me
feel good that it connects me to the past, to a time long before there
were such things as barbells or Nautilus machines and if a man wanted to
develop his upper body he had to use the only resistance available ?
his own body weight. I once read that Ceasar's soldiers trained with
push-ups. Push-ups are the ultimate retro workout. I wish you would
encourage more people to take them seriously.

TR, this is a reference to a post Newton made on the Transformetrics forum years ago.

transformetrics.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3004&highlight=fell&page=3

Anything I can do to help and encourage others I want to do. I LOVE helping others. I also like the idea of this being about LIFE TIME HEALTH and FITNESS. Too, I get amused periodically when I read or run across someone who says this stuff doesn't work and that you have to lift weights. Oh really? I guess that is why when I walked down the sidewalk in front of a 24 hour fitness center the other day in street clothes, inside the gym heads were turning (actually jerking) around as I passed. One lady almost fell off the eliptical rider she was on.



I might not be the best built guy on the planet, and I don't look like a magazine bodybuilder, but I do have a look, thanks to Tranformetrics, that makes me stand out. I call it the Greek sculpted look. I look fit, healthy and strong with a strong dose of aesthetics. The best part about it is; anyone can partake of the same type of training and look very similar within the dictates of their individual frames. Guys like Free, Illuvitar, the Forystek brothers, Caleb Hoot, Iso-Rez, Nathan, Joe Justice and many many others have proven this. 

[TexasRanger]

Hager - I was hoping that wasn't the case...

[Michael]

Nov 8, 2017 17:05:44 GMT hagerwf said:

A couple months back I posted a thread on AMM talking about static pushup holds.  A couple of times per week I do the following:  Pushup Hold in Full position 3x1-minute, Pushup hold in 1/2 position 3x30-45 second, pushup hold in low position (3x20-30 seconds).  I take a 1 minute break between each set.

I made this a little more difficult yesterday by trying the low position holds with my feet on the first step of a staircase.  managed to do 3x30 seconds but was really a killer.  I had preceded this with 3x1-minute standard planks.

To add a dynamic (there's that word again) aspect to this workout, try to squeeze out a slow pushup or two at the end of each set.

Nice Hagerwf! Thanks.

[fatjake]

Nov 8, 2017 19:32:25 GMT @hawkwind said:

When I was doing some Systema, we had to hold a 1/2 way push-up for 2 mins on our k-nuckles on bare concrete, 9 mins was considered hard-core.  Focus was on the breathing. Also wall wide squat hold with heels against the wall and 45 degree sit-up holds.

Systema gets a lot of ridicule (most of it well deserved) from many quarters. But I have to say I do like a lot of the health stuff they practice, Steve Maxwell goes on about the Systema fitness/health stuff a lot. The guy in that video is deceptively strong, especially for a guy named Sharon

[mr potatohead]

fatjake said: The guy in that video is deceptively strong, especially for a guy named Sharon.

Oxymoronic, isn't it, m8?

[BigBruvOfEnglandUK]

Nov 8, 2017 17:05:44 GMT hagerwf said:

Do this and women's heads will be turning (actually jerking) as you walk by.  Occasionally thry might even fall off their elliptical exercise machines.

. I love those old in-jokes.