Great coaches and trainers don’t steal. They just take something that was already there and name it after themselves. Yoga too pagan-y for you then, how about mobility? Circuit training too YMCA-y for you then how about CrossFit? Dancing too dance-y for you then how about Zumba? CrossFit too CrossFit-y for you then how about F45? We could go on forever because it does go on forever.

During the Great Pandemic of 2020, however, coaches and trainers have been left in the dust by one simple invention that seemingly came out of nowhere. No barbells, no problem. No dumbbells, no problem. No kettlebells, no problem. You have a floor? Yes? Good, because you can push it away with your arms and get GAINZ!

Related: The Best Chest Workouts for Muscle Mass, Strength, and More

The Push-Up is the Press-Up We’ve All Been Waiting For

Coaches and trainers everywhere have discovered push-ups, also called press-ups. Without a gym to showcase their implement envy, our fitness gurus are relying on people to do what people have done since the beginning of time.

Push-ups were invented in the later prehistoric period when the first humans started to sleep on their stomachs and were forced to push themselves off rapidly from the cave floor and start running to avoid being eaten by a sabertooth tiger or velociraptor.

It could have been either one, but it happened a lot so, after a while, prehistoric man – realizing that the quicker you pushed yourself off the floor, the quicker you could start running – started to do push-ups to improve escape velocities within the tribe.

However, after aliens came down to earth and ate all the sabertooth tigers and velociraptors, the need for push-ups just disappeared and no one did them until some time in February 2020, on Instagram when the first trainers facing a stay at home order invented push-ups and took three minutes to explain the complications of getting them right.

Push-Ups Are King

Joking aside, push-ups are your strength and conditioning salvation right now. And we are not above patronizing you with push-up knowledge-bombs. Below, you’ll find a whole bunch of videos from the Breaking Muscle YouTube Channel that could be helpful.

In addition, you can try this 8-Week Workout Plan for Push-Up Strength and Power.

We’re all a little cranky about not lifting weights as much as we’d like so let’s look at a push-up variation with some dumbbells. Like most addicts, we need this fix.

Then there’s that gliding thing. You can probably find a bunch of videos on social media where people are doing glide push-ups using rags on a polished wooden floor, you know, they’re working out and keeping their place clean. It’s hilarious. We wish we had thought of it first. Not.

If you don’t like our snarky tone then you really need to try Coach Shane Trotter’s videos and training programs. He’s a good man and a great instructor.

Of course, one surefire way of making everything about strength is to slow it down. Temp training not only kills time but makes for effective strength building. The simplest movement with little or no weight can become a challenging feat.

And, finally, cardio is great. Running may not be an option, and you may not have a treadmill or rower, but spiderman push-ups are the next best thing. Do it at a brisk tempo and it’ll open up those lungs. Do it in a slow and a controlled manner and it will be open up those joints.

Hope all these push-ups keep you sane. Stay healthy. Stay safe.

The post 2020: The Year Push-Ups Were First Invented appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

To test yourself at the end of these three weeks we are going to keep it simple. Just like we did throughout this challenge.

Pull Ups:

Push Ups:

Swings:

Day 15 – Benchmark Day

To test yourself at the end of these three weeks we are going to keep it simple. Just like we did throughout this challenge.

Pull Ups:

Push Ups:

Swings:

It’s all about maintaining form and doing your reps unbroken, keeping an even tempo, and not stopping in mid-set.

Feel free to substitute your own variations if you have been doing something else, like ring pull ups, or diamond push ups, or any other modification that worked for you.

Complete list of all 15 days of the Push Pull Swing Challenge.

The post The Push-Pull-Swing Challenge – Day 15 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Day 14

We really mix things up today with some modified one arm push ups, Australian rows, and a heavy kettlebell. When we get to the end of this challenge, we’ll have a benchmark so you can test yourself against it.

Complete list of all 15 days of the Push Pull Swing Challenge.

The post The Push-Pull-Swing Challenge – Day 14 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Day 13

Ring pull ups are advanced. You don’t have a stable hold so, your grip and your arms are further challenged. Maintaining balance and controlling your movement so you can do the pull up properly creates tension through the body which adds another level of intensity to your core muscles. You’d find it very hard to match your ordinary pull ups with your ring pull ups. They tax you in so many ways.

Complete list of all 15 days of the Push Pull Swing Challenge.

The post The Push-Pull-Swing Challenge – Day 13 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Day 12

A clapping push up gets your heart pumping and is probably one of the more explosive movements that you can try. You have to really push yourself away from the floor. You can also try it against the wall if you are doing wall push ups. So, it does scale in some ways.

Complete list of all 15 days of the Push Pull Swing Challenge.

The post The Push-Pull-Swing Challenge – Day 12 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Day 11

I put a little bit of a twist into today’s challenge. Hope you enjoy it, and can try it out for yourselves.

Complete list of all 15 days of the Push Pull Swing Challenge.

The post The Push-Pull-Swing Challenge – Day 11 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Day 10

Not everybody can do a pull up. That doesn’t stop you from getting the benefits of the movement through modified versions of the exercise. Here’s one that can be quite challenging – keep your trunk firm and your body straight throughout the movement.

Complete list of all 15 days of the Push Pull Swing Challenge.

The post The Push-Pull-Swing Challenge – Day 10 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Day 9

Kettlebell push ups require more strength and stability, definitely, so make sure you are ready for them before you take them up. I have also changed the rep ladders in my workout in this video so you can consider some alternative options yourself, depending on how you feel.

Complete list of all 15 days of the Push Pull Swing Challenge.

The post The Push-Pull-Swing Challenge – Day 9 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

You want push up variations? We’ve got push up variations.

Day 8

You want push up variations? We’ve got push up variations.

Complete list of all 15 days of the Push Pull Swing Challenge.

The post The Push-Pull-Swing Challenge – Day 8 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Day 7

Pull ups are hard for a lot of people so substitute bodyweight rows. As for the push ups I try something pretty unusual with a skateboard. Just goes to show that you can get really creative with these base moves.

Complete list of all 15 days of the Push Pull Swing Challenge.

The post The Push-Pull-Swing Challenge – Day 7 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Day 6

Just keeping my options open with some variations. If you have a stable pull up bar set up then adding rings is very simple but it can give you a complexity of movements to attempt.

Complete list of all 15 days of the Push Pull Swing Challenge.

The post The Push-Pull-Swing Challenge – Day 6 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Day 5

For the weekend, you get to rest. You can practice some of the variations or skill build on existing ones, like the diamond grip push up in the video below, but you can also take the time to meditate or just relax.

Complete list of all 15 days of the Push Pull Swing Challenge.

The post The Push-Pull-Swing Challenge – Day 5 appeared first on Breaking Muscle.