Pushups (29)
Getting the most BANG out of each rep.
Nah not THAT type of exercise - I hardly need to tutor you on that on this here site. Hehe.
I mean workouts as in fitness workouts.
My.
This afternoon, I thought I'd take it easy. 50 squats and a LONG stretching session was ALL I did, friend.
I was feeling pretty good when I do what I do often.
"Let's do just ONE pushup".
I was resting at the time, so I really had no biz thinking pushups, but the "urge" to do so was greater than that not to (hint - key sign of an achiever) - and I dropped down, did one letter perfect rep.
Then a few minutes later, this thought popped into mind.
"Lets do 5 letter perfect reps, and call it a day".
5 I did, chest touching the floor on each rep, and I was amazed to find out I did not even want to stop there.
160 pushups later, I'm soaked in sweat and worked to the bone (especially forearms - man!) in a way I haven't been as of late.
What gives?
What made this so intense for someone like me who casually cranks out 500 plus pushup workouts?
Well, there's several aspects to it, but maintaining focus on BREATHING And form as opposed to merely rep count and speed is key here.
Look, I tell you in Fast and Furious Fitness I can and do make 10 pushups harder than a 100, and this if done right is true.
Most people, even when they do FOCUS on the muscle being worked - focus on the wrong one for pushups - the chest.
This is better than nothing, but the real focus should be on breathing, triceps and LATS (or back) in that order.
Focus on the BACK of the body in general - and the front takes care of itself. Yes, those of you with naturally tight hamstrings - I fall into this category despite all the very extensive stretching I do - listen UP.
Finally, the key most folks miss even after you tell them (even I miss this sometimes during high rep workouts).
The legs.
Yes, you heard me, scoffer - LEGS.
Specifically, the THIGHS.
I've written before in Pushup Central about proper form, keeping the body straight, but that isn't all there is to it.
You tense the thighs - the quads while doing pushups.
And if you do them the way I do - you CLENCH them as hard as you can while doing the pushup.
This turns the pushup - any form - into an entirely different workout that will work you to the BONE - especially the core my friend.
Try it, and see, and you'll understand what I mean.
Brooks Kubik in his classic book "Dinosaur Bodyweight Training" referred to this as the principle of co-contraction.
You can call it what you like, what he meant is what I'm saying - tense all muscle groups being worked consciously and breathe in and out "into them" and in general while you do your reps.
(That's a book I often read, much like any great book - such as 0 Excuses Fitness for one, or Think and Grow Rich, or the Magic of Believing- you cannot digest the contents of the book in one sitting - you have to come back repeatedly to get true value for the book. The discerning reader will note how he learns something new every time from these books when he does this!)
Really get MAX bang for each rep that way - and when you train this way you dont need very many reps at all to get a great workout in.
For me, today it was the relatively low number of 160 pushups.
OK, I swung my club for 100 reps too, but pushup wise...
When you train this way, you may find you ...
Do more warm up sets. I did more today (so about 185 in all).
SLOW down as you focus even more on breathing and form (and this is fine provided you dont DWADLE).
Do more "supersets" - I did a LOT of these today - perhaps thats another reason my forearms BE TOAST. MY!
And many other things.
You'll find above all youll get a great, great workout in without very many reps at all, and thats the key - and what I want to pass on in today's email.
Since I have - thats that!
Be sure and pick up the best course ever on pushups out there TODAY - Pushup Central.
And thats that friend. Back soon.
Best
Rahul Mookerjee
Why most of the so called advice on pushups is flat out WRONG.
Some of it is so stupid I wonder how it made it to the "list" of idiocy in the first place - perhaps the lazy asses populating this planet, and there are a lot - made it up in their minds and put it there. '
I've debunked so many of these before - one being the "pushups are only good for conditioning" myth.
Utter baloney coming from folks who cannot do high rep pushup workouts in proper form.
Then, the nonsense about "they only tax the chest, and you won't build the upper body fully with just pushups".
Utter tosh. (although yes, pull-ups are key too!).
Then the thing about "they dont give you cardio"
Really?
Do 100 Hindu pushups in proper form without stopping, then come back and tell me ...
The one I want to debunk today - is this one - this utter rot I keep reading about " some firefighter's test".
Apparently if you're a firefighter, and can do "40 or more pushups in less than 60 seconds" or some bunk, you're fit and are ... ah, but let me just quote it
Men who can perform 40 pushups in one minute are 96 percent less likely to have cardiovascular disease than those who do less than 10. The Harvard study focused on over 1,100 firefighters with a median age of 39. The exact results might not be applicable to men of other age groups or to women, researchers warn.
Incredibly this bunk is BELIEVED.
First off, why just firefighters? Does the pushup distinguish between firefighters, lazy asses, and tri atheletes, boxers, wrestlers, average Joe/Jane etc?
You bet - except only in terms of being able to DO IT.
Second, who the hell came up with this "40 number" - and more importantly, less than a minute
Proper pushups are done with emphasis on the DEEP breathing.
That means, at the bare minimum, pushups should take you a second and a half per pushup.
More as you keep going in a set as you "tire" and pause for rest, which I do not advocate doing in the downward dog position. (depends on the style of pushups, but lets say regular pushups the article or so called study is referring to).
Third, how the hell did they get that percentage.
I dont know, I could do less than 10 pushups in a minute for weeks, and still build strength, health and muscle...
These so called studies, my friend are utter bunk.
Lazily jerking your way up and down ain't a pushup.
its better than nothing granted, but it's an invitation to more injury down the road, and no long term or even palpable benefits to heart health or overall strength and conditioning.
Do 10 proper pushups the way I teach, my friend.
Then do 30 the way "you've seen them done" focusing more on quick, rep count etc.
You'll quickly see the truism of what I say above.
Moral of the story - DO, don't "follow the herd".
Thats that!
More such myths busted in the "all time greatest courses on Pushups" - Pushup central - which goes the best together with, as even the book narrators have put it (and they're super critical mind you) "the best damn course on jumping rope out there) "Jump Rope Mania".
I'm missing my jump rope already!
And I'll be back soon.
Best
Rahul Mookerjee
Why archer pushups are an absolute must to get better at.
These are an advanced strength movement, and most people will fall flat trying to do 'em - even well conditioned athletes that have not done them before.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again pushups are not the big dog of fitness because Rahul mookerjee said so, and a whole host of other illuminaries have proven it, though that reason wouldn't be wrong either.
Its that because with one simple movement and no equipment other than a wall or floor which you have even in isolation in a prison ward, hehe - not that you gotta be in jail to do pushups! - you can literally work the entire body from the inside out.
Including, as I state in Pushup Central - the legs and cardio system like never before, and while Hindu pushups do a great job of that, there are others - so advanced I dont even mention them in the book that do an excellent job too.
Clapping pushups (from various positions, angles and such).
These will all be detailed in the upcoming book on plyometrics, but ONE style of pushup I've always stressed you should get damn good at - the extended arm pushup, or the floor humpers, or Jack La Lanne pushup.
IF ALL you did was this one exercise for high reps, medium and low throughout your entire pushup workout, you'd build shoulders, lats and a core of steel and you'd be incredibly LEAN too all throughout your body, especially the core.
As you perfect this movement though, and this will take a lot of time - remember this one truism - strengthening your body from all different angles and positions.
Enter the archer pushup.
If your hands are straight out in front of you almost touching the floor in the pushup mentioned above, then the archer pushup makes it even tougher by literally putting your arms at a 90 degree angle, forearm facing the floor, arm splayed out - as you do this pushup.
The side to side motion mimics an "archer" shooting a bow and arrow, and this pushup heavily works the core, lats, thighs (yes), glutes (yes again, if you know how to) - the entire cardio system - and most of all, the upper chest and traps at a deep level.
Bicep and foream work too, which you wouldn't think you got from pushups eh?
But you do, my friend - big time!
Thing about working the chest, most people focus on the "mid" to lower chest, which is fine, but it's the upper chest, and working the chest fibers from the inside out via deep breathing and exercise that really give you that broad shouldered, barrel chested look.
And thats why I emphasize deep breathing with every workout my friend.
I have to hear you breathing - at least from a few paces away - deep inhales, deep exhales, focus on form, omit all three, you might as well not be working out. I'd rather you NOT work out than do something with sloppy reps.
My youtube channel has plenty on how to do these, including 50 rep workouts with these, and the other toughie - extended arm pushups.
And believe me, this is just the tip of the iceberg.
I could think of 51 more pushups I could put in book number two, and will down the line as well ...
For now though, I'm out. Thats an advanced style of pushup to workup to. And never forget the basics my friend -work pushups daily, no exceptions, zero excuses - literally.
And as David Quiros rightly reviewed "learn how to do pushups Creatively and RIGHT" - emphasis on RIGHT - by the "by far the best book on pushups out there, nothing even comes close to coming close" - Pushup Central.
That is that then, my friend.
Best,
Rahul Mookerjee
Never ignore the good ole FLOOR pushup in favor of handstand or other fancier (tougher?) pushups
After all the writing I did about injuries today, man - I was extra cautious when jumping into a handstand this evening.
I haven't done handstand pushups for well over a month, perhaps a month and a half now, and being it was at the "fag" end of a 500 pushup workout (plus 20 pull-ups which felt WAY EASIER than they should, slow and steady - more on that later, lengthy splits sessions and squats, of course - 200 today) - I was extra cautious and I even figured I'd do the easy kind "top of the head to floor". Thats by far the "easiest" - if such a thing can be SAID about handstand pushups way to do 'em (chin to ground is when you really start progressing, the progressions shown in Profound "70% Gorilla 30% Human handstands" - man, now you're getting someplace w/those!!).
INcredibly, I almost "bounced up and down", my lats felt loose as heck, and I was literally pushing "air" it seemed!
So i did 5 more - same thing!
Then I did 3 more. Same thing!
And then I grinned, thinking about how 20 pull-ups today felt way the hell easier than they should have (interspersed as they were between sets of tough pushups).
My friend, lots of people ignore (and lots of these people are well intentioned) the humble ole FLOOR pushup - regular tricep pushups of various sorts - in favor of fancier versions like the Hindu pushup, handstand pushup and such.
They think "its too easy".
Then you have nutjobs that claim high rep workouts are boring and do nothing, and all the logic in the world won't convince these usually fat and out of shape buffoons otherwise, but the point is - they ignore it too.
Now, Hindus, especially handstand pushups are not "bad". I'd be an idiot to say that!
They're good, damn good, and YOU best get damn good at 'em either, yet, again, the floor pushup cannot be ignored.
I dont care if you're trying to get good at pull-ups or even handstand pushups themselves, the regular pushup cannot be ignored.
Handstand pushups are certainly one great way to get better at pull-ups, but again, are they required for that purpose alone (they are required for many other purposes, so dont be lazy - do 'em- work at 'em assidiously!).
No.
If you look at people like Iron Mike, Bruce Lee and the such - you'll see something that might not make sense, but if you're a doer that does and doesnt constantly ask ridiculous questions (I mean geez, just DO the damn thing and you'll find out why!) - you'll know why and it'll make perfect sense.
The mainstay of their pushups are body parallel to the floor floor pushups - now in Walker's case, a pet favorite of his was diamond pushups - which I can understand why, for me it's the Jack La Lanne pushup by far - but again, without feet elevated and such.
That dont mean you shouldn't do tougher variants.
One of the keys to getting better at pushups and fitter is something not directly mentioned in Pushup Central, but it's mentioned in the TIPS - is this.
This might and will come across as a sock to the jaw for fat nutters (or nutters in general) claiming "they're boring workouts" ....
... Do pushups for high reps, low reps, and medium reps throughout the 500 pushups workout.
You might think "pah, I'm too fit for low reps".
No. You're not either.
I can find you pushups regardless of your fitness and conditioning level that will kick your RIGHTEOUS gluteous "el maximus" from here to Timbuktu - - no questions asked.
For me, I'll often do Jack La Lanne pushups in high reps - 15-30 per set during these workouts, or archer pushups -a toughie, but I have gotten so good at 'em now (so should you!) (not mentioned in Pushup Central btw) that I crank those out in high reps too.
But I'll often slow it down, and do pushups which I can barely crank out 5 without collapsing.
That, my friend is the key to SUPER gains in high rep workouts which most people don't get...
Last, but not and never least, the lesson that has brought home to ME many a times - never ignore the humble FLOOR pushup my friend - never ever.
ANd thats that!
Best,
Rahul Mookerjee
300 pushup punishments? Pah!
I was recently reading about a story on the news where apparently a high school in what is BY far my favorite state in the US of A - the Lone Star State - has been placed on leave because he made kids do 300 - 400 pushups as punishment for something, and the kids ended up in the hospital - and he got put on leave.
Now, these weren't your regular kids - they were apparently kids on the high school football team of all things.
Of course no further details are forthcoming on the incident, what prompted the punishment, why it happened, the kids background, none of it.
I've got a feeling the media is looking to spin this into more of a witch hunt and demand for yet more mollycoddling in today's already weak and pathetic society (though its good to know some hard asses and old timers like us are doing what we can to change things - I dont know what the background of this is, if YOU reading this do, let me know - but I'd personally say well done coach!) ...
Anyway, 300 - 400 pushups in an hour as punishment?
In one freaking hour?
Thats EASY PEASY! And I bet the coach didnt make them do styles of pushups I teach you in Pushup Central - which at the age of 42 if I can rock out 500 pushups every day with the sun blazing down on me - with no "water bottle" handy by the way - then so can high school athletes.
I dont know if these kids were like a former friend Charles who claims up and down he's "big but not fat" - and that he "wrestled" in high school so has huge legs, but when PRESSED on it, he admitted that "football was more his jazz". (and the way he said, exactly the same way Glyn denied having all the strange, or maybe not, fetishes and sexual preferences etc we all have - deep down inside ... like dude, at least be honest, that is a START)..
Weightlifting is big in football, probably those idiotic machines too these days - Herschel Walker would have a coronary. Hehe.
And so these kids, I've no idea what their physical fitness levels were like, but Id hazard a guess and say atrocious given they were athletes - and that they were what most kids unfortunately are these days - dumbphone addicted mollycoddled BRATS.
This goes both ways, of course, Ill tell you more beneath - but get any weightlifter doing the routines and exercises in Pushup Central, and they might end up in the hospital too if they haven't conditioned themselves for those workouts - or Battletank Shoulders workouts (as customers have said "not for the faint of heart!!") - or if they dont, as is shown in the books, WORK UP TO IT!
You dont jump straight from a perch on el couchola for years to do 500 pushups a day, for one.
I still remember Charles Mitchell, whose an avid Pushup Central customer and ex cop telling me about how the fingertip pushups in there are FAR tougher than what his karate instructor taught him.
And they are!
Knuckle pushups are taught a lot in karate which is great, but nothing beats fingertip pushups - although some instructors do teach em - I remember a Korean dude who reportedly did 50 fingertip pushups daily (in college) and was a black belt or something at .. karate, I believe.
Anyway.
My thoughts and memories on all this - if I'd have to say it in one line - same as I've said above
Kids, and society in general have turned into molly coddled, dumbphone addicted idiots and WEAKLINGS.
Very few real men and women left out there.
Back in high school, I remember the PE "final exam" when I was 17 - how the girls threw the shot put farther than I did, how the guys beside me exhorted me to do better - but I couldn't - I had no fitness background growing up, I was not strong or conditioned though I sure as hell had ambitions to be, but those ambitions were CRUSHED by my mother who believed in the usual "studies rule" rot - and "he thinks he's soooooo strong!" every time I wanted to do something physical.
Goes both ways though like I said, my reading habit which got inculcated in me due to sheer necessity - well, thats held me in good stead as you can tell - both communication wise and writing wise! I'd often have my favorite novel in my desk drawer beneath my school books when I was supposed to be preparing for exams. Hehe. Turns out the chip off the old block does something similar too, but anyway - fitness - well, I remember being sore for days after that exam which involved a run too in the heat.
Little did I know years later I'd be hiking hills daily in extremely hot and humid "tropical jungle like weather" (one minute it rains, the next minute the sun's out - so hot - that the clothes stick to your back again!) where people were literally fainting around me, and I'd be dripping trails of sweat up and down that hill.
THIS is hill climbing, as Kelly, a student of mine rightly said!
The same father who once mocked me for "wanting a pipe attached to the heavens" every time I wanted a water break during tennis on Sundays (which I hated - but loved the swimming!) - then said "you're a bonafide fitness maniac now!"
Seeing me do pushups shirt off in the park out there - I sometimes wonder what they think. Hehe.
Back in eighth grade, when the beatings administered at home for cutting class or what not did not work, I remember my teacher menacingly glaring at me in school, telling my parents - or me, rather "I'll take care of you HERE the next time!"
And our punishments were nigh brutal, my friend - the punishments we got in school?
Being forced to stand in awkward positions for hours, worse than kneeling on rice and such, repeated blows to the back of the head (ugh, I hate that!) - being hit with implements and such - all when we were KIDS - today's kids would go straight to the hospital for sure with some of that, so when he said brutal, he meant it.
Then again, in their days brutal meant getting beaten at home if they showed up one minute late from play ....
I gotta say though, though my dad and myself dont like each other to the point we avoid each other by walking in opposite directions when we see each other - even in a setting like a wide open park - he's OK when it comes to FACTS.
Put facts in front of him, and he will put his like or dislike of the person aside, and acknowledge facts - which I do as well if required, so I can respect that.
He might not be the ideal father, or know how to teach - but thats OK. I picked up the slack on that one!
Anyway .........
On that note, exercise as punishment?
I remember teaching kids at Hanlin School in China, I've taught kids for YEARS - and in PE class and what not, they were supposed to be playing soccer, and instead?
They'd be coming up to me doing pull-ups!
Why?
Certainly not because I told them to.
Hell, I was happy enough with them playing soccer - it gave me more time to work on my pull-ups, which being I was the only instructor there in any sort of shape to do pull-ups - I did, and the rest of the teachers just stood around and looked.
And the kids of course like the little monkeys they were, showed up wanting to imitate me, and long story short - pictures of me with those kids in my arms getting the over the bar are likely still floating around somewhere in that school.
Not that I didn't teach them well academically - like my Taekwondo instructor once said "hey, I study too!" - there's pictures of me with those kids on my lap learning English (Admittedly I was missing my own daughter a lot during those days, but thats life - happens!).
My daughter's basketball instructor is a great guy, solid teacher, and genuinely likes working with kids.
And he makes them do exercises that are GOOD for them at their age.
He teachers all age groups...
And the kids of course find every excuse to show up late to skip running or what not ...
There's only so much he can push, of course, or some idiot mother will show up demanding to know "why you're torturing my fat child".
Society these days.. ugh.
So back to the current case - more details please, and I've got a feeling much like cops are made the target of witch hunts for simply doing their damned jobs - the coach is being villianised here as well.
If I'm wrong, write back, tell me why, I'll gladly "eat my words" if warranted.
Like a great English journalist had to do back in in the day - 1983 - when India won a cricket World Cup no-one gave them a snowballs's chance in hell of winning -so much so that India wasn't even granted passes to the hallowed "Lords" (the home of cricket, much like the MCG in Australia) - that was only for the white boys apparently, with the West Indies having barrelled their way into the club a while back.
Interesting, these tales.
The great Tony Greig claiming he'd make the West Indies grovel in front of England, then after they hammered the Poms, Grieg literally went down on a knee in public and groveled. Hey. Great guy, I love him - and thats what you gotta do! (i.e. back your talk up).
Same thing for English journo, after India won that world cup, he literally put his words in a glass of wine and drank it. Hehe.
Those were the days, Indian captain Kapil Dev - even after winning a world cup they went to bed hungry because no-one had money for food (despite playing for the national team), everything around was closed, at training they'd only get VERY limited rations ...
Yet, they did.
My.
No wonder Kapil hates the molly coddling as much as I do ...
Anyway.
Pushup Central, my friend, is not for sissies and crybabies - if you aint the sort that can deal with old school brutal workouts, dont get it!
But coach in TX - hey, if someone knows his number or email, send it to me- I'll send him the link - he would LOVE the book - and its EXACTLY what is required for kids these days, especially those claiming to be athletes.
And thats that - - back soon!
Best,
Rahul Mookerjee
PS - I've said it before - if you're going at a good cliip, you do 500 pushups in one HOUR (ie approx 15 minute blocks for every 100). Or thereabouts. And 300-400 in an hour, even in hot weather, easy peasy. Pah!
Foot positioning while doing pushups
Everyone talks about HAND positioning when doing fitness, but foot positioning?
Not many people talk about this at all - except when doing Hindu pushups which people do understand (somewhat) how placing the feet differently turns the exercise into a whole another exercise - and workout altogether.
Even when doing the regular pushup, I bet you didnt think about it - the slightest change in foot positioning turns the exercise into a completely different one- then of course, you add in hands etc, truly - pushups are not just the big dog of fitness, but the MOST versatile bodyweight exercise out there, my friend, the MOST!
Slight changes in foot positioning hits your entire core and triceps - body, actually, differently, and when you really bring the legs into it - watch out!
It's no coincidence that my triceps are HURTING - differently - like a deep, deep burn - even though I did not - or have not, as yet - hit my daily 500 pushup goal - its been 320 thus far.
Slow and steady - or, slower and steadier than usual is part of it. Proper form and ALL The way down and ALL the way up - another part of it!
Always ways to make it a hell of a lot tougher do I find ... so should you!
Anyway, enjoy the video at the end of the page.
For those whose email readers dont auto pop up the video this here is the link - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWuku841faM&t=250s
And remember two things before you click on away - or three.
One, pushups are by far the fastest and best way (along with a healthy dose of squats) to get in SHAPE - quick.
And my book Pushup Central shows you how to - with variants upon variants upon variants of pushups that most wouldn't have dreamt of - or thought of - and definitely not done before you crack the BOOK open.
Truly pathbreaking, so get this course NOW if you have not already.
Two, the great Virat Kohli from India.
Ive no idea how many runs he churned out in today's match against the Lankans, but he's been in a rich vein of form, yet, it was only a while back that all the pundits, the great Indian public and so forth (and in a cricket crazy country like India where effigies are burnt and houses stoned when cricket matches are lost thats something - cricket is almost a religion here!) - WROTE him off.
He was going through a bad patch which lasted much longer than anyone thought, himself included.
Today, you wouldn't think it by looking at his purple patch - which is back!
Virat isn't so much of a genius or even inspired as much as he is PERSISTENT.
It shows in his game, mentality, most of all fitness, and I've no idea, but ask him - he'll tell you how many pushups he does himself daily!
Its persistent that brings you the big things my friend, persistence long after everyone has written you off - in many cases even your own conscious mind has.
The will - and desire - to go another round when the deck's stacked against you, and when you think you cannot.
Thats true genius, true champions, the material they're made of.
NEVER make the mistake of writing a genius off - or do so at your own risk.
And thats that .
Back soon.
Best,
Rahul Mookerjee
Triangle pushups
One of the best and most effective pushups for the upper body is also likely one not covered in what is possibly the best course on pushups (and overall conditioning in general) - Pushup Central - or maybe it is, I cannot quite recall.
It, along with several supplementary exercises is also a great way to work up to handstands and handstand pushups - specifically building up the shoulders and traps (especially) in a manner very few exercises can hit.
I added an inch or so to my traps when I first started doing this - within DAYS - along with the soreness to boot.
No good pain, no superlative gain! Hehe. Ain't that the truth pal.
Anyway, it's DEFINITELY Not mentioned in Shoulders like Boulders, pretty much because it's too tough for most people to do, and the other supplementary exercises do a fine job of building you up as well.
And theyre being called triangle pushups for a reason - they're actually better known as pike pushups.
Some have commented they look like an advanced version of the downward dog in Hindu pushups.
Maybe it looks like that, but it's anything but just that
When you do these at high levels, you'll feel your upper traps and back being "isolated" - yet working more in tandem with everything else - than ever before, and you'll feel the POWER coursing through you, my friend - as you get LEAN and in the best shape of your life.
You truly form a "sharp triangle" with your body more so than the "round triangle" with downward dog. Do it, and youll know (and watch the video too - and others on our youtube channel on this one!)
And on a cold windy day, I bring you some MORE tips (ok, now that I think about it, it HAS been covered in Pushup Central) on this superlatively awesome exercise - in video form.
Have at.
FEEL the power - like He Man said, and pushups will turn you into a he-man or she-man, hehe - if done right - very quickly too.
Most dont have a clue on how to do it right. Google ain't your best friend either, for those thinking "it's out there for free".
No it isnt.
Nothing can bring you the experience a true "Master of his craft", as I've been called amongst more - can bring you with his words - either verbal or otherwise - they cut DEEP - they cut RIGHT.
Nothing can bring you the hands on knowledge like someone who HAS it can - free or not does not even come into the picture, if cost even enters your mind on something like this, invaluable knowledge you cannot put a price on then you're an utter fool my friend.
NO-ONE brings you pushups like I do, there is NO course like it out there.
Without further ado, make this vow to yourself this year - two - in fact.
One, "I'm going to get good - damn good - at EVERY type of pushup there is".
And two.
"I'm going to religiously, BAR NONE, without any excuses make sure to get in at least one workout DAILY - no exceptions allowed - from Pushup Central - 365 - or given it's the 2nd, 364 days of the year. Actually, I'll add in one more to make it a round 365!".
And that, my friend, will get you in the best shape of your life if you follow through and DO.
More later - video at the bottom, I believe.
Best
Rahul Mookerjee
Floor pushups vs handstand pushups.
Should be a no brainer, right?
Most would choose the latter "to build strength, muscle and conditioning at a far higher level" - there would be nothing wrong with doing so either, but ...
Here is the fact, my friend - like a customer Charles Mitchell once told me in 2018 "less than 0.1% of the population can even GET into a handstand and hold".
By that I mean a proper handstand - held for time as well, preferably at least 30 seconds.
Those that can, can barely BUDGE from the up position before collapsing down.
Not to say they "can't" do it.
They're usually too lazy or too fat - or a combination of both - and wont work at it assidiously. Trust me, if someone like me can get to elite level at them, so can you - so can anyone. Fact.
But anyway - while doing them today with pull-ups, I was struck by just how EASY they've gotten for me.
This is a feeling, I thought to myself as the top of my head touched the ground again -I never had even when doing those long workouts for Battletank shoulders - although I did them then, the FEELING was different.
Sure, add on 3-4 years of solid, continous practice, thats one reason, my overall health and conditioning levels - another reason. Et al.
The real reason, though, my friend is this - STICKING - and always getting back to - and improving on BASICS.
In Shoulders like Boulders, I gave you some supplementary exercises to do BEFORE you start cranking out handstands, this section is often ignored by people.
Along with the dip though - a huge, huge exercise in there?
The FLOOR pushups I give you - specifically, the table, Hindu and REGULAR pushups.
Trust me on this one, my friend.
I've said it before, I've given you real life examples, I'll say it again - nothing beats pushups in their own way, not even pull-ups.
They build and tax the CORE in a manner even pull-ups dont (no, that ain't me saying they're "better" or worse).
It's a different sort of conditioning from the inside out - to really feel it, you have to do 100-200 pushups daily for years, and add in other core work, but really - if I were to pinpoint the core reason behind this feeling of "easy peasy" for handstand pushups - it would boil down to really scrutinizing my own form daily on regular and other floor pushups, doing them - and getting better with each workout.
One of those things you'll have to DO to experience, but I've given you the key.
Now whether or not, as John Walker, another customer famously once told a price wanker "most have been found wanting when it's time to put in the WORK" - you're willing to listen and DO the thing is up to you.
And dont think for a minute handstand pushups ever get easy to the point you dont get a great workout from doing 'em.
They never do.
And level four in the "Shoulders" series will show you that, and then some (in the works as of now).
In the meantime - have a great day - train hard - and write back - let me KNOW how it GOETH!!!
Best,
Rahul Mookerjee
P.S. - To know all there is about doing pushups at an elite, high class level - invest in Pushup Central NOW. When you get to the point of doing what I do in some of the pictures on the sales page (and if you think thats something, wait till you see the BOOK!) - well, write back again - LET ME KNOW!
Pike pushups, and more insane shoulder building "forgotten" pushups...
While getting through my 500 pushups today (which has again become a goal for me daily after ... I think 10 years? Hehe 2011 - 2022 and going strong... 11, OK) - I was super sore from yesterday's workout which y'all know all about.
And I was "easing" in this morning - not with regular high rep "sets of 20" (my preferred number) pushups in slow mo form to work up to 500, but sets of 5-10.
With super strict form and super tough movements, now, as I've done 30 this way, and the blood starts to flow (I'm already through 25 pull-ups and a few stretches) - i'm getting ready to rock - and ROMP - and PUSH. And pull, hehe. While pushing!
The pike pushup is a pushup I mention in Pushup Central, I think, but only the BASIC variant.
This, my friend - I dont mention this as a pre-requisite to handstand pushups in Shoulders like Boulders!.
I really SHOULD though - because this movement is one of the best ones you can do to condition your shoulders - and build huge lumps of muscle on them at the same time - while simultaneously getting a solid, great workout in.
And the very angle of the movement, a "Triangle" shape is what you'll have to get into - Hindu pushups x 100 I'd say - gets your shoulders ready for vertical pushups i.e. handstands, and then the pushup from that position.
This movement is also way too tough for most to do off "jump street" - thanks Charles! - therefore, it's not in the pre-requisites in the book - but Hindu pushups sure am, and they should be done galore as well.
I haven't been working Hindu pushups at all as of late, I'm more into the "floor humper" I spoke about yesterday - on fingertips, working up to one arm.
So should YOU, if you're truly into core fitness and overall strength and conditioning.
Anyway for pike pushups, your body forms a triangle - a very inverted one - on your tippy toes, then you bring the head down in a straight line.
Sounds easy but it's anything BUT.
Fingertip versions are even tougher.
Now, something else people have been asking me about as of late ...
A style of pushup which taxes forearms big time.
And one which ... I don't do too often, and have not included in the book, because I believe it's overkill and isn't really "required".
And not entirely safe starting out either, or even when you're advanced.
Thats the "back of the hand" pushup done on the back of your hands.
Look, I can do these, I sometimes do them - but the very angle of them makes it a bit of an unnatural movments, pretty much like chin-ups aren't the natural way to "pull or grip" i.e. supinated is what you do normally, not pronated.
Same with pushups, how many times do you push with the back of your hand?
Of course, you can do these if you want, but be very careful not to injure your break your wrist.
These tax the forearms differently, but again they are not REQUIRED - hence, I haven't really devoted a lot of attention them - and probably wont in the future either.
Focus on what works, and max bang for your buck ...
And Pushup Central, and all of our other products sure do deliver on that front.
And they always will.
Whether or not YOU, my friend, take the required action after all this is entirely up to you ...
I know one damn thing though, if you're into fitness of ANY nature, then Pushup Central is just a must grab, even if you never get anything else from us.
Really, I'm being honest.
And that is that - back soon.
Best,
Rahul Mookerjee
Are one arm pushups mostly a "show boating" movement?
The jury seems to be out on this - including my own.
I wrote about the one arm pull-up this morning here, and as promised, now, my thoughts on the one arm PUSHUP.
Last year I was rapping with an old customer, perhaps the right guy to talk to about pushups - former martial artist and a lot more - and before proceeding, here is the review he left for Pushup Central -
The Bodyweight Guru has done it again, 55 ways to bring on the pain, a magnum opus on how to really use what is possibly the world's oldest and "most diverse" exercise.
If you're like me, you live for that pain, the feeling of your muscles as they stretch and contract and how your body screams at you to stop but your mind will not allow you to quit, you have that target in your mind and you cannot stop until you hit that target, yes my friends this is training "brutally effective" training.
Buy this book and take up the challenge of Push Up Central.
The Bodyweight Guru is waiting for you, let him show you how with this (innocently sounding) book you can become more than you could ever have imagined, this is hard training at it's absolute best.
Now a word about the previous review, Glyn Scofield is a total moron and his reviews suck almost as much as he does, Glyn, if by chance you ever read this, do yourself a favour and just stop, nobody cares what you think.
Amen!
Now, I won't get into the review here again, I've done that enough times already (and lets not EVEN get into the Bozo - ugh, I said that wrong didnt I?) ...
I was talking to him about doing high rep pushups, how pushups do help your pull-up prowress - or help you get better at pull-ups provided you address the "fat around the midsection" issue (which pushups do a damn good job of addressing if you do 'em right and regularly, not just "sometimes") ...and a lot more.
And I remember him saying that he felt one arm pushups were more a "show" movement, for real workouts, they weren't really that useful.
Now, he's right on one - very main thing.
As with one arm pull-ups, the vast majority of people would do just fine without doing a single one arm pushup in their lives.
If you focus on and do pushups the way I teach you in Pushup Central with "both limbs" (though you'll see me take some away occasionally, hehe) - then my friend you will do just fine and need nothing else from that perspective.
Most of the people we know that really did pushups at a high level, high repes, Iron Mike Tyson, Herschel Walker, the list goes on and on - while I've no doubt they did a lot of one arm pushups in their training, the VAST BULK (no pun!) of their training most likely was done with two limbs.
So it should be as well.
The main thing though for me, which seperates one arm pushups from the same category in pull-ups - it is far harder to mantain proper form when doing one arm pushups.
You'll see folks doing 'em with legs spread, back bent and so forth, such is the nature of the movement.
Getting reps in with proper form can be done ... but maintaining that form over a long workout is neither practical nor really doable - nor is entirely functional.
Thats one main reason I rate it as "part show" - but not fully.
Doing a one arm pushup still takes some incredible strength and conditioning my friend - especially if you do them slow in sets of 10 - on your fingertips, and so forth.
But would I recommend one arm pushups in workouts - the question goes?
Yes, but perhaps AFTER your regular pushup workouts.
For instance, 25 regulars, maybe 5 one arms, then 40 regular's, maybe 5 more one arms ...
They make for a great sizzler and finisher, not entirely the case with one arm pull-ups which you'll see you can work far more into your workouts than one arm pushups (though again, most people would do just fine doing pull-ups properly with both limbs) ...
There's plenty of other movements we could talk about here which lots of people say fall into the showboating movement -my book Advanced Plyometrics has one of them "the clapping pushup".
I'll be talking about that later, so stay tuned.
For now, remember Pushup Central is all you need in terms of pushups - ever.
If you so choose, you can go even more advanced, but these exercises in this here book are enough to keep you busy and very productive indeed your entire life.
The greats did 'em, if it was good enough for 'em, it was for you, no excuses.
Chop chop, as she said. Hehe. (if you ain't got to it already, you should have, do it NOW).
And thats that.
Best,
Rahul Mookerjee
More...
If you only did this ONE pushup a day - you'd have a core of STEEL - and flexible REBAR!
Steel, because, well steel, rebar, because, strong and flexible - you get the photo, my friends and fellow fitness lovers / fanatics!
I happen to fall into the latter category i.e. fanatics.
But along with looking like a 14 year old (or was it 13, hehe) thats "not entirely a bad thing!"
Anyway, before I tell you what I really want to, pushups are well known for giving you a core of steel.
It could be any pushup, really.
If ALL you did was 25 regular slow and easy pushups with proper form and breathing DAILY, you would be in better shape than and have a stronger, leaner, tighter midsection than the majority of people in this world - more than 99%, I'd say - gym goers definitely included.
Or, if you could even do FIVE reps of the best darn exercise, essentially a pushup x 10.
But what I want to talk about today is a pushup many call "arms extended" or arms out pushups.
I call it the Jack La Lanne pushup - and a core blaster.
Yet more call it a "floor humper" pushup.
And THIS pushup is what I Really want to focus on today - because if there is one pushup that is mostly lats and CORE - and lower back - and shoulders, but especially core, it is this one.
What do I mean?
Well, take a gander at this link first.
Hell yes - this IS A PUSHUP! - YouTube
One of those shorts - a clip, in fact, from the 0 Excuses Fitness workout video - of exactly this pushup.
Most people - including seasoned fitness fanatics find it impossible to even get into position for these, let alone do them towards the fag end of a long ass workout. (250 x 2 pushups that day when I filmed, one in the afternoon, one in the evening. Had to get my "pump" on. Hehe. Nah, not really, bu tyou get my drift).
Today, I was going to do up a brief video on just this exercise, but it's a cold, dank, dark day out there - and I dont think I wanted mud all over me in the park.
Not to mention, other than a few giggly schoolgirls staring at me curiously, there was no-one out there - no Mr Tan, no friend, no-one. Hehe. And I wasn't going to walk up to the schoolgirls!
Anyway ...
You tube, even if you dont subscribe to my videos, does a fairly good job of showing you the videos anyway - if you see a video, naturally, these days, it'll do the subscribe for you without acutally doing it, and show you more of the same from the same creator - but you should definitely subscribe and like for all the updates.
Now, this pushup.
Most of you find it impossible to do. I know, I've had feedback on this.
So without further ado, a few steps to make it easier, maybe -
When you start, remember the arms should be AS far ahead of the body as they can go.
Not a shape where you make a triangle with the floor, the body should be parallel to the floor. Period.
Second, arms WIDER than shoulder width is a great way to start these.
Third, if you can't hold that position without quivering and shaking - work up to the isometric on it.
It's a GREAT way to build strength in the position, even those of you that can do 20 plus of these (like me) will find the isometric immensely useful.
Fourth, the closer your arms are, the tougher it gets, ultimate goal should be to bring them in as close to each other as you can.
And fifth, perhapst most important.
When you lower, the tendency, even for super fit studs out there, will be to touch the core to the floor, not the chest.
NO.
You touch the CHEST to the floor, slowly, exhale down, inhale all the way up - THAT is what gives you the armpit (lat) work - and lower back and core (especially upper abs) work.
You will take a long, long time to get good at these, my friend, but work them daily, they're that important, and that worth it.
The great Jack La Lanne did these on his fingertips, and I can think of few better grip builders than to simply hold the position like that.
In Pushup Central, I tell you to to be damn careful doing them on your fingertips because you WILL almost collapse on your face the first time you do 'em! IF you can do 'em - otherwise, hold the isometric.
The sky is the limit here, of course - you could take fingers away, or an arm away - but those while being real fun to do, and super hard - aren't even required.
Just get good - damn good - at the regular version, and believe me, your core will be POPPING before you know it.
In the tuture, it'll happen when it does, there will be a Youtube out on this - stay tuned.
And for now, remember the pushups tutorial video in 0 Excuses Fitness, a mammoth, detail packed behemoth in its own right explains this better than any written post ever could.
If you haven't yet got the System, you'll want to get it now.
Thats it from me.
Back SOON!
Best
Rahul Mookerjee
PS - While you do feel this pushup in the upper chest, the GOAL should be to feel it in the lats, lower back and CORE. More on that later.
The horrible FORM MANGLING tips you see out there on pushups - just bloody awful. Ugh.
I remember my Taekwondo teacher in eigth grade praising me for my pushups - deep stretch, all the way down, all the way up, even at that young age where I was stiff as an iron dog, inflexible, and so forth - and had no-one to learn from.
I remember him laughing as the splits hurt me - and telling my partner to "hurt me more" (though till an acceptable limit).
OUCH! I can remember my groin almost ripping apart. Hehe.
But that was a good thing, that flexibility is something all martial artists need.
You might think kicking power comes from the quads - you couldn't be more wrong.
It might contribute to it, but hips, core, transfer of power GRACEFULLY through the core - and so forth - and the HAMSTRINGS are far more important.
Ditto for punches, while you might be able to power your way through sometimes it really your back, traps and core at play here - and your legs.
I remember him asking me in ninth grade, when I stopped going to Taekwondo class "some stupid thing at home about concentrate more on studies".
(while now they say the opposite - can't win for losing, eh. Hehe.
"Rahul, why don't you come to training!" I still remember him stopping his motorcyle on the road, asking me, smiling ...
I told him.
Anyway, we'll get to this later. I'm at the risk of running off topic, but, as I get done with 90 pushups, all in strict form, I want to talk about something els e(the above will tie into it later).
I've mentioned in 0 Excuses Fitness, Fast and Furious Fitness, Pushup Central, my blog, my writings, my subconscious, my yet to be engraved "tombstone", hehe - that pushups are the one exercise that along with pull-ups, but more pushups - tend to lend themselves to more lousy form than anything else.
They also attract max number of Bozos and braggarts, ruffians that claim "bouncing up an down " does the trick, and so forth.
And then the idiots at the gym doing the same thing, jiggling their bloated pecs.
As if thats real strength - real strength is a PACKED chest - DENSE, strong, tough muscle, now if you have big on top, thats great, but big ain't what adds strength for the most part.
But anyway - some of the advice I've seen on sites you'd think would know better.
"Your thighs and chest should touch the floor at the same time!"
This must take the cake for the most idiotic piece of advice on a site I saw yesterday - ranked highly by Google at that.
Just when do the thighs touch the floor with pushups?
Maybe wierd Bozo Schofield "on knees" ass pushups, if there is such a thing, but I cannot recall a single real pushup where this happens. (unless you're slopping your way through reps).
"Do half reps!"
Apparently doing a half rep after one rep is a pushup and a half.
What the fuck.
I can understand WORKING up to a regular pushup that way, but half reps - nah. Not for me!
A better alternative, and one I did NOT mention in Pushup Central, because I still feel it mangles form, or lends itself to so, is pausing the top of the rep, bringing one arm up to your chest while you rest on the other, and then bringing it down again and completing the rep.
Yet, that is overkill.
I'd rather the Spiderman pushups or the torquing pushups I mention in the book.
Those make good form and a ball busting, heart thumping workout far more "doable" than taking limbs away which is a great thing to do if you can do it, I plan on having books out on it in the future, but it dont replace the basics, never.
I don't know whether Clint Eastward is still doing one arm push ups at age 90 or not (I've never seen him do any) but either way I don't rate the one arm push up as a serious exercise, it's more of a skill demonstration than an exercise in my humble opinion.
that was the great John Walker, who left a great review on Pushup Central.
And he's right.
One arm pushups reqire far more skill than "strength and conditioning".
Although they still require serious strength, as do one arm chin-ups, I'd rather do them on both limbs for most of my workouts.
The Clint Eastwood comment, of course, was made by me - I've often spoken about Clint before.
Gotta love the cranky ole keeping it real dude, hehe.
But anyway - even fitness "gurus" fall prey to this.
I regard someone like Matt Furey as a legend and inspiration - but even him, some of his videos I've seen, he actually tells you to do pushups "quickly and half reps" - "combat pushups" is what he calls them.
Now if you can do 'em quickly in proper FORM, then I ain't got no issue with it.
But at the risk of sounding overly anal, which I am about form, period - you cannot compromise form for speed or anything else. Period.
I can make 10 pushups harder than a 100. Period.
Its about form over all, period, true, sometimes during long hard workouts form might be a bit compromised, but you work at it so it's not.
You don't think "I'm still getting a workout in anyway".
I mean, trust me, the littlest details matter.
While doing table pushups, if you do it right, you'll feel areas like the BASE of your neck stretch and strengthen beyond belief.
You might laugh at me for saying it.
But, DO them in right form, you'll see.
The arms in that case are just support in a static manner, the body does the work, and the neck "goes along" if you do it right (and you get rid of turkey neck too for those that have it or dumbphone "Hunchback of DumbPhone Dame" syndrone.
Dumbphone dames, ugh - I have LOST TRACK of the number of times dames have almost bumped into me - so busy are they on their dumbphones.
Of course, it's Rahul's fault these Bozos and fools can't look away for their phones for a minute. Some men are equally cuplable here (Bozo Schofield being one prime example- nary a minute passes without him trolling some inanity on the phone). (when he has a phone, of course).
Back to Matt - I highly respect the guy for his accomplishments, and also think when it comes to pushups, he's a stud.
Or, he was at some point.
You can tell!
But you dont have to agree with someone on everything to respect them either.
And there are some areas I disagree with him, most notably all he says about pull-ups, and the fact you've never actually seen Matt, either back in the day or now do a single pull-up himself- its always Ed Baran who does 'em.
Thats fine if that works for Matt and his base - hey, its probably why he's putting out videos on pushups like I spoke about above.
Gotta do what a man's gotta do, gotta eat. Hehe.
But I truly hope Matt, if he ever reads this takes this as CONSTRUCTIVE criticism from someone that has always admired him and wished him the best mentally.
Those things transmute, I'm sure he will.
And hey, he's a legend. I credit him in 0 Excuses Fitness for one for bringing Hindu squats and pushups "to the masses". Credit where it's due. Respect! (amigo)
But writing books like "Primate Power", and chapters like "pullups that make your lats scream with pleasure", then not even doing them himself because he's out of shape, or maybe "too much spread around the midsection" (Furey admitted as much himself in an email, so it ain't me saying that) - not on for me.
If I write a book, I want to be the one doing the exercies, workouts, period.
Not saying you cannot teach without doing yourself, you can, but you only impart a quarter of the benefit if even that to the student in that manner.
My base - and me - demand - and aren't satisfied with anything other and less than me giving it to you straight, brutally frank and honest. I would't tolerate anything less from YOU Either!
Hehe.
As Iron Mike said ...
Ah, but anyway.
Do pushups right, or don't do them, period.
Plus, how much do you ever hear from the so called gurus on BREATHING right during the exercise?
Never.
Big mistake, you're robbing yourself of most of the benefit of any exercise if you don't focus on your breath.
Your breath is indeed your power, many an old time strongman has said it.
I'll quote John again on this one: -
With regard to numbers, it is not the numbers that are important it is how hard you are working that really counts, yes high numbers are great for the ego but you have to wonder how many of those ultra high numbers are quality reps.
If you've ever seen some of those Navy Seal training films on t. v. you'll soon realise that it doesn't take long for the form to breakdown and the recruits form just goes from bad to worse until the exercise they're supposed to be performing is totally unrecognisable.
From my own personal perspective I only count the reps I know were completed correctly and with good form, this is not to suggest that other people don't but it does give one pause for thought.
I cannot abide watching someone performing a exercise sloppily it makes me want to slap them and tell them to do the thing properly or don't bother doing it at all.
What is the point of performing exercises in a half-arsed manner, you get nothing from it and you open yourself up to injury, the trouble is these days so few people actually know what good form should look like that people just accept that what is being demonstrated is how it's supposed to be performed.
Yes Sir - my point exactly!
Hey John
Well, you and I are on the same page in terms of doing exercises in proper FORM with the right breathing as well - especially pushups, as that (as you've no doubt read in my books) tends to be the exercise which lends itself most to chest thumpers and braggarts - I hate the way many people do them as well, "bouncing up and down" (I know you know what I mean there). Truth be told, I've been called "anal" by some because I constantly (according to some of my detractors, as you know there are plenty) "carp on form", but Id rather be anal on form and do it right or not at all as opposed to sloppy (but given how lazy the world has become in general "shying away from the tough stuff" it doesn't surprise me, the number of people slopping their way through reps just for the "rep count").
Anyway ...............
I dont know, but here's something else.
How often do you see people calling exercise TRAINING - or practice?
My martial arts teacher back in the day would always use the term "practice", he's right.
That is what makes perfect.
"I fear not the man who practises 10,000 kicks one time, but I do fear the man that practises ONE kick 10,000 times".
Bruce Lee!
Amen!
You TRAIN the body - and the mind to adapt, improve, and overcome through your physical exercises, martial artists, Marines, Navy Seals etc know this better than most.
You PRACTICE until you get good, damn good at what you do, and you never stop learning ...
I know.
I'm anal about all this.
(And it tiesinto the reason most people call my books "books" - and not "manuals".
I have spoken about this before. They're manuals with illustrations, and examples - and instructions, both in the written word and pictorially.
They turn you into a beast, a machine.
Much as you wouldn't call an instruction manual for opening a car engine up "book", same thing for my books that literally "open you up from the inside out"). (no pun intended))
But I will continue to be till the day I die.
Because I'm RIGHT, and I know it. Hehe. (I got that from my buddy in the Marines once, we were discussing something and he told me something, I said you're right, Vincent, pat came the rejoinder, I KNOW I Am, Rahu!).
Enough said?
Back soon!
Best,
Rahul Mookerjee
What Paul Anderson, Doug Hepburn and many a Taekwondo Black Belt (and Master) have in common.
I said before today that birds of a feather flock together, and I am ... RIGHT.
I'm also nothing if not supremely HUMBLE at times, hehe.
But anyway - doers attract other DOERS. The loser, lame-o's, Bozo's, wackos, and procrastinators and Doubting Thomases and lazy asses attract - well, you got it. More of the same!
Thats why we are indeed the sum of the people we hang out with the most, or those we "let" influence our minds the most!
And thats why most doers and achievers can count the number of their contacts (close ones) on one hand probably if even that.
It's often said that opposites attract, but the Laws of the Universe state the reverse i.e LIKE attracts LIKE!
Anyhow, enough of the esoteric. If I were to ask you about Paul Anderson and Doug Hepburn, two names you're no doubt familiar with (and one I've written about a lot - the other who I haven't mentioned a lot here except in emails) - what would you think first up?
What would be the first thing that comes to your mind?
If I were to say "brute strength and size" (and power), I wouldn't be far off, no?
Right.
Thought so.
And thats what comes to my mind as well.
Now, I've made no secret of the fact that Doug Hepburn by his own admission achieved the levels of prodigous weightlifting strength he did by not just lifting weights - but in his own words - the HANDSTAND PRESS-UP was directly responsible for the strength gains!
And I understand why he said that. Get on the program - and so will YOU.
Now, Paul Anderson (known to the Russians of the day (who weren't easy to impress at all for obvious reasons - they had some monsters themselves for sure, though all roid ridden) as "The Wonder of Nature"), the guy who could squat an elephant, you ask?
Well, HE used this SAME exercise to achieve a 400 lb + MILITARY PRESS!
And last, but not least, Taekwondo Masters?
I cannot for the life of me remember who, but it was a very well known Taekwondo Guru that once said the following.
"You live to lift heavy stuff over his head".
He was talking not just about the military press, but the handstand pushup.
And if you Google, I'm sure you'll find out who - I couldn't be bothered to look it up now (but I'll tell you the instant it pops into my mind - which it will - as Claude Bristol rightly said in the Magic of Beliving, nothing is ever "forgotten").
Now, build wise, martial artists are usually the steel and whale "8 pack types" -lean, mean, fighting machines - the sort of look yours truly has and prefers as opposed to the bulky look I had before when lifting weights (And the bulky look the Jim addicts all seem to want).
Certainly different from Paul Anderson and Doug Hepburn, though their weight was REAL strength, which is fine to have - it wasn't roid built boobies on the benching station.
But think about it.
The ONE exercise all doers have in common, and it wasn't necessarily the pull-up either!
It was the mighty HANDSTAND pushup!
Nothing, my friend, will blow those shoulders up quite like handstand pushups.
That don't mean pull-ups won't. They will.
But for you "bigger" (truly big, not fat) - concentrating on handstands and handstand pushups might work wonders my friend.
Give it a shot today. And let me know how it goes down the road!
And that, my friend is that. Bet you didn't know what I was talkin about in the title, hehe.
Best,
Rahul Mookerjee
PS - Still can't remember the name, but my own Taekwondo teacher always praised my pushups (not so much my stretching ability where he literally made me "yowl" so hard did he push me) - but pushups? I was by far naturally the guy that enjoyed them, and therefore did 'em the best, chest to the floor on each rep!
He did handstand pushups too, but we did regular pushups - sets of 10 - and even THAT will get the average "Blow Joe" into GREAT, GREAT shape if done right with a balance workout program.
The pushup is truly the most versatile movement out there, and will make you a beast if you train it right as it has millions of other folks.
Start training the pushup the right way and I teach you right her e- Pushup Central. Be sure and check out the reviews for this one as well!
Do fingertip pushups "hurt" the fingers?
Do y'all remember the tale of the Korean dude (I dont know if I said he was Korean or not) that back in the day my college buddy and me talked about?
I DID mention the time I was knocking out pushups, and my buddy showed up an hour or so early to drink, saw me working out - grinned - and then we got together at the original appointed time?
His look of approval said it ALL, hehe.
And I mentioned how he thought doing 50 pushups at one shot was great - but anyone that can do 50 pull-ups at one shot - now that - is - SUPER STUD!
He didnt use those terms, but he meant it, and he was right.
(And to all the idiots out there who claim it's just pushups, well, question for YOU.
How many can YOU do at one shot - even the simplest pushup?
How many pull-ups can YOU do? If at all?)
The answer to the above, my friend, will say it ALL.
But then we spoke about Korean dude, heavily into martial artists, and doing them on his fingertips - 50 at one go.
Now thats good going!
I can do 'em - that many, yes. Perhaps more.
And as the great Charles Mitchell once said, this course is great because it kicks BOOTY.
He hates workouts that dont challenge him.
And he's right to do so!
Too many of the books out there give you mamsy pamsy flimsy "this that"progressions, and cater to the whiners and moaners.
I dont.
I get straight to the REAL DEAL (which Charles said I was, and he's damn right).
But anyway, last I spoke to him, he was still working hard on some of the fingertip pushups in Pushup Central - variations you do NOT see in my other books (for a good reason) - and said they were "almost impossible to do".
He's right, hehe.
But anyway, cement ...
I've seen people do pushups on CEMENT Blocks.
I dont know if was the Spetsnaz I saw, or just fitness people in general, I can't recall.
But there it is, dude pounding out pushups - on fingertips - on cement blocks.
Let me tell you, that HURTS.
And will make a MAN - a REAL MAN out of you.
It's hard enough doing 'em on a paved cement floor, so for you guys - i'd advocate a carpet or perhaps mat, or grass (so long as it isn't WET - nasty injury waiting to happen!!)
There is a reason though that martial artists do these all the time.
two reasons.
One, well, see the "chair pushup" I mention in Pushup Central.
An oldie, but goldie.
Too easy?
DO it first - and then YAP, bro.
And second, because the fingertip pushup is one of the keys to super strength and a rock solid CRUSHING grip.
APE like grip.
I mention this as a secret in Gorilla Grip,and all the courses on pull-ups.
While yeah, pull-ups work the grip like there's no tomorrow, for the ultimate, you simply MUST mix them in with fingertip pushups!!
And as for the idiots that don't believe me?
Well, there was a lengthy blue flame review left ont he Amazon UK page for Gorilla Grip in 2017, and I've mentioned that enough times, but part of it I'll do so again here.
"I did pull-ups and chin-ups for years, but it did not give me a grip like steel and fingers like iron pliers".
RM - Don't know what style of pull-up or chin up this Bozo was doing. . .
"Something that particularly annoyed me was he (yours truly) seems to link his workout with the cachet of the Marines. He says his grip got better and stronger without doing a single pull-up for months but he doesn't mention what he did!"
RM - This idiot apparently never read the first (opening) part of the book where BOTH things are mentioned and explained.
"He mentions Bert Asserati and the one arm handstand, but there's no proof! Maybe it's only strong people - naturally strong people ..."
RM - Amazingly enough this nutjob never offered any proof for HIS assertion.
And I've gone in depth ENOUGH on this genetics and "naturally strong" crap.
No-one is naturally this or that, my friend.
Those of us that want it work for it - fight for it - and get it.
And have been doing so all our lives, some more so than others in all regards.
Enough with the idiot though ...
Last, but not least, done RIGHT - fingertip pushups won't hurt your fingers.
They'lld o the opposite.
Think building up your fingers to the point you can thrust them through BLOCKS of cements.
Think the MOTION with which these experts do it.
Think crushing cans of Coke with your bare (bear) hands - or like Dan Hodge did at 80 plus, crush APPLES!
THAT, my friend, is what fingertip pushups can and will do for you.
Move over bozos, I'd say to anyone that complains about 'em!
And thats it. Back soon!
Best,
Rahul Mookerjee
PS - Lots of you haven't gotten Pushup Central as yet - do so NOW. Truly a must have and masterpiece, along with Animal Kingdom Workouts!
PS #2 - The idiot also said this.
"The author has written a lot of other books, most even more expensive (remember, at the time, Gorilla Grip on Amazon was priced at a throwaway price ) making similar claims. I have a feeling he gives out minimum information for maximum gain".
Emphasis on the "expensive" part and what I said about "blue flame central".
And that, my friend says it all, hehe.
(Not to mention what this jackass says about minimum info. Clearly he hasn't DONE any of the workouts I've mentioned, more comprehensive than anything else out there in that regard).
But he, of course is nothing compared to the one and only Bozo Schofield, who reviews Animal Kingdom Workouts by saying "I have so much money to burn, so I keep coming back to Rahul's work!"
Sage, in terms of incompetence, and sheer "idiocy" (not to mention BROKE as a you know what) shining through. LOL.
Anyway, enough on the jackasses and moron-jobs. Back soon!