If there's one upper body (primarily) exercise that's guaranteed to have you huffing, puffing and sweating within a short period of time, it's the good ole pushup.
It doesn't matter how out of shape or in shape you are, there is a type of pushup out there that will make you feel it in the right areas when you perform the movement correctly. It doesn't matter if your just starting out or an experienced trainee. It doesn't matter if you choose to train in the morning or evening - and it doesn't matter if your from Mars or Venus - pushups, when done correctly will get the blood pumping and the heart beating within a short period of time. Good stuff.
A much ignored but extremely effective exercise, especially when done for high reps, this exercise is one of my favorites - not just to get a great upper body workout in a short period of time, but also to "rev the engine up" before embarking on a tougher/longer routine.
What do I mean?
Well, I wasn't feeling the best this morning when I woke up. The weather's changing around here, and I think I might have picked up a tad bit of flu or something - so, I wasn't at my chirpiest to say the least.
Started to get stuck into my normal routine (which today was supposed to be various styles of jumping jacks, rope jumps and a few other associated exercises), but quickly figured out that I just wasn't being able to "get into the groove" as I normally do. I was sweating, and breathing hard, but something didn't feel quite "right" - in other words, I wasn't as switched on as I should have been, if that makes sense.
So, for a change, I figured I'll pump out 25 slow pushups, and then get back to the set #6 on the rope jumps.
Did that, and then knocked off 5 "table" pushups (slowly) for good measure, followed by 10 finger tip pushups.
By that time I was starting to feel a little something in my triceps, and I was breathing much deeper than I was before for sure.
"Hey, this feels good - that old, familiar feeling of the heart starting to pump HARD, and working up a great sweat while I'm at it".
So, figured I'd do a "few more" pushups before getting back to the rest of my normal routine.
Hit #60. Figured I'd do a "few more".
On to #92. "Ok, a few more".
Another set of 20 slow tricep pushups - followed by fingertip pushups again - and I'm on 120 pushups before I know it.
I finally finished at 155 pushups - and whats more, I was feeling GREAT by the end of it. No more "wooziness" or "slow off the blocks" feelings - I was feeling recharged and ready to ROLL. The blood was pumping, the sweat was pouring, and I was breathing like I'd just run a sprint - all great, great stuff.
Never did finish the 1500 rope jumps I had planned for today, but finished my routine off with 25 pull-ups and timed hangs - and that was that. And this feeling of being "on top of the world" after a good hard set of pushups lasts all day long - I'm still "buzzing" a few hours after my routine, and my triceps literally feel "worked to the bone".
And thats not just a stray observation - pushups always make me feel better. For those of you that do them regularly, you know what I mean - and for those of you that don't do pushups on a regular basis - well, one of the best things you can do for your health is to get cracking on a regular pushup schedule - it'll benefit you far more than you know.
So the next time you need a quick "pick me up", ditch the coffee in favor of 20 pushups done in the right way - the boost you get will be well worth it!
All for today. If you workout today, make sure and make it a winner!
Best Regards,
Rahul
P.S.: - I speak of "table" pushups in this email, and I did a wide variety of pushups today in getting to the 155 mark. To learn more about how I structure my high rep push up routines, push on over HERE: - http://rahulmookerjee.com/index.php/articles/83-fast-and-furious-fitness-the-book