Push-ups are a great way to stay fit and strong, they work your entire back, chest and arms, and can be done anywhere, anytime, making them a super-duper, duck-diving necessity.
When you duck-dive your board through a wave it requires a lot of upper body strength, and you’ll also need endurance to make it through each set of waves. If you burn out after one set and have to turtle-roll your way through the next or even worse, bail your board and swim down, then the following exercises will benefit you the most. Practice these moves 2-4 times per week over the next 3 months and watch your duck-diving skills and fitness level improve dramatically!
The following 3 moves work together to target your entire upper body including the abdominal muscles, as well as the buttock and leg muscles, that is, if you use proper form and are doing them right. All three moves can be performed in “traditional” pushup position or in “girlie” pushup position, or a combination of the two depending on your fitness level.
Warm-up: (arms should be directly beneath the shoulders)
1st set: 6 girlie pushups
2nd set: 10 girlie pushups
Stretch: Gently stretch your shoulders and wrists for 2 minutes before continuing the exercise routine, these are key joints in pushups and its important to protect them.
GIRLY
PUSH-UP (warm up)
While performing pushups in the bent-knee position (a.k.a. girlie push-ups), you may feel like you’re not really working very hard, but this is actually an essential way to start your workout by gently warming up the chest, arms and back without straining or pulling them. Let’s call it “prep work”. It’s also a great way to finish a set if you’re extremely tired but are determined to finish.
A girlie push up is performed exactly like a traditional push up when it comes to hand placement, but the key here is to place your knees on the ground, providing support to your core and assisting the arms (placed slightly farther than shoulder width apart), and shoulders during the push-up movement.
When you can complete all 3 exercises (3 sets each) in the “girly push-up” position without excessive straining then you should begin performing the exercises in the traditional pushup pose.
1. Lay on your stomach on the floor as if you were going to do a regular push-up.
2. Place your hands flat on the floor so that your elbows are up and out ward at a ninety-degree angle. (This is proper form for any push-up.)
3. Keep your knees on the floor as you push your upper body up and off of the floor. Be sure to keep your torso as straight as possible from the top of your head to the bottom of your spine. (Don’t forget to keep your elbows at a 90-degree angle.)
4. Slowly lower yourself down to the floor, keeping your back straight, as far down as possible without your body or nose touching the floor. Repeat steps 1-4.
TRADITIONAL PUSH-UPS
The traditional push-up can be one of your favorite exercises once you build up your strength, but it’s important to keep your body straight and not allow the lower back to sag towards the floor. Breathe throughout the entire exercise.
1. Lie flat on the floor or another hard surface that can support your body weight. Keep your feet together.
2. Place your hands slightly farther than shoulder width apart with your palms on the ground. Curl your toes upward (towards your head) so that the balls of your feet touch the ground.
3. Raise yourself using your arms. At this point, your hands and the balls of your feet should be supporting your weight. (This position is called “plank,” which is used for other various exercises. This is the beginning and the end position of a single push-up.)
4. Make sure you’re balanced and steady, then slowly lower your torso to the ground until your elbows form a 90degree angle. Keep your head facing forward and try to keep your nose pointed directly forward as you’re lowering down. Breath IN as you lower yourself.
PAUSE… Then raise yourself back up by attempting to push the ground away
from you. Breathe out as you push. The majority of your power will come from your shoulders and chest.
Continue the push until your arms are almost straight but do NOT “lock” the elbows. Repeat this step for the remainder of the exercise.
WIDE-ARM PUSHUPS
Wide arm push-ups really activate the upper back muscles and chest and you should notice a tremendous growth in strength after doing these consistently for a month or more.
Wide arm push-ups are performed exactly like the traditional push-up, the only variation is the placement of your hands and arms. Arms should be at almost twice your shoulder width.
TIP: Try performing this exercise in “girlie push-up” form (knees on the floor) until you’re comfortable with the position and are strong enough to support your full weight.
DIAMOND PUSHUPS
Again, this exercise is performed exactly like a traditional push-up, only the placement of your hands is different. Place your hands close together, with your index fingers and your thumbs touching, forming a diamond shape - then slowly lower your body towards the ground- just like a tradiitional push-up. These are hard!
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