Strength Training · Bodybuilding · Calisthenics
Weighted Push-Up
The weighted push-up adds resistance to a standard push-up with a fitted vest. It trains your chest, shoulders, and triceps while challenging you to keep your body steady.
- Intermediate
- Compound
- Moderate injury risk
- Rest 1 min 30 sec
How to do it
- Fasten your weighted vest snugly around your torso.
- Kneel with your hands on the floor slightly wider than shoulder-width.
- Extend your legs into a plank supported by your hands and toes.
- Lower your chest toward the floor until your upper arms are roughly parallel to it.
- Press your body up as one unit until your elbows straighten.
- Lower your knees to the floor when you finish the set.
Form cues
- Keep elbows about 45 degrees from your sides.
- Spread your fingers for a stable base.
- Exhale as you press.
Common mistakes
- Hips saggingTighten your abdomen and glutes to maintain a straight line from shoulders to heels.
- Reaching down with your chinKeep your head aligned with your torso rather than leading the descent with your face.
- Bouncing at the bottomReverse direction smoothly without using contact between the vest and floor to rebound.
Safety
Added weight increases stress on your wrists, elbows, and shoulders, especially when fatigue changes your technique. A shifting vest can disrupt your balance and cause an uncontrolled drop toward the floor.
- Distribute the vest's weights evenly so it stays centered.
- Start with a light vest only after you can perform controlled bodyweight push-ups.
- Do not substitute loose plates balanced on your back.
- End the set before you lose control of the descent.
If you have wrist, elbow, shoulder, or lower-back pain, use an unloaded incline push-up if comfortable or seek advice from a physiotherapist before adding weight.
Muscles worked
Primary muscles
Secondary muscles
Equipment
- Weighted Vest
Sets and reps
- Sets
- 2–3
- Target
- 6–12 reps
- Rest
- 1 min 30 sec
Log the vest's added weight, not your body weight.