▶️ Bodyweight Chest Exercises And Variations

Here is a list of the best exercises to train your chest

✅ Flat Push-ups

To perform this exercise, follow these steps:

1. Starting Position: Begin in a high plank position with your hands firmly placed on the ground slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. Your feet should be together just slightly apart, balancing on your toes.
2. Body Alignment: Ensure your body forms a straight line from your head to your heels. Engage your core, glutes, and quads to maintain stability and prevent your hips from sagging or lifting too high.
3. Elbow Position: As you lower yourself, keep your elbows at a 45-degree angle to your body.
4. Lowering Down: Inhale as you slowly bend your elbows to lower your body towards the floor. Aim to get your chest close to the ground without actually touching it. Keep your body straight throughout the movement.
5. Pushing Up: Exhale as you push through your hands to lift your body back up to the starting position, extending your arms fully without locking out your elbows.
6. Repetition: Repeat the movement for the desired number of repetitions, maintaining proper form throughout each push-up.
   

Remember, quality over quantity. It’s better to perform fewer push-ups with correct form than many with poor form.

✅ Incline Push-ups

This exercise is similar to flat push-ups, but your hands are in an elevated position. 

These are performed with the hands on an elevated surface, such as a bench, step, or wall.

Primarily target the lower chest and shoulders but reduce the intensity on the triceps compared to flat push-ups.

The higher the incline (the higher the hands are placed), the easier the push-up becomes, making incline push-ups a great starting point for beginners or those building upper body strength.

Incline push-ups are great for building strength progressively.

• Beginners: Start with a higher surface, such as a wall or a countertop, to reduce the amount of body weight you need to lift, making the push-ups easier to perform.
• Intermediate: As you build strength, you can lower the height to increase the difficulty. Using a bench, chair, or sturdy coffee table (generally around 18 inches – approx 45 cm high) is an excellent intermediate step.
• Advanced: To further increase the challenge before moving to flat push-ups, use a lower surface like a step or a low stool, which could be around 6 to 12 inches (approx 15 to 30 cm) high.
  

✅ Decline Push-ups

This exercise is similar to flat push-ups, but this time your feet are in an elevated position. 

These are performed with the feet on an elevated surface, such as a bench, step, or wall.

Decline push-ups differ in the angle of the body relative to the ground, which affects the targeted muscle groups and the difficulty level of the exercise.

• These are performed with the feet elevated on a raised surface, such as a bench or step, and hands on the ground.
• Primarily target the upper chest and shoulders, with increased engagement of the upper pectoral muscles compared to flat push-ups.
• The declined position of the body increases the difficulty by placing more body weight onto the arms and shoulders.
  

✅ Intermediate: Diamond Push Ups

Diamond Push-up is a calisthenics exercise, which is an intermediate variation of push-ups targeting multiple muscle groups, with a focus on the triceps, shoulders, and chest. They also engage the core and the muscles in the upper back.

How to perform the Diamond Push-ups:

Starting Position: Begin in a high plank position with your hands close together under your chest, fingers forming a diamond shape (thumbs and index fingers touching).

Follow the steps of flat push-ups but maintain the diamond hand placement.

✅ Chest Flyes With Elastic Bands

Chest flies with elastic bands target the chest muscles, particularly focusing on the pectoral muscles. They also engage the shoulders (deltoids) and arms (biceps) to a lesser extent for stabilization and movement control.

How to Perform Chest Flies with Elastic Bands:

1. Secure the Band: Place the elastic band behind your back at chest level. Your hands should be grabbing the band at each end of the band.
2. Starting Position: Stand feet shoulder-width apart. Grasp the ends of the band with each hand, arms extended out to the sides at shoulder level, with a slight bend in the elbows.
3. Perform the Fly: Keeping a slight bend in your elbows, bring your hands together in front of your chest. The movement should be smooth and controlled, focusing on squeezing your chest muscles as your arms come together.
4. Return: Slowly let your arms return to the starting position, maintaining tension in the chest and controlling the movement.
   

✅ Intermediate: Chest Dips

Chest dips are a compound bodyweight exercise that primarily targets the muscles in the chest, shoulders, and triceps.

1. Starting Position: Position yourself between parallel bars or on a dip station. Grip the bars, and place your hands with your palms facing inward and your arms straight.
2. Initial Descent: Lean slightly forward to shift the emphasis to your chest muscles. Bend your knees and cross your ankles for stability.
3. Lowering Your Body: Slowly bend your elbows to lower your body, keeping your elbows slightly flared out to the sides. Descend until your shoulders are slightly below your elbows or as low as you can go without discomfort.
4. Pressing Up: Push through your palms, extending your elbows to lift your body back to the starting position. Focus on using your chest and triceps to drive the movement.
   

✅ Advanced: Russian dips

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Russian dips are an advanced variation of the standard dip exercise, incorporating a dynamic movement that challenges the muscles and joints of the upper body more intensively. They are particularly effective for building strength and stability in the arms, shoulders, and core.

How to Perform Russian Dips:

1. Starting Position: Begin on parallel bars, similar to a regular dip setup. Ensure your grip is firm, with arms fully extended and shoulders directly above your hands.
2. Initial Descent: Lower your body by bending your elbows, keeping your elbows close to your body. Continue to descend until your upper arms are just below parallel to the ground.
3. The Transition: As you reach the bottom of the dip, lean back, allow your elbows to go slightly behind your body, and rest them on the bars. This requires a controlled lean, and you may need to use your legs for balance.
4. Reverse: Pull yourself forward using your hand and a bit of momentum from your legs until you get to the bottom of a normal dip.
5. Final Extension: Straighten your arms completely, returning to the starting position with your shoulders above your hands. Keep your shoulder down and further away from your ears.

✅ Advanced: Chest-weighted dips

Chest-weighted dips are an advanced variation of the standard dip that involves adding extra weight to increase the intensity of the exercise. This variation more heavily targets the muscles of the chest, triceps, and shoulders, making it an effective strength-building movement.

How to Perform Chest Weighted Dips:

1. Equipment Setup: Use a dip belt to add weight plates, a weighted vest, or a dumbbell held between the back of your knees to add resistance.
2. Starting Position: Secure the additional weight and position yourself between parallel bars or on a dip station. Grip the bars with your palms facing inward, arms straight, and shoulders above your hands.
3. Lean Forward: Slightly lean your torso forward to shift the emphasis onto the chest muscles. This is key for targeting the chest rather than just the triceps.
4. Lower Your Body: Inhale as you slowly bend your elbows to lower your body. Descend until your elbows are at about a 90-degree angle or your shoulders are just below your elbows.
5. Press Up: Exhale as you extend your elbows, pushing your body back up to the starting position. Focus on using your chest and triceps to drive the movement.
6. Maintain Form: Throughout the exercise, keep your core engaged and your movements controlled to prevent swinging or momentum from aiding the lift.

✅ Advanced: Single Arm Push Ups

Single-arm push-ups are a highly advanced variation of the standard push-up that significantly increases the challenge by requiring you to lift your entire body weight with just one arm.

This exercise not only targets the upper body muscles more intensely but also engages the core and lower body for stabilization.

How to Perform Single-Arm Push-Ups:

1. Starting Position: Start in a high plank position with your feet wider than shoulder-width apart for increased stability. Place one hand on the ground directly under your shoulder and place the other hand behind your back.
2. Body Alignment: Ensure your body forms a straight line from your head to your heels. Engage your core and glutes to maintain stability.
3. Lowering Phase: Slowly lower your body towards the floor by bending the elbow of the working arm. Keep your body straight and avoid rotating at the hips or shoulders.
4. Pushing Phase: Press through the palm of your working hand, extending your arm to push your body back up to the starting position.
5. Breathing: Inhale as you lower your body and exhale as you push back up.
6. Switch Sides: Perform the desired number of repetitions on one side before switching to the other arm.
   

✅ Advanced: Clapping Push Ups

Clapping push-ups are an explosive variation of the traditional push-up that incorporates a plyometric element, enhancing power, strength, and speed. This exercise not only targets the upper body muscles more intensely but also requires and develops a high level of coordination and core stability.

How to Perform Clapping Push-Ups:

1. Starting Position: Begin in a standard push-up position with your hands shoulder-width apart and your body forming a straight line from your head to your heels.
2. The Descent: Lower your body towards the floor by bending your elbows, keeping your elbows close to your body to maximize triceps engagement.
3. The Explosive Push: Explosively push through your hands to lift your body off the ground. The force should be enough to allow your hands to leave the floor.
4. The Clap: While airborne, quickly clap your hands together before placing them back in their starting position to catch your body.
5. The Landing: Land softly with your arms slightly bent to absorb the impact and immediately lower yourself into the next push-up.
6. Breathing: Inhale on the way down, and exhale as you push up and clap.
   

✅ Advanced: Archer Pushup

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Archer push-ups are an advanced variation of the standard push-up that increases the load on one arm at a time, mimicking the drawing of a bow, like an archer. This exercise is excellent for building unilateral strength and stability, and it targets the upper body muscles with an emphasis on each side individually.

How to Perform Archer Push-Ups:

1. Starting Position: Begin in a push-up position, but with your hands placed wider than shoulder-width apart. Your fingers can point slightly outward to accommodate the wider stance.
2. The Descent: As you lower your body, shift your weight to one arm while extending the other arm out to the side, keeping it straight. Your bent arm should do most of the work, lowering your body towards the floor.
3. The Push-Up: Push through the palm of your bent arm to lift your body back up to the starting position while the opposite arm remains extended. The straight arm should provide minimal assistance, mainly acting as a stabilizer.
4. Switch Sides: After completing the movement on one side, shift your weight to the other arm and repeat the push-up, extending the opposite arm out to the side.
5. Breathing: Inhale as you lower your body and exhale as you push back up to the starting position.