What Muscles Do Push Ups Work - The Top 7 for Body Transformation

Introduction

What muscles do push ups work?

The push up is only one exercise you might think, how good can it be?

The answer is that push-ups alone can start you on the path to weight loss and fitness.

The reasons are that:

you can do push-ups anywhere
therefore, you can do push-ups in your home, office, and do not need to join a gym
the push-up is a mainstay in any fitness-assessment test because it is an excellent indicator of upper body strength and fitness
Whether it is the United States Army or any high school gym in America, push-ups are a go-to exercise to build upper body strength
As soon as you start doing push-ups, you are more likely to want to eat the right foods that will keep making you leaner and stronger

When you are overweight or obese, you might be too embarrassed to go to the gym, especially in the free weight area.

So you can start doing push-ups in the privacy of your home.

Even if you live in a studio apartment, you will find enough floor space to do push-ups.

This post will illustrate which muscles you can build by adding push-ups to your strength training regimen.

Push-ups muscles worked include:

Chest muscles
Shoulder muscles
Arm muscles
Serratus anterior
Abdominal muscles, your core
Back muscles – upper and lower
Gluteal and leg muscles

Let’s dive into the main push-ups muscles worked in greater detail:

#1. Chest Muscles

Pectoralis major
Pectoralis minor which is underneath the pectoralis major muscle

what muscles do pushups work pectoralis major muscle image credit yoganatomy — The pectoralis major muscle – Image Credit: Yoganatomy.com

#2. Shoulder Muscles

Deltoids, especially targeting your anterior deltoids.
In the image below, you can see an illustration of your deltoids:
- red is for your anterior (front) deltoids
- green shows your medial deltoids
- and blue depicts your posterior deltoids.

See you shoulder muscles

Deltoids - Image Credit Wikipedia — All three heads of the deltoid – Image Credit: Wikipedia

#3. Arm muscles

Triceps brachii, aka triceps, the back of your arms
Biceps, the front of your arms

pushups muscles worked triceps image credit myprotein — Pushups muscles worked triceps – Image Credit: myprotein

#4. Serratus Anterior muscle

superior section
medial section
inferior section

The serratus anterior often called the boxer’s muscle, is a muscle that originates on the ribs and enables you to extend your arms forward, as in a punch.

It allows the protraction of the scapula, which allows you to pull your scapula forward and around the rib cage.

muscles targeted by push ups serratus anterior credit yoganatomy — Muscles targeted by push-ups serratus anterior – Image Credit Yoganatomy.com

#5. Abdominal Muscles

Rectus abdominis
Transverse abdominis
internal obliques
external obliques
Serratus anterior

You strengthen your abdominal muscles by bracing them tight to keep your body straight while gravity is pulling you down towards the ground.

#6. Upper and lower back muscles

Erector spinae muscles
- Iliocostalis,
- Longissimus, and
- Spinalis
Trapezius muscles
Rhomboids
Latissimus dorsi muscles

One of the main muscle groups engaged in the push up is the erector spinae muscles.

These are powerful muscles, which help you to bend forward as well as return to a standing position.

The spinal erectors run down your back, from the base of your skull to the lower vertebrae.

The Erector Spinae muscles keep your back rigid while holding a plank position, keeping your body straight throughout the push-up.

Push-ups also activate the trapezius, rhomboid, and latissimus dorsi muscles of your upper back.

#7. Gluteal and Leg Muscles

Gluteus maximus
Gluteus medius
Quadriceps

To keep your legs straight while doing push-ups, you need to engage the quadriceps, and stabilize a plank position with your glutes.

The Power of One Push-Up

Once you start training, as in walking 30 minutes a day, doing squats, deadlifts, bench press, or calisthenics exercises like pull-ups or even doing one push-up, you will not want to ruin your workout with processed food!

Junk food is one of the main culprits why 75 percent of adults over 20 are overweight or obese in the United States.

Squats and deadlifts work your posterior chain hard, the entire back half of your body, and leg muscles.

Pushups require strong upper arms and chest muscles and work the front half of your body, your mirror muscles, the ones you can see in a mirror.

Between walking for cardiorespiratory endurance, squats for complete leg development plus your glutes and abs, and deadlifts for your hamstrings and back, you can achieve a total body transformation.

There are many pushup variations, such as:

fingertip push-ups
handstand push-ups aka inverted push-ups
triangle push-ups aka diamond push-ups
pike push-ups
incline push-ups
decline push-ups
diamond push-ups
TRX push-ups
plyometric push-ups

But all you need to do is the standard pushup with the best form possible to get started on your body transformation.

What Muscles Do Pushups Work – Final Thoughts

I think you would agree that an exercise you can do anywhere there is a floor has a lot going for it, and that is only one of the powerful benefits of push-ups for an athlete or wannabe athlete at any age.

Push-ups are used as a standard fitness assessment test and for building muscle all over the world.

For example, see the IFA Pushup Test:

International Fitness Association’s (IFA) Classic Push Up Test:¹

Starting position – lie on the floor in a prone position
Bending your elbows with your hands pointed forward and directly under your shoulders
Your hands should be shoulder-width apart
Start with the chin touching the floor, then
Perform push-ups by pressing against the floor to lift your body weight and straightening the arms
Maintain a straight body plank position throughout your push-ups
- For men, your legs should be extended out and positioned together with only your feet touching the ground.
- For women, the upper leg should be straight out, and your knees are touching the floor.
There is no time limit for this test.
Do as many push-ups using a perfect push up position as you can.
Stop the test when you start straining.
Get your push up rating from the table below:

IFA Push Up Test and Ratings - Image Credit - International Fitness Association — **IFA Push Up Test and Ratings – Image Credit – International Fitness Association**

What’s Next

Push-ups are one of only three exercises I consistently did to lose 75 pounds in 6 months and change my body and life dramatically.

The other two being squats and deadlifts.

In the beginning, I could not do even one push up.

The simple push-up, along with squats, deadlifts, walking, and real food, will help you transform your body in only six months, even if you are obese today.

If you want to lose weight and transform your body, here are the next articles to read and take action:

Muscles Worked Articles

Abou Pushups and Fitness

Squats and Deadlifts:

Best Deadlifters Tips and Tricks

Squat and Deadlift Workouts and Programs:

Never Give Up on Getting Fitter Than You Are Today

Best Squat and Deadlift Gear Buying Guides:

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This guide is a template of the Hashi Mashi plan, the system I followed to lose 75 pounds in 6 months.

What Muscles Do Push Ups Work?

Introduction