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Exercises

Warm up for push-ups: a 5-minute routine before max sets or push-up workouts

Published October 24, 2026

To warm up for push-ups, do 1 minute of plank jacks, 20 seconds of arm circles each way, 10 plank shoulder taps and 6 plank to push-ups, then 2 easier push-up sets: 8 incline push-ups and 5 regular push-ups, both well short of failure. It takes about 5 minutes. The easier variations are your ramp-up sets.

  1. Plank Jack Abs
  2. Arm Circles Shoulders
  3. Plank Shoulder Tap Abs
  4. Plank to Push-Up Abs, Shoulders
  5. Incline Push-Up Chest
  6. Kneeling Push-Up Chest

Step 1: warm up (1 minute)

Plank jacks warm you up in the push-up position.

Raise: cardio in the push-up position

Plank Jack

Abs

A minute of plank jacks raises your heart rate while your hands, shoulders and trunk already hold the position you're about to press from.

How to do it

  1. Set up in a forearm plank with your body in one straight line.
  2. Hop both feet out wide, then back together, without letting your hips bounce.
  3. Keep your weight even between both forearms.

Cues

  • Hips level
  • Quick, light feet

Common mistakes

  • Hips rising toward the ceiling: squeeze your glutes and keep the line.

Swap for: Jumping Jack, Plank Shoulder Tap

Build a session with Plank Jack

Step 2: shoulders

Arm circles get the shoulders moving.

Mobility: shoulder range

Arm Circles

Shoulders

Push-ups need your shoulders to move freely as the chest drops between your hands. Circles in both directions are enough.

How to do it

  1. Stand tall with your arms straight out to the sides.
  2. Draw small circles forward, then let them grow bigger over 10 to 15 seconds.
  3. Reverse direction and repeat.

Cues

  • Small to big
  • Ribs down

Common mistakes

  • Shrugging the shoulders to your ears: keep the neck long.

Swap for: Plate Halo, Band Pull-Apart

Build a session with Arm Circles

Step 3: plank work

Shoulder taps and plank to push-ups load the wrists, shoulders and core.

Activation: one arm at a time

Plank Shoulder Tap

Abs

Each tap shifts your full weight onto one hand, which warms that wrist and shoulder more than a two-handed plank does.

How to do it

  1. Start in a high plank with feet a bit wider than hips.
  2. Lift one hand to tap the opposite shoulder.
  3. Put it down and switch, keeping the hips still.

Cues

  • Hips don't sway
  • Slow taps

Common mistakes

  • Rocking side to side: widen the feet.

Swap for: Plank to Push-Up, Bear Crawl

Build a session with Plank Shoulder Tap

Activation: triceps and wrists

Plank to Push-Up

Abs, Shoulders

Pressing from forearms to hands is a partial push-up for the triceps, and it bends the wrists back gradually before full reps.

How to do it

  1. Start in a forearm plank.
  2. Press up onto one hand, then the other, into a high plank.
  3. Lower back down one forearm at a time and switch the leading arm.

Cues

  • Hips steady
  • Alternate the lead arm

Common mistakes

  • Hips rocking as you press up: widen the feet.

Swap for: Plank Shoulder Tap, Walkout

Build a session with Plank to Push-Up

Step 4: easier push-ups as ramp-up sets

Easier variations warm you up the same way lighter weights do.

Ramp-up set 1

Incline Push-Up

Chest

Hands on a bench takes a big share of your body weight off, so this is the light set that comes first, just as an empty bar comes first on bench.

How to do it

  1. Put your hands on a box or bench and walk your feet back into a straight line.
  2. Lower your chest to the edge.
  3. Press back up.

Cues

  • Straight line
  • Chest to the edge

Common mistakes

  • Hips piking up: keep them in line.

Swap for: Kneeling Push-Up, Push-Up

Build a session with Incline Push-Up

Ramp-up set or main exercise

Kneeling Push-Up

Chest

On your knees you press a lighter load through the full range. Beginners use it as the main exercise; everyone else can use it as a second ramp-up set.

How to do it

  1. Set up like a push-up but with your knees on the floor and a line from knees to head.
  2. Lower your chest toward the floor.
  3. Press back up.

Cues

  • Hips forward
  • Elbows at 45 degrees

Common mistakes

  • Sticking the hips back: keep a straight line from knees to shoulders.

Swap for: Incline Push-Up, Push-Up

Build a session with Kneeling Push-Up

Main exercise

Push-Up

Chest

The movement this routine prepares. One easy set of 3 to 5 reps right before your working sets is the last step.

How to do it

  1. Stack your hands below your shoulders, body straight from heels to head.
  2. Lower your chest to just above the floor with elbows at about 45 degrees.
  3. Push the floor away until your arms are straight.

Cues

  • Body moves as one piece
  • Chest leads

Common mistakes

  • Sagging hips: squeeze the glutes and brace.

Swap for: Kneeling Push-Up, Incline Push-Up

Build a session with Push-Up

Main exercise: harder

Decline Push-Up

Chest

Feet up shifts more weight onto your hands. Put it after regular push-ups once those are warm.

How to do it

  1. Rest your toes on a bench, hands on the floor below your shoulders.
  2. Lower your face and chest toward the floor.
  3. Press back up.

Cues

  • Brace hard
  • Elbows tucked

Common mistakes

  • Hips sagging: brace before each rep.

Swap for: Push-Up, Pike Push-Up

Build a session with Decline Push-Up

Main exercise: power

Explosive Push-Up

Chest

Fast reps need a nervous system that's awake and muscles that aren't tired, so do these early, a few at a time.

How to do it

  1. Set up in a push-up.
  2. Lower under control, then push hard enough for your hands to leave the floor.
  3. Land with soft elbows and go straight into the next rep.

Cues

  • Fast up
  • Soft landing

Common mistakes

  • Doing them tired: use them while you're fresh, a few at a time.

Swap for: Clap Push-Up, Push-Up

Build a session with Explosive Push-Up

Put them together: example sessions

Each session below picks from the exercises above for one situation, with the sets, reps, rest and RIR filled in. Open one in the session builder to change a pick, price it from a recent set, and add it to RIRLift.

Session 1

Push-up max set or test

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts1× a week
  • Working sets5 a week
  • Per workout~10 min
  • EquipmentBodyweight

You're testing how many push-ups you can do.

A max set needs you warm but not tired. Every drill stops well short, the incline set stays at about half of what you could do, and a single set of 3 to 5 regular push-ups at 5 reps in reserve is your last warm-up set. Then rest a full minute and go to 0 reps in reserve on the test.

Test day
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Plank JackSeconds. 1 × 60 5 0 s
Arm CirclesSeconds each way. 1 × 20 5 0 s
Plank Shoulder Tap 1 × 10 5 0 s
Incline Push-Up 1 × 8 5 30 s
Push-Up1 warm-up set firstMax set. 1 × 5–60 0 0 s
How to run it
Run the blocks in order with almost no rest, take 60 to 90 seconds after the ramp-up push-ups, then do your max set.
How to progress
Retest every 2 to 4 weeks. Keep the warm-up identical so the numbers compare fairly.
Open in the session builder

Session 2

Push-up workout

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts3× a week
  • Working sets21 a week
  • Per workout~15 min
  • EquipmentBodyweight

Your session is push-ups and decline push-ups.

For a session of several push-up sets, a short warm-up does the job because the first working set is bodyweight, not a heavy bar. One ramp-up set and the plank-to-push-up are enough before working sets at 1 rep in reserve, then decline push-ups for more load.

Push-ups
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Plank JackSeconds. 1 × 45 5 0 s
Plank to Push-Up 1 × 6 4 0 s
Push-Up1 warm-up set first 3 × 8–20 1 90 s
Decline Push-Up 2 × 6–15 1 90 s
How to run it
Warm-up blocks, then the push-up with its warm-up set, then decline push-ups.
How to progress
Add reps until all three push-up sets reach 20 at 1 rep in reserve, then move decline push-ups first.
Open in the session builder

Session 3

Working up to your first push-ups

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts3× a week
  • Working sets18 a week
  • Per workout~10 min
  • EquipmentBodyweight

You can't do a full push-up yet.

If a full push-up isn't there yet, the kneeling push-up is the working exercise, and the incline set becomes the warm-up. Sets stop at 1 rep in reserve so you get stronger without grinding ugly reps.

Beginner
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Arm CirclesSeconds each way. 1 × 20 5 0 s
Plank Shoulder Tap 1 × 8 4 0 s
Incline Push-Up 1 × 8 4 30 s
Kneeling Push-Up1 warm-up set first 3 × 6–15 1 1 min
How to run it
Warm-up blocks, then three sets of kneeling push-ups.
How to progress
When you reach 15 kneeling reps on all three sets, try one set of regular push-ups at the start and keep the kneeling sets after it.
Open in the session builder

Make it fit you

Questions

How do you warm up for push-ups?

Spend a minute on plank jacks, circle your arms, do a few shoulder taps and plank to push-ups, then do one easier push-up set (incline or kneeling) before your real sets. About five minutes in total.

Should I warm up before push-ups?

Yes, especially before a max set or a test. Cold wrists and shoulders are the usual reason the first set feels harder than the second.

What is a good 5-minute warm-up before a workout?

Two minutes of easy cardio, two minutes of drills for the joints you'll use, and one light set of your first exercise. The routine on this page is that pattern for push-ups.

Will 100 push-ups a day build chest?

It can for a beginner, if the sets get hard. Once 100 feels easy, the sets are far from failure and growth slows; harder variations or added weight keep it working.

How to do push-ups for beginners?

Start with incline or kneeling push-ups for 3 sets, stopping 1 to 2 reps before failure, and move to a lower incline or full push-ups as reps climb.

Do I need to stretch before push-ups?

No long holds. Arm circles and plank drills move the shoulders and wrists through the range you'll use.