Weighted Push Up
A regular push-up with extra load on your upper back, either a plate placed by a partner or a weighted vest, so your chest, front delts and triceps press more than bodyweight.
- Primary muscles
- Upper chest, Middle chest, Lower chest
- Secondary
- Front delts, Triceps
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
- Logged as
- Added weight × reps
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Why do it
Weighted push-ups are for people who can already do long sets of push-ups and would rather add load than keep adding reps. The movement stays the same, but your core has to work harder to hold the line under the extra weight. A vest is easier to set up on your own and stays put; a plate needs a partner and a steady body. Compared with the bench press, your shoulder blades still move freely and you need no bench or rack.
How to do it
Get into a push up position with your hands just wider than shoulder-width and have a partner place a weight plate on your upper back, or wear a weighted vest instead.
Keep your body in a straight line and lower your chest to the floor with your elbows at about 45 degrees from your torso.
Press back up until your arms are straight.
Brace your core harder than usual so the plate does not sink your hips. Log the added weight; your bodyweight is counted automatically.
Common mistakes
Letting the load sink your hips
Extra weight on your back pulls your middle toward the floor. Brace harder than on a normal push-up and squeeze your glutes; if your hips still sag, the load is too heavy.
Placing the plate too low
A plate on your lower back slides off and bends you at the waist. Have it set between your shoulder blades, where it stays flat as you move.
Losing depth with the extra load
Many people stop well short of the floor once weight goes on. Keep lowering until your chest is close to the floor, and pick a load that lets you do that every rep.
Flaring your elbows under load
As the weight goes up, your elbows tend to drift out to the sides. Keep them angled back toward your hips, the same path as your bodyweight push-ups.
Sets, reps and progression
How many sets you do and how close to failure you take them depend on your goal and your week, not on the exercise. These guides cover it:
Alternatives that train the same thing
Same movement, a different angle or piece of equipment.
