- The standard push-up works your shoulders, arms, chest and back fairly evenly because your weight is equally distributed among these areas. To perform a standard push-up, lie on the floor, face down. Place your hands on the floor about shoulder-width apart. Point your toes toward the floor. Press yourself off the floor until your arms are fully extended. Lower yourself back to the floor until your upper arms are level with your shoulders, but do not rest your body on the floor. The only parts of your body that should be touching the floor are your hands and toes. Keep your back as straight as possible throughout the repetition. Repeat this as many times as possible for a set. Beginners might want to shoot for 15 to 20 standard push-ups and build from there.
- After performing 15 to 20 standard push-ups, rest for a minute. Continue your push-up routine with wide-arm push-ups. Assume the standard push-up beginning position. Then, spread your hands apart so that they are significantly wider than shoulder-width distance. Raise and lower yourself 15 to 20 times, as you did with the standard push-ups. Keep your back straight. The wide-arm push up targets the pectoral muscles in the chest.
- Once you've finished your set of wide-arm push-ups, take another brief rest. Assume the standard push-up position, but this time move your hands inward so that they're under the center of your chest. Point your hands toward each other, touching your index fingers and thumbs so that they form a shape similar to a diamond. Raise and lower yourself, while keeping your back straight. Diamond push-ups target the deltoid muscles in your shoulders and triceps muscles in your arms.
