​5 Reasons You’re Not Getting Full Depth On Your Push-ups.

So you’ve been at your push up training for weeks? Possibly even months?

We get this all the time. People coming to us saying ‘I can do the right amount of push ups, I just can’t get low enough’

This means that you actually CAN’T do any of the required push-ups.

That’s a harsh reality but the standard is the standard and if you’re not getting the required depth with push-ups then they won’t count on the day of your PFA.

So how do you improve the depth of your push-ups so that you can guarantee you’ll pass your PFA?

Here are our top 5 tips to ensure you get full depth:

1. Do NOT do push-ups on your knees.
This will only ensure you become great at push-ups on your knees and does not aid in increasing your push-up depth at all. There is no core development when doing push-ups on your knees.

2. Make sure your head is up.
A lot of you will sag your head below your shoulders as you begin to fatigue. This creates a a false sense that you are actually going lower than you think. Try looking a meter in front of your body to assist with this.

3. Train Consistently.
Aim to conduct push-up specific training at least twice a week. There is no requirement to train push-ups every day as you’ll become fatigued and your push-up form won’t have a chance to improve and you’ll struggle to get full depth.

4. Relevant Training.
You need to be conducting training that is specific to push-ups. If you’re not doing this then you won’t improve that depth.
Try this as an example-
3 sets of 10 push-ups
60 seconds rest between sets
Conduct this every Monday, Wednesday and Friday

5. You’re sagging in the mid section.
Your hips, tummy and butt are all sagging. If you were to conduct your push-ups in front of a mirror or film yourself this would be obvious to see.
How to fix this? Tuck your hips in, brace your tummy and aim to keep your body in a straight line from your head to your feet. As long as that mid section is sagging then you wont physically be able to get full depth.

Once you’ve implemented these 5 key tips you’ll start to notice some obvious improvement to your push-up technique and you’ll be closer to getting full depth.

Remember, nothing will happen if you don’t keep your training consistent. If it doesn’t improve after the first time, that’s ok. Keep at it!

If you would like more advice on improving your push-ups for the ADF then please feel free to get in touch with The Barracks Gym.