As of: March 7, 2024, 4:57 a.m
By: Alexandra Grauvogl
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Everyone has probably done push-ups – more or less.
But how many push-ups should you actually do to be considered fit?
An expert gives guidelines.
The nice thing about simple fitness exercises like the push-up is that you can compare them very well.
Am I doing more than my friends or less than average?
A 2019 survey by the fitness portal “gymless.org” showed that around 54 percent of Americans can do fewer than ten push-ups in a row, and around 36 percent can’t even do five repetitions.
Things are likely to look similar in Germany.
What does it say about my fitness if I can do a certain number of repetitions?
How useful is the orientation towards guideline values?
It is a natural reflex to compare yourself with others when it comes to sporting achievements, to want to fit yourself into a ranking.
This helps motivate many athletes: Who likes to see that they perform below average in certain areas?
So get to training!
Prof. Dr.
Dr.
However, Gießing from the University of Kaiserslautern-Koblenz doesn't think much of these comparisons.
“It’s completely normal to ask: ‘How much should I do?
What is good and how much would be very good?'
But that’s actually exactly the wrong approach,” says the sports scientist in an interview with merkur.de.
Why?
The push-up is a classic bodyweight exercise © IMAGO/Uwe Umstätter
The goal should not be to do one more push-up than your neighbor or a comparable person of the same age category.
“The goal always has to be to do one more push-up than I did in the last training session.” This progression forces the body to develop further and you benefit from the health benefits of training.
Here you can read which muscles are trained when doing push-ups.
This is precisely why it is wrong to be satisfied, for example, with a guideline value that is considered “good”.
"Suppose someone does push-ups and, comparing them, says, 'I'm in the top category!'
He will probably pat himself on the back and have little incentive to improve further,” explains Gießing.
The fatal thing: “If you stop improving, you will regress.” Medical research makes it clear that people reach peak physical maturity at around 25 years of age, and the greatest muscle mass at around 27 years of age.
“After that it goes downhill.
Very slowly at first.
A huge leap occurs between the ages of 70 and 80.” On average, people lose between one and three percent of muscle mass per year.
“That’s why it’s important that I try to continue to improve, no matter how good I already am,” says Prof. Gießing.
Download the 6-week “Learn Push-ups” training plan for beginners here – free of charge!
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This is how many push-ups women and men should be able to do
If you look at the study situation, Prof. Jürgen Gießing states that one can speak of a minimum requirement for push-ups of 10 repetitions - using correct push-up technique, of course.
“That’s okay.
So you should be able to do 10 push-ups in a row.
With 40 repetitions you really reach the top level,” says Gießing in an interview with merkur.de.
And further: “We know from studies that people who can do 40 push-ups benefit from the greatest possible health benefits.”
Whether you can do 40, 50 or 60 push-ups is no longer so important.
On the one hand, it doesn't make a big difference in fitness whether you can do 40 or 50 push-ups.
It's just a matter of gradual gradations of top fit.
On the other hand, push-ups may no longer be a suitable exercise for people who can do 80, 90 or even 100 repetitions, for example, because they are too fit.
In other words: “You have to provide additional resistance because the push-up is a strengthening exercise with which we force our muscles to work anaerobically - that is, so intensely that the cell, in this case the muscle cell, can do the work even without oxygen can."
Then it's important to make the exercise more difficult by increasing the range of motion and doing the push-ups, for example between chairs, in order to be able to lower the body further.
Other push-up variations for advanced users and professionals are weighted push-ups (e.g. with weight on the back) or the decline push-up, in which the feet are placed elevated.
“So instead of 50 to 60, I can suddenly only do 30-40 push-ups because the angle is more demanding,” explains Gießing.
The guidelines in the following tables are considered standards of the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA).
Table: Push-up guidelines for women
Category/age |
20-29 years |
30-39 years |
40-49 years |
50-59 years |
60-69 years |
excellent |
30+ reps |
27+ reps |
24+ reps |
21+ reps |
17+ reps |
very good |
21-29 reps |
20-26 reps |
15-23 reps |
11-20 reps |
12-16 reps |
good |
15-20 reps |
13-19 reps |
11-14 reps |
7-10 reps |
5-11 reps |
orderly |
10-14 reps |
8-12 reps |
5-10 reps |
2-6 reps |
2-4 reps |
in need of improvement |
0-9 reps |
0-7 reps |
0-4 reps |
0-1 reps |
0-1 reps |
Source: based on Haff, GG & Triplett, NT (2015).
Essentials of Strength training and Conditioning.
4th edition.
Human kinetics.
Table: push-up guidelines for men
Category/age |
20-29 years |
30-39 years |
40-49 years |
50-59 years |
60-69 years |
excellent |
36 |
30 |
25 |
21 |
18 |
very good |
29-35 |
22-29 |
17-24 |
13-20 |
11-17 |
good |
22-28 |
17-21 |
13-16 |
10-12 |
8-10 |
orderly |
17-21 |
12-16 |
10-12 |
7-9 |
5-7 |
in need of improvement |
0-16 |
0-11 |
0-9 |
0-6 |
0-5 |
Source: based on Haff, GG & Triplett, NT (2015).
Essentials of Strength training and Conditioning.
4th edition.
Human kinetics.
Training plan for beginners – download now!
You can learn to do push-ups – with the right training plan © Imago/Lian Fei
Can't do a single clean push-up and want to change that?
Download the 6-week training plan as a PDF HERE for free and get started!
That's why women tend to do fewer push-ups
Women are at a disadvantage when it comes to push-ups because they generally have less muscle and their anatomy and body proportions.
In their case, the muscles in the shoulder and arm area are weaker than in men.
The chest muscles are also larger in trained men.
Using the knee push-up (on the knees) or incline push-ups (place your hands elevated, for example on a railing or a bench), women can strengthen their chest, arms and shoulders and then try the classic version.
Here you can download the 4-week training plan “Push-up Power for advanced users” after registering for free with USER.ID.
Are push-ups useful for children and older people?
And what about children and young people?
Can you train push-ups without any problems?
For Prof. Jürgen Gießing there is nothing against it.
The only requirement is that you have enough core stability so that your back doesn't “sag” during the push-up.
“Unfortunately, it is often the case that children who suffer from a lack of exercise are unable to build tension in their core.
They then sag and get lower back pain.” However, there are no restrictions for normally developed boys and girls.
Even older age is not an exclusion criterion per se.
“You can still do push-ups at 100 without it being a problem,” says Gießing.
The reason why older people usually have a hard time is the already mentioned muscle loss when you do nothing.
“Many people only start after having done nothing for years.
And then you have a bit of muscle loss.” On the other hand, there is often osteoarthritis, hip problems or high blood pressure.
If you are otherwise fit, there are good ways to train push-ups despite high blood pressure.
“You can divide the repetitions into chunks,” explains Prof. Jürgen Gießing.
“Suppose you were able to do 20 push-ups, but towards the end of the set you noticed that your blood pressure was going up, then you wouldn't do 20 in a row.
But 10, then you take a short break, take a few breaths and then continue bit by bit until you have reached your number of repetitions.” In general, breathing is very important.
You should always exhale when exerting yourself (pushing up).
Prof. Gießing recommends making this audible: “Blow properly so that you can hear it, to make yourself aware that you are actually breathing correctly.
And when you lower yourself, also breathe in.”
Here you can download the 8-week training plan “100 push-ups in a row” free of charge after registering.
How many push-ups you can do says something about your risk of a heart attack
The number of push-ups you can do could predict your risk of heart disease, according to a study published in 2019.
Harvard researchers analyzed data from 1,104 healthy firefighters with an average age of 40.
As part of a test, these men did as many push-ups as possible to the rhythm of a metronome that set 80 beats per minute.
If the rhythm could no longer be maintained, the test was over.
The men also completed a treadmill test.
After ten years, it was found that those who could do 40 or more push-ups had a 96 percent lower risk of heart disease than those who could do just ten or fewer push-ups.
How many push-ups you can do has been shown to be just as good at predicting heart disease as treadmill tests.
Crazy!
Push-up world records to amaze
The Japanese Minoru Yoshida holds the record for the most push-ups in one go.
In 1980, he completed an incredible 10,507 push-ups.
People love to compare themselves and set records.
Therefore, it is not surprising that there are push-up world records in various forms.
The Guinness Book of Records includes these records (as of January 31, 2024):
Most push-ups in an hour: Men: 3378 reps (Pop Larentiu), Women: 1207 reps (Holly Reese)
Most push-ups in 12 hours: Men: 20,085 reps (Jarrad Young)
Most push-ups with behind-the-back claps in one minute: Men: 46 (Dione Solon)
Most handstand push-ups in one go: Men: 61 reps (Parulava Sandro)
Most push-ups on one finger in one go: Men 101 (Paul Lynch)