I started doing Gokhale a couple of years ago and it has been interesting integrating it into my exercise routines. This year I made a goal of doing a push up, which I have never done (I'm 50), partly to engage upper body strength. I am working with a funcitonal movment instructor and after several months of targeted exercises, I am attempting a wall push up, but I am having trouble with the shoulder position. The instructor wants my shoulders high and rounded, which just feels wrong at this point, but I can feel the difference between attempting the push up with the shoulders high and with the scapula low on my back, as Esther explianed in her plank post last year https://gokhalemethod.com/blog/65757. What is the best way to engage the muscles from the desired plank position and then lower down to the hands, in a classic push up? Pointers I can share with my instructor are appreciated.
How to do a Push Up
September 25, 2019 - 6:25pm | 2 posts
#1
How to do a Push Up
1 day 21 hours ago
11/12/2018 - 2:54pm
In preparation for doing any pushup, I would recommend performing your shoulder rolls and as with hip-hinging you would want to keep the rhomboids engaged to keep the shoulders from coming out of their home. In essence you are at about the same angle as brushing your teeth doing a wall pushup, so I would suggest holding the shoulders back the same way. Don't shrug up either, keep it low and in between your shoulder blades.