Push-ups

[GusGus77]

So DD, 13, Recently joined civil air patrol. The expectation is that they advance quickly their first year (4 tests that have to be at least 8 weeks apart.) well, in order to pass the first advancement level, she hast to pass the PT test. For girls her age, that means seven push-ups. She can do ZERO. She goes down and can never come back up. Can’t even do them on her knees (which isn’t allowed anyway, but just to say how far she is from the goal.) In order for her to reach her goal this year, she really needs to be able to pass the test in November. So how does one go from not being able to do any push-ups to being able to do seven good ones in one month time? Thanks!

 

[Carol_]

Have someone who isn’t a parent supervise her. The portion of it that might be acting for emotional benefit will go away and with practice, she’ll do it. (It’s possible this is her way of ending her interest in civil air patrol without obviously quitting. She’ll never admit it. Not doing it is the easy button.)

 

[kdonnel]

You attempt pushups, situps, and run daily.

Set a timer on her phone for every hour from 9am - 6pm and carve out 5 minutes for attempted pushups and situps.

The strength will come quickly.

 

[AaronB]

If she is able, have her start with pushups against a wall, lean forward into the wall with your body weight and then push off against the wall; that will help get used to the pushup motion.

Also do other basic core exercises. Pushups are about more than just arm strength, so do things like planks, sit-ups, chair dips, and squats to help with overall strength. Still start with trying to do pushups from the knees at first, since it will be a little easier, and then work towards regular pushups.

 

[GusGus77]

Have someone who isn’t a parent supervise her. The portion of it that might be acting for emotional benefit will go away and with practice, she’ll do it. (It’s possible this is her way of ending her interest in civil air patrol without obviously quitting. She’ll never admit it. Not doing it is the easy button.)

She LOVES civil air patrol. She has been working hard to get her mile time down, so push-ups are the only thing standing in her way of passing the PT test. She WANTS to be able to do push-ups, but try as she may, has not succeeded. (She has actually been trying to do push-ups off and on for about two or three years now, without success, and now she HAS to do them and still can’t. It isn’t a lack of trying.) She is quite frustrated with it.

 

[GusGus77]

You attempt pushups, situps, and run daily.

Set a timer on her phone for every hour from 9am - 6pm and carve out 5 minutes for attempted pushups and situps.

The strength will come quickly.

Thanks! She runs 1-3 miles daily as it is and can do 100 sit-ups, no problem. (She is also a figure skater, so on the ice several days a week.) Daily push up attempts have ended in frustration, but she keeps trying….I will tell her to try it hourly instead of only once or twice a day.

 

[GusGus77]

If she is able, have her start with pushups against a wall, lean forward into the wall with your body weight and then push off against the wall; that will help get used to the pushup motion.

Also do other basic core exercises. Pushups are about more than just arm strength, so do things like planks, sit-ups, chair dips, and squats to help with overall strength. Still start with trying to do pushups from the knees at first, since it will be a little easier, and then work towards regular pushups.

This is what I don’t get- she seems fine doing them against a wall and can hold a plank for several minutes. Also does great with squats (she is a figure skater) and leaves everyone else in the dust with sit ups. It is solely the push-ups on the ground. That is why we are really at a loss on how to help her and wondering if we are missing something key. She just can’t seem to push herself back up once she has gone down. I will have her add chair dips.

 

[JimMIA]

Thanks! She runs 1-3 miles daily as it is and can do 100 sit-ups, no problem. (She is also a figure skater, so on the ice several days a week.) Daily push up attempts have ended in frustration, but she keeps trying….I will tell her to try it hourly instead of only once or twice a day.

Pushups are hard for girls. My DD was also a figure skater, and she was an absolute animal -- 20+ hours a week at the rink, on the ice or in the gym. Still never could do pushups. Triple-doubles and level 4 spins, sure. Pushups, nope.

 

[bcla]

I've heard of girls having difficulties with some physical test requirements. A girl at my HS had a nomination to a service academy and didn't secure the appointment because she couldn't do a single, standard (palms out) pull up even after two tries.

There might be a restricted category until she can pass the full test. If her school has a gym, maybe she can ask for some help in working her way up to a full push up. There's some weightlifting equipment that might come close to simulating motion of a push up, but where it can be done with lower weight. Someone suggested wall push ups, which require less strength and where the angle can be modified to make it progressively more challenging. There's also dumbbell chest presses, although that gets rather expensive buying progressively heavier weights weights unless she can find them at a gym.

 

[bcla]

I'll also say I had an interesting time meeting up with someone in the Civil Air Patrol during a small, local air show. She was a full bird Colonel, although her aircraft was just a Cessna 172, where I managed to bump my head in the door. That thing was small.

 

[John VN]

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This is what I don’t get- she seems fine doing them against a wall and can hold a plank for several minutes. Also does great with squats (she is a figure skater) and leaves everyone else in the dust with sit ups. It is solely the push-ups on the ground. That is why we are really at a loss on how to help her and wondering if we are missing something key. She just can’t seem to push herself back up once she has gone down. I will have her add chair dips.

She should transition from WALL PUSH-AWAYS to COUNTER TOP PUSH DIAGONALY UP. Counter top push up will get her closer to the actual position AND require additional strength that will quickly be obtained

.

 

[AaronB]

This is what I don’t get- she seems fine doing them against a wall and can hold a plank for several minutes. Also does great with squats (she is a figure skater) and leaves everyone else in the dust with sit ups. It is solely the push-ups on the ground. That is why we are really at a loss on how to help her and wondering if we are missing something key. She just can’t seem to push herself back up once she has gone down. I will have her add chair dips.

Other thing to try if you have access to them, is use pushup bars (not sure if the test would allow them). I have a hard time doing pushups just off the floor, but do much better when using pushup bars (usually use the perfect pushup ones).

 

[Jennasis]

I actually started doing daily push ups a month ago. I stand at the foot of the stairs and then kind of lean/fall forward to whatever step is about chest high or so and then do 10 push ups on it (diagonally). I do 3 sets of 10 reps every day. Eventually I hop to transition to horizontal push ups. Definitely getting stronger each day.

 

[Donald13]

Pushups are hard for girls. My DD was also a figure skater, and she was an absolute animal -- 20+ hours a week at the rink, on the ice or in the gym. Still never could do pushups. Triple-doubles and level 4 spins, sure. Pushups, nope.

No. Push ups are not hard for girls. I can do push ups just fine.
Tell her to start some light weight training. It will build up her upper body strength.

tell

 

[Figment of Speech]

She goes down and can never come back up.

This is what I don’t get- she seems fine doing them against a wall and can hold a plank for several minutes.

Is she required to start from the floor or can she start from plank position? How full of a push-up do they need her to do? Elbows at 90 degrees? Nose to the floor?

Even if she'll ultimately have to start from the floor, can she practice by starting from plank and seeing how far she can lower herself and then still be able to push herself back up? At first, that might just mean bending her elbows a little and then straightening them again. If/when that feels okay, she could try holding a plank with slightly bent elbows for a while before trying to give it some movement. Basically, there may be ways to take what she's already comfortable with and developing from there.

 

[mrodgers]

If she is trying but not pushing herself up, she is still working her muscles and strengthening them. Eventually she will push herself up and then again, and then multiple times, and finally 7.

No different than anything else physical. You improve by doing it. I couldn't ride up a hill behind my house on my bicycle. Had to stop 4 times to rest. Next day I avoided said hill. 2 days later, I went up it stopping 3 times. Next time it was stopping halfway up. Finally I made it the whole way up and had to stop and rest at the top. Later I find myself in Pittsburgh riding up the steepest hills of the Dirty Dozen race. I actually seek out the steepest hills and routes I can find on the bicycle and when we tour 400 miles in the summers, my best days are the ones with hills rather than flat because I didn't stop that first time I couldn't ride up a hill.

If you have stairs, she can also start out doing the push-ups on the stairs so she'd be at a 45° angle and not lifting all of her weight.

 

[mrodgers]

Also there are apps for you phone called "100 push-ups" or similar. They are workouts tailored to how many you can do now (including 0) to get you to be able to do 100 within 90 days. She probably could be able to do 7 pushups in less than 2 weeks if she works on it.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

This video seems like a good one especially the beginning which is where your daughter is probably more at (but watch all the way through)

I like the statement that push ups are just moving planks, maybe that will help her think about it while she's learning to do push ups since she can already do planks.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

This video seems like a good one especially

This is exactly the video I was going to post

 

[DLgal]

Use a flight of stairs. It's the easiest way to get started and improve by going one stair lower until you are flat.

She needs to improve her pectoral muscles. If you have some free weights (start with 5lb), have her lay on her back ith knees bent and basically do "bench presses" in reps of 10 each, several times a day.

Also, check her form, and don't let her go down too low. You can start working on pushups by only going down 1/4 of the way, then 1/2 the way, and so on. Make sure her arms are properly positioned directly under her shoulders, slightly turned in.

Another thing you can try is buying a wide resistance band and looping it around both arms, just above the elbow. Then have her try the push ups. The band will catch her upper body as she lowers down, sort of providing support and the elasticity will help her "spring" back up.

If ALL of this fails, she may have a structural issue in her chest muscles or ribcage that is preventing her from being able to do a push up.

Push ups are harder for girls, but definitely not impossible, so have her keep trying!