How To MASTER Wall Push-ups [VIDEO TUTORIAL 2023]


Wall push-ups are the easiest type of push-ups done while standing, with your palms placed on a wall in front of you.

This guide shows you exactly how to master wall push-ups with perfect form.

How To Perform Perfect Wall Push-ups:

  1. Stand in front of a wall with your feet shoulder width apart and hands outstretched in front of you.
  2. Place your palms on the wall at shoulder height and slightly more than shoulder width apart.  
  3. Take a deep breath, squeeze your glutes, quads (thighs) and abs. This will ensure that your core is engaged. 
  4. Lower yourself to the wall by bending your elbows. Make sure to keep your elbows tucked toward your torso at about 45 degrees.
  5. When your head almost touches the wall, push yourself back up to the starting position while slowly exhaling.

Congratulations, you’ve done your first wall push-up. 

Common Errors When Performing Wall Push-ups:

When performing wall push-ups, it is important to keep the following errors in mind:

  1. Flaring elbows: Do not flare your elbows out as this could cause shoulder pain during wall push-ups. Instead, make sure to keep your elbows always tucked into your sides at about 45 degrees to your torso.
  2. Sagging hips: If your hips tend to sag during wall push-ups, you are not engaging your core. Make sure to squeeze the abs, glutes and quads. This will ensure that you do not allow the hips to drop or sag as you perform wall push-ups.
  3. Bending hips: The opposite of sagging hips, this is also an indicator of not engaging the core, mostly the abs. Make sure to squeeze your abs tight when doing wall push-ups.
  4. Swinging instead of pushing: Do not pull your torso back away from the wall. Instead make sure to push through your palms to get back to the starting position. Using momentum to swing back instead of pushing yourself back defeats the purpose of the exercise.

Now that you know how to perform the perfect wall push-up read on to find out how to make progress with wall push-ups.

How to progress with wall push-ups?

To make progress with wall push-ups, try adding at least one repetition to your sets every time you train. 

For example, if you could do 3 sets of 8 repetitions last time, try doing 3 sets of 9 or 10 repetitions this time. 

Note: It’s important to maintain the quality of your form when progressing with any exercise. 

How often should you do wall push-ups?

The best frequency to train wall push-ups is 2 to 3 times per week. Although wall push-ups can be trained everyday, it is better to take one days rest between two training sessions.

What muscles do wall push-ups work?

Wall push-ups target your chest, shoulders and triceps, although they target the triceps more than the chest and shoulders. That’s because wall push-ups are a partial movement. You’ll notice that your head contacts the wall before your chest gets effectively stimulated.

It is for this reason that incline push-ups are better at stimulating the chest, shoulders and triceps when compared to wall push-ups.

Are wall push-ups effective?

Wall push-ups can build muscle and strength for rank beginners, although wall push-ups are far too easy for most individuals to build any significant muscle or strength. This is exacerbated by the fact that wall push-ups are a partial range of motion exercise as opposed to incline push-ups or regular push-ups. 

What are the benefits of wall push-ups?

Wall push-ups don’t require any specialized equipment, a sturdy wall is all you need to start building strength. 

Wall push-ups are the least intimidating form of push-ups, because you’re standing on your feet and holding onto a sturdy wall in front of you.

Wall push-ups can build strength in injured individuals (although this is on a rare case-by-case basis).

Wall push-ups are the easiest form of push-ups that anyone can do. They place less stress on your muscles and joints.

What are the disadvantages of wall push-ups?

Wall push-ups are an inferior beginner push-up variation due to the following reasons:

  1. Wall push-ups do not mimic proper push-up form, instead, they mimic bodyweight skull crushers or sphinx push-ups rather than regular push-ups. This means that wall push-ups place more emphasis on the triceps instead of building the chest, shoulder and triceps, like most other push-ups. You also aren’t learning proper push-up mechanics when doing wall push-ups because wall push-up mechanics differ from that of regular push-ups.
  2. Wall push-ups can cause wrist pain or discomfort due to the unnatural wrist positioning during the exercise. Leaning on the wall forces your wrists to hyperextend which can cause discomfort for those with inflexible wrists. Even regular push-ups don’t require as much wrist mobility as wall push-ups.
  3. Wall push-ups do not allow the muscles and joints to move through their natural ranges of motion. When doing wall push-ups, your head contacts the wall and terminates the repetition before your muscles and joints can go through their natural ranges of motion. This means you’re building less muscle per repetition when compared to other beginner push-ups variations like incline push-ups or ring incline push-ups. 

Should you do wall push-ups?

Wall push-ups are the universally accepted starting point for those who cannot do a single push-up. But, wall push-ups don’t mimic proper push-up mechanics and are therefore inferior to other beginner push-up variations.

If you can’t do a single “incline push-up” on a surface or object that is chest height, then wall push-ups might be your only option. But for most individuals, wall push-ups are too easy of an exercise to build any significant muscle and strength.

What are the best wall push-up alternatives?

The best wall push-ups alternative is the incline push-up. 

Incline push-ups are a far better alternative to wall push-ups because they:

  1. Build more muscle and strength compared to wall push-ups
  2. Can be tailored to your individual strength and ability  
  3. Don’t require excessive wrist mobility
  4. Replicate push-up mechanics better than wall push-ups

Can you do wall push-ups every day?

Wall push-ups aren’t a demanding exercise and can be done every day, but it is better to give your muscles a day to recover before training them again. 

The best frequency to do wall push-ups would be to perform 2-3 sets every other day or 2-3 sets twice or thrice a week.

How many wall push-ups should I do per day?

Start by doing as many repetitions of wall push-ups as possible while maintaining perfect form. Once you can do 3 sets of 10-15 repetitions it’s time to progress to a harder push-up variation. Check out my complete guide to push-up progressions here. 

Can wall push-ups reduce arm fat?

Wall push-ups are not the best exercise to reduce arm fat, although wall push-ups can build some muscle in your arms. A calorie deficit coupled with a well-rounded exercise program will help reduce overall body fat and consequently arm fat better than wall push-ups. 

Types of wall push-ups (The Best Wall Push-up Variations):

Scapula wall push-ups: Scapula push-ups are for building the serratus anterior – a muscle that provides shoulder stability. Scapula stability is important when doing a variety of bodyweight exercises, like push-ups, dips and pull-ups. Doing scapula push-ups on a wall is a great way to build scapula stability for beginners. Doing about 2-3 sets for 15-20 repetitions is a good goal for this wall push-up variation before progressing to harder variations. 

Single Arm wall push-ups: Single arm wall push-ups are another fantastic variation of wall push-ups. Single arm/one arm push-ups are an advanced push-up variation that requires a lot of co-ordination and strength. The single arm wall push-up variation is an excellent way for beginners to get introduced to one arm push-up mechanics. 

Single arm wall push-ups are not a partial range of motion exercise and closely mimic one arm push-up mechanics for beginners. 

Conclusion:

Wall push-ups are a beginner-friendly push-up variation that can benefit a very small subset of people – mostly rank beginners, special populations or elderly individuals.

Most trainees will get more out of starting their push-up progression journey with high incline push-ups instead of wall push-ups. 

But regardless of which exercise you choose to start your push-up journey with, progression is the key. If you can progress to harder push-up variations over time, you will continue to build muscle and strength.

Check out my Ultimate Guide On Push-up Progressions when you’re ready to progress to harder push-up variations.  

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