Diamond Push Up

1. Get into a push up position and bring your hands together under your chest so your thumbs and index fingers touch, forming a diamond.
2. Set your body in a straight line from head to heels, squeezing your glutes and bracing your abs.
3. Lower your chest toward your hands, keeping your elbows tracking back along your ribs rather than flaring out.
4. Descend until your chest is just above your hands, inhaling on the way down.
5. Press the floor away until your arms are fully locked, exhaling as you push.
6. Keep your hips level throughout; they should move as one unit with your shoulders.
7. If full reps are too hard at first, perform them from your knees with the same hand position and body line.

Common Mistakes

• Sagging hips: letting the midsection drop strains the lower back and hides how hard the triceps are actually working.
• Flaring elbows: pushing the elbows wide with a narrow grip is a recipe for elbow and wrist pain; keep them close to the body.
• Half reps: stopping well above the hands skips the hardest part of the range where the triceps do most of their work.
• Wrist collapse: dumping full bodyweight into extended wrists hurts; turn the diamond slightly or elevate the hands on a bar if you feel wrist pain.