How to do a Hand Release Push Up
Reviewed by JP Michelsen, CPT, B.A. Kinesiology
About Hand Release Push Up
Instructions for Proper Form
Hand Release Push Up is a variation on the standard push up. While the movement itself is nearly identical to a standard push up, by lifting your hands off the ground, you ensure that you’re moving through your full range of motion on each repetition.
- Get into a comfortable starting position on the floor.
- Position your hands on the floor in-line with your chest and about a palm’s width wider than your shoulders.
- Fully extend your legs, feet together with toes pointing into the floor.
- Engage your core to raise your hips.
- Keep a straight line from your shoulders to your hips to your ankles.
- Maintain proper form by engaging your core, straightening your back, and gazing forward.
- Bend your elbows, allowing your chest to descend toward the floor.
- At the bottom of the movement, rest your chest on the floor and raise both hands off the floor for a moment.
- Place your hands back in position.
- Engage your chest, triceps, and shoulders to extend your arms and raise your chest back off the ground.
Common Form Mistakes
Flared Elbows
Flaring your elbows out can sometimes help you lift heavier weights, but it places more tension on your shoulders. The ideal position can vary slightly from person to person, but try to keep your elbows around 45 degrees from your torso, and make small adjustments from there.
Flat Back
Don’t allow your hips to sag or raise up during this exercise. It’s very common to see this especially as you become fatigued during your set. Keeping your core engaged will help you keep your spine in a neutral position. It can also help to think of this exercise as a plank first, and the movement as a secondary piece to this exercise.
Sets & Reps Calculator
Average Hand Release Push Up standards by male, female, gender, weight, age and height
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Alternative Exercises to Hand Release Push Up
1. Dumbbell Bench Press
99.7 mSCORESWAPPED 11,353 TIMESDumbbell Bench Press is a variation on the standard Bench Press. Like Bench Press, this compound exercise primarily targets the chest, while also training the triceps and shoulders. The use of dumbbells allows for greater instability which can help you become more stable on pushing movements in general, while also isolating each side of the body to prevent you from compensating for any weaknesses between sides.
2. Push Up
94.5 mSCORESWAPPED 10,292 TIMESPush Ups may be the most recognizable exercises out there. It’s one of the best bodyweight exercises you can do, and is a great way to develop functional strength in your upper body for pushing movements. It’s fantastic for beginners, or anyone with limited equipment, while still being a great addition for even the most seasoned lifters.
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3. Dumbbell Fly
98.3 mSCORESWAPPED 8,767 TIMESDumbbell Fly’s are one of the most common isolation chest exercises, and for good. It primarily targets the muscles in the chest, but also recruits the shoulders for stability. The use of dumbbells ensures that you’re targeting each side of the body independently, and prevents compensating for any weaknesses between sides. In addition the isolated nature of this exercise is a great way to fatigue your chest, and focus on building both muscle mass and increasing strength in your chest.
4. Push Up on Knees
83.4 mSCORESWAPPED 8,677 TIMESPush Up on Knees is a beginner-friendly variation of the standard Push Up. This compound, bodyweight exercise primarily targets the chest, shoulders, and triceps. By performing the exercise on your knees, you reduce the overall resistance, making it easier to execute. This is a great exercise for building the foundational strength needed to progress to full Push Ups.
- Beginner
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5. Barbell Bench Press
99.2 mSCORESWAPPED 5,604 TIMESBench Press is one of the three Powerlifting movements, and one of the most common upper body exercises. It’s a fantastic compound exercise that can help you build strength in your chest, shoulders, and triceps. It’s a staple in most fitness programs, and is often used as a metric for tracking upper body strength in general.
6. Dumbbell Floor Press
73.8 mSCORESWAPPED 5,510 TIMESThe Dumbbell Floor Press targets the chest, triceps, and shoulders, offering a safer alternative to the bench press by limiting the range of motion. This exercise is effective for strengthening the upper body, with a focus on the lockout portion of the press, enhancing tricep strength and reducing shoulder strain. Ideal for those with limited equipment or seeking to minimize shoulder stress while still engaging the chest and arms.
7. Machine Fly
98.2 mSCORESWAPPED 5,314 TIMESMachine Fly is a variation on the more standard Dumbbell Fly. This isolation chest exercise primarily targets the chest, but also recruits the shoulders. The use of a machine makes the exercise more stable allowing you to focus on exertion or learn the movement with minimal risk of injury. This is a great exercise for beginners looking to learn the movement, or advanced lifters looking to push this movement to it’s limit.
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8. Dumbbell Squeeze Press
91.1 mSCORESWAPPED 4,979 TIMESSimilar to other Bench Press variations, this compound exercise primarily targets your chest, shoulders, and triceps. Unlike many other variations, some of the tension from this exercise is caused by pressing two dumbbells together rather than simply relying on the weight of those dumbbells. This helps maintain more tension in your chest throughout the movement without relying on other pieces of equipment. The positioning of the dumbbells can also take some tension out of your shoulders, and helps to further isolate your chest.
9. Machine Bench Press
93.5 mSCORESWAPPED 4,906 TIMESMachine Bench Press is a compound exercise the primarily targets the chest, shoulders, and triceps. The use of a machine forces you to use a fixed range of motion which can be a great way to learn the movement, or to focus your effort on exertion rather than stability.
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10. Dumbbell Incline Bench Press
99 mSCORESWAPPED 4,542 TIMESDumbbell Incline Bench Press is a variation on the more standard Barbell Incline Bench Press. This compound exercise primarily targets the chest, but the incline also places more emphasis on the shoulders. The use of dumbbells makes this exercise more unstable than its barbell counterpart, while also forcing you to address any strength discrepancies between sides.