Exercise
One-Arm Push Up
The One-Arm Push Up is a high-level bodyweight exercise that challenges strength, balance, and total body control, while producing force with a single arm.
One-Arm Push Up
The One-Arm Push Up is an advanced bodyweight exercise that challenges strength, balance, and full-body control. By shifting all pressing work to one side, this movement increases the demand on stability and coordination, making it significantly more demanding than a standard push-up.
Throughout the exercise, maintaining a rigid body position is key. The free arm helps with balance, while the working arm controls both the lowering and pressing phases. Moving slowly and with control helps prevent rotation and keeps tension where it belongs, ensuring each repetition remains effective and consistent.
The One-Arm Push Up is best suited for experienced athletes looking to build unilateral strength or add a high-level challenge to their bodyweight training. It can be used as a progression goal, a strength benchmark, or a powerful variation within circuits, calisthenics routines, or minimal-equipment workouts.
How to Perform the One-Arm Push Up
- Begin in a plank position with your feet slightly wider than hip-width apart for stability, and place your working hand directly beneath your shoulder while your free arm rests against your lower back.
- Engage your core and glutes to maintain a straight line from head to heels, ensuring your hips don't sag or pike upward during the movement.
- Lower your chest toward the floor by bending your working arm elbow, keeping it close to your body at approximately a 45-degree angle from your torso.
- Inhale as you descend, maintaining tension throughout your entire body and distributing weight evenly through your supporting hand.
- Descend until your chest is about 2-3 inches from the floor, or as low as you can while maintaining proper form and body alignment.
- Push through the palm of your supporting hand, exhaling as you extend your arm to return to the starting position.
- Keep your shoulder blades stable throughout the movement, avoiding any rotation or collapsing toward the supporting side.
- Complete all repetitions on one side before switching to the other arm, maintaining consistent breathing and tension throughout each repetition.
Important information
- Master standard push-ups and progress through intermediate variations like elevated feet and diamond push-ups before attempting the one-arm push-up.
- Keep your elbow tracking in the same direction as your middle finger to protect your shoulder joint during the movement.
- Prevent rotation by actively engaging your core and squeezing your glutes throughout the entire exercise.
- If you're struggling with the full movement, start with an elevated surface for your supporting hand to reduce the difficulty level.
FAQ - One-Arm Push Up
The one-arm push-up primarily targets the pectoral muscles with extraordinary intensity, while heavily engaging the triceps and anterior deltoids. Your core also works overtime as a stabilization powerhouse, fighting rotational forces that would otherwise collapse your form.
Start with elevated one-arm push-ups (hand on a bench or box), gradually lowering the height as you build strength. Incorporate archer push-ups and uneven push-ups (one hand on a medicine ball) into your routine, while strengthening your core with anti-rotational exercises like Pallof presses.
The most common mistakes include rotating the hips/torso toward the working side, flaring the elbow outward, and insufficient core bracing. Keep your body in a straight line from head to heels, position your working hand at mid-chest level, and maintain a tight core throughout the entire movement.
Limit one-arm push-ups to 2-3 sessions per week with at least 48 hours between sessions to allow for proper recovery. Due to their intense nature, 2-4 sets of 3-5 reps per side is sufficient for most advanced trainees to stimulate growth without overtraining.
One-arm push-ups can be safe for healthy shoulders when performed with proper form, but they place significant stress on the shoulder joint. Ensure you've mastered regular push-ups, maintain a tight core to prevent shoulder destabilization, and stop immediately if you experience any joint pain rather than normal muscle fatigue.
One-Arm Push Up
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