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Build a strong chest, shoulders and triceps

Best Push Day Workouts

Push day workouts focus on the major muscle groups responsible for pressing movements: the chest, shoulders, and triceps. This training style helps you develop upper body strength, improve definition, and build a balanced physique. Core compound exercises like bench presses, overhead presses, and dips create a solid foundation by engaging multiple muscles at once. These are complemented by isolation exercises such as tricep extensions and lateral raises to target specific areas and enhance muscle detail. Whether you’re training for strength, aesthetics, or performance, push day workouts deliver results that translate into better movement and greater power.

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Workout

Workout 1 Push day (Power & Strength)

This push day focuses on getting stronger in your main pressing movements by using heavier weights and taking more rest between sets. You'll do fewer repetitions per set, but with more weight than in typical muscle-building workouts. This approach is perfect if your main goals are increasing your bench press, building functional pushing strength, or preparing for powerlifting. The longer rest periods allow you to maintain good form and power output throughout all your sets.

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The Benefits of Push Day Workouts

Training with specific push day workouts is an effective way to increase your pushing strength, build muscle mass, and improve overall upper body performance. By consistently training your chest, shoulders, and triceps together, you can lift heavier, maintain balanced development, and reduce the risk of imbalances that can lead to injuries. Push-focused training also supports better posture and helps improve your athletic performance in activities that rely on strong pushing and overhead movements. Whether you are a beginner or an experienced strength athlete, incorporating push day routines into your schedule can help you make faster progress and build a more powerful physique.

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Workout 2 Push day (Shoulder focus)

This push day focuses on shoulder development and strength, ideal if you want wider shoulders and more overhead pressing strength. You start with shoulder-focused exercises when your energy levels are highest, then add some chest training to support your overall push strength. The higher repetition ranges for most exercises help build muscle mass, while the compound exercises develop functional strength for sports and daily activities.

Workout

Workout 3 Push Day (Full Push Development)

This full push development workout trains all your push muscles equally: chest, shoulders, and triceps, with balanced volume for overall upper body growth. You perform moderate rep ranges that build both strength and muscle mass, which makes this perfect if you want versatile development of your push muscles instead of specializing in one specific area. The workout transitions from compound exercises to isolation work for maximum muscle activation.

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FAQ: Best push day workouts

Can beginners do push day workouts?

Yes—push day workouts are suitable for all experience levels. Beginners should start with lighter weights, focus on proper form, and gradually progress to more challenging variations and heavier loads.

How many exercises should be in a push day routine?

A typical push day includes 4–6 exercises, combining big compound lifts like the bench press and overhead press with targeted isolation work for triceps and shoulders.

Should I do push exercises before pull exercises in my program?

Many programs separate push and pull days to focus fully on each muscle group. If you combine them in one session, consider training push movements first when you’re freshest, especially if pressing strength is your priority.

What muscles are worked during a push day?

Push day workouts primarily target the chest, shoulders, and triceps—the muscles responsible for pressing and pushing movements.

How often should I do push day workouts?

Most people benefit from 1–2 push days per week, depending on their overall training split, goals, and recovery needs.

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Related push-workouts

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Best Chest workouts

Chest workouts focus on developing the pectoral muscles, which are essential for upper body strength, posture, and aesthetics. In these workouts, you’ll combine heavy compound lifts and targeted isolation exercises to build balanced muscle and improve pressing power. Movements like the bench press, incline dumbbell press, and dips create a strong foundation by engaging the chest along with shoulders and triceps. These are complemented by exercises such as chest flyes and cable crossovers to target different angles and enhance muscle detail. Whether you’re training for strength or physique goals, chest-focused workouts are key to a complete upper body routine.

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Best Chest and Triceps workouts

Chest and triceps workouts are commonly paired because both muscle groups are activated in pressing movements. By training them together, you maximize efficiency and allow for focused recovery on pull days. These routines combine compound lifts like the bench press and dips with isolation moves such as cable flyes and tricep pushdowns. Whether you're building size or improving performance, a strong chest and powerful triceps enhance your push strength, posture, and overall upper body development.

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Best Tricep workouts

Tricep workouts target the muscles on the back of your upper arms, which make up the majority of your arm size and are essential for pressing strength. In these workouts, you'll combine compound lifts and isolation exercises to grow your triceps and improve upper body power. Exercises like close-grip bench presses, dips, and overhead tricep extensions form the base of your training, while movements like rope pushdowns and skull crushers help target each tricep head for better muscle detail. Whether you're training for aesthetics, strength, or functional performance, a well-structured tricep workout is key to stronger, more defined arms.

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Best Shoulder workouts

Shoulder workouts target the deltoid muscles: front (anterior), side (lateral), and rear (posterior) which play a key role in pressing, lifting, and stabilizing your upper body. In these workouts, you'll train all three heads for balanced development, improved strength, and injury prevention. Compound movements like the overhead press and push press build raw strength, while isolation exercises such as lateral raises and rear delt flyes help shape and define the shoulders. Whether you're chasing performance, symmetry, or aesthetics, dedicated shoulder workouts are essential to complete upper body training.

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Routines for Push Day Gains

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PPL + Abs Add-On (6x/week) routine

This high-frequency training schedule for those craving real muscle size and core strength. This approach combines the classic push/pull/legs split with dedicated abdominal work to maximize both muscle growth and functional core strength. Six training days per week allow optimal volume distribution across all muscle groups while providing the attention to detail that serious lifters demand. Every session builds on the previous one, creating cumulative muscle development and robust core function.

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Push Pull Legs (6x/week) routine

Training six times a week requires smart structure, balance, and recovery. This push/pull/legs split maximizes training frequency while allowing complete recovery between sessions. The push and pull muscle groups get 48-72 hours for taking your lower body splitting into two dedicated leg sessions. This program uses compound movements, targeted assistance work, and systematic progression to build muscle through consistent work. Sessions are designed for balanced development while respecting the individual recovery needs between muscle groups.

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Upper Lower Split (4x/week) routine

This is the program of choice for building both muscle size and real strength, allowing for high training frequency with adequate rest days for performance recovery. You train for intermediate lifters looking to gain muscle mass and built strength in a focused, sustainable way by balancing compound movements with targeted assistance exercises. The schedule provides excellent muscle development and increased size.

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Barbell Only Split (4x/week)

This 4-day split is all about moving the biggest loads with the classics. No machines, no isolation fluff, just the foundational compound movements that have built athletes for decades. Whether you're training at home with a simple setup or prefer the simplicity of barbell-only sessions, this program delivers complete body development using nothing but the most effective compound lifts. With four focused sessions across the week, you'll hit every major movement pattern while allowing proper recovery between training days.