TRX Push-Up
What Is the TRX Push-Up?
TRX Push-Up is a compound exercise that primarily targets the chest and also engages the front of the shoulders, the triceps and the abdominal muscles. It is an intermediate-level movement performed with the feet resting in the foot cradles of a suspension trainer and the hands on the floor, so the body holds a plank with its lower end hanging from the straps.
The point of hanging the feet is to make a familiar push-up harder to hold together. The straps hang from a single anchor, so the feet are free to swing and the hips are pulled toward the floor on every rep. Keeping one straight line from head to heels takes noticeably more abdominal and oblique work than a floor push-up, which makes this exercise as much a test of trunk control as of pressing strength.
With the cradles set at mid-calf length, the feet sit higher than the hands. That puts a little more body weight on the arms than a flat push-up and tilts the press slightly toward the upper chest and front of the shoulders, as in a Decline Push-Up. A narrower hand position moves more of the work onto the triceps, and adding a knee tuck between reps, a variation often called the atomic push-up, adds hip flexor and abdominal work.
The TRX Push-Up usually appears in suspension-trainer sessions and circuits, often next to other foot-cradle exercises such as the TRX Pike, TRX Jack Knife and TRX Mountain Climber, since they share the same setup. It suits people who already do strict floor push-ups and want more core challenge without adding weight. If it is too hard, build up first with a solid set of Push-Ups and a steady TRX Plank, which teaches holding the body still with the feet in the straps before the arms start moving.
Muscles Worked
- Pectoralis Major
- Primary
- Deltoid
- High
- Rectus Abdominis
- High
- External Oblique
- Medium
- Serratus Anterior
- Medium
Instructions
- Adjust the suspension trainer straps to about mid-calf length so the foot cradles hang directly under the anchor point.
- Lie on the floor under the anchor, place one foot in a cradle, roll onto your side and slide the other foot into the second cradle, then turn face down.
- Place your hands on the floor slightly wider than shoulder-width, under your shoulders, with your fingers pointing forward.
- Press up to straight arms so your body forms one line from head to heels, with your feet together and the tops of your feet pressing down into the cradles.
- Brace your abdominals and squeeze your glutes to keep your hips level and the straps still.
- Inhale and bend your elbows to lower your chest toward the floor, keeping your elbows angled back about 45 degrees from your torso.
- Lower until your chest is just above the floor, keeping your hips in line with your shoulders and heels.
- Exhale and push the floor away to return to straight arms without letting your hips sag or rise.
- Repeat for the planned reps, then lower to the floor and remove one foot at a time to finish.
Common Mistakes
Sagging hips
Letting the hips drop toward the floor arches the lower back and takes the work away from the abdominals.
Piking the hips
Lifting the hips high to make the rep easier shortens the lever and turns the press into a partial pike.
Setting up away from the anchor
When the cradles are not directly under the anchor, the straps pull the feet at an angle and the body drifts and swings during the set.
Relaxed ankles
Not pressing the tops of the feet down into the cradles lets the feet slip and the straps wobble.
Flaring the elbows
Pushing with the elbows straight out to the sides puts more stress on the front of the shoulder than keeping them angled back about 45 degrees.
Cutting the range short
Stopping halfway down skips the hardest part of the rep, where the chest does most of its work.
Injuries
TRX Push-Up is a medium risk exercise when performed with proper technique. The lower back takes the most strain: with the feet hanging from the straps, a tired or loose trunk lets the hips sag and the lower back arch. The front of the shoulder is stressed when the elbows flare wide or the body drops into the bottom without control, and the wrists carry body weight in an extended position, as in any push-up. Getting into and out of the foot cradles is also a point where people lose balance.
To stay safe, brace the abdominals and squeeze the glutes before the first rep, press the tops of the feet down into the cradles, and keep the elbows angled back at roughly 45 degrees from the torso. Set up with the cradles directly under the anchor so the straps hang straight, and enter and exit the straps from the floor one foot at a time rather than kicking free from the plank position.
To make it easier, practice a regular Push-Up, an Incline Push-Up or a Kneeling Push-Up, hold a TRX Plank to build trunk control with the feet suspended, or use the easier TRX Chest Press. To progress, slow the lowering phase, pause just above the floor, add a knee tuck between reps, or move on to the TRX Pike.
Stop the set when the hips can no longer stay in line with the shoulders and heels, or when the straps start swinging and you cannot settle them. Stop the exercise if you feel sharp pain in the shoulder, wrist or lower back.
- Primary Focus
- Chest
- Equipment
- Suspension trainer and body weight
- Modality
- Strength
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
Alternative Exercises
Other Names for the TRX Push-Up
The TRX Push-Up is also known as:
- Feet-Suspended Push-Up
Frequently Asked Questions
- Q: Is the TRX Push-Up harder than a regular push-up?
Yes. The raised feet put a little more of your body weight on your hands, and the hanging straps make the trunk work to stop the hips sagging and the legs swinging, so most people manage fewer reps than on the floor.
- Q: Does the TRX Push-Up build more chest than a regular push-up?
Not necessarily. In a study of healthy young adults, push-ups with the feet suspended in straps recruited the chest, front shoulder and serratus anterior no more than standard floor push-ups, but recruited the abdominal and oblique muscles more. Use it to add a trunk-stability challenge, and add slower lowering, pauses or extra sets when the goal is more chest work.
- Q: How high should the foot cradles hang?
Set the straps to about mid-calf length with the cradles directly under the anchor. Higher cradles raise the feet and put more weight on your hands, so lowering them a little is a simple way to make the exercise easier.
- Q: How do I get my feet into the straps safely?
Start on the floor under the anchor, put one foot into its cradle, roll onto your side and slide the other foot in, then turn face down and set your hands. Get out the same way in reverse, lowering to the floor first instead of pulling your feet free from the plank.
- Q: Can beginners do the TRX Push-Up?
It is usually not a first push-up. Build up with strict floor Push-Ups, or a Kneeling Push-Up if those are still hard, and a steady TRX Plank before pressing with the feet in the straps.