I know, I know, all that’s on your mind this weekend is: “Just how many push-ups should I actually be doing?”
As everyone else is giving up for the festive season, you want to head to the gym and carry on getting wham. But hey, push-ups aren’t just for the gym rats. In fact, they’re said to be quite a useful indicator for your overall muscular strength and endurance, especially for the upper body form.
The exercise engages most major muscle groups throughout your body, including your legs and abs.
So, a personal trainer has weighed in on just how many push-ups you should be able to do, depending on your age and biological sex.
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Well, lock in LADs, it might be time to up your game if you’re that way inclined.
Look, before we get into this, it’s worth knowing that just because you can’t do as many push-ups doesn’t mean you’re some kind of weakling. Many of us focus our strengths in different areas.
It’s just that push-ups are viewed as a good overall indicator, with some using the ‘press-up test’ as a way of measuring muscular strength and endurance in fitness assessments for the likes of emergency services and the military.
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Personal trainer Joseph Webb told Metro that technique is more important than quantity.
“If someone can’t do a push‑up with solid technique yet, a perfect kneeling push‑up is a huge and meaningful achievement, and should be the first goal before worrying about hitting age‑norm numbers,” he explained.
But he did suggest a breakdown of just how many people should be aiming for.
How many push-ups based on age
For women, in their 20s, between 15 and 29 is the average, but between 14 and 48+ is pretty great. And for men in their 20s, Webb recommends an average of between 30 and 43, but said that between 30 and 54+ is an ‘excellent’ measure of overall fitness.
And in your 30s, he says men should be aiming for an average of between 20 and 34 (22-24+ for that ‘excellent mark) and women between 10 and 24 (or 10-39+).
In your 40s, it’s 15-28 for men (or 15-39+) and six to 19 for women (or six to 34+).
In your 50s, it’s down to 10 to 24 for men (or 10-34) and three to 14 for women (or 3-25).
Then, for those in their 60s and above, men can aim for an average of six to 19 (or six to 29+) and women for one to 12 (or one to 24+).
“Push‑ups are an excellent barometer of upper‑body strength and core stability, but quality always beats arbitrary quantity,” Webb added.
“Use age‑based benchmarks as targets, not evaluations. Build strength gradually, safely, and in context with the rest of someone’s physical profile.”
Topics: Health
Jess Battison