11 Health Benefits Of Doing Pushups Daily

1. Build muscle density

The best way to stretch your various muscles is pushups. This workout allows biceps and back muscles to get a full stretch and become strong and extra useful. When a person performs pushups daily, their back muscles grow strong and help them to perform daily works in more easier ways. Pushups also help in avoiding injuries, improving flexibility, proper breathing and enhancing blood flow all over the body.

2. Create body stability

Pushups are very effective in strengthening our upper body and the torso. Doing pushups daily improve our proprioceptive muscle fibres which help to keep our body balanced and stable. Proprioception is the sense of knowing the position of our body or body parts while performing certain activities. When we perform pushups, these sensory neurons continuously send information to contract or relax. This trains these nerves to make a quick reaction and balance our body in certain inevitable situations.

3. Increase testosterone production

Testosterone is considered a male sex hormone but also found in women in a small amount. It plays an important role in shaping men's body, improving their performance, building muscle mass, hair growth, improving sex drive along with other important body functions. Thus, pushups are considered the best way for men to improve testosterone production naturally. [7]

4. Increase functional strength

One exercise for all benefits! Pushups are a type of functional exercise which are known to activate the muscles in the entire body. When we perform pushups, our core strength is activated and we can feel the progress in our muscles. This compound exercise allows us to work in different areas of our body together and greatly improves our mobility. When many muscles get activated at the same time, our flexibility increases, which in turn increases our functionality.

5. Improve heart health

Physical fitness has always been linked to cardiovascular health. Allowing functional exercises like pushups in our daily lives help to lower the risk of heart diseases and increase longevity. According to a study published in the journal JAMA Network Open, higher baseline pushups are linked to a low risk of coronary artery disease. However, the study needs more research as it was conducted on middle-aged men, not on women or older people.

6. Make bones stronger

Another amazing benefit of pushups is that they helps to make your bones stronger. This weight-bearing exercise is effective because it forces every part of our body to hold a portion of own body's weight. This stress out various body parts, especially of arms and upper body and makes the bones stronger. Therefore, the more weight you put on your bones and train them, the sooner and stronger they grow.

7. Help trigger growth hormone

Human growth hormone (HGH) is vital for the development and growth of our body. It also plays an important role in building muscle mass. Less production of HGH in our body can reduce the growth of bones and muscles and make a person lean and weak. Pushups help to activate the growth hormone in our body which in turn, help in the growth of muscles and bones.

8. Improve posture

Most of the people often neglect the importance of a good posture in their lives. In older age, improper posture is the main cause of health decline and decreased comfort due to weak core muscles. The muscles of the shoulders and back are vital for holding our vertical posture, and pushups strengthen these muscles to the core so that you can get possible benefits of posture-supporting muscles in your daily life as well as in the future.

9. Prevent shoulder injury

A strong shoulder can make life easier by contributing to lift things more easily than ever before. However, it is prone to damage at an old age causing a problem in your mobility and posture. Pushups help build a strong shoulder by strengthening the muscle and joints that support it. They also help to make the shoulder more flexible so that you won't feel the pain of lifting your grandson on your shoulders at your 60s.

10. Prevent lower back injuries

Injuries of the back are very painful. When our back muscles or bones are damaged, even simple work seems to be torture for our body. Back injuries can interfere in our daily activities and cause problems in movements like running or walking. Doing pushups daily help to strengthen our back muscles and lower its pressure to prevent back muscles injuries.

11. Promote weight loss

In pushups, a bunch of muscles work at the same time. It improves our blood flow along with our metabolism, and thus promote weight loss. The point is, as long as we are doing pushups, we should not be worried about gaining pounds due to the fast metabolism associated with this workout. But it doesn't mean to eat more fats. Consume foods rich in proteins and a lot of whole foods.

Risks Of Doing Pushups Daily

Pushups are a form of exercise that challenges almost every part of our body. It is beneficial in every aspect but there are certain risk factors to performing this exercise daily. Firstly, doing pushups daily create a condition called plateauing, a situation in which the body stops getting benefits from a regular exercise. As we know, our body functions well and grow only when they are stressed, therefore, continuous pushups create a situation in which our body feels no challenge and thus, stops responding. Other risks associated with pushups are incorrect forms of the body while doing it and wrist injury.

How To Do Pushups

• Kneel on the floor or a mat
• Place both the palms on the floor in a shoulder-width distance
• The fingers should be facing forward while the hands should be in a position with the shoulders.
• Extend your body in a plank position keeping your feet together.
• The torso should be straight and rigid, and aligned with your head and spine.
• Slowly lower the body without letting the back sag and touch the ground with chin or chest
• With the help of arms, move upward in the previous position. Repeat the process 10 times and increase the count on every alternative day.