A while ago we looked at the resurgence of popularity of old school fitness training. Old school training is the style of training that was once common in school physical training classes, and often practised by the military. Today martial artists and dancers alike go “old school”. Really old school is just bodyweight circuit training and core strengthening using compound weight training.

Is there a “best exercise“? If there was one all round exercise that everybody should perform on a regular basis, what would it be? Well, the answer seems to be the mighty, noble, and often neglected, push up (or press up, if you prefer).

Considered the ultimate measure of fitness by many experts, and an exercise that the American College of Sports Medicine suggests should replace softer exercises, such as gentle Pilates and yoga postures, that are often adopted into fitness routines nowadays. It may be Old School, but it is still extremely effective.

There are many variations of the push up, ranging from the standard military style push up, to the one-handed push-up for the supremely athletic (as demonstrated by Sly Stallone in the Rocky films), but the basic principle remains the same:

How to Do A Proper Old School Press Up:

• Balance on your toes and hands, pressing your palms into the floor and keeping your hands just wider than shoulder-width apart.
• Straighten back and legs so that your body remains in a “plank” position.
• Breathe in and lower your torso to the floor by bending your elbows to 90 degrees.
• Engage (tense) your abdominal muscles to help to keep legs straight.
• Breathe out and push back up to the starting position.

The reason that push ups are still so popular, even in this age of techno fads and gadgets, is that the push up engages so many of the body’s core muscle. The muscle in the arms, chest, abdomen, hips and legs are all engaged with each repetition.

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Researchers in one US study showed that on average, 66.4 per cent of total bodyweight is lifted with each push-up. So if you weigh 70kg you are heaving a mighty 43kg — far more than you would on a bench-press machine. And if you weigh in as a heavy weight boxer, at over 15 stone (or 95kg) the each press up is like benching 63kg.

For those who cannot manage a single press-up, they key is to start gently. Bridgitte Swales, lecturer in sport and exercise sciences at Roehampton University, gives some advice on building up strength with press ups. Firstly you do not even have to lie down. Doing a push-up against a wall reduces pressure on the arms and upper back. The closer to the wall you stand, the easier it is. Also, beginners can perform the quarter-push ups, which are simply performing a normal push up, but with the knees on the floor, rather than the toes. This reduces the percentage of bodyweight that you are lifting, while still engaging the same muscles.

After you can do 25-30 push-ups without stopping, or if you can do three sets of 15 with short rests between sets, it is time to make the exercise more challenging. Do this by placing your feet on top of a step or a couple of heavy books. Raising the surface your feet are on will force you to work harder against gravity. Eventually, put your feet on an even higher platform like a chair or bed.

The press up is really the king of the old school bodyweight exercises. Often prescribed to help with back problems, as it helps build core strength to support the spine, it is really one of the best exercises to perform to build up all round strength and fitness.

Check out our push up video clips with more instructions.