Incline Push Up
A push-up with your hands raised on a bench or box — an easier path to the full bodyweight push-up.
How to do it
- Place your palms on a bench or sturdy box slightly wider than your shoulders, arms straight.
- Step your feet back until your body forms a long line from head to heels.
- Brace your core and squeeze your glutes so your hips neither sag nor pike during the rep.
- Lower your chest toward the bench, bending your elbows at about 45 degrees to your torso.
- Stop just before your chest touches the bench, then push through your palms back to the start.
- Fully straighten your arms at the top with your shoulder blades spread, then start the next rep.
Key technique cue
Don't sag or pike the hips, elbows ~45° — lower the chest almost to the bench.
Common mistakes
- ✕ Flaring the elbows wide to the sides, which overloads the front shoulders and reduces chest work.
- ✕ Letting the hips sag toward the bench, which takes tension off the core and overloads the lower back.
- ✕ Cutting the range by lowering only halfway, which skips the deepest chest work.
- ✕ Looking up and craning the neck instead of keeping the head in line with the spine.
Benefits
- ✓ Builds chest, triceps and front-shoulder strength with a beginner-friendly load.
- ✓ Gives a clear progression path to the floor push-up.
- ✓ Reinforces full-body tension in the push-up position.
Progression: from easier to harder
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Step 1 You are here - Incline Push Up
- Bodyweight Knee Push Ups
- Incline Push-Up Reverse Grip
- Incline Push-Up Wide
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Step 2 -
Step 3 -
Step 4
About the exercise
The Incline Push Up is the most common easier variation of the standard push-up. With the hands on a bench, box or step, the angle reduces how much bodyweight you press, which makes the rep accessible to beginners while still training the chest, triceps and front shoulders through a full range. As strength grows, the hands go lower for a gradual progression to the floor push-up. It is an essential exercise for beginners and untrained people, and a foundation of bodyweight progressions. It suits older adults, people coming back from injury and anyone who cannot yet do a clean floor push-up. Pair it with the standard push-up and the knee push-up for a complete beginner-to-intermediate chest press progression.
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