How to do a push-up if you can't do one yet
If a floor push-up is not possible yet, start with your hands on a wall or a kitchen counter and walk your feet back until your body is a straight slope. Bend your elbows so they travel back toward your ribs, bring your chest to the edge, and press away. As it gets easier, use a lower surface such as a sturdy table, then a step, before trying the floor.
Why it matters: Upper body strength makes carrying, pushing and getting up off the floor easier, and a push-up is built in stages.
Steps
- Choose a surface that will not slide: a wall, a kitchen counter or a heavy table against a wall.
- Place your hands on its edge slightly wider than your shoulders.
- Walk your feet back until your body forms one straight slope from head to heels.
- Tighten your stomach and glutes so your hips neither sag nor lift.
- Bend your elbows so they angle back toward your ribs as your chest moves to the edge.
- Press the surface away until your arms are straight, keeping the slope straight.
- Move to a lower, stable surface only when the current one feels controlled from start to finish.
Stop and call a professional if
- a shoulder, elbow or wrist hurts sharply, clicks painfully or feels unstable: stop and see your clinician or a physical therapist
- you are pregnant, gave birth in the last year, or have a heart, joint, bone or pelvic floor condition: ask your clinician or a physical therapist which movements suit you first
- you feel chest pain or pressure, faintness or breathlessness far beyond the effort: stop and call your local emergency number, 911 in the US
Questions to ask the professional
- Is my wrist position right for my wrists, or should I use a different grip?
Common mistakes
- Using a chair or table that can slide or tip.
- Letting the hips drop so only the chest moves.
- Pushing the elbows straight out to the sides.
- Skipping to the floor while the incline still wobbles.
Teach this to someone
A one page sheet for showing a friend, a teenager or a parent: what to say, what to show, and one question to check it landed.
Teach: How to do a push-up if you can't do one yet
What to say
If a floor push-up is not possible yet, start with your hands on a wall or a kitchen counter and walk your feet back until your body is a straight slope. Bend your elbows so they travel back toward your ribs, bring your chest to the edge, and press away. As it gets easier, use a lower surface such as a sturdy table, then a step, before trying the floor.
What to show
- Choose a surface that will not slide: a wall, a kitchen counter or a heavy table against a wall.
- Place your hands on its edge slightly wider than your shoulders.
- Walk your feet back until your body forms one straight slope from head to heels.
- Tighten your stomach and glutes so your hips neither sag nor lift.
- Bend your elbows so they angle back toward your ribs as your chest moves to the edge.
- Press the surface away until your arms are straight, keeping the slope straight.
- Move to a lower, stable surface only when the current one feels controlled from start to finish.
Where it stops
Stop and call a professional if a shoulder, elbow or wrist hurts sharply, clicks painfully or feels unstable: stop and see your clinician or a physical therapist.
Check question
What makes an incline push-up easier or harder?
Answer: How high the surface is: higher is easier. A higher surface puts less of your weight on your arms.
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Related skills
Sources
- US national physical activity guidelines for adults, 2nd edition, 2018. Reviewed September 28, 2026.
- Certified exercise professional guidance on movement form, 2025. Reviewed September 28, 2026.
Written in our own words from the sources above. It is general information, not advice for your situation; where a professional, your doctor or your lease says something different, follow them.
Last reviewed . First published .