Before we go into how to build a habit of doing daily push-ups, let’s take a few moments to discuss what benefits push-ups can have on the body and how frequently should one do them.

As Healthline puts it, “Traditional pushups are beneficial for building upper body strength. They work the triceps, pectoral muscles, and shoulders. When done with proper form, they can also strengthen the lower back and core by engaging (pulling in) the abdominal muscles.”

This is what makes push-ups such a great exercise. They are a super fast and insanely effective exercise for building strength. The best part is that they can be done from virtually anywhere and don’t require any equipment. 

This post discusses some tips and tricks you can implement right now to build a habit of doing daily push-ups.

1. Focus on form 

Taking time to watch YouTube videos or employ a personal trainer to teach you to apply the perfect form will go a long way in ensuring that you don’t injure yourself while making certain you get the maximum benefits from your workout.

There are many ways to do a push-up. Pick one that suits your body type and stamina, and give it your hundred percent.

2. Rest for at least one day

You can’t work your chest and shoulder muscles all days of the week. Take one day off each week and designate it to self-care, rest, and healing. This will give your body ample time to build muscles and become stronger than before.

3. Train the opposing muscle group

Push-ups don’t just work out your chest muscles, they train your shoulders too. Your shoulders are unstable and fragile and you need to train them harder to balance your strength and improve stability. For that, it’s important that you should include some upper back and rotator cuff work in your exercise regimen.

4. Do a proper warmup

This is true for any exercise you’re planning to do. Without a proper warmup, you risk the chance for injuries and not properly working out the target muscles. 

Before you start your daily push-ups, stretch your body properly. This might seem like too much work, or even unnecessary. But if you don’t take care of your body properly and take preventive measures against injury, you might wake up one day in too much pain and unable to continue your exercise regime.

5. Reward yourself 

Once you complete your daily push-ups, reward yourself with something that you really enjoy. This could be some uninterrupted time with your dog, a bite of your favorite meal, an episode of a sitcom you love, and so much more. 

Get creative with your rewards so your brain and body are trained in a way that they know what needs to be done before they can get what they so strongly desire.

6. Get an accountability partner

No matter how hard you’re pushing yourself, doing something so big and challenging all by yourself can get tough at times. To make sure you don’t lose motivation midway, have a friend who is working on the same body goals. Working on a shared goal is a great way to ensure that you don’t lose hope even if you don’t immediately see results.

If you aren’t able to find a friend working towards the same goals, you can hire an accountability coach to help you keep on track. They are trained professionals who will hold you accountable each day and make sure you don’t fall off the wagon even if you are demotivated.

You can also download a habit tracker where you check off the days on the calendar when you managed to stick to your goal of daily push-ups. You’ll soon start craving for an unbroken streak. This can act as a great trigger and a cue for your body and mind to start your habit immediately. 

It’s almost as if we know how important it is, but we can’t muster up the courage and determination to stick to this and make it a habit. So what is it that’s stopping us and how can we combat that? This post discusses some hands-on tips you can apply right away to make a habit out of going regularly to the gym and maintaining your health. As we all know, the more consistent an action is, the more likely it is to be a habit. And here’s how you can be consistent with your habit of going to the gym.

1. Set a time

Decide whether you want to go to the gym in the morning or afternoon, and based on your preference, decide a time. Stick to it without fail every day. 

If you don’t set a time, you’re more likely to give up and keep postponing. But when you have a fixed time for going to the gym, it keeps coming up at you like a reminder for your accountability.

2. Set a reminder

The next step to setting a fixed time is to set yourself a reminder. You can do it in two ways:

• Either set a reminder on your phone in the form of a blaring alarm tone.
• Or you can tie your habit of going to the gym with another habit you perform regularly. This could be making tea for yourself in the morning or taking the dog for a run. 
• When you tie two habits together, your brain is triggered that it needs to start the latter habit immediately. 
• So, the next time you take your dog for a run, your brain and body will scream at you for going to the gym. It will be very hard to say no to a call like that.

3. Start small

This is true for any habit you’re trying to build. If you try to do a lot of work at once, you’ll feel tired and demotivated. But if you break your goal down into small countable steps, it will keep you motivated for a longer time.

Try and break it down to the most minute of details — like wearing your gym clothes, putting on your gym shoes, turning on your gym music, walking down the road to the gym, etc.

4. Enjoy the process

Don’t be fixated on the results. Think of yourself undergoing a transformation and enjoy the process. The pain is the price you pay for a healthier and happier lifestyle.

5. Control your diet

Only working out doesn’t give you the perfect body (and the enthusiasm to keep pushing yourself to turn up at the gym day after day), you need to watch what you eat too.

So, stop eating those potato wedges, drinking those sugary shakes, and filling your stomach with unhealthy, processed, and fatty food. Switch to a healthy, home-cooked diet. If you travel frequently, find healthy places to order from and build a morning routine of 15–20 mins of HIIT workout.

6. Make your convenience a priority

The easier it is to slip into “workout mode,” the more conveniently the new habit fits into your routine.

Don’t make it harder on yourself by choosing a gym that’s far away from your home. Pick something that’s within walking distance, so you don’t have to convince yourself hard to get there.

Better still, start with home workouts. These literally take the least effort as all you have to do is roll your Yoga mat on the floor and start exercising. For many home workouts, you don’t even need to change clothes.

7. Get an accountability partner

When you’re starting a new habit, it becomes much easier if you have someone to keep you accountable. This can be a friend with whom you’ve started the habit together or a certified coach who can help you identify your excuses and make sure you don’t give up on yourself.

You can find yourself a certified coach from this directory of accountability coaches.

The wonders of a good workout have been well documented by researchers. Even though it’s been said that there’s no “right” time for exercising, scientists have argued that morning workouts increase your alertness, improve your focus, support weight loss, and leave you in a better mood. 

In addition to these, exercising in the morning also has some other benefits, namely:

• There are fewer distractions in the morning so you can focus better on the workout.
• You have more energy and motivation in the morning to exercise.
• It’s not as hot in the mornings as in the rest of the day. This helps you sweat those calories out without feeling the humidity take a toll on your mental health.

Now that we know how beneficial working out in the morning is, it’s important that we proactively take steps to incorporate it into our routine. But how does one go about it? This post discusses seven tips you can implement right now to start exercising every morning before you start your day.

1. Sleep well

If you have a good night’s rest, you will have no trouble waking up early. Don’t cut on the number of hours as less sleep can adversely impact your health. No matter how hectic your routine is, aim for seven to eight hours of sleep each night.

2. Gradually adjust your schedule

If you’re habituated to sleeping late and waking up in the afternoons, it might be difficult for you to suddenly accommodate a lot of exercise in your mornings. Don’t pressure yourself into making sudden changes.

Instead, gradually adjust your workout time. Instead of aiming to start exercising at 8 AM, slowly move your time to wake up time earlier and exercise right after you get out of bed.

Follow the steps in this post to wake up early.

3. Prepare your workout gear

Before you go to bed, set out your gym clothes, shoes, Yoga mat, and whatever else you need for your exercise. That way, when you wake up in the morning, seeing all your workout gear stored in one place will leave you with fewer excuses to skip your exercise for the day.

4. Plan breakfast the night before

The night before, make plans for an energizing meal to start your day. You can cut up and keep the ingredients ready so it doesn’t take you much time to make your breakfast. You can even prepare your meal and keep it in the refrigerator to be consumed in the morning without any extra effort.

5. Have an accountability partner

Having a friend who also has the same goals of working out in the morning is a great way to stick to your goals. However, not everyone is fortunate enough to have like-minded people in their network. 

An easy way out of this tricky situation is to hire an accountability coach. These are experts trained in habit coaching and can help you stick to your goals and get back on track if you fall off the wagon for some reason.

You can also download a habit tracker and mark your progress each day. That way, seeing a calendar build up with an unbroken streak of working out in the morning will motivate you to keep pushing yourself.

6. Do exercise you enjoy

Before you make a workout plan with help from an expert or by taking tips from people who have done it on the internet, try new exercises and see what you like most. Your body will help you decide a plan that you enjoy the most and feel comfortable doing. 

When you are truly excited about starting your workout right after you wake up, it’ll be easier to get out of bed and start your exercise regime.