Fitness challenge of the month!

Come down and try our new Fitness Challenge for the month of April ! 

We thought for this month we'd go back to the basics and we've chosen the press-up exercise as our challenge for this month. How many press-ups can you perform in one go? 

The press-up is an exercise that strengthens your arms and chest muscles or more specifically the shoulders, triceps and pectorals muscles. 

They are performed by lying with your face towards the floor and pushing with your hands to raise your body until your arms reach a straight position. Press-ups may seem like a pretty basic exercise however they work your upper arms and chest effectively, and if performed the right way, you can also get your core and other upper body muscles involved in order to stabilise yourself and perform a perfect rep. The best part is that they can be done just about anywhere you are and can be adjusted to fit any ability level.

How to perform a Press-up

If you don’t know how to perform a press-up, it may feel a little awkward at first but practice makes perfect as the saying goes. Form is a key aspect when doing this exercise to get all the key benefits:

• Start in a plank position, face-down with your body in a straight position. Put your palms flat on the ground with your arms straight, in line with your shoulders.
• Keep your feet together or about 12 inches apart, with your weight on the balls of your feet.
• Ensure your back is straight and your bodyweight is evenly spread out.
• Look down as you do ypur press-up to make sure your spin is in line and your neck is all the way down, this way ensuring your airway isn’t obstructed.
• Lower your body towards the ground, using controlled movement, until your elbows are at 90-degree angles. Then push back up to a plank position.
• For best results, lower yourself slowly and push-up quickly for an explosive movement. When you begin try taking 2 seconds to lower and 1 second to push up.

Think you can beat our top scorers on this? Come give it a try! Winner gets a prize!!

Please ensure a staff member is present when attempting the challenge in order to validate your score.