Intermediate

Sphinx Push-Up

The sphinx push-up is essentially a bodyweight triceps extension. Starting in a forearm plank, you press through the triceps to lift onto your palms with straight arms, then lower back to the forearms under control. Because the shoulders stay largely fixed, the elbows do almost all the work, making this one of the best equipment-free triceps builders. Scale it by dropping to the knees.

Equipment
Body Weight
Body part
Triceps
Type
Strength
Browse by movement
Elbow Extension
Muscles worked
Target
Triceps Brachii Long Head, Triceps Brachii Lateral Head, Triceps Brachii Medial Head
Secondary
Pectoralis Major Sternocostal, Deltoid Anterior
Tertiary
Abdominal External Oblique

How to do it

  1. 1

    Set up in a forearm plank with elbows under the shoulders and body in a straight line.

  2. 2

    Brace the abs and glutes so the hips do not sag or pike.

  3. 3

    Press through the triceps to straighten the arms, rolling onto the palms.

  4. 4

    Extend fully until the arms are locked out in a top plank position.

  5. 5

    Lower back down under control until the forearms rest on the floor again.

  6. 6

    Keep the shoulders stacked over the hands and move only at the elbows as much as possible.

Tips

  • Keep the elbows tracking close to the body to keep tension on the triceps.
  • Drop to your knees if the hips start to sag, and keep the reps strict.
  • Move slowly; rushing turns it into a shoulder movement instead of a triceps one.

Variations

Common mistakes

  • The hips lift into a pike as the arms straighten, which shortens the lever and lets the body rise without the triceps doing the extending.
  • Shoulders travel forward past the hands on the way up, so the press turns into a shoulder movement and the elbows barely change angle.
  • Elbows drift out wide of the shoulders during the roll onto the palms, which takes tension off the triceps and puts it across the shoulder.
  • The descent is a collapse back onto the forearms instead of a lower, and the eccentric is where most of the triceps work in this exercise lives.
  • Once the hips sag on the later reps, the low back takes over from the abs and the straight line the movement depends on is gone.
  • Bare elbows press into a hard floor and the skin gives out before the triceps do; work on a mat or a folded towel.

Frequently asked

How many sphinx push-ups should you do when you are new to the exercise?
Three sets of 5 to 8 slow reps is a realistic start, because this is a small range driven almost entirely by the triceps and the numbers are much lower than a standard push-up. Rest 60 to 90 seconds. Drop to the knees for the later sets rather than letting the hips sag. Progress by adding reps to 12, then by pausing two seconds on the forearms at the bottom of each rep, then by elevating the feet.
How do I make the sphinx push-up easier or harder?
To make it easier, do it from the knees with the hips still extended, or set the forearms on a bench so you are pressing at an incline. Shortening the range by stopping partway to straight arms also works while the triceps catch up. To make it harder, elevate the feet on a step or bench, add a weighted vest, slow the lower to four seconds, or move the elbows a few inches further forward of the shoulders so the lever lengthens. Doing it one arm at a time is the hardest progression and needs a wide foot base.
What is the sphinx push-up good for, and who should skip it?
It is close to a bodyweight triceps extension, since the shoulders stay fixed and the elbows do nearly all the work, which makes it one of the best triceps builders you can do with no equipment at all. It suits home trainees and anyone who wants arm work without a cable or dumbbell. Skip it if your elbows are currently sore, because this movement concentrates load straight through that joint at a deep angle, and pick a close-grip push-up instead if you want the triceps worked with less elbow stress.

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