How many staggered-hand push-ups should you do when you are new to the exercise?

Three sets of 8 to 10 per lead hand, always finishing both sides in the same session. Start with a small offset, about one hand length, and widen it only once you can press through without the hips turning. When 12 per side is easy at a wide stagger, move on to archer push-ups.

How do you make the staggered-hand push-up easier or harder?

Shrink the offset, put your hands on a bench, or drop to your knees to take load off. To make it harder, widen the stagger so the low hand carries more, raise the feet, or pause two seconds at the bottom of each rep. Putting the forward hand on a low block shifts even more of your weight onto the rear hand and is the last step before archer push-ups.

What is the staggered-hand push-up for?

It is a stepping stone toward archer and one-arm push-ups, and it teaches the trunk to resist rotation while you press, which carries into any single-arm pushing. It is not the right pick if you only want more chest volume, because ordinary push-ups do that with less fuss. Skip it if the offset makes a wrist ache, or use push-up handles.

Intermediate

Staggered-Hand Push-Up

Offsetting your hands so one is high near the shoulder and one is low near the ribs changes the angle of pull on each pec and forces the core to resist twisting. It is a smart stepping stone toward archer and one-arm push-ups because it shifts more work to the lower, rear hand without demanding full unilateral strength. Alternate the lead hand each set to keep both sides even.

Equipment: Body Weight
Body part: Chest
Type: Strength
Browse by muscle: Pectoralis Major Sternocostal
Browse by movement: Horizontal Press

How to do it

1
Set into a plank, then slide one hand forward toward your head and the other back toward your hip.
2
Keep both palms flat and your feet at a stable width with the core braced.
3
Lower your chest under control, feeling the forward and rear hands share the load unevenly.
4
Press back to the top without letting your hips rotate toward the leading hand.
5
Finish your reps, then switch which hand leads so both sides get equal work.

Tips

Resist the urge to twist; keep your shoulders and hips square to the floor as you press.
The wider the stagger, the harder the balance and the more the low hand works.
Keep elbows tracking back rather than flaring straight out to protect the shoulders.

Variations

Common mistakes

The stagger gets set with one hand out to the side rather than forward and back, which widens the base instead of offsetting it and changes nothing about the load.
Letting the ribs open toward the leading hand at the bottom takes strain off the chest and puts it into the low back, which is what the offset should train against.
All the reps go to one lead hand because switching gets forgotten between sets, so a drill meant to even the sides out makes them less even.
The rear hand drifts back under the hip as the set runs on, so the wrist ends up bent hard and the shoulder sits behind the body at the bottom.
Depth gets measured by the forward hand, so the chest never comes close to the rear hand and that side barely works even though it should carry more.

Frequently asked

How many staggered-hand push-ups should you do when you are new to the exercise?: Three sets of 8 to 10 per lead hand, always finishing both sides in the same session. Start with a small offset, about one hand length, and widen it only once you can press through without the hips turning. When 12 per side is easy at a wide stagger, move on to archer push-ups.
How do you make the staggered-hand push-up easier or harder?: Shrink the offset, put your hands on a bench, or drop to your knees to take load off. To make it harder, widen the stagger so the low hand carries more, raise the feet, or pause two seconds at the bottom of each rep. Putting the forward hand on a low block shifts even more of your weight onto the rear hand and is the last step before archer push-ups.
What is the staggered-hand push-up for?: It is a stepping stone toward archer and one-arm push-ups, and it teaches the trunk to resist rotation while you press, which carries into any single-arm pushing. It is not the right pick if you only want more chest volume, because ordinary push-ups do that with less fuss. Skip it if the offset makes a wrist ache, or use push-up handles.

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