Hello, friends!

Time for this week’s Move of the Week post.  🙂

Swiss Ball Decline Pushups

Works chest, shoulders, triceps, and abs.

Step 1

Kneel with a stability ball behind you and place your hands flat on the floor, shoulder-width apart. Place your shins or toes on the ball and get into the standard pushup position—arms straight, hands directly under your shoulders. Your back should be flat and your abs drawn in.

Step 2

Tuck your chin and, leading with your chest, lower your body to the floor.

On the way down!

Step 3

Push yourself back up.

That’s 1 rep!

Tips for form:

• Keep your head in line with your back.
• Resist looking at the ball. 
• The further out the ball is to your feet, the harder this will be.
• Keep your hands directly under your shoulders.
• Keep your butts down and abs tucked in.

If you are a beginner or new to pushups as part of your workout regimen, please wait to try these until you’ve mastered the modified versions first.  A modified pushup against the wall, with knees on the ground, or a regular pushup are all modification options for the decline pushup.  Decline pushups are harder than traditional push ups because the decline increases the amount of body weight that you have to lift during the push up. The higher the surface, the more declined you are, the more body weight you have to lift.  If you don’t own a stability ball, you can create the decline on a bench, step, or any raised surface.

Need some inspiration for how to incorporate these into a workout?

This was another workout in my training plan from Tina.

Cardio Circuit Intervals with Pyramid Strength Sets

How to do this workout:

• 5 minute warmup and stretch
• All exercises in Set 1
• 10 minutes of cardio at a quick, challenging pace & resistance
• All exercises in Set 2
• 10 minutes of cardio at a quick, challenging pace & resistance
• All exercises in Set 3
• 5-10 minute cooldown and stretch

Start with a light to moderate weight for Set 1, as this set has higher reps.  Increase the weight as you go through set 2, and then again for set 3.

Any questions, let me know!

What’s your favorite way to do a pushup?

Don’t forget to enter my Big Fat Greek Wine Giveaway!

Have a fab weekend, everyone 🙂