A 'Push' Day Workout to Strengthen Your Chest, Shoulders and Core
Push exercises like bench presses, Arnold presses and upright rows improve the mobility and strength of 


A "push" workout is a type of strength training that focuses on exercises where you push the weight away from your body. These types of workouts typically focus on the upper body, targeting the muscles in the chest, shoulders and triceps. Some examples of these movements include bench presses, shoulder presses and tricep extensions.

Not only are these kinds of exercises an effective way to build muscle and strength, but they also improve overall upper-body stability and mobility. Doing push workouts consistently will help you ability perform everyday tasks that require this type of movement, such as lifting objects overhead or pushing a heavy door, with more ease and less risk of injury.


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Push day workout routine

These 10 push exercises can be strung together for an effective upper-body routine.Tyler Essary / TODAY
Lateral raises

Stand with feet hip-distance apart. Hold a dumbbell in each hand. Allow your arms to rest at your sides, palms facing your body. Then, extend your arms straight out to the sides, up and away from your body to about shoulder height. Slowly return back to the starting position. Repeat for 10 repetitions. Tyler Essary / TODAY
Tricep extension

Standing with your feet as wide as your hips, hold one dumbbell with both hands. Reach the dumbbell overhead. Keeping your biceps still, bend the elbows, keeping them in alignment with the ears, as you lower the dumbbell down along your upper back. Engage your triceps as you reach the weight back up to the starting position. Tyler Essary / TODAY
Arnold Press

Stand tall with your arms hanging by your sides; hold a dumbbell in each hand. Perform a bicep curl bringing the weights up to your shoulders. Once you have reached the shoulders, rotate your palms until they are facing away from your body and then push the weights up overhead into a shoulder press. Lower your weights back down to your shoulders, rotate your palms until they are facing you and slowly drop the weights back down to finish off your bicep curl. Repeat 10 times. Tyler Essary / TODAY
Skull crushers

This exercise is a lying overhead tricep extension. Lie down on your back holding a dumbbell in each hand. Bend your knees with your feet as wide as your hips. Extend the arms straight up so that the dumbbells are as wide as your shoulders. Then bend the elbows to a 90-degree angle, lowering the weights to frame your face. Extend the arms up straight, and repeat 10 times.
Dumbbell pullover

This exercise only requires one dumbbell. Lie on your back on a flat surface and grab your dumbbell with both hands; think of cupping the ends of the dumbbell for an optimal holding position. Bend your knees and place your feet flat on the floor. Raise the dumbbell up so it’s over your chest. Slowly let the dumbbell lower behind your head, keeping your arms straight, until it creates a 45-degree angle with the floor. Return back to the starting position. Repeat 10 times.
Front raise

Stand with feet hip-distance apart. Hold a dumbbell in each hand. Engage your core to maintain stability. With palms facing toward you, extend your arms straight up and out in front of you until you reach shoulder height. Slowly return back to the starting position. Repeat for 10 repetitions.Tyler Essary / TODAY
Pushup

Start by getting down on all fours with your palms on the mat a little wider than shoulder-width apart. Make sure your arms are straight. Reach your legs straight behind you, tucking the toes under to come into a plank position. Bend at the elbows, lowering your body until your chest almost touches the mat. Pause in this position for a few seconds, and then press down into the ground to straighten your elbows and push your body back up to the starting position. Repeat 10 times. Tyler Essary / TODAY
Chest press

Begin lying on your back; hold a dumbbell in each hand. Open the arms out into a goal-post position, bending the elbows at 90 degrees. Exhale as you press the weights up, touching the weights directly over your chest with the arms extended. Then bring the arms back to the starting position and repeat 10 times.Tyler Essary / TODAY

Overhead pressStand with your feet hip-distance apart. Hold a dumbbell in each hand. Raise the dumbbells so that your arms are in a goal-post position at shoulder height with palms facing away from you. This is your starting position. Engaging your core to remain stable through each repetition, push the dumbbells overhead. Slowly return back to the starting position. Repeat for 10 repetitions.Tyler Essary / TODAY
Tricep dips

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Sitting on the ground or on a bench or chair, place your palms on the ground behind you with your fingers facing your body. Move your butt back toward your hands and press down through your feet to lift your butt up. Keep your knees bent. Bend your elbows straight back to lower down into the dip, then press down through your hands to come up to the starting position.