Between work, social, and family obligations, there is not a lot of room to maneuver when planning a workout.
Some people manage this by having one explosive and intensive workout per day, but for a lot of people, even this does not seem viable.
However, oftentimes we ‘overthink’ what is required to keep a decent level of fitness and discount Qwik workouts such as home workouts and isometrics.
These exercises most frequently use what every person has: their own body weight. Combine this with a few of the exercises that many of us have been taught in our lives and you are all set!
For example, push-ups tend to play a big part in many home workouts, and people like to squeeze them into the 20 or 30 minutes they may have free for a session.
However, many people also like to do diamond push-ups instead of the traditional variety. In this article, we are going to take a deep dive into the diamond push-up and let you know if this is a good idea or a bad idea. Read on.
What Are Diamond Push-Ups?
Diamond push-ups are a method of doing push-ups that are used to increase muscle activation in your chest, back, shoulders, core, and triceps.
The person performing the diamond push-up must assume a standard push-up position.
This is done with the body stretched out above the floor in a long straight line, with the toes of the feet and the palm of the hands raising the body off the floor.
The feet are together and the back of the person performing the push-up is straight, however, the hands of a diamond push-up are where things are much different.
In a diamond push-up, the hands are close together, with the index fingers and thumbs of each hand as close to touching as possible, with the goal to eventually have them touching. You will still keep your palms flat on the floor like a normal push-up position, though.
This position gives the diamond push-up its name, as both hands together form a diamond, and the gap in between the index fingers and thumbs forms a “diamond” or “triangle”.
Then, it is a simple matter of using your arms to let yourself drop close, but not touching, to the floor and pushing yourself back into the raised position. You will want to make sure you are going very slow and keeping your elbows tucked to your sides and not allowing them to flare out.
Due to the number of muscles used, this move can be difficult at first, but easing yourself into it will gradually make it easier over time.
Difference Between Diamond Push-Ups And Regular Push-Ups
Diamond push-ups and regular push-ups are not the same, and not just because of the positions they assume at the beginning.
While this difference may only appear slight – with regular push-ups having the hand’s palms on the ground at shoulder-width apart and the diamond push-ups having the hands close with fingers touching – it actually makes a huge difference to your body.
In a regular push-up, the focus is on your chest muscles, and it is one of the best exercises to build chest mass.
The secondary muscles that a traditional push-up will work are the triceps, the deltoids, and the core muscles, but the main focus is the two big chest muscles (pectoralis major and minor).
However, with a diamond push-up, the focus changes from the chest to the triceps.
The triceps and shoulder muscles (deltoids) are the main focus of a diamond push-up, and they get major attention from this.
The secondary muscles that are worked out by diamond push-ups are the chest muscles (both pectoralis major and minor) and the back muscles, as well.
This difference doesn’t just extend to what muscles are worked out.
With traditional push-ups, the secondary muscles get a workout, but not much of one, yet with diamond push-ups, the secondary muscles get a workout that – while not as intense as the triceps or shoulders – is quite intensive and will help build muscles in those areas well.
Why Are Diamond Push-Ups So Hard?
Diamond push-ups are so hard because the movement requires you to put force into a much smaller area of the floor through the diamond shape created by your hands.
The greater the force you put into a smaller area, the greater the resistance you will experience.
In a regular push-up, your weight and the force you apply are spread over quite a large area.
This means you have greater balance and control of your descent and ascent during the push-up.
However, diamond push-ups are focused on a smaller area, with all your weight being put in a smaller area.
Your muscles have to work harder to keep you balanced and moving through the workout, due to every part of the workout being put on a smaller space.
The equivalent would be, that it is much easier to balance and maneuver over larger rocks across a river, rather than smaller rocks.
Your weight and abilities remain consistently the same, but you are forced to use them in a narrower space, thus making it more difficult to do.
Benefits Of Diamond Push-Ups
Hands down, the biggest benefit of a diamond push-up will be seen and felt in your triceps. They are probably the best tricep exercise you can do, even with the machines at the gym.
If you don’t believe us, take a minute to do 5 diamond push-ups with very slow movements and perfect form, and then come back to reading this article. Believe us now?
The other thing is that they don’t neglect the secondary muscles used in the exercise.
In fact, they are a fantastic way to increase chest and back definition, something that is quite hard to do without an intensive amount of exercise. Finally, your shoulders will also benefit from the exercise and get bigger and stronger.
Doing high repetitions will lead to great definition, in addition to strength, and you will find many other exercises easier to do over time due to the widespread benefits and effectiveness of the exercise.
Conclusion
Diamond push-ups are hard and scary, but if people take their time with them, anyone can do them.
Routinely doing diamond push-ups – even for only a few minutes a day – will exponentially build muscles and muscle definition in your chest, back, triceps, and shoulders, which is exactly what most people are aiming for when they begin a workout routine.
Hi, my name is TJ Daniels. I am a certified personal trainer dedicated to health and fitness for the past 20+ years. We have found that consistency is the key to wellness and our company is founded on this philosophy. If you would like to learn more, please see our About Us page or Contact Us with questions, feedback, suggestions for future content, or collaboration opportunities. Let’s enjoy this journey together!
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