Push-up Pusher

Posted on April 7, 2010. Filed under: Franklin Method®, Imagery, Movement |

It is that time of year when all the ladies start pulling out their tank tops and sleeveless shirts which means it’s push-up season. Time to tone that upper body! I have longed for upper body strength ever since I first watched Linda Hamilton pump load a 12-gauge shotgun with one arm in Terminator 2.

Terminator 2: Judgement Day 1991 Carolco Pictures

And thus began a turbulent relationship with the all consuming push-up. It didn’t matter if I was doing it in a full plank or on my knees, the push-up has always given me hell (insert “heck” if you are under 13). It isn’t even that I couldn’t do one right or at least look like I was doing one right, meaning my derriere wasn’t sticking up or my hips sagging to the floor. But somehow this time of year would give me a headache, literally. But not any more….

Shoulder and neck tension due to poor alignment was my real nemesis. I’ve overcome that by embodying the bone rhythms of my humerus (upper arm) and scapula (shoulder blade) while performing push-ups. During movement, our bones are designed to interact with each other, inside the body, in a specific way to create safe and efficient movement. The body loves efficiency and poor alignment inhibits efficiency, making movement more difficult than it needs to be and sometimes leading to pain, injury or…headaches after push-ups. Some bone rhythms are easily felt or imagined in the mind’s eye. Some take more concentrated practice to really sense and integrate into a favorite movement. For me, it has taken time to visualize the spiraling of my scapulae and humeri when doing push-ups, but it has been well worth the added practice. No more headaches!

Now I think push-ups are fun. Yeah, I said it, and I am constantly pushing my enthusiasm for them on my clients.

You can do push-ups well and like it!!