Pushups (Close and Wide Hand Positions)
This push-up variation alternates your hand width from rep to rep, one close and narrow under your chest, the next wide outside your shoulders, without resetting between them. It trains the same chest, shoulder, and triceps muscles as a standard push-up, but shifting the emphasis slightly with each rep and adding a light coordination challenge. It works well once you already own a solid standard push-up and want more variety in the same movement pattern.
Why it works
Hand width changes how the load is shared between your chest and triceps. A wide hand position stretches the chest further and leans more on it to press you back up, while a close hand position keeps the elbows tucked and shifts more of the finishing work to the triceps. Alternating between the two within a single set means your upper body never settles into one groove for too long, so you get a rep-by-rep blend of both emphases instead of choosing only one.
Set up
- Start in a high plank with your hands at a standard, shoulder-width position.
- Decide which rep will be close and which will be wide before you start, so you're not deciding mid-set.
- Set your feet together or hip-width apart, body in a straight line from shoulders to heels.
- Brace your core before the first rep.
How to do it
- Perform one push-up with your hands close together under your chest, elbows tracking back near your ribs.
- Press back up to the starting plank.
- Reposition your hands out wide, past shoulder width, without letting your hips drop while you move.
- Perform a push-up from the wide position, elbows flaring more than in the close rep.
- Press back up and return your hands to the close position for the next rep.
- Continue alternating close and wide for the length of the set, keeping your torso rigid through every transition.
Form cues
- Reset your hand width with control, don't let the hips sag while you shift.
- Close reps: elbows track back near the ribs.
- Wide reps: elbows angle out more, chest stretches further.
- One straight line from shoulders to heels through every rep and every transition.
Breathing: Inhale as you lower into each rep, exhale as you press back up, and take a normal breath while you reposition your hands between reps rather than holding it.
Common mistakes
Letting the hips sag or lift while repositioning the hands between reps.
Fix: Keep your core braced during the hand shift, treating it as part of the rep rather than a rest between reps.
Making the wide position so wide that the shoulders round forward and lose stability.
Fix: Keep the wide hand position just outside shoulder width rather than maximally wide, so your shoulder joint stays in a controlled position.
Losing track of which hand width comes next and breaking rhythm mid-set.
Fix: Pick a fixed pattern before you start, like close-wide-close-wide, and stick to it for the whole set instead of deciding on the fly.
Rushing the transitions to make the set feel shorter.
Fix: Move your hands deliberately between positions; a rushed transition is where form breaks down first.
How to program it
- The alternating pattern adds a coordination cost on top of the strength demand, so keep sets shorter than you would for a standard push-up; 3 sets of 6 to 10 total reps (3 to 5 of each width), two to three times a week, is a reasonable starting volume.
- Practice each hand width on its own for a few sessions first if the transitions feel clumsy, then combine them once each position is comfortable by itself.
- This pairs well later in a workout as a finisher once your main pressing work is done, since the coordination demand is easier to manage at lower overall fatigue.
Safety notes
- Move the hands one at a time or both together, whichever keeps your shoulders and hips stable, rather than jumping quickly between positions.
- If the wide position causes shoulder discomfort, keep it closer to shoulder width and increase the spread gradually over time.
Exercise profile
- Force
- Push
- Mechanics
- Compound
- Category
- Strength
Frequently asked questions
How do I alternate hand positions without losing my balance?
Move both hands together in one smooth motion rather than shifting one at a time, and keep your core braced through the transition so your hips don't rock while your hands are moving.
Which hand position works the chest more, close or wide?
The wide position stretches the chest further and relies on it more to press back up. The close position keeps the elbows tucked and shifts more of the work to the triceps. Alternating gives you a mix of both in the same set.
Can I do this without any equipment?
Yes, it's done entirely on the floor with no equipment needed. If a full set feels like too much coordination at once, practice the close and wide versions separately before combining them.
Is this harder than a regular push-up?
It's not necessarily heavier on the muscles, but the constant repositioning adds a coordination and core-stability demand that a standard push-up doesn't have, which often makes it feel more tiring at the same rep count.
What order should I alternate the hand positions in?
There's no single correct order. Starting with close and switching to wide, or the reverse, both work equally well. Pick whichever order you can remember consistently, since breaking the pattern mid-set is more disruptive than the specific order you chose.