The humble pushup is one of the oldest and most effective exercises around, using only your bodyweight to hit multiple muscle groups in the core and upper body. But age doesn’t mean pushups have to be boring, as fitness influencer and coach, Senada Greca recently found out with a fresher approach to holding back the hands of time.
“A little late on this challenge, but better late than never,” explained Greca while posting a video of her efforts for the buff beauty’s 6.6 million Instagram followers.
You may need to find a quiet timeslot in the gym for this one, because it’s simple, but does require a fair bit of real estate. You’ll place 12 weight plates in a circle, replicating a clock face, and then you’ll become the hand as you perform a pushup on each plate.
Note from her IG reel Greca opted for a more difficult version of the challenge, placing plates of different depth on the ground in order to shake things up. “That’s one rep… and way more difficult that I thought,” she reflected after rounding out the challenge.
Pushups are an epic exercise that are known for working the pectoralis major and minor chest muscles. You’ll also tax the triceps, shoulders, and crush your core as you complete your reps.
Why This Pushup Variation Builds More Muscle
In essence, 12 o’clock pushup challenge adds an incline via the inclusion of the plates, activating the lower chest and back more than regular pushups do. By adding different inclines, Greca is also adding further work to the mind and muscle connection, making quick adaptations to build stability, while hitting the muscles from slightly different angles for a fuller workout.
How to Make the 12 O’Clock Pushup Challenge Harder
To make it even more difficult, you can add extra rotations around the clock, or time yourself and try to beat your own personal record. “Not easy at all,” wrote one impressed follower on seeing the coaches’ completion around the clock. “No wonder I couldn’t find plates at the gym, you had them all,” joked another.
