How To Do Tiger Push Ups
Tiger push ups are a challenging variation of the traditional push up that targets the chest, shoulders, and triceps while also engaging the core. This exercise requires you to maintain a strong plank position while lowering your body, emphasizing control and stability throughout the movement.
Step-by-Step Guide to Properly Execute Tiger Push Ups
Starting Position
Start in a standard push-up position. Your hands should be placed shoulder-width apart, your arms straight, and your body in a straight line from head to heels. Keep your core tight, legs straight, and glutes slightly engaged to maintain full-body tension. This strong, solid position is your foundation.
Lowering Phase
Begin lowering your body by bending your elbows and shifting your hips slightly back. Keep your elbows close to your sides as you lower—this is key. Imagine you're doing a bodyweight triceps extension rather than a regular push-up. Your arms should guide the movement, and your triceps should take most of the load. Your chest stays lifted, and you avoid leaning too far forward. Think of lowering your upper body back and down rather than straight down.
Pushing Up
Once your chest is near the ground and your elbows are fully bent (almost tucked underneath you), push yourself back up using mainly your triceps. Don’t swing your body forward—stay centered. Focus on pressing your arms straight again without flaring your elbows out or letting your hips sag. The power should come from the back of your arms, not your chest or shoulders.
Return & Reset
As you return to the starting push-up position, make sure your body stays straight and tight. Reset your tension, breathe, and get ready for the next rep. Each repetition should feel like a controlled, focused triceps press, not a flowing motion like a dive-bomber push-up.
Tiger Push Ups Workout Plan for All Levels
What Are The Benefits Of Tiger Push Ups
- Builds serious triceps strength
- Tones your arms without any equipment
- Improves control and stability in your upper body
- Enhances your form for other push-up variations
- Great addition to bodyweight or calisthenics routines
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Letting elbows flare out to the sides
- Using chest or shoulders instead of triceps
- Dropping your hips or losing body tension
- Leaning too far forward during the push-up
- Rushing through reps without control
Similar Exercises to Try for Your Workout
These exercises target similar muscles—mainly the triceps, shoulders, chest, and core—while helping you build control, strength, and body awareness:
- Diamond Push-Ups
Hands form a diamond shape under your chest. This variation puts extra focus on the triceps and inner chest. - Pseudo Push-Ups
Hands placed lower, closer to your hips, with fingers turned slightly outward. Shifts more load to your shoulders and builds strength for planche-style movements. - Pike Push-Ups
With your hips high in the air, form an inverted V shape and lower your head toward the ground. Focuses on shoulders and upper chest. - Decline Push-Ups
Place your feet on an elevated surface to increase the load on your upper chest and shoulders while challenging your core. - Archer Push-Ups
One arm bends while the other stays straight, shifting your weight side to side. Great for building unilateral strength and control.
FAQ About Tiger Push Ups
Tiger push-ups mainly target the triceps, but they also work the chest, shoulders, and core. The movement puts special focus on the back of the arms because it mimics a triceps extension more than a standard push-up.
They’re more challenging than regular push-ups because of the elbow angle and triceps focus. Beginners can start with knee variations or slow negatives (lowering phase only) to build strength and control.
Regular push-ups distribute effort between the chest, shoulders, and triceps. Tiger push-ups shift most of the load to the triceps by keeping elbows tight and pushing the body in a different angle—more like a triceps press.
Start with 3 sets of 5–8 reps with perfect form. If that feels easy, increase the reps slowly. Quality matters more than quantity with this exercise, since form breakdown can strain your elbows or lower back.
