How to Master the T Push-up For Stronger Shoulders and an Invincible Core

When it comes to building functional total-body strength, basic moves (think: squats, deadlifts, and push-ups) can absolutely get the job done—but sometimes, when you combine exercises, magic happens. Take the world’s greatest stretch, for example, or the renegade row. Combining movement patterns can work your body in a new way, spice up your workouts, and make your training more efficient. 

Another great example of a hardworking hybrid move? The T push-up. The Frankenstein of a push-up and a side plank, this exercise can help you build core stability and upper body strength, while also boosting your coordination. 

Want to try it? Everything you need to know about T push-ups—how to do them correctly, muscles worked, variations, the whole nine yards—ahead.

What Is a T Push-Up?

“A T push-up is an advanced variation of a traditional push-up,” says Peloton instructor Matty Maggiacomo. “At the top of the push-up, it requires that you rotate your body, leaving one arm to support on the floor and the other to reach toward the ceiling.” This puts you in a side plank position, creating a ‘T’ shape with your body—hence, the name “T push-up.” (Though it’s sometimes called a push-up with rotation too.) 

The T push-up is different from a regular push-up in that “it integrates a twisting rotation through the spine and torso in addition to the pressing motion off the floor,” Matty says. You’re not really changing the push-up motion itself, but tacking a whole second part onto the move. 

T Push-Up Benefits

With T push-ups, you get the benefits of push-ups and side planks in one—plus more functional strength benefits from moving seamlessly between the different positions. “You’re introducing unilateral (single-arm) stability to your workouts while also improving core engagement,” says Benjamin Devaud, doctor of physical therapy and clinic director at ATI Physical Therapy. 

Core strength offers benefits like better balance and agility. And “stronger, more stable shoulders are at a reduced risk for injury,” Devaud says. This can translate into more efficient, safe movement during tasks that involve overhead lifting (i.e., getting a box off a shelf or moving your suitcase to the overhead bins). From a sports perspective, most athletes who do overhead motions (for example, in tennis, volleyball, or golf) “would benefit from improving shoulder stabilizers and pushing strength to mitigate shoulder fatigue and reduce injury risk,” Devaud adds. 

Though your upper body and core get the most love in a T push-up, no muscles really get to slack off during this move. “It’s truly a great example of a full body move, plus it requires no equipment,” Matty says. 

How to Do T Push-Ups Correctly

Mastering the correct push-up form is no easy feat, but it’s an important part of doing T push-ups right—even if you’re modifying by putting your knees down. Follow these step-by-step instructions to learn how to do T push-ups right. 

1. Start in a Plank Position

Start in a high-plank position with your hands directly under your shoulders and your feet about hip-width apart. Keep your neck long and gaze just in front of your hands. Engage your core and think about drawing your shoulder blades back and down. 

2. Lower Into a Push-up

Bend your elbows to lower your chest toward the floor, moving your body together as one unit. Your elbows should point away from your head at about a 45-degree angle. Keep your neck long and in line with your back; don’t reach your head down toward the floor. Lower until your chest taps the ground, or as far as you can go, while keeping your form in check and body in one straight line.

3. Press Back Up

Pause at the bottom, then press into your palms to straighten your arms, returning to plank position. Make sure your hips and shoulders come up at the same time.

4. Rotate 

Shift your weight into your right hand and slowly rotate into a side plank, your body facing to the left. Roll onto the outside edge of your right foot and the inside edge of your left foot, and reach your left hand up toward the sky. Throughout the motion, keep your body in a straight line.

4. Return to Center

Pause for one second, then slowly rotate back to center and place your left hand on the floor, returning to plank. That’s one rep. For the next rep, do another push-up, then rotate to the other side. Repeat for eight to 12 reps, alternating sides, doing an equal number of reps on each side.

Tips for Proper Form

It can take some time to master the form and do T push-ups correctly. Take note of these tips from Matty and Devaud.

Muscles Worked By a T Push-up

First and foremost, T push-ups target the same muscles as regular push-ups—namely, the chest (pectoralis major), shoulders (deltoids), and triceps, Matty says.

However, T push-ups work your muscles differently than a traditional push-up in two key ways: “One, you have a stability component where you’re in a side plank, which really fires up the entire core and shoulder stabilizers (the deltoids and rotator cuff),” Devaud says. (Reminder: The rotator cuff is a group of muscles and tendons surrounding your shoulder joint, which are important for shoulder mobility and stability.) “Two, there’s a dynamic rotation which emphasizes more oblique engagement,” he adds. 

In addition to your obliques (which wrap around the sides of your torso like a corset), other key core muscles involved in T push-ups are your transverse abdominis (your deepest core muscles) and erector spinae (the back muscles that run along your spine). These core muscles work hard to keep your torso stable and hips up while you rotate open to the T position.

How to Modify a T Push-up

The T push-up is an advanced push-up variation, so it’s understandable that you may not be able to bang out reps. The good news is, it’s easy to modify T push-ups. First, see if you can perform each component—the push-up and the side plank—separately, Devaud says. Based on that, you can determine which level of push-up and side plank to try below.

To do level one of a T push-up, Matty recommends modifying by lowering both your knees to the floor, as you would for a traditional knee push-up. When you rotate open to the side plank, you can either lift your knees off the floor or keep your bottom knee on the floor. 

Level two of a T push-up entails lowering just one knee to the floor, Matty says. Like level one, you can either lift your knee or keep it on the floor during the rotation. Just note that you’ll need to alternate sides, lowering the knee on the same side as the hand that’s staying on the floor. 

Finally, level three is a full T push-up, with both knees off the floor. No shame if you can only do a few full-out reps before needing to modify again—any push-up progress is worth celebrating.

More Advanced T Push-Up Variations

T push-ups are pretty challenging on their own, but you can certainly make them harder if you want to. Try these two variations, suggested by Matty.

Weighted T Push-up

“You can do a weighted T push-up with light weights in hand—five to 10 pounds, no more,” Matty says. As you lift the dumbbell toward the sky, bend your arm and keep the weight close to your body (almost like a dumbbell snatch) rather than lifting it with your arm fully extended.

Here’s a step-by-step guide:

Single Leg T Push-up

“You can also do the T push-up with a single leg off the floor,” Matty says. This will be a real balance challenge, increasing the demand on your core and abductors (the stabilizer muscles on the outside of your hips). 

Takeaway 

No single strength exercise is going to change your life, but the T push-up is a great functional move to add to your repertoire, especially if you’re looking to challenge yourself without using any additional equipment. “The T push-up is an excellent but challenging move to incorporate into your bodyweight strength routine,” Matty says. Add it to your next chest workout, core finisher, or into a HIIT workout like an AMRAP—since this move is so darn tough, it’s great for cranking the intensity.