The push up is a funny exercise because it seems so simple on the surface yet few people can really do it right. There are a lot of subtleties to this great exercise that get missed in the rush to do 50 reps and as a result the most important part of this exercise gets overlooked – the lats.

Yes, that’s right…those big muscles on your back play a very important role with your push ups because they are responsible for keep the shoulders stable, making them stronger and more injury resistant. It is the ability of the lats to keep the shoulders locked down that is the weak link in a lot of people’s push ups, not the pecs and shoulders.

What’s more, this same principle of using the lats to secure the shoulders and improve upper body stability can be applied to your body position on the bike. In this video I show you a simple tip with your elbow placement that will help you engage your lats better, letting you instantly tap into the power of the this technique. Plus, I show you how this tip shows why the popular advice to “push your elbows out” to achieve good body position on the bike isn’t the full story.

-James Wilson-