Exercise guide · Advanced · Compound

Full Planche Push-Up: How to Do It & Muscles Worked

The full planche push-up is an advanced bodyweight exercise that targets the pectorals, shoulders, triceps, and core. It requires significant strength, balance, and coordination as you perform a push-up while balancing your entire body off the ground with only your hands.

Primary muscles
Chest
Equipment
Body Weight
Level · type
Advanced · Compound
Demonstration of the full planche push-up
Front view: muscles worked by the full planche push-up. Primary: chest. Secondary: shoulders, abs, triceps and obliques.
Back view: muscles worked by the full planche push-up. Primary: chest. Secondary: shoulders, abs, triceps and obliques.
Primary Secondary

How to do the full planche push-up

  1. Step 1: Start in a push-up position with your hands placed slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
  2. Step 2: Engage your core and lower your body down towards the ground, keeping your elbows close to your sides.
  3. Step 3: As you lower yourself, lean your body forward and lift your feet off the ground, balancing on your hands.
  4. Step 4: Continue to lower your body until your chest is just above the ground.
  5. Step 5: Push through your hands and extend your arms to lift your body back up to the starting position.
  6. Step 6: Maintain a straight line from your head to your heels throughout the movement.
  7. Step 7: Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Sets, reps and programming

Suggested sets, reps and rest for the full planche push-up by training goal
Goal Sets Reps Rest Effort
Strength 3–5 3–6 3–5 min 1–3 reps in reserve
Muscle growth 3–4 6–12 2–3 min 1–2 reps in reserve
Muscular endurance 2–3 12–20 1–2 min 1–3 reps in reserve

Ranges follow the ACSM position stand on progression in resistance training. Muscle grows across a wide range of loads when sets end close to failure (Schoenfeld et al., 2017), longer rests between heavy sets support strength and size (Schoenfeld et al., 2016), and stopping a rep or two short of failure works about as well as training to failure (Grgic et al., 2022). Estimate your working weights with the strength calculators.

Full Planche Push-Up alternatives

More exercises that train the chest as their main target:

More chest exercises

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Sources

  1. American College of Sports Medicine. Progression models in resistance training for healthy adults. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2009;41(3):687-708.
  2. Schoenfeld BJ, Grgic J, Ogborn D, Krieger JW. Strength and hypertrophy adaptations between low- vs. high-load resistance training. J Strength Cond Res. 2017;31(12):3508-3523.
  3. Schoenfeld BJ, Pope ZK, Benik FM, et al. Longer interset rest periods enhance muscle strength and hypertrophy in resistance-trained men. J Strength Cond Res. 2016;30(7):1805-1812.
  4. Grgic J, Schoenfeld BJ, Orazem J, Sabol F. Effects of resistance training performed to repetition failure or non-failure on muscular strength and hypertrophy: a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Sport Health Sci. 2022;11(2):202-211.

Step-by-step instructions and demonstration media are from the ExerciseDB exercise dataset.

This guide is general fitness information, not medical advice. Stop if an exercise causes pain and speak to a doctor or physiotherapist about injuries or health conditions before starting a new programme.