Incline Push-Up
The Elite Hockey Drills app builds drills like this into your personalized off-ice program, week by week. Your first week is free.
How to Do It
Place both hands on a bench, wall, or bar at chest height. The higher the surface, the easier. Walk feet back until the body forms a straight line — ankles to shoulders. Brace the core hard — no sagging hips. Lower the chest toward the surface, elbows at 45° from the torso. Touch the surface with the chest. Press back to full arm extension. Keep the body rigid throughout — don't let the hips pike or sag.
Why It Works
The incline push-up trains upper-body pressing strength with less absolute load than a standard push-up — making it the entry point for players who cannot yet perform quality flat push-ups. The incline shifts the load more toward the upper chest and shoulders. Despite being a beginner tool it is also used by advanced athletes for high-rep shoulder health work and pre-game activation.
Hockey Transfer
Beginner pressing variation — builds shoulder stability and chest strength. Three sets × 12-15. Use this as your push-up grease-the-groove drill. Frequency beats intensity for bodyweight strength.
Coaching Cues
- "Hands on bench"
- "Body plank"
- "Lower chest toward bench"
- "Full extension"
Common Mistakes
Hips sagging — maintain a straight body line from ankles to shoulders. Elbows flaring to 90° — keep them at 45° to protect the shoulder. Head dropping forward — neutral neck, eyes looking slightly ahead of the hands. Short range of motion — chest must touch the surface and arms must fully extend.
Progression / Regression
Standard push-up — reduce the incline progressively until you reach floor level.
Wall push-up — highest incline, minimal load. Entry point for complete beginners.
Primary Muscles
Energy System
Strength/neural
Put it to work
on the ice.
The Elite Hockey Drills app builds exercises like this into a personalized off-ice program — created by a sport scientist and former national-team coach. Your first week is free.
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