Is It Indeed Possible for Diamond Push-Ups in just Seven Days to Lead to Stronger Arms?
Push-ups, as most people know, are a good way of exercising your body without any need for additional weight, but for those who seek that “extra push” in their training, diamond push-ups might be the one. I tried incorporating them into my exercise plan every day for a week to see if this minor change in hand placement would help.
One skill that diamond push-ups are really good at is targeting your triceps. It is the way your arms are positioned that actually makes this push-up variation difficult. But besides the noticeable burning sensation in the upper arm area, I wanted to find out something else: would this new version really give my body a new look or a new feeling of change in just one week?
What are Diamond Push-Ups Exactly?
This type of push-up was inspired by the hand positioning. You put your thumbs and index fingers together in the shape of a diamond below your chest to do this style of push-ups. This immediately gives your triceps a good workout, and it also keeps your chest and shoulders in action.
The whole process is simple to follow but you should not be fooled. If you have not already acquired the habit of doing regular push-ups with perfect form, this new move can appear to be as hard as a completely new one. Nevertheless, if toned arms or increased push-up capacity are what you are after, this exercise can help improve your upper body strength without involving any equipment.
Day 1: The Wake-Up Call
I went with three sets of 10 reps to begin with, and boy, was it messy! I was finding it very hard to keep my form correct and the tension at the base of my palms was painful for me. The fact that the hands were close together did not help my headache at all, and in my endeavor to keep the balance, I ended up extending my elbows too far.
My aim was easy: come every day and do the exercises. Still, one doubt quickly popped up after the first session if the push-up variation was appropriate for me.
Day 2 to 4: Discovering My Groove But Not That Much
The next day I protected myself and used a sort of cushioned mat to ease the pressure on my wrists. It did help, but my hands still felt strange in position. I didn’t make the mistake of lowering my head to fake depth and during that time, I had to work hard to keep my abdomen contracted and elbows glued.
On the third day, I blended a fast warm-up of dips and curls, which actually helped reduce the effort coming from the push-ups. I managed to move through four sets and had begun to feel the power of the exercise through a mild soreness in my triceps and delts—certainly a signal of the right path.
As the fourth day arrived, the form was still on the up, but keeping the elbows glued remained an issue.
Days 5 to 7: My Muscles Are Getting Bigger, But I Am Not So Sure about That
At the beginning of the last days, I found myself more stabilized and confident. Suddenly, I was not slouching anymore and was also not completing the exercise quickly to be done. Nonetheless, I observed that the maintenance of the elbow’s alignment was even harder than in a close-grip push-up.
During the sixth day, I could feel the difference when I tried doing a couple of close-grip push-ups as the latter turned out to be smoother and also easier on the wrists. These, however, still were effective triceps exercises, but with more natural body movement.
The last but one day of the test, without a doubt, I acquired bigger muscles at the expense of not getting fully convinced.
Is It Really Necessary for a Person to Have Diamond Push-Ups Every Day?
Of course, a diamond push-up is a killer for the triceps muscles. Practically speaking, if you did it for those the results would be apparent. But, are there any other benefits? The answer is yes. You can work out the same muscles with another variant of push-ups or alternatively, you can use triceps dips, in most cases you will not just efficiently but also comfortably and with good form.
Still, performing diamond push-ups, you can shift your upper-body workout would be a tremendous idea especially if it is done more than once in a week. Always make sure your form is correct and never get carried away because this is a sure way to injure your wrists.
It is appropriate not only to be aware of the comfort level but also to be ready for some other exercise if indeed you feel you need it. Diamond push-ups are for you if you are looking for a challenging yet like-nothing-else workout that uses only your body but not strength. Also, if you want them for daily workout, allowing the inclusion of other push-up styles would be better as they might offer an effective balance, which is more variety and less strain to the body. As for myself, will I continue doing those? Of course, I will — but only not daily.
