Pike Push-Up
Overhead pressing strength for handstands
How to do it well
The set-up and the rep in full, then the cues the app shows on the exercise card — the short version, for the moment you are standing in front of the bar.
Set-up
Start in a push-up position, then walk the feet towards the hands and lift the hips high so the body forms an upside-down V. Hands a little wider than the shoulders, fingers spread, arms straight.
The rep
Bend the elbows and lower the top of the head towards the floor over two seconds, aiming for a spot in front of the hands so the head and hands make a triangle. The elbows travel back, not out. Press back up to straight arms, pushing the floor away and keeping the hips high throughout.
On the exercise card
- Hips high
- Head between hands
- Tempo
- 2s down
What goes wrong, and the fix
| What goes wrong | The fix |
|---|---|
| The hips dropping | That turns it into a push-up. Keep the hips high over the shoulders. |
| Elbows flaring out | Track them back at about 45°. |
| Lowering the face instead of the head | The top of the head goes to the floor, in front of the hands. |
Make it easier, or harder
- Easier
- Hands on a raised surface such as a bench, or a shorter range.
- Harder
- Feet raised on a box, then a handstand push-up against a wall.
How Train Smart prescribes it
The sets and reps below are the authored starting point. The actual weight you see is calculated from your own last top set and the week you are in within your four-week block.
It is overhead pressing without a bar. In gymnastics it builds the strength behind handstands and presses, in the shoulders and core session; in the bodyweight program it is the overhead push, where there is no other way to load one.
| Program | Session | Sets × reps | Load |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gymnastics | Shoulders + Core | 4 × 8 | BW |
| Bodyweight Athlete | Upper Push + Pull | 3 × 8 | BW |
What it trains, and who trains it
- Region
- Upper body
- Prescribed in
- gymnastics · bodyweight training
If you cannot do this one
Rack taken, kit missing, or it does not suit you. These are the swaps the app offers, matched by movement pattern and body region — each with the reason it is a fair substitute.
| Alternative | Why it works as a swap |
|---|---|
| Bench Press | Max horizontal pressing strength |
| DB Bench Press | Bigger range, even sides |
| Incline DB Press | Upper-chest + front-delt bias |
| Decline Bench Press | Lower-chest emphasis, shoulder-friendly |
| Floor Press | Shoulder-friendly, lockout strength |
| Spoto Press | Pause 1 inch above chest — tightness + control |
This exercise, in a program that knows why it is there
Train Smart puts this movement in the right session, at the right point in your block, at a weight calculated for you — and swaps it automatically if you do not have the kit.
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