Clap Push-up

How to perform it

1. 1Preparation and positioning. Use a non-slip surface or stable handles. Place the hands and feet so the prescribed body line and range can be repeated without the equipment shifting. Use a non-slip surface with enough space for the hands and a safe landing; rehearse a lower-amplitude explosive push first.
2. 2Starting position. Set the hands and feet in the prescribed relationship, extend the elbows, and stack the ribcage over the pelvis. Begin in a stable push-up position with the feet wide enough to support the landing standard.
3. 3Eccentric phase. Lower the body as one coordinated unit through the defined elbow and shoulder path. Allow normal scapular movement without collapsing or creating depth through the lower back.
4. 4Bottom position. Reach the fixed depth marker without bouncing, twisting, or losing hand contact. Use only the range that can be reversed under control.
5. 5Concentric phase / lockout. Press the support away and return to the prescribed lockout or top position. Press explosively so both hands leave the surface, clap only if the body remains organized, and prepare the hands for a quiet landing.
6. 6Breathing and bracing. Inhale during the descent as appropriate, maintain moderate trunk and glute tension, and exhale through the press or landing preparation.
7. 7Valid rep. A valid repetition uses the stated hand position, depth, body line, and assistance standard from start to finish. Both hands clearly leave the support, the clap occurs only if selected as the standard, and the landing is controlled.

Common mistakes

• Sagging or piking

  Fix: Stack the ribcage over the pelvis and reduce the difficulty before the trunk becomes the limiter.

• Elbows escaping

  Fix: Choose a repeatable elbow path that keeps the shoulders controlled rather than forcing a universal angle.

• Bouncing the bottom

  Fix: Lower to a fixed marker and reverse without rebound.

• Landing with locked elbows

  Fix: Reduce height and land softly with the elbows prepared to absorb force.

Safety

• Impact, landing, and high contraction velocity make this a power skill rather than a routine hypertrophy replacement; use a safe surface and conservative volume.
• Choose a setup, load, assistance level, and exit strategy that allow the defined standard to be maintained; do not train through acute, sharp, electric, or worsening symptoms.

Progressions & alternatives

• regressionPlyometric Push-up— Remove the clap while learning explosive take-off and landing.
• progressionDepth Plyometric Push-up— A more demanding landing variant requires a separate safety review.
• alternativePush-up— Use a non-impact press when power or landing is not the goal.
• prerequisitePlyometric Push-up— A controlled take-off and landing without the clap should precede the clap standard.