Why to train push and pull together?

One of my favorite pairings.

Here are a few key reasons why it can be beneficial to pair push and pull exercises together in your strength training:

- Balanced Development - Training push and pull exercises in the same session provides balanced activation and development between the front and back sides of the body. This can improve posture and muscular symmetry.

- Complementary Groups - Push exercises like presses target chest, shoulders, triceps. Pull exercises like rows work back, biceps, and rear delts. Pairing exercises from these complementary muscle groups can allow for enhanced recovery.

- Efficient Workouts - Combining a push and pull together in a superset or circuit style workout saves time while enabling you to hit more muscle groups efficiently.

- Varied Stimulus - Varying the stimulus to muscles between push and pull movements may help spur further adaptation and growth. The contrast keeps the body responding.

- Core Activation - Certain push/pull pairings like a push up followed by row activates the core muscles isometrically to stabilize the spine during both movements.

- Prevent Imbalances - Regularly pairing push and pull can help prevent strength imbalances from developing between the front and back sides which could increase injury risk.

In summary, strategically programming push and pull exercises together provides a balanced, time efficient and complementary workout that trains the body for function and aesthetics. Variety, core engagement and symmetry are added benefits of this training style.

Feel free to contact me for some examples of training programs.

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