Push Ups vs Bench Press: Which Builds Muscle Faster?
If you want to build chest muscle and upper body strength, which is better? The bench press or push-ups? Can you skip the bench press but still build a muscular chest?
First off, we need to define what a “big chest” looks like. If your idea or goal is to step on a pro bodybuilding stage then you need to perform a variety of chest pressing-incline, decline, dumbbells, and barbells.
But what if you want to look good on the beach? Can push ups alone build chest muscle faster than the bench press?
What activates more muscle?
At face value, both the push ups and bench press activate the same muscle groups. The chest, triceps, and shoulders all are the primary muscles activated in both movements. Hand placement causes some variation in muscle tissue with a closer grip targeting your chest and triceps more and a wider grip working a little higher on the chest and front deltoids.
The push ups will work more core strength as stability is required. Push ups are also a metric used in a variety of tactical games, martial arts, and tactical training so if you participate in those activities, you might want to focus on your push ups more.
What builds more strength?
