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Calisthenics
Calisthenics

Elevated Pike Push-Up

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calisthenicspushvertical-pressshouldersintermediatebodyweightupper-body

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Exercise demo
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A pike push-up with the feet on a raised surface so the hips stack higher over the shoulders, approaching the vertical loading of a handstand push-up.

Detail

Perform a Pike Push-Up but with the feet on a box, chair, or step. Raising the feet stacks the hips more directly over the shoulders, increasing both the fraction of bodyweight pressed overhead and the available range of motion. The closer the torso comes to fully vertical, the more this resembles a wall Handstand Push-Up.

Load the Anterior Deltoid and Deltoids primarily, with Triceps Brachii and Trapezius assisting. Progress by raising the feet higher and by pressing the head below the hand level (deficit) using parallettes or blocks. Strong shoulder demand — warm the shoulders and wrists thoroughly.

Key facts

  • Feet elevated → hips stack over shoulders → more overhead load and ROM than floor pike.
  • Higher feet and deficit (head below hands) increase difficulty.
  • Bridges the pike push-up and the wall handstand push-up.

Connections

Sources

Cited in text — not yet linked
Authored from established calisthenics progression standards.

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Atlas Connections

Anterior Deltoid
The front deltoid head; produces forward flexion, horizontal adduction, and internal rotation — primarily a pressing muscle.
Deltoids
The three-headed shoulder muscle — anterior, medial, and posterior deltoid — each with distinct actions.
Trapezius
A muscle that functions as three different muscles — upper, middle, and lower traps — moving the scapula.
Triceps Brachii
The three-headed elbow extensor (long, medial, lateral heads); the long head also assists shoulder extension.
Handstand Push-UpClosely related
A full overhead press performed inverted in a handstand — lowering the head to the floor and pressing back up — the strongest bodyweight shoulder press, done first against a wall and then freestanding.
Handstand Push-Up ProgressionClosely related
Pike push-up → elevated pike push-up → wall handstand push-up → freestanding handstand push-up — the bodyweight vertical (overhead) press ladder.
Pike Push-UpClosely related
A push-up done in a high-hipped pike (downward-dog) position so the press becomes more vertical, shifting load onto the shoulders — the entry to the handstand-push-up line.