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The Soviet Way To Increase Pushups (Forever)
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- Published on Mar 6, 2026
- Soviet soldiers completed 100 push-ups per set, not per day, using a method that sounds too simple to work. Instead of one brutal workout grinding to failure, they spread 10 perfect sets across the entire day and never felt tired. This "Grease the Groove" technique programs your nervous system through fresh repetition, not fatigue-and includes a full-body tension trick that makes every rep stronger. Why does practicing tired create messy signals while perfect practice builds neural highways?
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Watched the video 3 weeks ago, my max was 18 in a row. Now I can do 30, honestly I still can't believe it. 😮
Glad to hear that brother!
So it's test your max, then do half of your max in 10 sets a day for two weeks. Then retest your max, and do half of that max in 10 sets a day for X amount of weeks again? Correct?
Correct
Successful comprehension 😂
@barongg1 I believe Pavlov recommended taking off one day a week. The recovery is essential.
Yup was about to mention recovery 1 day a week
@axelndjore1896I did 110 pushups every day for 40 years...well didn't start at 110 but was there for decades, daily.
Former Marine here..
A few years ago, I visited a city in the far east of Russia.
Near my apartment in the city was an outdoor gym with pull up bars, other gym style equipment and a basketball court.
Every other day I would go over there and workout.
I saw a 16 y.o. high school kid working out. He spoke some English, said they learn it in school.
This kid could do 20 pullups, then climb the rope pole, crank out another 5, then do hangs from each arm then climb down.
He would then do more dips than I could count. Rest a few minutes then do it again.
This kid was in better shape than most U.S. Marines.
There were a few girls hanging around and even they were doing pull ups.
I asked him how he did it.
He said it was common among the boys at his school. 😅
And yet the life expectancy of russians is far less than americans....
@dodgingrain3695 allegedly
impressive
@dodgingrain3695 lets be honest, it's not about the life expectancy, it's about combat readiness of the soon to be drafted young men. Men are drafted at the age of 18, you will have a hard time in the army if you are weak.
Yes, they drink themselves to death in their 50s instead surviving with Diabetes and 100 pounds overweight in their 60s...
Well and then there are Accidents suicide and wars, since the 80s every russian Generation of men have been actually in a war, and not everbody survives the obligated Military service.
The trainer is taking a break from his primary job training the cast of the Simpsons.
Young Max Scorpio!
I wonder how this is handled legally? I mean obviously it's AI-generated "give me person xy that looks like from the Simpsons". But the content creator can always claim it's his own hand drawn creative reproduction. Now he's monetizing that. Could the brand owners of the simpsons (disney) demand him to stop doing that?
@JohnDoe-hc3yz Don't think so...happens all over the place. Can't sue everyone. Plus people were using Simpson animation avatar generators even a decade back. Can't patent an art style. Though, I guess we can always ask an LLM if this is legal lol...
Doing a HORRIBLE job with Homer bro.
Hope he trained Groundskeeper Willie and not Barney
100 push-ups per sec. That's what I heard and that's what I'll be aiming for. Wish me luck.
That's what I've heard too.
Good luck,
first, at 100 pushups per minute.🤗
Good luck 🤞
I did this. It really works. You rewire your muscles for explosive power.
100 pushups per second? Good luck.
Those are rookie numbers in this racket.
I challenge all of us.
I'll be back on Feb the 15th .
With proof !!
Strong Together!
We got this 💪🏻😁💪🏻
@eldenlord_7I'll be here on the 17th.
Will be here 💪
Ima join in
joining in with you lad!
Current max is 30. I tried the grip, clench squeeze and felt an immediate boost. I didn't even feel the 1st 15 push ups. I've never tried putting tension in my forearms or squeezing my glutes. This feels like actual good advice. I hope this works for me in the long run.
Leaving a comment here so if it gets comments etc it'll remind me of the grip/clench/squeeze
It’s called Hyper irradiation as taught by Pavel. Good stuff.
I bet ur 15-18??
I definitely have to try this
Another cheat code that helped me reach 99 is the plank. You're essentially clinching similar muscle groups as mentioned here during a plank. Reach over 3:00 minutes of plank and your push-ups will continue to rise as your plank rises.
which plank? elbows on the ground? or just like holding pushup positon
My plank rises on its own.
@JokerDeeeeeboth. Try different styles. Wide grip, alternating grip, half-up, hold the low pushup position....they're all good. Do the one that challenges you. Start with your knees down, go to elbows, move to pushup, then start the variations.
@MeanderingMentor thank you i will do that
Great suggestion. I’m starting at ground zero with a one max push-up. 😢 I’ll plank for a week or 2. I did a 100 a day for 30 day challenge about 5 years ago. Surely my muscles will still remember those days 😅 Thanks for inspo 💪🏽
saved, to be ignored and forgotten. also, ads are getting clever, now I have to get a broom.
In Soviet Russia the up pushes you.
Coming back in a month. You stay here 🫵
You better come back next month!
upload a video in a month
@KnockoutDude-ANI’m waiting…
I'll come back remind me if I don't
are ya winning? (1 day after)
That's you , that's what you sound like 😂😂😂 CLASSIC
I am going in... My current is 8 max.. let's gooo
Keep it going king🎉
That's my max too, let's check in after a month
@RathulAravind-m8moh yeah... february 1... lets comeback
Cheap kids i have max of 34 he he hehe
Yeag
Keep making videos like these man
El Campeón is the perfect example of Bad form.😆
@sktona😂
Excellent method! Pay attention also to the technique he mentions, it made push ups much easier for me: squeezing glutes, pushing down with palms and bracing core
The best part is you can apply this for other things too.
true
I do ring pushups this way, plus pullups, chin ups, dips, and a few other ring exercises. I quit even counting reps for a while, because on rings, even 10 pushups of perfect form is seriously intense. Rather than increasing reps, I extend the duration of each rep until they are excruciatingly slow. Then, add a weighted vest or similar, and start again from scratch....get to 10 perfect reps and then start slowing them down.
My 10 pushups sometimes take a full 2 minutes, and very little of that time is static....normally just a couple breaths at the top around rep 7-8
52yo, 110+ pushups in one set, with more in the tank. Greasing the groove really works.
lets go King
My one set max was 110 without this method so what do I do?
@demarlandgiles1893 do 1000 push ups
@barongg1on it 💪🏽
Height and weight?
The kid you got doing push-ups is touching his knees before anything else
Just taking footage from other peoples videos.
Greasing the groove and squeezing to achieve full body tension. Sounds similar to what I like doing.
Great video, good evidence backed advice and a smooth routine.
Online High Five - Good Luck, Keep Going, and Consistency my Brothers and Sisters
You should do more of these. Also throw in a routine or two a person can do every once in a while. No one makes videos on actually doing these workouts on the daily
Okay, you got me, I subscribed!! Thank you Amazing!
5:34 the key
Great video! Well explained and edited. Imma get at it.
The first time i learned about this method was when i read one of Pavel Tsatsouline books, "Naked Warrior" if i remember. He explained the importance of tension too.
Kip uploading such videos...🙏 Your new subscriber ❤
Thank you love you gang
Loving this I gotta get back to this actually learned something similar from Pavel in his book Naked Warrior he spoke of the squeeze technique in order to perform an one arm push up love that book it got lost when I was moving.
Baron’s "The Soviet Way To Increase Pushups (Fast)" (8min, Jan 2026) details "Grease the Groove" (GtG) method-Soviet soldiers hit 100 push-ups/set via frequent, fresh, perfect reps (not fatigue). Neural programming > muscle burn; full-body tension amp. Your narrow/wide pushup synergy.
GtG Protocol (10 Weeks to 100/Set)
Test Max: e.g., 20 reps.
Daily Sets: 10x (50% max) spread out (wake/mid-morning/lunch/etc.)-feel fresh (could redo immediately).
Rules: Stop at form break (broomstick spine test: head/upper back/butt aligned).
Cycle: 6 days on/1 rest; retest max every 2 weeks → up working reps (20→40 max → 20/set).
Result: 5,000+ perfect reps → pushups "normal" like breathing.
Full-Body Tension Trick (Instant Boost)
Pre-Rep Setup (all simultaneous):
Hands: Press floor, twist palms out (like jars)-back/shoulders tight.
Core: Brace abs (punch-ready), ribs down.
Glutes: Squeeze hard (crack subscribe button).
Maintain: Through entire set-one connected system (neural spread).
Verification
GtG Legit: Pavel Tsatsouline popularized (Russian Kettlebell Challenge); neural efficiency proven (Hebb's Law: fire together/wire together). [ from prior]
Soviet Hyperbole: 100/set extreme (elite gymnasts possible); method builds reps 2-5x reliably.
Tension Accurate: Irradiation principle (strength training staple)-instant 10-20% force gain.
Lifeprotip: GtG + tension = no-gym pushup mastery; complements jump rope (your narrow/wide). Test max now!
Why do I think even without trying that this is the best advice ever 😊. Thank you !
i will be back after 3 months to confirm. (start - max = 20)
edit: its been 7 days and now i can do 20 in one set for multiple sets through out the day.
Done yet?
bro, its been 2 days. i think they are getting a bit easier
@Relentless_Reaper I was hoping you'd get the joke 😂
Great video, super practical info
Appreciat it
I tried the Australian Army method that the PT crew use to get to 100 PushUps and maxed out at 83 😖
I will try this and would be super stoked if I could do the 100 cause I’m 63 now❗️
But I’m still working out 🏋🏼♀️ consistently doing combo with body weight and weight resistant exercises 💪🏼😬
I love high reps of inclined PushUps (head at high end) but talking 300 to 400 over about 1.5 to 2.0 hours. It’s amazing how much you get pumped and anybody who thinks incline with head up the high end is easy let me know after you have done 300-400 😉
Damn king that's huge
Incline with head up is decline
Thank you for the information, good to you.
I've been greasing my groove for years. But what I do is I do push-ups whenever and wherever convenient even if it's not flat against the floor. So a large part of my pushups are incline pushups against a kitchen counter, for example. On a low bar at the playground. Against a bench in the park. I get to do proper "flat" floor-level pushups when I'm at home. But this helps to keep my activity consistent. Waiting for my cup to be filled by the water dispenser? Knock out 10-20 pushups at the kitchen counter. Waiting for my meal to be heated by the microwave at home? Drop to the floor and do pushups. Warming up before a jog? Pushups on the park bench or on the low bar of a slideboard or whatever there is at the playground.
I end up doing cumulatively 200-300 pushups per day without giving myself muscle soreness and joint pain. And the best part is.. my upper body and shoulders have grown and my deltoids are visibly dense. My poundages with dumbbells for lateral raises, shoulder presses, and other shoulder routines have also gone up from regularly hitting them with high low-intensity volume. I'd hazard a guess that the connective tissues have likewise strengthened as well.
While at the park or playground, I'd do long giant sets of pushups, inverted rows, dead hangs, pull-ups.. e.g. "active" dead hangs to prime my body structure for maintaining tension while warming up my joints and hands, pushups till I can't keep a proper form, and switch to inverted rows and knock out as many reps as I can with good form, and then on to pull-ups, etc. For someone who's almost 50, this regular routine has enabled me to gain mass and functional strength in the last few years. I also do lots of "lengthened partials" for the pushups and inverted rows. They seem to help in gaining strength and mass.
God bless you. Thank you for this testimony. I pray you 100 more years brother. Amen.
Woah, very nice
Damn… I thought I was the one who invented this method!!!😂 jk. I know from past experience that I am prone to believe this until I eventually discover, with much disappointment that I didn’t.
I did discover this method, while serving a 10 year sentence in prison and had no knowledge that anyone else knew about this trick. Matter of fact other inmates would laugh at me and say that I was stupid😢.
I never gained a lot of mass because of my genetics but I very quickly become ripped to shreds with freakishly bulging veins, to everyone’s surprise. Perfect six pack, etc.
Needless to say, I couldn’t stop staring at myself in the mirror and looked for any excuse to take my shirt off to show off lol.
I started by doing just 1 burpee after every meal. Over the next few years I would add in not just more reps but other exercises in theses sessions as well as include 10 to 15minutes of jogging, in place, in my cell or a mile around the track if at yard. It became a ritual directly after every meal. I still do this today (I’m a bum who lives in a friends apartment and little responsibility 😂
@stephenmatson3239 That's awesome, bro. Regardless of size, what's indisputable is that such methods really help us gain plenty of functional strength
Ai
Wow, this is a great idea, thanks!
Wear sunglasses while doing pushups... ✍️
This is life changing. You can apply this to any exercise and any aspect of life.
My best was 70 when I was in the Army. These were Ranger style pushups (all the way down, all the way up). I'll try this out.
Please keep us updated on your progress. Curious to know how military handles it.
Thank you for your service
@amultitaskingperson Thanks. Consider supporting what I do and happy new year 💫
All the way down, all the way up isn't just "Ranger style", it's the only correct way to do push-ups. The same goes for pull-ups; full hang, all the way down and all the way up or "no rep".
@userer4579 So you’re telling me all the drill sergeants, officers and senior NCOs are all wrong? GTFOH You clearly have not been in the Army because you can literally go down to parallel and it would be counted as an official pushup. Going all the way down was a huge plus and earned you extra respect.
Great video, thanks!
The fact that they stop at as soon as your are not able to hold a good form instead of when you fail is very interesting yeah i give taht way a try. I had an app that did that but the breaks where only 30 secs to 1 min and the app increased the rep number quite sharply so i had to spread the one set througt the day by necessity. Full body tension i already had but as said i continued even after my form started to get bad.
What an insightful info... Thankyou 👊🙏
I want to learn Soviet pushups with no hands, there’s a video of that online, you just move your body up and down with hands behind your back…
Absolutely brilliant video all round. Nice one!!
Thanks for the video. I've been ill since 2017 and also have an injured shoulder. But I'll give it a try. My first test showed I could do one push-up. So I'll start with sets of one push-up 10 times a day. I'll check back in 14 days with the next test.
Keep on keeping on! 💪👍
@Mumbamumba❤
Very good advice , i will try
I tried myself this method - after 6 weeks I couldn't believe how stronger I was, even thighs developed significantly!
Add pull ups to this training and the results will be even more substancial.
Had you trained in push-ups prior to this or a beginner?
That’s dope.
Thank you 🙏❤️🤗
I did this with pull-ups but differently.
Say you can do 4 pull-ups. I did 2 pullups at the top of every 2 minutes for 20 minutes twice perday. This is what the wrestlers of Dagastan do. What Pavel said to so. You do half the number. I could do 4 so i did 2. After 3 months i could do 10 pullups.
Six days a week?
@MegaNahmean2 days in,1 day off. So 20 workout/10 off in 30 days.
bro anybody training a muscle twice a day for 3 months is going to see an improvement. my god yall will say anything on the internet
After 3 months all you could do was 10?
@userer4579The average male cannot do 1. The US Marine Corps requires 23 for a perfect PT score on all Marines under age 35. So me where you see dudes doing g 25 plus?
The clarity here is off the charts!
Im doin this in the gym for about 15 years. It works great
You stay in the gym for a whole day ? 🤔
@filiplubos1981 sure😅
@monizorI thought so 😉
excellent video thank you
30 (and, I am 64 y.o.)
strong!
this is great because it is actually doable. great advice. I suppose this could work for any sort of workout as well as anything needed to be practiced.
I can only manage 30 in a row, but I'm 55 years old now and want to get back to training again. I remember the most I ever did in one set was 119 when I was 19 years of age.
If I stop in between I can still manage 10 sets of 10 push-ups in about 15-20 minute workout.
Thank you.
I was in the French Foreign Legion and they followed a similar program of grease the groove where they made you drop for 10 or more of slow cadence push ups any time, day or night. Corporals in basic would drag you out of bed to do them in the middle of the night. It was always accompanied with screams of "pompe Kurva! Putain pompe"" or "Pompe connard jusquá la mort!". The corporal (or above) did them too and called the cadence and God help you if you failed before he was done. I had 90-100 down in a set in no time.
🔥 very cool man. The absolute next set felt different already. Thanks for the info, I'll be doing this from now on, it seems silly not to...
Another good way is the Bring Sally Up challenge.
Apparently there are only 30 push ups to do in the whole challenge but obviously it's the low holds that make it difficult.
A way to train for the challenge is to 1 do the challenge. But there are 2 other ways and that's do the challenge at an incline and when you complete the challenge, lower the angle of the incline until you can do it with regular push ups.
A 3rd way is to do sets of as many push ups you can (30 being the goal, if you can do more, great), and to hold 2 positions of static push ups - the top portion, and the lower (lower being the most important).
Try the Bring Sally up challenge using these methods and I guarantee you'll see size, strength, and tone improvements, as well as endurance above all.
This method is one of my favs.
same
In Soviet Russia, pushups push YOU
Haha I miss those jokes.
When Chuck Norris does push-ups he doesn't push himself up but pushes the Earth away.
That's actually what a pushup should feel like. Nothing funny about it :)
I was in pain after 30 in a row, so I really like this idea of 10 reps and no pain - it's a great way to trick your mind into seeing pushups as quick easy fun 🎉
6:37 lmfaoooo this was funny ast
I will come back here i got this 💪🏻
Can you apply it to pull ups and body weight squats too?
Yes
Pavel has been preaching this for body weight exercises for decades and it works
Yeah
Yes, i use this method to pull ups, see Pavel Tsatsouline's metod
Yea I’m curious if this can be applied to multiple things
video is coming
This I guess can be applied to stretching to. And other work out movements.. wish I knew this in high school.
I can’t do one. I guess that means start with telling the muscles what they need to do at least once 10 times a day. I love this theory and it could be applied to many things.
Worry not.
If you cannot do one pushup, try doing a pushup with your knees on the ground.
That will decrease the amount of effort your pectorals, triceps, abdomen, quadriceps have to do.
Alternatively, you can begin doing pushups with your hands placed on the edge of a table that is fairly stable and your feet on the ground.
Cheers.
@andrewscott985 thank you for the input for myself and anybody else in my situation, even the knees are a trial so I am doing the counter and that is working great, thank you for all you have to offer.
This really working.
I have been trained in similar way when was young. Every exercise was broken down to simple movements and stances.
Then you start with lots of repetition of every movement. All this was controlled and perfected. Many times. The you glued it up to one swift action.
and start to repeat . Even if you start learning something new you keep repeating the basics.
Trainings in Sambo, Ju-Jitsu, Judo and Karate uses the same way.
You will train the basic movements nonstop - every day, every time.
Then you will be able to repeat them anytime almost perfectly.
Ok let me try this technique. See u after 3 months
See u King
I will start with 10
Results?
@FilipNest check the post date
So cant we do 3 sets till failure in good form to train nervous system
I lived under the Soviet regime and was in the Soviet army.
The entire routine in the Soviet army was the same everywhere, all over the Soviet Union.
And there were no push-ups in our routine.
And we didn't have broad shoulders and our bodies weren't muscular, because the food was lean.
Besides, beards were forbidden in the Soviet army, even for officers.
I don't remember a single good thing that was in that inhumane regime.
Поплачь, должно стать легче.
Thanks
This is a video worth watching. I just summarised it for myself and for others clarification with the example values:
Find out your max(20). *Max/2 = starting value(10).
Starting value x 10 perfect form sets spread out each day = 100reps a day
Focus on using entire body (slightly twist palm, tighten shoulder, embrace core and glutes)
6 days a week for 2 weeks.
After 2 weeks try your new max (probably 40).
*Repeat the cycle
Good luck comrades!!
Thanks for sharing!
Can we do that to pull ups ?
Of course
Bring it ON‼️ 💪🏼😬
Yes, and any other exercise really…
Saw another video yesterday on russian training habits. It's the 70% rule, never push to failure and in many cases this allows you to do multiple more sets in a day and see measurable gains.
Yeah in fact this is how I heard of this from calisthenics athletes doing pull-ups
Punched that subcribe button. Great content
TLDR, Soviet method for pushups:
1) Test your max reps in one set;
2) Find the half of the value of 1) and set to X;
3) Do 10 sets per day each set of X reps, the sets distributed along the day, for two weeks;
4) After two weeks, return to point 1)
Important: Quality over quantity.
Straight back, neck and gluts.
Tighten your core, your gluts together, and your hands down and circularly outwards.
Thank you
Don't forget 1 rest day a week
This is normal for the service. In basic training we did over 300 push-ups per day. The key is they were all in a fast burst of 10 or 20. This also applies to pull-ups and virtually any movement. No matter how ridiculous and easy an exercise seem, do 100 and you will learn that all movements can increase your overall fitness.
Unfortunately here in the U.S., at least about 20 years ago in the Army, push ups were used as punishment. This thing in the movies were they say "give me 20" or something like that is BS. The drill sergeants made you do push ups till you collapsed. It was really more to break you down then to make you strong.
Greasing the groove is the way to go.
Do this with dips..HELLO GREEK LIKE CHESTICLES😂😊
Pushups are better than dips for chest, you just arent doing them right.
If you lean forward in the pushup, you train more shoulders. If you dont lean at all, you train more chest.
@DonatelloSmithson-h2pwell yes and no. If you’re going to hit the bottom of your chest, the dips work well.
@DonatelloSmithson-h2pgonna have to disagree (as would most exercise specialists/trainers) just ask any male gymnast they will tell you the primary reason their chest looks like that and is so strong is because of parallel bar dips
@nicoleandjoshbaldwin4228 There is no "bottom of your chest", the chest is one muscle. Technically two muscles, but the main one covers almost the entire chest while the other one is a small portion in the top corners.
@MagickArmory Dude, the exercise doesnt matter, the muscle doesnt know what movement your doing, all the muscle knows is thats its being stimulated and brought to failure. I say pushups are better simply because they dont require equipment and they have a lot more benefits
Nice video. Full body tension is the first method of SystemaRMA's way for bodyweight training, it can be used with legs raises or squat as well.
Nobody going to talk about 100 definitely not being "4x more than 20 max?" 🧐💀😂
Probably meaning 100 = 20 + 4*20 but I agree: very poor choice of words
It is 4 times more. It is 5 times the max. Which is the max + 4 times more.
Thaaankz
Cartoon guy looks like LA Knight
The burn in the quad is something else
Can you make a video on how to increase height?
Whats your height?
@barongg15, 11🥲
Tall parents
reincarnate in a Ductch or Somali man
@sonofzaneandnatalienguyen2726 my father is 6,2 and mother 5,7 and me 5,11🥲
That's wild. I came to these same conclusions when incorporating push-ups into my daily routine. Very effective.
I was born in Soviet Union. Never heard of this "soviet" method.
Great Video that's the best thing to motivate me I've seen in ages.
I dread to think what my max is I'm a friggin weakling I actually ride all the time but that doesn't make you a muscle man 😅 thanks for sharing 🙏
if the soviets had food, they would hve become better than roman soldiers
They had food.
They beat the Nazi Wehrmacht in the greatest war in history.
Lol what, Wehrmacht soldiers absolutely shredded trough them. The only thing they have is quantity
@anonymerdude4501 They did in the beginning, when they outnumbered them and caught them by surprise, but after operation Bagration the Red army just wrecked the Germans.
@anonymerdude4501 Oh, you're that guy. About 80% of all Axis deaths in WWII were on the Eastern Front. I know you're scared and confused but know that we don't care and we want to watch you suffer.
Cool video going to try this out... got to 7 under tension before my hips dipped under so I'll round up to 4 to start. Good luck to everyone trying this out. 🤘
You took 8min to say: Do your max pushups, than take half of that number and do this number in 10 mini workouts over your day.
Even movies can be summed up to a sentence or two, it’s the information in between that matters also.
@CALYPSIUS_9-13good point
@CALYPSIUS_9-13 i’ve done a lot of weightlifting in my life since I was a kid and I’m 64 years old. I just recently learned that you’re not training your muscles. You’re training your nervous system. And that’s totally correct. More people have to understand that.
All for the viewing time to make himself more money from ad revenue.
@vontrap6942everybody needs to eat
Been using Greasing the Groove for almost 20 years (Thanks Pavel Tsatsouline!). It’s awesome and works great!!!
Skip to 3:41, thank me later.
Thank you now. 😅
I'll thank you now
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
Current max is 50 in a row. I wanna try to at least get close to 100 before I turn 17…
Amazing very informative video with steps anyone can follow professional presentation your going to be huge 🎉 ❤ I subscribed 👍
Это абсолютно точно работает. Мой дед научил меня отжиматься и подтягиваться именно по такому принципу
Will have to try that. I have been greasing the wrong thing