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"  Pictured: Candice Swanepoel for Victoria&amp;#039;s Secret Sport From high-intensity interval training to &amp;#039;it&amp;#039; classes such as Barrecore, the press-up motion is fundamental to most of today&amp;#039;s popular exercise programmes. But what if you can&amp;#039;t actually do press-ups? What if you have never been able to do them? Finding myself in this weak-armed camp of press-up failures, I&amp;#039;m often told to perform the move on my knees to make it easier (the &amp;#039;cowardly&amp;#039; version, a gym instructor recently quipped). But, under pressure, in a room full of fitness fanatics who make doing 20 press-ups look as easy as eating cake, my arms fail me and I hope that no one will notice if I look convincing enough at a glance. Founder of The Library gym, Zana Morris, tells me that &amp;quot;press-ups focus primarily on shaping and toning the muscles of the chest and the backs of your arms, but when performed correctly, they work the entire body. They not only engage and strengthen your core, but also increase your heart rate, meaning they burn fat, improve your fitness and tone you all over&amp;quot;. Sounds like a move I should make an effort to master. But how does one build up the strength? I asked four fitness professionals to share their advice on getting started. Bring on the post-Christmas press-ups... 1. Work your triceps and core The best way to improve your tricep strength is to lie flat on a bench with two dumbbells (choose a weight that&amp;#039;s comfortable for you) held vertically with straight arms, says The Third Space personal trainer Scott Phillips. &amp;quot;Flex at the elbow and lower the dumbbells to your shoulders and then extend them back up to the start position. Do four sets of 12 to begin with.&amp;quot; To strengthen your core, perform the plank. &amp;quot;It is the most transferable and applicable core workout,&amp;quot; says Phillips. &amp;quot;Just make sure everything is squeezed.&amp;quot; 2. Try crawling The Skinny Bitch Collective&amp;#039;s Russell Bateman recommends a primal crawling movement (on your hands and feet) to build strength in your arms, shoulders and legs: &amp;quot;It increases the stabiliser muscles needed for optimal press-up form and function. It&amp;#039;s a killer exercise as it assists every other movement you perform within your training parameters.&amp;quot; 3. Use a wall According to Freedom2Train founder Steve Mellor, the best way to start is with your hands against a wall or a bench. &amp;quot;Lower all the way to the wall or bench slowly \u00AD\u2013 aim for three seconds \u2013 to train the entire triceps. Hold your position at the bottom for one second and then push back up, holding for one second before continuing. Try six reps to start with.&amp;quot; 4. Knees first By now, you should be ready to attempt a press-up on your knees. &amp;quot;Start with your knees directly under your hips, and hands beneath your shoulders,&amp;quot; recommends The Library&amp;#039;s Zana Morris. &amp;quot;Walk your knees back a few steps so that your thighs are at a 45-degree angle to your body and the majority of your body weight is on your hands. Then dip down by bending your elbows until your chin is almost touching the floor.\u00A0Push back up until your arms are straight again.\u00A0If this feels too hard, bring your knees slightly closer to your torso. Perform 30 reps, resting for five to 10 seconds if necessary after every 10 reps. Do this daily, walking your knees further behind you as it gets easier, until you&amp;#039;re ready to straighten your legs and perform a full press-up.&amp;quot; *** MORE FITNESS How to get results by doing squats Nine ways to get a flat tummy without diet or exercise What is waist training? "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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