An exercise where you lie face down and push your body up with your arms, using your own weight for resistance.
Compound word from 'push' (Old English 'pusian') and 'up' (Old English 'up'). The exercise gained popularity in military training and fitness culture in the 20th century.
Pushups are so efficient that they're still the standard military fitness test worldwide—no equipment needed, and they work multiple muscle groups at once, making them basically the perfect exercise for judging strength!
Fitness testing, including pushups, has been gendered differently across military and athletic contexts—'women's pushups' (modified) vs. 'men's pushups' perpetuates strength-ability myths.
Use 'pushup' without gender modifier; acknowledge that strength varies individually regardless of gender; modify difficulty fairly based on function, not gender.
["upper body strength exercise","modified/standard pushup"]
Women athletes have challenged gender-differentiated fitness standards; recognize their advocacy for equal assessment criteria.
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