Core · Bodyweight
Push-up to Side Plank
How to do the push-up to side plank, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
- Logged as
- Reps
- Movement
- HorizontalPush
- Mechanic
- Compound
How to do it
Perform a standard push-up, and at the top rotate your body to one side into a side plank, stacking your feet and reaching the top arm toward the ceiling. Return to the push-up position, do another rep, then rotate to the other side. Alternate sides.
- 1Your chest and triceps on the press, then your obliques on the rotation
- 2A braced, straight body line as you open into the side plank
- 3The bottom shoulder staying strong and packed as you rotate
Common mistakes
- Do not let your hips drop as you turn into the side plank
- Avoid rushing the rotation; control the open and the return
- Do not let the supporting shoulder collapse toward your ear
Muscles worked
The push-up to side plank mainly works the obliques, with the triceps, mid chest, upper abs, lower abs, upper chest, glutes, front delts, and side delts assisting.
- ObliquesPrimary
- TricepsSupport
- Mid ChestSupport
- Upper AbsSupport
- Lower AbsSupport
- Upper ChestSupport
- GlutesSupport
- Front DeltsSupport
- Side DeltsSupport
- ForearmsMinor
- Lower ChestMinor
- QuadsMinor
- HamstringsMinor
Kovo programs the push-up to side plank for you and tracks it every session.
We build your whole program, drop the right lifts into each workout, and adjust your weights as you get stronger. Free on iOS and Android.
More abs & core exercises
- How to do the ab wheel rollout
- How to do the ankle tap plank
- How to do the ankle taps
- How to do the resistance band dead bugs
- How to do the resistance band pallof press
- How to do the rollout
Last reviewed June 2026.