Pushup Coach – Push-up Counter & Training Plan

Pushup Coach turns "I should do more push-ups" into a plan that gets harder exactly as fast as you do — with sets scaled to your current max and a finisher that raises the bar automatically.

Progressive overload, without a spreadsheet

Tell it your current max — the honest number of push-ups you can do in one go. Every workout is then four sets:

• Sets 1–3 are working sets calculated as percentages of that max, so they're challenging but repeatable
• Set 4 is AMRAP — as many reps as possible

If that final set beats your recorded max, it becomes your new max, and every future workout's targets scale up from it. That's progressive overload: the load rises as your capacity rises, automatically, without you tracking percentages on paper or guessing when to add reps.

Logging is two taps

Each set has a − / + stepper pre-filled with its target. Did exactly the target? Tap Log. Did more or fewer? Adjust and log. The AMRAP set highlights in green the moment you exceed your current max, so you know in the middle of the set that you've just moved the needle.

Re-logging the same day updates that entry rather than creating a duplicate.

Form, properly explained

An animated demonstration plays right on the home screen, alongside the four cues that matter most:

• Hands just wider than shoulders, fingers pointing forward
• Body in one straight line — squeeze glutes and core, don't let hips sag or pike
• Elbows tucked to about 45°, not flared out to the sides
• Depth — chest to roughly a fist off the floor, full lockout at the top

Bad push-up form is extremely common and is where shoulder problems start. Getting these four things right matters more than the number.

Twelve variations, with animated previews

Beyond the standard push-up: diamond, incline, decline, knee, pike, cobra, scapular, Hindu, and more. Each has an animated preview — hover or tap and it plays. Add the ones you want to your rotation.

Variations aren't decoration. Incline and knee push-ups let beginners build real strength with correct form; diamond and decline give stronger people somewhere to progress once standard push-ups get easy; pike push-ups shift load to the shoulders and build toward handstand work.

Timed variation workouts

Run a circuit through your selected variations with a real timer, a demo playing for each movement, and rest periods between. This is a different stimulus from straight sets and a good way to build volume without grinding out the same movement.

Progress you can see

• Your max charted over time — the line that matters
• Total push-ups completed across all workouts
• Workouts logged and your best single set
• Max gained since you started
• Streaks and a full history of every session

Frequently asked questions

What if my max is only 2 or 3?

That's a completely normal starting point and the app handles it — the working sets scale down proportionally. Switch your rotation to knee or incline push-ups, build the pattern with good form, and the max climbs from there. Everyone starts somewhere.

How often should I do this?

Most people do well with every other day, giving chest, shoulders and triceps a day to recover. The streak counter is deliberately based on workouts logged rather than punishing you for rest days.

What if I can't beat my max for weeks?

Normal, and not a failure. Progress isn't linear, and plateaus are where most of the actual adaptation happens. Try adding a variation to your rotation, checking your form against the cues, or looking at sleep and food before assuming the programme is wrong.

Is four sets enough?

For push-ups specifically, yes — it's a fairly high-volume protocol when the sets are scaled properly. The AMRAP finisher is where most of the progression signal comes from.

Does the max ever go down?

Only if you change it manually. If you have a bad day, log the lower number honestly — the working sets stay based on your best recorded max, which is what you're training toward.

How many push ups should I be able to do?

It varies enormously by age, bodyweight and training history, and comparing yourself to an average is less useful than beating your own previous number. Start where you are; the programme scales from any starting point, including one.

What if I can't do a full push up yet?

Use knee or incline push-ups from the variation gallery and set your max accordingly. Both build genuine strength with correct mechanics, and the targets scale down properly.

How do I get better at push ups?

Consistency, full range of motion, and progressive overload — which is exactly what the four-set structure with an AMRAP finisher provides. Half-repetitions at high volume progress much slower than full ones.

Do the variations matter?

Yes. Incline and knee versions let beginners build correctly; diamond, decline and pike versions give stronger people somewhere to progress once standard push-ups get easy.

Private by design

No account, no sign-in, no cloud, no analytics, no ads. Your max, workout history and progress chart live in your own browser's local storage and are never transmitted anywhere. There's no server involved.

A note on training

Pushup Coach is a logging and programming tool, not medical advice, and it makes no health claims. If you have a shoulder, wrist, elbow or lower-back issue, or you're returning from injury, talk to a physiotherapist about whether push-ups and which variations are appropriate.

A push up counter that also programmes your sets

Most apps in this space are just a push up counter — a number you increment. That tells you what you did and nothing about what to do next.

This works as a push up trainer: your current max drives the targets for every set, and the AMRAP finisher updates that max automatically when you beat it. Your pushup workout gets harder precisely as fast as you do, with no manual programming.

How the sets are calculated

With a max of 20, a workout looks roughly like this: set one at around 50% (10 reps), set two at around 60% (12), set three at around 75% (15), then AMRAP — as many as possible. Beat 20 on that final set and your max updates, so tomorrow's percentages are calculated from the new number.

That's progressive overload done automatically: the load tracks your capacity without you managing a spreadsheet or guessing when to add reps.

Who this is for

Anyone doing a 100 push-ups challenge or similar programme. People training at home with no equipment. Beginners who can do two and want a route to twenty. Anyone who's plateaued doing the same three sets of ten for months without ever increasing the target.

Pushup Coach is a push-up counter with a progressive training plan — small, free and private, built around one number that keeps going up.