Pretty much everyone is familiar with push ups. They’re a common, yet fundamental, pressing movement for your chest, shoulders, triceps, and they engage additional muscles, too. Some of you are familiar with the 100 push ups a day for 30 days challenge, where you perform 100 push ups every day for a 30-day (one month) period.
It’s a simple challenge, right? But does it work?!
One month is a pretty long time to commit to something without knowing what the results might be. Will it be worth it? How about for longer than one month? I wanted to find out, and I am happy to say that I have just completed 8 months of 100 push ups every single day.
Based on my experience, does 100 push ups a day work after 8 months?
Performing 100 push ups every day for 8 months works if you want to increase muscle mass and definition in your upper body, especially in your chest, shoulders, and triceps. It works if you want to increase your overall upper body strength, especially on your pressing movements; however, the results are dependent on many factors, not just the 100 daily push ups. It does not work for weight loss.
As you can imagine, 100 push ups every day for 8 months works for many things, but not for everything. Let’s look at my before-and-after results to uncover some insights, and dig a little deeper into the title question to get to the heart of what you may want to achieve from a physical challenge of this sort.
Health Comes First
Remember that push ups are a physical exercise. Performing them every day can be very stressful on your body. Injuries can happen. Consult your personal health professional of choice before beginning a training program like this one.
What Do You Mean by DO THEY WORK?
I am guessing that you found this article by typing Does 100 push ups a day work? (or something similar) into your Google search bar. Assuming I a right, it begs the question:
What work are you expecting 100 push ups a day to do for you?
Personally, I wanted to get rid of my man boobs and to develop an aesthetically pleasing body that I could be proud of after years of having been an obese person. At the beginning, I also expected to get strong enough to be able to do 100 continuous push ups without stopping.
How about you?
What do you think will happen to you and your body after doing 100 push ups every day over an extended period of time?
- Perhaps you have seen other people claiming to have developed monster chests through push ups alone and you expect to replicate their results.
- Maybe you expect that you can lose a lot of weight by doing 100 push ups every day.
- It could be that you think doing this will make you super strong like the Hulk.
Let’s get to the results and find out what they did, and did not, do for me.
But First… A Quick Background of Me Being Obese
Me when I was about 270 lbs. 
Current 8 month before-and-after photos
I used to weigh 296 lbs. (134.5 kgs.). I was 17 years old and obese. Not good.
I eventually got my act together and learned more about the importance of regular exercise and proper nutrition. Over the next 16 years, they became a much more important part of my life.
By June 15, 2019, I had lost and kept of 98 lbs., something which I am extremely proud of. Despite this achievement, I was still feeling fat and unmuscular. I wanted to take my fitness to the next level, put on some muscle, and fill in some of the lose skin I had from my weight loss.
Thus, I began doing 100 push ups a day with the intention of getting a super sexy upper body and being very, very strong.
Results After 100 Push Ups A Day for 8 Months
You are about to see nine progress photos taken over the course of eight months. Here are the dates for each photo:
- Day 1: June 15, 2019
- Month 1: June 15, 2019 – July 14, 2019 (30 days)
- Month 2: June 15, 2019 – August 14, 2019 (61 days)
- Month 3: June 15, 2019 – September 14, 2019 (92 days)
- Month 4: June 15, 2019 – October 14, 2019 (122 days)
- Month 5: June 15, 2019 – November 14, 2019 (153 days)
- Month 6: June 15, 2019 – December 14, 2019 (183 days)
- Month 7: June 15, 2019 – January 14, 2020 (214 days)
- Month 8: June 15, 2019 – February 14, 2020 (245 days)
I also tracked how my weight changed over time. I will be referencing these later in the article:
- Jun. 15, 2019: 198 lbs. (90.0 kgs.)
- Jul. 14, 2019: 184.8 lbs. (84 kgs.)
- Aug. 14, 2019: 184.1 lbs. (83.7 kgs.)
- Sep. 14, 2019: 187.2 lbs. (85.1 kgs.)
- Oct. 14, 2019: 186.6 lbs. (84.8 kgs.)
- Nov. 14, 2019: 183.5 lbs. (83.4 kgs.)
- Dec. 14, 2019: 189.7 lbs. (86.2 kgs.)
- Jan. 14, 2020: 184.6 lbs. (83.9 kgs.)
- Feb. 14, 2020: 187.4 lbs. (85.2 kgs.)
Pay extra special attention to the development of my chest, shoulders, and arms while looking at the before-and-after results. Be sure to compare the weights for each photo to my physique. Compare different months with each other, and have some fun with this.
Before and After Photos from Each Month:
Before and After Photos from Day 1 to Month 8:
Day 1 – 198 lbs. Month 8 – 187.4 lbs.
So, Did 100 Push Ups a Day for 8 Months Work?!?
Well, looking at the before-and-after photos I would like to say that yes, they did work!
Looking more closely at the results, I observe the following:
- Overall, my upper body is more muscled than when I started.
- My upper body looks wider than when I started.
- My shoulders are much bigger than they were on day 1.
- My chest is thicker, fuller, and generally more muscular than it was on day 1.
- My traps are bigger.
- My arms look bigger, too.
- My posture has improved.
- I look more confident and I have a big smile on my face.
I guess that means that 100 push ups a day for 8 months works, right?
Well, not so fast. Let’s observe what did not work:
- I did not lose weight after the first month.
- My body looks better, but I am not a super model (yet!).
- My lower and middle chest are more developed than my upper chest.
- I am not able to do 100 continuous push ups in a row without stopping. In fact, I no longer want to do this!
Very Important: I did other things over the last 8 months than just 100 push ups every day! There is so much more to these results than just the daily 100 push ups. Let me explain…
It Works If You Do 100 Push Ups AND…
100 push ups every day is fantastic, but it is not enough. In addition, consider these points which I base on my personal experience and research:
- Form is the most important part! Proper form helps to avoid injuries and it better engages the muscles you want to develop… in this case, the chest muscles. When I first started, I cared more about the maximum number of push ups I could do in a row. By the 3rd month, I started focusing on doing all 100 of my daily push ups with excellent form, a full range of motion, and to slow down the speed with which I performed each repetition. Since then, I feel like my gains have been better, and my muscle and joint soreness has disappeared completely.
- Weight loss is from diet, not push ups! You won’t actually burn all that many calories from doing only 100 push ups a day. To lose weight, you will need to do much more than that. You will need to focus on eating a healthy, well-balanced diet and by increasing your activity level. If you can do that, AND do 100 push ups every day, your results will be more spectacular!
- Weight is not the same as body fat percentage! As you can see, I weigh about the same on day 30 as I do on day 245; however, my body looks very different. This is because I was able to build some muscle while also lowering the amount of fat on my body through eating a better diet. I executed a body re-composition, but I did not actually lose weight since day 30. If your goal is weight loss, remember that you can also consider maintaining your current weight and striving for a body re-composition instead.
- Make 100 push ups a day a part of your training routine, not your entire training routine! Push ups train only one part of your body. Do not neglect the rest of your body. Do plenty of pulling movements to complement the daily push up pressing. Do plenty of face pulls to train the back of your shoulders. Don’t forget big compound movements like deadlifts and squats.
- Get plenty of rest! Rest between sets. Go to bed on time. Wake up at the same time every day. Muscles grow during periods of rest, not while you are stressing them. Rest and sleep well, and the gains will improve.
This post is meant to show you what doing 100 push ups a day for 8 months can realistically do for you and your body. I’m just a normal guy, and if I can get these results, so can you. Remember these points, and good luck to you as you begin your personal change journey…
The Jack Clancy YouTube Channel
Thanks again for reading my article and following my progress. You can also follow me on my Jack Clancy YouTube Channel. Check out the videos I make and publish which document my 100 push ups a day for a year progress.
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Learn More About This Challenge
Get even more updates and information at my 100 Push Ups A Day for One Year website page. See how my body looks currently, and get direct access to all of my blog articles, YouTube videos, and more…