You’ve probably tried it. Most of us have. You drop down, set the timer for sixty seconds, and blast through as many reps as possible until your triceps scream and your form falls apart. It's the ultimate playground flex. But when you look at the professional circuit—the guys who actually train for the most pushups in a minute—the numbers get scary. We aren't talking about forty or fifty reps. We are talking about speeds that look like a glitch in a video frame.
The Guinness World Record for the most pushups in a minute is currently held by Lucas Helmke from Australia. He managed 113 reps in November 2023. Think about that. That is nearly two pushups every single second for a full minute. Most people can’t even move their arms that fast in the air, let alone while moving their entire body weight against gravity.
The Brutal Reality of Guinness Standards
The thing about "most pushups in a minute" is that everyone thinks they can do more than they actually can. Go to any local gym and you'll see a guy claiming he did 90. He didn't. He probably did 90 half-reps where his elbows barely bent ten degrees. Guinness World Records (GWR) is notoriously annoying about this—and for good reason.
For a rep to count, the body must remain straight. No sagging hips. No "piking" where your butt sticks up in the air. The elbows have to reach a 90-degree angle at the bottom, and the arms must fully lock out at the top. If you miss the lockout by a centimeter? No rep. If your knee touches the floor because you got tired? Disqualified.
Why the "Record" Changes So Often
It feels like every few months, a new name pops up. Before Lucas Helmke, we saw Daniel Scali—another Australian powerhouse—taking a crack at it. Scali is famous for holding the plank world record too, which shows you the kind of core stability required here. You can't just have big chest muscles. You need a midsection made of literal granite to keep your spine from oscillating like a wet noodle when you're moving at that velocity.
Then there’s the distinction between "standard" pushups and other variations. You’ll see records for knuckle pushups, claps, or one-armed versions. But the sixty-second standard remains the king. It’s the metric everyone understands.
The Physiology of 113 Reps
How does a human body even do this? It’s not just about strength. It’s about neurological efficiency. Your brain has to fire signals to your muscle fibers at a rate that most of us can't fathom. This is high-intensity anaerobic work. By the forty-second mark, your muscles are drowning in lactic acid. Your pH levels drop. Your muscles literally stop responding to the "go" signal from your brain.
Most elite athletes who go for the most pushups in a minute train using "overspeed" techniques. They might use resistance bands to help pull them up faster than gravity would allow, training their nervous system to handle the sheer tempo.
Honestly, it’s a bit of a metabolic nightmare. You aren't really breathing during those sixty seconds. You're bracing. You're vibrating. By the end, the athletes usually collapse. It takes twenty minutes just to get the feeling back in their fingers.
What Most People Get Wrong About Training
If you want to get better at this, stop doing sets of twenty. To hit high numbers for the most pushups in a minute, you have to train for "explosive endurance."
- Stop the slow eccentric: In a normal gym session, you lower yourself slowly. For records, you let gravity drop you. You only use energy to "catch" yourself at the bottom and explode back up.
- The "Lockout" Trap: Many people waste time at the top. They stay there for half a second. In a record attempt, that's a wasted rep. You touch the lockout and immediately plummet back down.
- Hand Placement: Most experts keep their hands slightly wider than shoulder-width. Too wide and you ruin your shoulders; too narrow and your triceps burn out in twenty seconds. It’s a sweet spot.
There’s also the mental side. George Hood, who held the plank record for ages, often talked about "dissociating" from the pain. When you’re at 80 reps and your chest feels like it’s being hit with a blowtorch, you have to be somewhere else mentally.
The Controversies: Quality vs. Quantity
Every time a video of the most pushups in a minute goes viral, the comments section is a war zone. "Those aren't real pushups!" "He didn't go low enough!"
It’s a valid point. In the 1980s and 90s, records were often set with what we’d now call "pump reps." But GWR has tightened the screws significantly. They now use video analysis to check the angle of the elbow. If you watch Helmke’s record, you’ll see the precision. It’s mechanical.
However, there’s a different organization called RecordSetter. They are sometimes a bit more "wild west" with their rules. This leads to a lot of confusion online about who the actual world champion is. If you're looking for the gold standard, always check the Guinness database first. They reject about 90% of the applications they get because the form is trash.
Does Weight Matter?
Absolutely. You don't see many 250-pound bodybuilders breaking the record for most pushups in a minute. The "sweet spot" seems to be athletes between 160 and 185 pounds. You need enough muscle to generate power, but not so much mass that you’re fighting your own weight. It’s a power-to-weight ratio game.
How to Test Your Own Max (The Right Way)
If you’re curious where you stand, don’t just start cranking them out. Set up a camera at chest level, strictly from the side.
- Warm up your wrists: This is the part that breaks first. High-volume pushups at speed put massive pressure on the carpal bones.
- Use a "Clicker" or Marker: Put a small foam block (about 2 inches high) under your chest. If you don't touch it, the rep doesn't count. This keeps you honest about depth.
- The Stopwatch: Use a loud buzzer. You don't want to be looking at your watch.
Most fit individuals can hit 35 to 45 "perfect" reps in a minute. If you’re hitting 60, you’re in the top 1% of the population. If you’re hitting 80? You should probably start filming your sessions and looking for a coach.
Beyond the Minute: Other Metrics of Strength
While the sixty-second burst is the most famous, some people go for the long haul. There are records for the most pushups in an hour (currently over 3,000) and even in 24 hours. These are entirely different beasts. The one-minute record is a sprint; the 24-hour record is a psychological descent into madness.
The most pushups in a minute remains the most popular because it’s accessible. You don't need a gym. You don't need fancy shoes. You just need a floor and a terrifying amount of willpower.
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Moving Toward Your First Record Attempt
Don't expect to wake up and hit 100 reps. It won't happen. The guys holding these titles have been doing high-volume calisthenics for a decade or more. They’ve built up the connective tissue in their elbows and shoulders to handle the sheer violent force of 113 reps in sixty seconds.
If you're serious about chasing the most pushups in a minute, your path starts with perfecting the "statuesque" form. Once your form is unbreakable, then—and only then—do you add the speed.
Start by timing how many perfect reps you can do in 30 seconds. Double that number. That’s your theoretical max. Now, try to maintain that pace for the full 60. You’ll likely find that you hit a "wall" around 45 seconds where your arms simply turn to lead. Breaking that wall is what separates the gym rats from the world record holders.
Actionable Next Steps:
- Film a 60-second set today and watch it back in slow motion. You’ll likely see your hips sagging or your lockouts disappearing halfway through.
- Incorporate "EMOM" (Every Minute on the Minute) training. Try doing 20 fast, perfect pushups every minute for 10 minutes. This builds the specific endurance needed for high-speed recovery.
- Strengthen your serratus anterior. This "boxer's muscle" under your armpit is what stabilizes your shoulder blade during high-speed movements. Planks with "protractions" (pushing your spine toward the ceiling) are the best way to hit this.
- Consult the official Guinness World Record guidelines on their website before you start training seriously. They have specific rules about hand placement and body angles that will dictate how you should practice.