Does push ups help you gain weight?

Answer 1

Push-ups won't make much difference. They build muscle mass, but it takes more energy to maintain muscle mass, so you may actually lose weight from pushups. Or you may gain it. It won't make much difference either way, but it will help build your cardiovascular fitness. Exercises that flex the gut - situps, crunches, and walking, for instance - can increase the motility of your GI tract, which will tend to make you look and feel better. A slow GI tract can make you miserable. Pushups, though, don't flex the gut very much. Exercise doesn't have to be useless motion in order to be beneficial. Helping the old couple down the street clean out their garage, spading up a garden, carrying boxes upstairs, etc., are all good forms of exercise that accomplish other good things as well. What's more, because they involve a range of different motions, you benefit more. Why not contact a local charitable organization, and see what they need done that would give you a good workout? If nothing else, swinging a hammer on a Habitat For Humanity site will benefit both your arms and your heart.