After failing six times over the past six years, Pop Laurentiu (Romania/UK), 35, has finally broken the record for the most push ups in one hour.
With an incredible total of 3,378 push ups completed, he takes the title from Daniel Scali (Australia), who was awarded the record earlier this month with a total of 3,249.
Averaging over 56 push ups per minute, Pop beat Daniel’s record by over 100!
Pop’s achievement is the culmination of seven years of hard work. He trained consistently for five days per week, improving his physique and technique after each unsuccessful record attempt until he eventually reached his goal.
As per Guinness World Records guidelines, one complete push up consists of the body being lowered until at least a 90-degree angle is attained at the elbow (the chest is not required to touch the floor), then raised until the arms are straight, although they do not need to be locked at the elbow. The body must remain straight throughout.
Pop failed his previous attempts because his push up form did not meet our standards, however, his latest attempt was perfect – not a single push up was disqualified.
When he submitted the evidence to us, Pop said that this was the last time he would attempt the record, meaning that if his application was rejected, he wouldn’t try again.
He said at the time: “In my heart I know I did it. After the first six attempts I was disappointed, but today I feel like a winner.”
His attempt took place at Fishmongers’ Hall - located adjacent to London Bridge - where he works as a porter.
He originally made the decision to break this record after seeing news of Carlton Williams (Australia) doing it in 2015, aged 50, with a total of 2,220 push ups. “I thought if he can do it, why can’t I?” Pop said.
Pop immediately went to the gym to have a go at the challenge himself. He completed over 1,220 push ups, and although that was nowhere near Carlton’s total, it gave Pop confidence that he could attain the world record if he trained for it.
He mainly focussed on improving his upper body strength at the gym, as well as practising push ups daily. Once per week, he would perform as many as he could within one hour to see how close he could get to the world record.
In 2017, Pop officially attempted the record for the first time. However, his push up technique did not meet the standards outlined in our guidelines, thus his application was rejected.
At that point, the record stood at 2,682 push ups.
Pop attempted to break the record again once per year after that, however, his application was rejected each time due to his push up form not meeting our requirements.
After each passing year, the record got harder to beat as people kept breaking it. The record increased from 2,682 in 2017 to 3,206 by the end of 2022.
Pop admits that it was “mentally tough to keep going,” and he considered giving up several times, however, he kept pushing on, confident in his ability to surpass the ever-increasing total.
In my heart I knew I could do it and I was determined to prove myself right. I put so many hours – years, even – into training and I couldn't let it all go to waste. - Pop
Pop is thrilled to finally hold this record which he has coveted for so many years, and which has evaded his grasp so many times. “It means everything,” he said.
“Every time I failed, I wanted to go again because my heart pushed me to get up and keep going forward. My heart told me that every time you fail and get up again, you will only get closer to achieving your goal.”
Having worked tirelessly to break this record, Pop could be forgiven for not wanting to do another push up for the rest of his life, however, he has no plans of stopping quite yet.
In fact, he has his sights set on breaking the record for the most push ups in one hour with an 80 lb pack. The current record is 537, achieved by Alejandro Soler Tarí (Spain) in 2021.
Pop’s advice for anyone who wants to break a world record or achieve any other goal in life is: “Keep going for it and don’t give up. When unsuccessful, it can be hard to motivate yourself to go again, but learn from your failures and come back stronger.”
Want more? Follow us across our social media channels to stay up-to-date with all things Guinness World Records! You can find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Threads, TikTok, LinkedIn, and Snapchat Discover.
Don’t forget, we’re also on YouTube!
Still not had enough? Follow the link here to buy our latest book, filled to the brim with stories about our amazing record breakers.
Related Articles
