Why are Springs Better at Pulling Than Pushing? Springs work better at pulling than they do at pushing. Springs can be stretched and compressed to store energy and release it. When you push on a spring, the elastic force is always trying to return the spring to its original shape. This means that it will store some of your energy as potential energy as it moves back towards its natural position. If you pull on a spring, instead of storing the energy as potential energy, it stores the energy as kinetic energy. It gains speed as it moves back to its...