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How to barbell shoulder press [Article, Free Download]

Posted by Pascal Landshoeft

Feb 21, 2019 9:30:00 AM

How to barbell shoulder press

How to barbell shoulder press

To barbell shoulder press set up the bar at shoulder height in the rack. Get under the bar and drive the bar up. Take care of your shoulder mobility to prevent injury.

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What is your why 

 

Before we go into the details of the shoulder press let me ask you some questions:

 

  • Why do you want to shoulder press 
  • Why do you want to get stronger
  • Why do you want to get muscle 
  • What happens when you do 
  • What happens when you don’t 

 

These are very simple and important questions for you. Going deeper on your motivation will form a long-term commitment. The single biggest reason that you will not reach your goals is that you drop out. Giving up was the end of a great many dreams. Avoid this trap by paying attention to your inner world. Many people go about their life like this:

 

  • What do I want 
  • How do I get it 
  • Why do you want it

 

Structuring your goals and days like this will leave you in a reactive mode. What we want and need is highly determined by our surroundings. You are a victim to the psychological principles which govern your brain. Based on your mood, the season, weather and job situation what you want will vary considerably. It is also easy to manipulate this wants. The more stressed and reactive you are the easier it becomes to change what you want. 

 

To be more productive and happy you have to flip this dynamic on its head. Operate with 

 

  • Why do you want something 
  • How do you get it 
  • What do you need to do 

 

This way all your thoughts and actions will be tied to what matters most to you. You will be more satisfied and productive. Others will be more likely to help you as your message is more likely to resonate with them. If you want to know how this works on a psychological basis check out Daniel Kahneman’s TED talk and book. This simplified practical advice was outlined by Simon Sinek in his TED talk on the golden circle. 

 

What helped me most to flip from couch potato with regular nosebleeds and a beer belly to reliable stepdad was the best self journal. It will structure your day focused on your personal goal and help to stay positive.

 

Overhead / Shoulder press 

 

The overhead press is one of the most classic feats of strength. It is synonymously used with the shoulder press. Since ancient times humans test their strength by lifting heavy things over their heads in different ways. There are many things you can press over your head: 

 

 

Just to name a few. Most trainers and gym rats will think of the barbell shoulder press when you talk about lifting. 

 

To perform a good shoulder press follow these steps: 

 

  1. Set the j cups up at the right height in the rack. You should be able to get under the bar and unrack it by popping your hips forward 
  2. Load the bar symmetrically 
  3. Grip the bar one thumb away from the inner knurling 
  4. Wrap your thumbs around the bar 
  5. Squeeze the bar as hard as you can
  6. Keep that tension 
  7. Your elbows inward 
  8. Get under the bar 
  9. Unrack the weight to your shoulders 
  10. Step three steps back 
  11. Push the weight up to lockout

 

Make sure you lock out your arms at the top. Rinse and repeat to make your arms and shoulder grow. 

 

The biggest advantages of the shoulder press are that it has a lot of carryover to real life and attacks muscle groups which will be undertrained if you only bench for your chest and shoulders. 

 

The biggest disadvantage of the barbell shoulder press is that it is hard on the shoulders. This is mainly because the wrists can’t move freely. That is why many bodybuilders prefer dumbbell shoulder presses. 

 

Roadblocks 

 

Shoulder mobility can be a big inhibitor for the overhead press. If you cannot follow extend your arms work on the mobility in the shoulder. I am a big fan of morning yoga to achieve this. 

 

Suicide or normal grip 

 

The suicide grip is discussed on some blogs and forums as a good grip for the shoulder press. 

 

In this variation, you leave your thumbs behind the bar rather than wrapping them around the bar. This provides extra strength and more freedom to move your wrists during the lift. This comes at the expense of control during the lift. 

 

Personally, I am not a big fan of the suicide grip. Some top Strongman competitors swear by it. I recommend to start cautious and try variations once you can overhead press 100kg. 

 

Push press 

 

Another discussion is between the press and overhead press. The internet usually goes up in flames when you claim a new shoulder press record when you have actually done a push press.

 

A push press allows for a little dip from the hips before you initiate the press. By this, you get your back and leg muscles involved in accelerating the bar. That is what most people do intuitively when it gets heavy. 

 

If you do the shoulder press for bodybuilding purposes you can eliminate this dynamic by using dumbbells and a bench. You can not dip from the hip when you are seated. 

 

Otherwise, I think the push press versus overhead press debate is nonsense. Almost all strongman competitions allow for the hip drive. Also, only a sour professional or picky teenager will comment “this was not an overhead press” when you lift 100kg+ over your head. 

 

Jerk 

 

Speaking of jerks let’s move on to the next variation. The jerk combines driving from the hip, pushing the bar and lowering your hip at the same time. By getting yourself under the bar with speed you can press more overhead. 

 

This movement is very technical and takes a lot of practice. It is the final part of the lifts you see at the Olympics. A professional instructor and caution are advised. 

 

Seated shoulder press

 

Another variation of the standing barbell shoulder press is rondo it seated. This gets rid off any hip or leg drive. It is also a good option for home gym owners with low ceilings. 

 

How to barbell shoulder press 

 

Set the bar up correctly, be safe and load the bar symmetrically. This will avoid injury. From there follow the same protocol and add weight consistently. A good program to start with is Stronglifts 5x5

Most popular Rogue bars in 2020

This is an overview of the most popular Rogue barbells per views and click through rates for Marathon-Crossfit.com in 2020. If you want more details on how the data was collected you can dig deeper in what were the most popular Rogue products in 2020.

Most popular rogue bars in 2020

 
This is an overview of the most popular barbells on Marathon-CrossFit.com during 2020. The ranking is as followed:
 
 
That the operator bar was so popular on Marathon-CrossFit in 2020 came as a surprise to me. It is one of the cheaper Rogue barbells which still has a cool name rather than being a variation of the Rogue Ohio barbell. If you want to feel a little more camouflaged in your life, go with this one. You can read the full review of the operator bar via this link.
 
The West side bar is a variation of the Ohio bar specifically for powerlifting. It is very similar to the Rogue Ohio power bar which recently has gotten a little more attention from influencers. This is a solid bar if you do not intend to do the Olympic lifts and stick to the bench press, deadlift, and barbell back squat in your training. You can read the full review of the west side bar via this link.
 
The Rogue Russian bar is another surprise on the Marathon-CrossFit popularity list. While it is one of the most expensive bars you can get from Rogue I personally find that it is more of a collector's item with nostalgia attached to it. It is a great piece of craftsmanship to recreate a bar from the Soviet era. Unfortunately, the collar system is not used in competition anymore and also tenders the bar useless once you lose one of the collars. Rogue also does not provide an option to buy the custom collars separately in case you do lose them. Based on this I would take the Pyrros bar over the Russian bar any given day for this budget. You can read the full review of the Rogue Russian bar by following this link.
 
The Rogue Multi-grip bar is a great additional tool to bring your bench press training to the next level. Especially if you are a big fan of the Westside training method as it asks for many grip variations. This bar might not be your first purchase, but fun addition to your gym once all the essentials are covered. You can read the full review of the Rogue Multi-grip bar by following this link.
 
The Chan bar is my personal favorite if you want to do it all with your barbell. It is reasonably priced, has a cool design, and can be used for Olympic lifts and the big three alike. If you are a CrossFit fan who wants to workout from home, this is a great pick. You can read the full review of the Rogue Chan bar by following this link.

 

Further reading 

 

Can barbells help lose weight? [Article]

Which Rogue barbell to buy? [Article, Free download]

Which barbell for home gym from Rogue [Article, free download]

Topics: Lift stronger, Fitness, Strength, Barbell