The Standing Overhead Press – The Ultimate Shoulder Exercise
The standing overhead press is a measure of true upper body strength!
In the old school strength training days, the standing press was known as the king of all exercises.
If someone wanted to know how strong you were, they’d ask you how much you could press overhead. The standing overhead press requires extremely powerful shoulders and triceps and a rock solid core.
Not to mention, your legs have to provide a ton of support and your upper back and traps have to fire hard for proper stabilization.
Furthermore, this movement requires balance and coordination to keep yourself in position and centered while pressing a heavy weight overhead.
If you have any weak points, this exercise will expose them. For all these reasons and more, the standing press is one of the most effective exercises you can do for strength, muscle development and athleticism.
The ultimate goal should be to work up to pressing your bodyweight for 5 reps. When you can accomplish this you will have some serious upperbody muscle and core strength and some suspiciously well developed shoulders.
Bringing the Standing Press back into Style
Unfortunately, in the modern era of weight lifting and bodybuilding, the standing press has been all but forgotten. We have become obsessed with working our upperbody from convenient and comfy positions.
Instead of doing chin ups we do lat pull downs, instead of heavy barbell curls we do preacher curls and instead of standing presses we perform seated shoulder presses.
The downside of this is that we’re teaching our body to work in isolation. And consequently we never build the total body strength and muscular coordination that only movements like chin ups and standing lifts can provide.
What’s more, with these old school exercises, there is much more muscle fiber recruitment taking place and because of this, there is much greater potential for strength gains.
Therefore people will always get better results doing chin ups, standing presses and standing curls over the seated/machine variants.
Once you get strong and add lots of weight to these lifts, your physique will transform.
(Note: When doing weighted chin-ups, it’s crucial that you use a high-quality weight belt that won’t cause discomfort or distract you from your training)
How to Perform the Standing Overhead Press
This movement requires that you lift a barbell overhead with strict form. Ideally you should set the barbell in the rack slightly below shoulder height, this will allow you to easily get into position without having to pick the barbell up from off the ground and clean it to your shoulders.
I like to keep my hands about shoulder width apart or slightly wider. You want to start with the barbell right on the top of your upper chest and from there you want to press the barbell up overhead.
Once it passes your head you should push your head through the bar so that the barbell is directly over your head. During this movement you want to look up instead of directly forward, this tip alone makes a big difference.
As well, I recommend keeping your feet close together with your heals almost touching and feet angled out. This gives you a more stable and rigid core and it ensures you avoid cheating by dipping your legs.
Lastly, you want to focus on squeezing your butt and core as hard as possible. By doing so, you will create a solid base to push off of.
If your glutes and core aren’t contracting hard then a lot of the upwards force your produce will be lost.
Final Comments
Standing overhead press’s are one of the few exercises you should definitely incorporate into your workout routine.
This is a movement that has an incredibly strong carryover and will improve all of your other lifts. Just be getting strong at this exercise, I can seated dumbbell shoulder press 100 lbs for 6 reps and I can do full range handstand push ups with a weighted vest.
With consistent standing pressing my shoulders have become very big and prominent. The shoulders are one of the most important muscle groups that can make or break your physique.
You can have an incredible chest, arms, back, abs and legs… but without full rounded masculine shoulders, your physique will look sloppy.
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Hey Greg, what do you think about doing overhead press from behind the head, starting with the bar resting on my traps? Does it differ from pressing with the bar in front of my face? Thanks in advance for the knowledge
If you’re going really light it can be okay. But if heavy, it’s going to stress the fuck out of the rotator cuffs.
Greg, okay to use a palms facing grip? (logbar) I’ll still get full benefits compared to palms facing forward?
THANKS!
Yeah that’s fine
Greg!
You should get some Kinobody gear made. Some shirts with suitable material to workout in. No cotton crap haha. I bet I could OHP 30 lbs more in a Kinobody shirt!
haha thanks man! Definitely will be looking at doing that stuff in the future.
I want me a sweet looking’ t-shirt! Maybe soon?
Hi Greg,
This may be a bit boring but could you do a post on staying healthy in the gym because it’s really important. When i do things like shoulder press/chest press my joints get sore etc. What measures can you take to stay injury free? The one i’m particularly weary about is barbell squats, i’m afraid of damaging knee ligaments etc. Is the 531 protocol actually thorough enough to properly warm up the rotator cuff joint/muscles?
Dude, I’ve already done that haha :)
Read this – https://kinobody.com/workouts-and-exercises/flexibility-training/
So many people have emailed me about how awesome this stuff is for their back, shoudler and knee pain.
Hey…greg…
its been a long time I have been doi,g oho now..2years or .so…and your workout I started so.e six months ago…last 4months I also incorporated some rest pause lateral raises and doing pretty good..
my problem is I cant get past the plateau of 57.5kg for 5 reps on oho…i only do this excercise for my shoulders and hang cleans for traps (which i can do my body weight4reps75kg)..this ohp is seriously lagging..
should i switch to some other excercise..thouh i doubt how affectve are other excercises than ohp..as u say switch to pullups and then to parallel chins..once u plateau at normal weighted chins..so i was thinking you could suggest some training cycle for ohp plateau…so that i can be become a flawless presser like you man…
i really want to achieve my BW pressing…
Note..i follow your technique o, ohp..but its rather difficult to not open the triceps at top completely as well as look at the upward movement of bar..and move a little forward when bar is over head…please suggest a easy fix……..
I’d recommend doing one arm standing dumbbell presses for a month or two then go back to barbell. It will work wonders :)
Hey Greg, I started doing weighted chinups a week ago and I love it! I can easily do a set of 5 reps at 172 lbs + 18 lbs, then 2 sets of 5 reps with bodyweight only. I am going to do this until I can complete a set of 5 reps at 172 + 36. Right now, I can do 2 reps of those. So basically, I got my biceps, my back and my forearms covered. But I lack muscle mass on my triceps, shoulders and chest. The problem is, because of ths particular lack of mass, I look a bit skinny and I hate that! So, I wanted to ask you, should I do overhead press or dips for these 3 muscles? I also have to inform you that I have a particular love for bw excercises( weighted dips,chins), I DON’T have a rack so I will have to start from a deadlift and proceed to an overhead press, I DON’T like the gym so I won’t join one, I have a dip bar and I am kind of limited regarding the weights. I have a 66 lbs barbell(with the plates of course). I am telling you all these facts to let you know how fast/slow I will be able to proceed should I choose one of the 2 excercises. What’s your opinion? Should I do both? Which one will make my shoulders,tris and chest develop faster and better? Thank you. Sorry for the loooong post!
100% agree. The standing overhead press is hands down the king for shoulder strength. Combined with side laterals and rear delt flyes, it’s great for overall shoulder development.
When it comes to injury proofing the shoulder, the rotator cuff, usually takes a back seat. It isn’t given a lot of emphasis. It’s also pretty important from a postural standpoint.
A lot of guys commonly have internally rotating shoulders that slouch forward. Everything we do is in front us. Whether working at a computer or stacking shelves.
Even when it comes to training, when you develop muscles like the pecs they tend to pull the shoulders forward, the only way to counteract this is by training the shoulders from the back. Hence why training the rear delts and rotator cuff is critical. That’s why shoulder problems are so common nowadays.
Hi Greg!
Love these posts about technique!
I know you probably hear this a lot, but i would really appreciate a post about lateral raises for rear and side delts.. I’m pretty happy with my physique, but these 2 muscles are really stubborn, and you know how important well developed shoulders are, both for aesthetic and shoulder health!
I’ve been doing lateral raises for almost 2 years, and i feel like i’ve tried everything, but nothing works.. I can do standing shoulder press with 55kg for 5 reps (i weight 78kg, and i’m 1.75m high) so my front delts are developing pretty well. But my front delt are more than double the size of my side delts, and my rear delts are even smaller.. I really have a hard time feeling my delts when i work them.. If i go low weight, i don’t feel them, if i go higher weight, i’m not able to do them with good form.. Hope you understand my desperation, and everything else you have layed out have worked wonders, so hope you can do the same with this!
Yah I”ll do an article on them soon. Take a look at how I do them in this video – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nq1QPM0waxk
Hi greg
I’m following your warrior shredding program i’m looking too loose my excess fat while building some muscle, on your FAQ booklet you say its okay to do sports 2-3 times a week and i have boxed in the past and wanted to start again it would be twice a week for an hour and a half of pretty intense cardio would this be over doing it?
Nope that will be fine.
[…] sets work extremely well for biceps training. Every time you do a pressing workout perform a set of a biceps exercise before every set of horizontal or vertical pressing. I find this […]
Could you make a guide about the hang clean?
Yep
How wide grip should i use: do a wide grip target the shoulders more than a narrow grip?
For standing press you can’t go too wide or it will feel very awkward. I’d suggest slightly wider than shoulder width. See what feels the most comfortable for you.
excellent article. I’ve also found that squeezing the glutes and keeping the abs braced makes the lift “easier”.
may I suggest three tweaks to your form:
1) wrist should be over the forearm (not bent), and forearms should be vertical seen from front and side. ( I learnt this from Justin Lascek’s Youtube video called “3 Press Fixes”).
2) at the top of each rep, you should shrug. ( I learnt this from Mark Rippetoe- there are many youtube vids where he shows this).
3) grip the bar tightly and try to break it in half (I learnt this from a Carl Paoli Youtube vid).
Hope these tips help.
1) Interesting… Seems easier said than done. Very few videos of people able to keep their wrists straight on this lift. Because of the bar path it’s necessary that the wrists bend back slightly. This is so you can start with it right at your collarbone in a strong position.
2) Sounds very counter intuitive. Shrugging would take your shoulders out of their position, which seems a bit crazy. Are you actually shrugging, or attempting to shrug without actually moving the shoulders?
here’s the link to the lascek video “3 press fixes” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqKhLR1zRaU
and here’s a link to the video “Mark Rippetoe: Press Review”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJFjYyA40ss
The top of each rep of the OH press is followed by the OH shrug, which is a perfectly safe movement. it is similar to the idea of “active shoulders” used in CrossFit.
One thing which you must avoid is hyper-extending the lower back. On the other hand, hip hyper-extension is OK.
Hi Greg!
Is there some truth to the idea that you should not train 2 big groups of muscle the same day? For example, would it be productive to do Incline Bench Presses and Squats the same day? What do you think?
It’s just going to be more taxing. But yah, I wouldn’t recommend doing incline bench and squats on the same day unless you’re a complete beginner (less than 6 months of proper training).
I see. I designed a new workout routine and I’m still uncertain whether I’ve made the best choices.
(Tuesday) Workout A: Weighted Chins – RPT
Bent-over Barbell Rows – 5×5
Deadlifts – 5×3 Starting Strength
(Thursday) Workout B: Standing Barbell Shoulder Press – 5×3 Starting Strength
Standing Dumbell Lateral Raises – Standard Pyramid 12, 10, 8, 6, 6
Weighted Dips – RPT
(Saturday) Workout C: Incline Bench Press – 5×3 Starting Strength
Dumbell Flys – Standard Pyramid 12, 10, 8, 6, 6
Weighted Squats – RPT
So in this routine, Incline Bench Presses don’t go well with the Squats, right?. Should I switch Dips on workout C and Squats on B?
I’d appreciate your view on this :D
You can do squats after incline and flyes. You won’t be as strong as if you did squats fresh but that’s fine. Can’t do squats on thursday because you’ll still be recovering from deadlifts.
Thanks Greg!
Hey Brother.
I have eliminated performing shoulder press behind the neck due to an injury and from reading article about it by Rick Kaselj. Performing them the way you demonstrated has eliminated most pain from my shoulder area and I have the rounded muscular shoulders I had in my 20’s.
This also has helped with my archery and other exercises because my shoulders are much stronger now.
Great article mate.
Thanks Pete
Hi Greg,
Really enjoying not only how you display these lifts and exercises, but also the little tips and tricks on how to maintain form and pull them off properly – it’s that kind of stuff that’s invaluable.
I just had a question regarding obliques and abs – what’s your stance on training them: weighted, or unweighted (bodyweighted in that case).
I have seen your weighted knee pull ups, but have also heard that it can give some a doughy, bulgy kind of look to the waist, and add mass and shape where it isn’t wanted for the lean look.
Tips, advice? I’m naturally lean and have been doing weighted obs exercises only, with bodyweight routines on the abs. Obs are popping nicely, though the abs could use more definition and density.
For abs I like hanging leg raises, L sits, renegade rows and abs wheel roll outs. Train abs 2x per week.
Hey Greg. Starting cutting 3 weeks ago. my bf was 9.5% and toady its 9.08%. What do you think of the rate of loss. Should i recalculate marcos if you think it could be better. I have also also lost an inch of waist(navel).
Thanks for all the articles. Great advice.
Don’t try to measure body fat percentage, it’s not going to be that accurate. The fact that you lost an inch off your waist suggest more like a 2% drop in body fat. Track your leanness with pictures, waist and weight measurements.
Could you make a video about how to perform lateral raises. i think that i a exercise many people performing the wrong way.
I’ll be doing an article on it soon but here’s a video for now – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nq1QPM0waxk
Couple of good problems I have wanted to get your advice.
I travel all over the US as a mentalist so I use Planet Fitness because I can go anywhere there is one for my normal fee, but Their Dumbbells max out at 75 lbs. I was stoked when I hit that goal a few months back, but have been floundering on what to do next. They don’t have the equipment to do a standing Barbell press without a clean. I want to stay away from that because I can’t hang clean as much as I can shoulder press. Also I worry about wrecking my back this way. They have a smith machine, but I’m not sure how much weight that effects. I have been using it or the overhead press machine, but I don’t like it as much.
Same thing with Incline bench. They got rid of all the incline benches for barbells. There are flat benches and smith machines now. This is the irritating part.
Curious what you would suggest in this situation for these two moves. Thanks man!
Yah I would just do seated military press then. Or you can do standing one arm dumbbell shoulder press’s.
Thanks man, I really appreciate that. I can make a military press happen for sure. SO you recommend working on cleans till I can even out to my shoulder strength?
As far as the incline Barbell what do you think?
Yah you can work on cleans as well. You can do incline barbell in the smith machine. That’s fine.
I run in to this same problem. I go to Planet Fitness which has no Power rack or free weight bench press, only Smith Machines, and my other gym has free weights bench press, but no power racks. I do not want to settle for seated press after reading your article so what do you recommend? Should i settle for seated press, ask someone to spot me and help me get the bar off the bench rack and up to Should press position like i have been doing, or do you recommend i work on my Power Clean form so that i can do this exercise on my own and with free weights? Today i was alone in the gym so i had no one to spot me, and i settled for seated dumbbell press, but it’s not the same as Barbell Shoulder Press. Thanks in advance for your response. I’m definitely seeing progress through your Shedding Program.
Hey Antonio,
I recommend making due with what you have. Seated presses are a good exercise and will build your shoulders well.
Nice Article Greg! What are your thoughts on standing 1 arm dumb bell press? I have been incorporating them into my routine for the past month or so, and am noticing increased development in my core (mainly obliques). With that being said, I still believe barbell overhead presses to be one of the best “bang for your buck” strength builders.
Thanks!
I actually switch between standing barbell presses and 1 arm dumbbell standing press’s. Both movements are good. I find that my shoulders get hit harder with the barbell version but the dumbbell builds more core stability.
hey greg, no homo, but you’re back is awesome haha, its the shape and size im going for, i do have a decent v taper but in terms of getting it big in the midsection what do you reccomend? deadlifts? rep range? lower rep rows? thanks for your help, i love your site.
Most of my back development is the result of getting very strong on weighted chin ups. Work the heavy chins and your back will grow. I actually don’t do deadlifts or barbell rows. Usually just weighted chins and cable rows for my back.
Hello Greg,
Do you have an formal education or training in regards to the science of fitness, training, nutrition and what not? If not do you have an aspiration to do such things?
I have done exercise science courses and I have my personal training certification, among a couple other certs. I don’t put much value in such things. If you want to master this fitness and nutrition thing, it’s best to learn off the best guys in the industry and put the knowledge to the test with yourself and clients, create your own unique system that is very effective. All the information you can possibly need is readily available without the need for formal education.
Hey Greg,
Another great article!
A little off subject though. You mention that we should train three times a week and cardio on off days in the new warrior program. So would this example be accurate?:
Mon – A
Tues – Cardio & Abs Routine
Wed – B
Thurs – Cardio& Abs
Fri – C
Sat – Rest (or Cardio & Abs)
Sun – Rest
And then continue to train Mon, Wed, Fri, and Cardio n Abs Tues and Thursday.
Is this kind of the idea? Also, on the training workouts I see that the abs portion is minimal. Is this enough to build shredded abs? I see that Rusty Moore emphazizes a lot of different workouts on his ab routines and was just curious to ask.
Sorry for the long post. Really need your guidance.
Thanks!!!!
Yes that’s the right idea! I actually do very limited abdominal work. Usually 2-4 sets of abs 2x per week. As long as you’re making progress with the exercises you will build your abs. Even getting stronger and adding muscle overall will bring in more development to your abs. But most importantly, it’s really going to come down to your body fat. Doesn’t make sense to put a ton of work in your abs for that reason.
Great article and really great video demonstration! Youre doing an amazing job! So far i Can only Press alittle above 60% of my bw, so still have alot of strength to gain!
Has one question though:
Do you recommend pulling the shoulders back and Down like When you do the inchline Bench, or is that not neccesery?
Yes but having your shoulders down and back tends to happen automatically with standing pressing. The weight usually keeps the shoulders where they need to be.
I’ve been waiting for this article since I began following Kinobody, thank you so much for writing it!!!
Greg,
Great article. How can I incorporate this into my heavy pushing exercises? I already do incline bench and weighted dips on the same day. Should I add it in or substitute out one of these?
Thanks again.
You can do it on your other workout day right after weighted chin ups.
Loving the short time between articles, keeps the blog fresh.