Overhead press

The press, overhead press or shoulder press is a weight training exercise in which a weight is pressed from the shoulders until it is locked out overhead. The lift is performed standing.

Movement

The press is set up by taking a barbell and putting it on the anterior deltoids. This can be done by taking the barbell from a rack or by cleaning the weight from the floor (clean and press). Alternatively the movement can be performed with dumbbells, though they do not rest neatly on the deltoids. They do not have easily accessible high racks so the trainee needs to clean them or have a spotter assist them in getting them into the starting position (or do one-armed presses).

The press involves moving a barbell or dumbbells from the shoulder height and pushing it up above the head until the elbows are fully locked out. As the bar clears the head, the lifter leans forward slightly in order to keep balance. As the bar is lowered back to the shoulders and clears the head again, he leans slightly back.

The press is a highly effective compound upper-body exercise. Performing it standing recruits many more muscle groups in order to maintain balance and support the lift, rather than performing it seated. Like the squat and dead lift, it can be thought of as a whole-body exercise, to some extent.

Variations

Other variations of the overhead press are:

• Military press: Heels together with strict form. It is called the "Military Press" because this movement used to be the general indicator or test of one's strength in the military.
• Olympic press:also known as clean and press, lift used in Olympic Weightlifting, consists of a clean, then pressing with no lower body movement, such as in the Push press. Discontinued after 1972 Olympics due to inconsistent judging criteria (such as should the lifter be allowed to bend backwards slightly when pressing, should a leg drive be allowed).
• Push press: using leg drive
• Behind-the-neck press: barbell in the neck vs. on the anterior deltoids
• Seated press pressing while seated (commonly on a bench)
• Dumbbell press: using dumbbells.
  • One-handed press: pressing with one arm at a time
  • Arnold Press: beginning a press with forearms supinated, ending with forearms pronated.
• Bradford Press: as you press, once the bar clears a few inches overhead it is slowly lowered behind the head then explosively reversed to the front and slowly lowered to the starting position. The 2 phases are commonly considered one repetition.
• Sots press: pressing from the bottom of a squat position
• Bent press: pressing the weight overhead while twisting the trunk.

Other forms of pressing include:

• Bench press
• Incline press
• Decline press
• Press up
• Dip

See also

• Military press
• Clean and press
• Bent press
• Squat

References

• Mark Rippetoe with Lon Kilgore, Starting Strength, The Aasgaard Company Publishers, 2005, ISBN 0-9768-0540-5

External links

• Shoulder Press/lift with barbell at www.exershare.com
• Shoulder Press instructional video and description
• Various shoulder presses described at exrx.net
• Description of the side press

This health-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.v · Categories: Weight training exercises Health stubs Wikimedia Foundation. 2010. Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу Dumbbell River Dumbéa Bay Look at other dictionaries: overhead press — noun An exercise in which a weight is lifted with the arms, which are straightened vertically over ones head …   Wiktionary Press (overhead) — The press or overhead press is a weight training exercise which focus on the development of the shoulders. The lift is performed standing, by pressing the weight from the anterior deltoids overhead until the arms are extended. The press is… …   Wikipedia Overhead-drive press — Overhead drive press. См. Пресс с верхним двигателем. (Источник: «Металлы и сплавы. Справочник.» Под редакцией Ю.П. Солнцева; НПО Профессионал , НПО Мир и семья ; Санкт Петербург, 2003 г.) …   Словарь металлургических терминов Overhead microphone — This photograph of a drum kit shows the overhead microphones in a spaced pair arrangement Overhead microphones are those used in sound recording and live sound reproduction to pick up ambient sounds, transients and the overall blend of… …   Wikipedia Overhead crane — An overhead crane, featuring runways, bridge, and hoist in a traditional industrial environment …   Wikipedia press — press1 pressable, adj. /pres/, v.t. 1. to act upon with steadily applied weight or force. 2. to move by weight or force in a certain direction or into a certain position: The crowd pressed him into a corner. 3. to compress or squeeze, as to alter …   Universalium press — I [[t]prɛs[/t]] v. t. 1) to act upon with steadily applied weight or force 2) to move by weight or force in a certain direction or into a certain position 3) to compress or squeeze, as to alter in shape or size 4) to subject to pressure 5) to… …   From formal English to slang press — I. noun Etymology: Middle English presse, from Anglo French, from presser to press Date: 13th century 1. a. a crowd or crowded condition ; throng b. a thronging or crowding forward or together 2. a. an apparatus or machine by which a substance is …   New Collegiate Dictionary Military press — The military press is a variation of the overhead press weight training exercise using very strict form. The military press targets the deltoid muscles in the shoulders as well as the triceps. Additionally, it works the core and legs, which the… …   Wikipedia University Press of Kentucky — The University Press of Kentucky (UPK) is the scholarly publisher for the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and was organized in 1969 as successor to the University of Kentucky Press. The university had sponsored scholarly publication since 1943. In 1949 …   Wikipedia 18+ © Academic, 2000-2024 Contact us: Technical Support, Advertising Dictionaries export, created on PHP, Joomla, Drupal, WordPress, MODx. Mark and share Search through all dictionaries Translate… Search Internet Share the article and excerpts Direct link … Do a right-click on the link above and select “Copy Link”