How to Do a Military Press: Proper Form, Tips & Variations

1. Set the barbell to roughly shoulder height before adding the required weight.
2. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, and position your hands at or roughly shoulder-width on the bar with a pronated grip.
3. Step under the barbell and unrack it while maintaining a neutral spine. Have the barbell resting on your upper chest.
4. Move backward, inhale, brace, tuck the chin, and press the bar above to lockout.
5. Exhale as the bar reaches lockout and carefully reverse the movement while lowering the barbell back to your chest (the starting position).
6. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

• At the peak, reach tall, and don't worry about keeping your shoulders pressed down and back.
• At the top of the action, allow your elbows to turn and point outward, then tuck them close to the ribs at the bottom.
• Fight to keep the bar from rolling by sliding the wrists into extension and contemplating "rolling the knuckles toward the ceiling."
• Maintain the movement's momentum and avoid adding extra leg force by extending and flexing the knees.
• As you press, squeeze the glutes and stabilize your abs. When pressing, you should not lean back too far.
• As though you were attempting to look out a window from the top, your ears ought to be parallel to your biceps.
• Try a broader grip or vertical pressing advances if your shoulders are uncomfortable during the activity.
• You can utilize a staggered stance to keep your lower back from arching too far, but if you still can't control your anterior core, try a half-kneeling regression.

"Grip the barbell with both hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart, allowing you to lock both arms out easily. You'll lose drive if you go any further."

- Mike Causer, Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist

The military press (overhead press) trains your upper-body, and the lower body to a lower extent. The primary movers in pushing the weight above your head are your shoulders and arms.

Everything between the ground and the shoulders must remain tight to balance you and the bar.

As a result, the overhead press is a full-body exercise that trains numerous muscles at once with large weights.

Below are muscles worked by the military press:

• Shoulders. You must elevate your upper arms to raise the bar when doing an overhead press. This exercises your deltoid muscles on the front, side, and rear of your shoulders [1]. It equally builds these three muscle heads with large weights, resulting in broad shoulders.
• Arms. To push the weight above, you must extend your elbows. This exercise engages the triceps muscles on the back of the arms. Their muscular mass is far more than their biceps [2]. Bigger triceps result in bigger arms. Holding the bar requires the use of your forearm muscles as well.
• Rotator Cuff. Balancing the raised bar engages the tiny muscles that protect your shoulder blades: teres minor, supraspinatus, infraspinatus, and subscapularis [3]. These rotator cuff muscles help to stabilize the shoulders and keep them from dislocating. Strengthening them will safeguard your shoulders.
• Traps. To avoid shoulder impingement, shrug the shoulders at the peak of each rep. This causes your shoulder blade to turn to the side. It makes room for the rotator cuff tendons. Shrugging engages the trapezius muscle groups on the side of the neck. It develops ski-slope traps.
• Abs. Your core muscles support your body as your arms and shoulders drive the weight above. They prevent you from falling beneath the bar. This exercises your abdominals, obliques, and lower back. Stronger abdominal muscles are more muscular [4]. They will show if you eat properly.
• Legs. Your legs keep your body balanced while your arms and shoulders press. This exercise targets your hips, thighs, ankles, and calves. The overhead press won't engage them like squats since your legs don't move. They remain upright. However, they must perform isometric work.

You may employ several variations of the military press to engage the deltoids from various angles and methods.

Seated Overhead Press

The seated barbell shoulder press is an overhead press variant intended to increase upper-body strength and muscle.

Sitting allows you to utilize bigger weights to focus on muscle building, increasing strength since your body is stabilized and more supported.

This variant is also ideal for those suffering from lower back pain.

To perform the seated military press:

1. Adjust the bar to roughly shoulder height while standing, then load the required weight onto the bar.
2. Place a bench in an upright posture beneath the bar.
3. Sit on the bench press seat and use a pronated grip to unrack the bar.
4. Inhale, brace, tuck the chin, and drop the bar to your upper chest.
5. Exhale and return the barbell to the lockout position, then repeat.