Exercise guide · evidence-graded

Axle Press

The axle press is an overhead press with a thick, non-rotating strongman axle bar, pressed from the shoulders to straight arms overhead, usually from a rack in training and after a clean in competition. It works the front and side shoulders, the triceps and upper back, and the thick bar adds grip and wrist demand.

Also called: Axle Overhead Press, Fat Bar Press, Axle Press from Rack, Axle Strict Press · Equipment: strongman · Pattern: push

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How to do it

Step by step

Set the axle in a rack at about collarbone height. Take a grip just outside shoulder width, with the bar low in your palms over the forearm bones and your wrists stacked.
Step under the bar so it rests on your front shoulders and upper chest, with your elbows slightly in front of the bar. Stand up to take it out of the rack and step back one or two short steps.
Set your feet about hip width apart. Take a big breath, brace your trunk and squeeze your glutes so your ribs stay down.
Press the bar straight up, moving your head back slightly so the bar passes close to your face.
Once the bar passes your forehead, bring your head through and press until your elbows are straight and the bar sits over the middle of your feet.
Hold the lockout for a moment with your ribs down, then bring the bar back to your shoulders under control, keeping it close to your face.
After the last rep, walk the bar forward into the rack and set it in the hooks.

Coaching cues

Ribs down, glutes tight
Bar close to your face, head back then through
Finish with the bar over your mid-foot
Squeeze the thick bar hard
Big breath and brace before every rep

In VALDA, these cues are one tap away on the exercise while you train.

Muscles worked

What it trains

Muscle	Role	Evidence
Anterior deltoid: anterior	Prime mover	C
Triceps brachii	Prime mover	C
Trapezius: upper	Secondary	C
Lateral deltoid: lateral	Secondary	C
Pectoralis major: clavicular (upper)	Secondary	C
Forearm flexors	Stabiliser	C
Rectus abdominis	Stabiliser	C

Evidence grades: A = strong research base · B = good · C = limited · D = coaching consensus.

Common faults

What goes wrong, and the fix

Leaning back to get past the sticking point

Fix: Squeeze your glutes and keep your ribs down so your torso stays upright.

Bar drifting forward of the face

Fix: Move your head back as the bar rises, keeping the bar close to your face.

Finishing with the bar in front of the head

Fix: Bring your head through at the top so the bar ends over your mid-foot.

Wrists bent back under the thick bar

Fix: Set the bar low in your palms over the forearm bones with your knuckles up.

Elbows flared wide at the start

Fix: Start with your elbows slightly in front of the bar and under your wrists.

Programming

What the research says

Strength · first choicePowerMuscle growthSport performanceEndurance

Load by goal — Research comparing loads finds maximal strength favours heavier loads, while muscle growth is similar across a wide range of loads when sets are taken close to failure.
Effort — Studies show strength gains are largely insensitive to how close to failure you train, and failure training adds no strength advantage. Many lifters keep heavy axle sets a rep or two short of failure.
Volume — Research links more weekly sets to more strength and growth, with diminishing returns, and the strength curve is flatter than the growth curve.
Rest — In trained lifters, rests of about 3 minutes between sets have produced greater strength and size gains than 1-minute rests.
Thick bar — Studies of thick-grip attachments found they raise forearm muscle activity and cut the maximum load lifted in pulling exercises. There is no direct research comparing axle and barbell pressing.
Strict or push press — Strongman events usually allow leg drive, so athletes commonly train both the strict press and the push press with the axle.

Alternatives · VALDA FLEX

Swap it mid-workout

With VALDA Pro, FLEX offers alternatives like these when you swap an exercise mid-workout.

Log the axle press in VALDA, with these cues one tap away while you train and your history for it in one place.

General information about exercise technique, not medical advice. If you have an injury or a health condition, your healthcare provider is the right person to ask.