Exercise guide · evidence-graded

Barbell Overhead Press

The barbell overhead press is a standing lift in which you press a barbell from the front of your shoulders to straight arms overhead, with no help from the legs. It works the shoulders (mainly the front and side), the triceps and the upper back while your trunk braces to hold you upright, and it is the standard lift for measuring overhead pressing strength.

Also called: OHP, Overhead Press, Military Press, Shoulder Press · Equipment: barbell · Pattern: push

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How to do it

Step by step

  1. Set the bar in a rack at about upper-chest height. Grip it just outside shoulder-width, with the bar low in your palms and your wrists stacked over your forearms.
  2. Step under the bar so it rests on the front of your shoulders, elbows slightly in front of the bar. Lift it out of the rack and take one or two steps back, feet about hip-width apart.
  3. Squeeze your glutes, brace your stomach and keep your ribs down so your body forms one straight line.
  4. Take a breath and press the bar straight up, moving your head back slightly so the bar clears your chin.
  5. Once the bar passes your forehead, bring your head through so the bar finishes over the middle of your feet, arms straight and biceps beside your ears.
  6. Bring the bar back under control to the front of your shoulders, moving your head back again as it passes your face.
  7. Re-brace before each rep. After the last rep, walk the bar back into the rack.
Coaching cues
  • Glutes squeezed, ribs down
  • Wrists stacked over your forearms
  • Head back, then through the window
  • Bar straight up over your mid-foot
  • Finish with biceps by your ears
  • 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

MuscleRoleEvidence
Anterior deltoid: anteriorPrime moverB
Lateral deltoid: lateralSecondaryC
Triceps brachii: lateral headSecondaryC
Trapezius: upperSecondaryC
Pectoralis major: clavicular (upper)SecondaryC
Erector spinaeStabiliserC
Serratus anteriorStabiliserD

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

Common faults

What goes wrong, and the fix

Leaning back to press

Fix: Squeeze your glutes and keep your ribs down so your body stays in one line.

Bar travelling around the face

Fix: Move your head back and press close to your face, then bring your head through.

Head never coming through

Fix: Push your head forward under the bar once it passes your forehead.

Wrists bent back

Fix: Set the bar low in your palms with your wrists stacked over your forearms.

Soft lockout

Fix: Finish every rep with straight arms and the bar over your mid-foot.

Dipping the knees to start the bar

Fix: Keep your knees straight and let your shoulders and arms start the press.

Programming

What the research says

Strength · first choiceGeneral fitness · first choicePowerMuscle growthSport performanceEndurance

  • Muscle activity — EMG studies found barbell pressing produced more shoulder activity than a machine press and more triceps activity than dumbbells, and the barbell allowed a heavier max than dumbbells. EMG measures muscle activity, not growth.
  • Load by goal — Research comparing loads finds maximal strength favours heavier loads (about 8 reps or fewer per set), while muscle growth is similar across a wide range of loads when sets are taken close to failure.
  • Effort — Studies show sets that finish a few reps short of failure capture most of the size and strength benefit, and strength gains appear largely insensitive to how close to failure you train.
  • Volume and frequency — Research links more weekly sets for a muscle to more growth, with diminishing returns, and training a muscle about twice a week is a common way to spread that volume.
  • Rest — In trained lifters, rests of about 3 minutes between sets have produced greater strength and size gains than 1-minute rests.
Alternatives · VALDA FLEX

Swap it mid-workout

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

Log the barbell overhead 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.