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Exercise library · Shoulders

Overhead press

Vertical press for the shoulders with a barbell.

How to do it

1 of 3

Bar at your upper chest

  1. Starting position

    Stand hip-width apart with the bar at your upper chest and grip it slightly wider than your shoulders.

  2. The movement

    Press the bar straight up until your arms are straight and the bar is overhead, then lower it to your chest.

Most common mistake

Don't bend your knees to create momentum, keep your legs still and press the bar with your upper body.

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Muscle group
Shoulders
Equipment
Barbell
Where
Gym
Logged as
Weight × reps

Muscles worked

The overhead press mainly trains your front delts, with help from the side delts. Your triceps straighten your arms and do much of the work near the top, and your upper chest helps at the start. The trapezius and serratus anterior rotate your shoulder blades upwards so your arms can reach straight overhead. Standing also makes your abs, glutes and back work hard to keep you stable, so it trains your core as well.

Common mistakes

  • Arching your back and leaning backwards. Brace your glutes and abs before you press and keep your ribs down all the way up.
  • Pressing the bar in an arc around your face. Move your head back slightly so the bar can travel straight up, then bring your head forward under it once it has passed your forehead. At the top, the bar should sit roughly over the middle of your feet.
  • Letting your wrists bend back. The force then does not travel straight down through your arm. Set the bar low in your palm, directly above your forearm, so your wrist and elbow are stacked under it.

Variations and alternatives

  • Seated shoulder presses use dumbbells and a backrest, which takes away much of the demand on balance and core.
  • Machine shoulder presses have a fixed path, good for beginners or for higher reps late in a session.
  • Push presses use a short dip of the legs on purpose, so you can get more weight overhead.
  • Pike push-ups train your shoulders with a pressing movement at home, with no equipment.

Sets and reps

For strength, the overhead press works well for 3 to 6 reps over three to five sets, with two to three minutes' rest between them. For building muscle, 6 to 12 reps works. You can go higher, but your form usually gives way before your shoulders do. For high reps, the dumbbell lateral raise or a machine is a better choice. There is more in the guide to sets and reps.

The overhead press often progresses more slowly than other big lifts, because you lift less weight and a 2.5 kg jump is a large share of it. Use the smallest plates your gym has and work on reps before adding weight, as in the guide to progressive overload. It is perfectly normal to stay at the same weight for several weeks and add just a rep here and there.

Also called

  • ohp
  • military press

Swap for

Taken, or missing the equipment? The same movement with something else.

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