How to learn the overhead press: pressing a barbell over your head
Vertical pressing in both worlds: pike push-ups and the wall handstand first, then the barbell overhead. The Strive Up standard: 60 kg × 10 reps.
Contents
The overhead press is the most honest shoulder exercise there is: nothing rests on a bench, nothing is stabilised by a seat. You stand, you press, you hold. Your body has to work as one closed unit – otherwise the weight tips.
Why the overhead press is underrated
Muscles worked: front delts, side delts, triceps, trapezius, core. The pressing power transfers directly to skills such as the handstand push-up – and the other way round. Train both worlds (bodyweight + barbell) and you develop vertical pressing strength that pays off in every other exercise.
Prerequisites
- 15+ pike push-ups with the feet elevated.
- Wall handstand 0:30 – see the handstand guide.
- Clean overhead mobility – arms straight overhead without arching the lower back.
Your path to the overhead press
Your path to the overhead press
Vertical pressing in two worlds: bodyweight first (pike push-ups, wall handstand), then the barbell overhead.
Setup in 5 steps
- Stance: hip width, feet parallel. Bar at chest height in the rack.
- Grip: shoulder width. Wrists neutral – not bent backwards.
- Front rack: the bar rests on your front delts, elbows forward, chest up.
- Bracing: breathe in deeply, abs hard, glutes squeezed. The whole body as one unit.
- Press: straight up, head back slightly, then push your head through under the bar. At the top the arms are locked out and the bar sits directly above your shoulders.
Common mistakes
- Arching the lower back: compensating for missing mobility with lumbar extension will wreck your back. Squeeze glutes and core hard.
- Push press instead of strict press: bending the legs is cheating (unless you're actually doing a push press, which is a different exercise). Strict press = legs still.
- Bar too far forward: at the top the bar must sit directly above your shoulders, in the same vertical line. Shoulder, hip and ankle stacked.
- Holding your breath: breathe out actively between reps. Keep bracing, but don't suffocate yourself.
Training plan
Day A (heavy): 5 × 5 at 75 % of 1RM
Day B (volume + bodyweight): 4 × 8 at 60 % + pike push-ups 3 × 12
Progression: 1–2.5 kg per week – the shoulder progresses more conservatively than hips or legs.
Track it with Strive Up
60 kg overhead press × 10 reps is the Strive Up standard. Training handstand push-ups alongside builds vertical pressing strength from both directions – barbell and bodyweight complement each other beautifully.
Train smarter with Strive Up
Track your training, use the EMOM timer, follow your PRs and discover your personal skill roadmap – for free.
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