The Push Press

That is right, we're talking upper body and an overhead lift known as the push press. When it comes to some of the basic lifts, the press is often a difficult one to increase on and the form is definitely important. Even when I was doing the 5x5 of Stronglifts, which uses the strict/military press, both males and females would often question how to get stronger on that lift in particular because many stall on the press. With the push press, using the legs is an added bonus allowing for a little more weight to get lifted.

The Lift
A weight training exercise for the anterior head of the deltoid (shoulder). The push press is similar to the military press; however, the movement is started by a 'push' from the legs. This begins the momentum of the movement, the weight is then slowly lowered back to the shoulders.

Equipment: (options vary)
Barbell
Dumbell
Barrel (maybe, lol)
Essentially you need something that can be held and put overhead. On occasion at work I have to almost push press totes full of products to stack as I'm short and most get stacked taller than me.

To see and learn how to do the lift, check out the links posted below. While some might refer to this lift as a "cheat" there are plenty who can list the reasons for the lift beyond just trying to get up a little more weight.

Some links:
http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/push-press
https://www.t-nation.com/training/the-push-press
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFY7CGKjGNM
http://www.muscleandfitness.com/workouts/leg-exercises/videos/barbell-push-press


For fun, I took part in a push press challenge over on the forums at Bodybuilding.com. It was fun and I even placed 2nd out of the females in the 132 weight class. And this time it wasn't 2nd out of 2 like the bench press challenge.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPac1_IQdKI

That is all for this lift. While it's not quite as fun as say, the deadlift, it's still one I enjoy even if it's one I can lift the least amount overall. One day I'll get 100 lb overhead, one day.

What do you think of the push press?
How much can you lift overhead?