Seated Barbell Overhead Press

oec:seated-barbell-overhead-press

A compound upper-body pressing exercise performed seated on an upright or near-vertical bench to build shoulder and triceps strength while minimizing lower-body contribution.

Generated by gemini-3.8-flash from the sources below. No person has checked this record. Don't rely on it for safety.

Also called: Seated Barbell Shoulder Press, Seated Overhead Press, Seated Military Press, Seated OHP, OHP Barbell, Overhead press Barbell, Military Press with Barbell, Shoulder Press, Barbell

How to do it

Setup

Set an adjustable bench to an upright or steep incline (roughly 75 to 85 degrees) inside a rack.
Position the barbell on J-hooks at roughly chin height when seated.
Sit back firmly against the pad with your feet planted flat on the floor.
Grip the bar slightly wider than shoulder width with a full pronated grip, resting the bar across the heels of your palms.
Unrack the barbell and hold it at upper chest height just below your chin, with elbows slightly forward of the bar.

Movement

Brace your core and press the barbell vertically upward in a smooth, controlled path.
Tuck your chin slightly as the bar passes your face, then push your head back to neutral as the bar clears your forehead.
Lock out your elbows overhead with the bar positioned directly over your shoulders.
Lower the barbell under control back to collarbone level, tracking your elbows slightly in front of your torso.

Breathing

Inhale and brace your core at the bottom before pressing, and exhale as you reach full lockout overhead.

Cues

Press through your palms
Tuck the chin, then push through
Elbows slightly forward, not flared
Keep upper back pinned to the pad

Common faults

Excessively arching the lower back away from the bench.: Keep your core tight and your hips and upper back firmly pressed against the backrest.
Flaring the elbows straight out to the sides.: Keep your elbows tucked about 30 to 45 degrees in the scapular plane to protect the shoulder joint.
Bouncing the bar off the chest.: Control the descent and pause briefly at collarbone level before pressing upward.

Safety

Set safety pins in the rack just below chin level to catch the barbell if a rep is missed.
Avoid using a false or thumbless grip to prevent the bar from slipping.

Muscles

Front deltoid prime mover
Triceps brachii prime mover
Side deltoid synergist
Pectoralis major, clavicular head synergist
Upper trapezius synergist
Lower trapezius synergist
Serratus anterior synergist
Rotator cuff stabilizer
Rectus abdominis stabilizer

Joints

Shoulder: Flexion, Abduction
Shoulder blade: Upward rotation, Elevation
Elbow: Extension
Wrist: Isometric stabilization

Details

Movement: Vertical push, Push
Modality: Strength, Hypertrophy
Mechanics: compound
Force: push
Laterality: bilateral
Kinetic chain: open
Level: intermediate
Equipment: Barbell; Adjustable bench or Flat bench; Squat rack or Power rack
Record: Repetitions and Load
Load: external, total

variation of Barbell Overhead Press
substitute for Barbell Overhead Press
substitute for Seated Dumbbell Overhead Press
substitute for Seated Dumbbell Shoulder Press
substitute for Smith Machine Overhead Press

Sources

wger: Shoulder Press, Barbell, by wger.de (CC-BY-SA-3.0)

This record: CC-BY-SA-4.0.

Data

seated-barbell-overhead-press.json