The overhead press is an upper-body
weight training
Weight training is a common type of strength training for developing the strength, size of skeletal muscles and maintenance of strength.Keogh, Justin W, and Paul W Winwood. “Report for: The Epidemiology of Injuries Across the Weight-Train ...
exercise in which the trainee presses a weight overhead while seated or standing. It is mainly used to develop the
anterior deltoid muscles of the shoulder.
The standing version was once a component of the sport of
Olympic weightlifting
Olympic weightlifting, or Olympic-style weightlifting (officially named Weightlifting), is a sport in which athletes compete in lifting a barbell loaded with weight plates from the ground to overhead, with each athlete trying to successfully lif ...
as part of the
clean and press The clean and press is a two-part weight training exercise whereby a loaded barbell is lifted from the floor to the shoulders (the clean) and Overhead press, pushed overhead (the press). The lift was a component of the sport of Olympic weightlifting ...
movement, but was removed in 1972 due to difficulties in judging proper technique.
The lift is set up by taking either a
barbell
A barbell is a piece of exercise equipment used in weight training, bodybuilding, weightlifting, powerlifting and strongman, consisting of a long bar, usually with weights attached at each end.
Barbells range in length from to above , alth ...
, a pair of
dumbbells or
kettlebells, and holding them at shoulder level. The weight is then pressed overhead. While the exercise can be performed standing or seated, standing recruits more muscles as more balancing is required in order to support the lift. Other variations of the exercise include the
push press, a similar movement that involves an additional dipping motion in the legs to increase momentum.
[ An overhead press may also be performed unilaterally, with the lift being performed one handed; or in an alternating fashion with both hands holding a dumbbell or kettlebell, and then pressing with one arm and then the other.]
See also
* Clean and press The clean and press is a two-part weight training exercise whereby a loaded barbell is lifted from the floor to the shoulders (the clean) and Overhead press, pushed overhead (the press). The lift was a component of the sport of Olympic weightlifting ...
* Push press
References
Further reading
*
*
{{Strength training exercises, state=collapsed
Weight training exercises