Im a newbie, and the strict press is probably my favorite exercise. Obviously it's the lightest lift, but it makes me feel like Superman when I lift those measley 95lbs overhead. I hope to be able to strict press 135lbs by New Years.

There´s something about lifting stuff above your head it's just so satisfying

Push press was a game changer for me, once I really started getting good at it my push press went from 55kg to 90kg in a couple months and still going up

Push Press is incredible. Really helped me with grinding through push motions, and the gains to your stabilizers is insaneeeee. My bench press flew up because I always get stuck half way up (meaning weak triceps). I like to hold the last rep at the top to get even more work from my stabilizing musculature

I do my OHP before my deadlifts. I start with strict press and then switch to push press once I can't do a proper rep. I appreciate this video and some of your past tips for the push press. It's one of the most personally satisfying lifts when you complete a heavy rep!

I have what I call a “strongman’s jerk” it’s not terribly pretty but for log, axle and CDB it’s helped elevate my numbers. It’s helped my CDB the most. I’m the only super heavyweight I know that split jerks a dumbbell. Spot on analysis I’m a pretty athletic guy and the movement came naturally.

Push Press improves strict press. To improve Push Press do jumping squats, kinda weird when I first did em, but they do improve the pop when Push pressing. Just start with the bar 1st

It feels to me like the "head through the window" version actually finishes the movement with respect to shoulder and upper back contraction and keeping your head looking up and your arms at an angle to your torso is like a low-ROM version. It's almost like the difference between bouncing your deads or bench and doing strict full/paused reps. A lot of guys have trouble with that range of shoulder flexion, but if you work on it, it helps get into the squat position a lot more comfortably.

Love the overhead press content. I think if you created an ebook on the overhead press, it would compliment the deadlift book you have.

Freakie D specializes in this

When I started overhead pressing my 1 rep max was 165. In only a year, I added 50 pounds to my OHP push press and locked out 205. I push pressed 220 pounds recently. 2 big plates! It was one of my biggest accomplishments in life. And if felt heavy as fu@k! My bench press 1 rep max is also about 65 pounds heavier than is was before I started OHPing. So yeah, the push press was my gateway into the world 315 bench presses, etc.

most comprehensive OHP video ive ever found... thanx dude!

With only access to barbells at my gym, i focused on push press after achieving 60kg strict OHP. With a good foundation the push press numbers went up very fast. Got first place on the Strongman comp where i had to log press (never had done one before) so def carry over

I’m 6’8” and I LOVE push press. My arms are hella long and there’s something truly addicting about holding the weight over my head where it’s near the ceiling. It just makes me feel more like a giant, lol

Man who draws the human figures. Those are perfect.

i think the "pause " aspect of lifting that is resurging rn is due to the emphasis of controlled eccentric for growth. Same reason you experienced growth with rdl and even touch and go if your eccentric is somewhat controlled. i like the pause in strict press , makes me want to own each reps but yeah definitely taxing past 6/8 reps. fantastic video btw thanks !

Commiting to strict press is a flex by itself, but it also lets you transition to push press to go "beyond" failure. You can do it seated also which proves it's strict to onlookers and takes less space.

your artistic abilities are becoming top notch. that "Jerk" illustration though!

If someone can strict press their bodyweight i consider them a badass

Great video and I respect the effort you put in the drawings on the board.

Just started strict pressing and pushing again, and I've gotta say, the one thing that always brings my OHP up is doing a mixed OHP and bench program. Guess I'm just built that way.

Part of the "collarbone school of thought" is that the energy exerted when you start driving is directly transferred to the bar. If you initiate the movement when the bar is at the chin, the bar can descend prior, creating a less efficient movement pattern.

I like doing pin presses to work on my weak points on my strict press. Mini bands help since my spotter arms have provisions for band pegs. That and using a football bar to mimic a log press. The Split jerk definitely requires a lot of technique which is why I prefer the power jerk. It's just as effective with less skill needed. I found when I did did split jerk I picked up a bit of the Toma Shuffle which is definitely not optimal. Somehow Loradona Toma makes it work for her.

I'm 175cm long(or short)😅..and weigh around 230lbs, being training all my life, playing elite hockey 🏒 until i got 16years, after that i just proceeded powerlifting to keep the shape and when i was 40 years old i benched 200kg raw and strictly ohp 100kg easy..so i just wanna say that nothing is impossible if you just keep doing it if you really love it & are consistently!💪🤗..and it takes time and pasions to get really strong, that's the reality!! Just my five cents.. greetings from Sweden to you all great Americans ❤️🇸🇪🇸🇪🇸🇪

Newbie to powerlifting here. This video relieved a lot of anxiety for me regarding the grip and head movement. I find myself switching back and forth instead of committing to one way.

Thank you Mr. Bromley. The work you create is never unappreciated. Excellent video!

Trying to get 225 strict hopefully some push press might help a bit

I definitely agree rebounding or touch n go on something when it’s in the program for the purpose of repping. Which sounds vague but I think that makes sense lol

21:48 it really does depend. Working sets of strength training and working sets of power/speed training, the rebound helps you keep a breathing rhythm and time under tension, and makes it easier to initiate fatiguing you less, yet, in the other case, for training that initial force production, like with powerlifting, training a 4s pause can be very very optimal, since the stretch reflex has dissipated and the bottom position is your pin to press from. With squats i will go through many different rhythms just to warm up my CNS and probably could benefit the same (I.e 1.5 reps, 1.5 with a pause at .5, double bounces, single bounce, quick pause, long pause)

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Tumbless grip is my go-to and especially a very rough knurl bar. Most I got rn is 185 for 5.

I start my overhead sessions with heavy Push Press, and finish with a super high incline seated press (AD Press) to make sure I’m getting as much fatigue built up in the shoulders through the whole range of motion

No memes, no stupid ‘comedy intro skit’, just straight advice. Awesome video. Going to try and put more cleans into my programming but I find that cleans and DL don’t like being mixed in

DIDNT WATCH, WILL WATCH NOW, BUT I HAVE TRIED AD PRESS AND ITS NASTY GOOD.

Man I really appreciate these breakdowns.

Seen three of your videos now, have no clue why I hadn’t subbed until now

i can't believe i just found out about you ,absolute king and i really appreciate you

One of the best compound exercises in my option.Big press is a true test of strength.Feel extremely strong after doing this.

This is incredibly useful stuff.

Pressing from my collar bone made my press stagnate for YEARS. I thought there was something wrong with me, I tried every variation and every accessory but I could not get my press above 175 while the rest of my lifts were shooting up. But finally I'm seeing progress now that I'm pressing from above the collar bone. Crazy how you are the first person I've seen even mention this. Could have done me some serious good 5 years ago.

19:25 - and when you go to a competition make sure to check out the rulebook. Like in my countries national strongman federation you dont get a downsignal if you dont bring your head in.

Hey brother, just thought you might want to know that your shirt says "Big Plans, Bad Genes" big dreams is more like "大きな夢" doesn't really matter I guess, gets the same idea across

Great info. Thanks. As a 48 year old who lifts for health, Fitness and longevity, I like a slight push press. As you use the term, general development, I agree. I want something that systemically makes me stronger for when I jog, and hike and even my daily work, which involves movement.

I found push press hits my triceps hard and then reduces my pressing ability on subsequent exercises. Also it hits my core/low back so I don't use it if I can't get 7+ hours sleep consistently. So strict press when my life is relatively hectic and sleep is at a premium. Push press when I can have perfect rest and nutrition.

For stability I squeeze my butt like you said but I also try to spread my feet apart and I feel really locked in.

Wow great info! I almost can't keep up lol

Thanks for this. I was just searching for this kind of an explanation recently.

Thanx Alexander , I have applied so much of your tips,it works great 👍🏻

Great video, exactly what I’ve been trying to figure out on my overhead press. Also Alex, congrats on the baby on the way!

I like to do push presses, but control the weight on the way down until it's at my chin, then I drop it. That reliably makes my shoulders sore, and weak the next day. I can't say that about the strict press.

Push press is more intimidating to me than deadlifts squats and bench press. My max push press is 255 lbs. It's scary having that much weight directly over my head. Sometimes I get light headed when bringing the weight back down. Push press strength goes quicker and takes longer to build back up than it does for me on the other three compound lifts. I look forward to it, it's a enjoyable explosive exercise.

I have tried something Pavel Tsatsouline did in one of his programs: alternating 2 week blocks of grinding and explosive, doing 2 weeks of KB clean and jerk (this jerk is more like a push press really) Then 2 weeks of grinding overhead press. I also structured the rest of the exercises to be either grinding exercises or more explosive exercises. Like squats, bench, dips, pullups, rows, deadlifts etc on grind blocks, KB c&j, clapping pushups, krocc rows, rope climbing, sled drags, sled rope pulling, sled 'upright rows', kb swings, jumps, sprints and so on on explosive blocks. Included some HIT cardio on explosive blocks, more long steady state on grinding blocks. Great for recovery without deloading because the stimulus is so different. Great for keeping progressions going. Great for combining explosive and grinding in a program, great for keeping workouts fun. The thing is that you usually gain strength after 2 weeks off an exercise. So after 2 weeks of working on the other block, you are almost always stronger when you get back to the first block. It takes more than 2 weeks to start detraining for explosive exercises, for grinding strength it takes even longer. I liked it a lot. I recommend his book 'return of the kettlebell'. I did adapt his program heavily because I think it is a bit cookie cutter and I am not a fan of some aspects of his workouts, like the insane long ladder workouts with 100's of reps of the same exercise, the lack of assistance exercises and so on. But I did implement lots of principles from that book.

Thank you so much on these OHP type video, I always come back to your channel when I want to learn more about overhead strength 💪 I specialize in OHP because of the sternum pain (costochondritis) so I can't bench medium/heavy but I can target my chest better with rings then with dumbbells Concerning the neck movement during OHP, I had about three neck cramps from moving the chin up and down instead forward and backward (double chin)... So if anyone has the same problem like mi try that and also WARM UP you neck and upper back

The Press is the ultimate test of upper body strength.

Not related to this video, but I recently read your book Base Strength and wanted to tell you that I was amazed by the content and quality of it. Congratulations on that great work.

Thanks for the video. Good info as always. I think starting strength calls the strict press 'military press.' It has kind of a macho sound to it.

Bar starting on the chest and touching again to get a complete rep 👍

I also find starting high and lowering it reduces the risk of injury. I think it also preps the neurology besides a slingshot effect like bench pressing vs, dead bench pressing of the pins at or near the bottom.

Did you actually draw those figures on the white board? Very impressive!

Very informative but I'm more impressed wit your drawings capabilities

omfg that shirt is everything I've ever wanted!

Thanks Alex!

Love your channel. I've watched the squat video and it was high quality. Funnily enough i love OHP too. Im here for this! ❤

I just train for hypertrophy. So I like to stand and strict press, when I can't complete anymore I start push pressing for a couple more negative reps

my shoulders were stiff and hurting yesterday, i did ohp seriously for the first time and i woke up with no pain

Surprised that you didn't talk about maintaining an activated core throughout the exercise to help protect the back. Other people have said that you get enough front delt development from bench work, so I've dropped it off my program and focus mainly on side and rear delts to get a more balanced shoulder. I've also cut down on volume in my late 40s to protect joints.

my main lift is seated overhead press, then i finish with doing strict standing military press just to work on form really, don't imagine trying to go heavy standing, I feel like I'd fold like origami lol.

Great stuff. 38:45 had me cracking up! I like using some density training to up the stimulus lately for volume. Sets of 5 with very moderate weight with short rests (~1min for most lifts). I saw Pavel talk about this on Joe Rogan and saw Pave write about it in the Russian Bear program. I’m getting great stimulus on most lifts now without the high fatigue cost that comes with burnout sets or heavy loads.

Currently in a bulking phase just trying to get to 100lbs for a few sets of 15 then im gonna get serious with programming, microloading and going by feel has been working well. Definitely gonna reference this video once i feel like an intermediate

I was wondering why my biceps and tendons were inflamed, thank you

Was waiting for this. You rock!

Damn Bromley back at it again with the consistent uploads

I saw that shirt, and instantly knew I had to buy it

I love OH Press. I’ve gone from 55 lbs (January 5) to 95 lbs (January 24th). I do three OH press lifts every two weeks. Currently, I’m moving up five lbs each time. I’m hoping that I can hit 135 by late February!

I am 16 year old..I started doing OHP like 1 week ago and I'm at 88lbs currently... My goal is 220lbs OHP .. Hopefully I can get it soon..

Head-back pressing vs head-through pressing: Are they judged differently in comps? Has it ever been judged a no-lift when the head was kept back?

Those drawings are quite detailed actually. Good job.

HSPU has carried over well enough towards OHP in my case

Your drawings have improved so much haha

10/10 thumbnail

Love your videos bro keep up with the great information so helpful 💯💯💯

i learned a lot today.

Ohp is my favorite lift having a -10cm ape index Also it ends in a victory pose

Head through the window! ;) All jokes aside, great video on a very important subject, and the underlining is great; what works for you and makes you feel the most "at ease and natural", that's what you do.

Not doing touch and go deadlifts will train the part that is used more at the bottom, so touch and go will improve the strength of the lockout because the bottom end is not the limiting factor. Doing a stretch at the bottom of the bench press will 100% improve the chest. stretching a muscle under load always works, for the target muscle. You aren't stretching the top end strength at the pause of a deadlift so that's why it doesn't work.

I want that shirt.

Another fantastic video ❤💪

Im doing the alternate dip to ohp, but i wasnt doing the ohp acessory on dip day and acessory dip on ohp days, I think i will try it out

I just did 80kg for 5 sets of 6 reps today. Will be going up to 85kg for 4 sets of 6 next work out (I stay at that weight until I can work up to 5 sets). Checked my 1 Rep max calculator on my app and it's predicting 105kg - so I'm going to go for the 100kg PR next work out! Wish me luck!

When I was in HS, we (wrestling team) had contest to see who could strict press their BW first. I used a Bulgarian method and maxed out every day and hit 165lbs in two weeks! I didn't win though, the little guys did. Not related at all to this vid, just reminded me of the "event".

Man Alex i gotta say. I tried your 100lb in 10 weeks squat program and it's been wonderful. Already completed 5 weeks and went from 110kg -> 130kg today, 20kg or 44lbs increase in a bit over a month!. When is a similar bench program gonna release?? Just asking 😆

Omw to 135 lb strict press next week

definitely move head forward

My issue that is stopping me progressing past bw ohp is that my left hand always slightly different rotation to my right hand and if I try to change it I cant push as much

i'm 5'2 139lbs and can overhead press (strict press, not pushed press) 100lbs for 6 reps but barely can i lift 115 for 6 reps on the incline dumbell bench, i feel like i must be doing something wrong because i've never heard of anyone else having their OHP and IBP numbers so close to each other, anything i should look out for to fix this?

I got my strict press to reps with 220 (seated), then started pin and ultimately push press. The thought of working out with 225 (4, 45 plates) was just too intoxicating to keep doing seated strict press…

My overhead press is going up. I’m at 245x3x3. I wish it was going up more than 4-6lbs a month but oh well. My bench is going up too so whatever….

Ahh, this is my nemesis (well, after deadlift), one of the lifts that seems like it's never gonna get close to anything impressive, even for my hobbit sized body. Thank you for the tips, lots to think about now.

I am really proud to be a part of the righteous new wave of Smart Meatheads

Had frozen shoulder for over a year, well still have it a bit. Started ohp july 2023, could do 10 reps of 50lbs max. Worked my way up to doing 90lbs for 10-12 reps, super slow grind but trying to do it safely. May try a 1rm strict press soon just to soothe curiousity, thinking 120-130lbs maybe?