The overhead press is a challenging exercise for many people due to the involvement of several muscle groups, including the shoulders, triceps, upper back, and core. One major reason why the overhead press can be difficult is that it requires proper control of the shoulder blades, which depends on the strength and coordination of several muscles.
The upper and lower trapezius muscles, as well as the muscles around the upper ribs (known as the serratus anterior), play important roles in rotating the scapula upward during the overhead press. If these muscles are weak or underdeveloped, they can fail to properly control the movement of the shoulder blades, leading to compensations or improper form.
Other factors that can contribute to difficulty with the overhead press include limited shoulder mobility, poor posture, and a weak core. Addressing these issues through exercises like shoulder mobility drills, core strengthening, and proper form cues can help improve your ability to perform the overhead press with proper technique and increased confidence.
Top 7 tips for improving your overhead press
- Build Stronger Scapular Stabilizers.
- Stretch the Lats and Triceps.
- Train Your Sticking Point.
- Build Stronger Triceps.
- Improve Your Posture.
- Control the Eccentric.
- Do Overhead Presses More Frequently.
Why is overhead press harder than bench press?
The overhead press requires greater front delt activation, whereas the bench press uses more pec activation. In terms of training goals for different activities, here are my broad recommendations: Powerlifters need to train the bench press, as it is one of the three competitive lifts.
Is it hard to progress on overhead press?
While the press is difficult to train, it is trainable. You do not need a lot of complicated assistance lifts to make your press stronger. The difficulty of training the press comes from the need for micro-adjustments and its relatively slow objective progress.
Is overhead press harder than bench press?
Overhead Pressing is More Important Than Horizontal Pressing. Lying flat on a bench with full back support can allow you to move big weight, but the amount of things it does for the actual health of your muscles and joints pales in comparison to anything done overhead.
Why do I struggle with overhead press?
You Lack Upper-Back Mobility
Although the overhead press is a shoulder-dominant exercise, it requires quite a bit of upper-back mobility, Chan says. If you’re unable to extend your upper back upward, you won’t be able to fully reach the press up.
Why am I plateauing on overhead press?
The most obvious reason is that it’s undertrained compared to the bench press and other related pressing exercises. You should be able to strict military press 60% of your max bench press – both in good form, of course.
Why is dumbbell overhead press so hard?
The Muscles That Work with Overhead Press
The three main muscles compromised your shoulders. The anterior deltoid (located at the front of the three-part shoulder muscle), activate when you push up. This muscle does the bulk of the work during the overhead press.
Why are shoulder presses so hard for me?
A standing shoulder press is widely regarded as more difficult because you’re using your whole body to lift the weight, including your core and legs, with nothing to stabilise your body as you lift the weight up above your head.
Shoulder Press Tips
- To get the most contraction out of your shoulders don’t fully extend your arms or touch the dumbbells together.
- When performing the exercise standing up, keep a slight bend in your knees and chin parallel to the floor.
How much can the average guy shoulder press?
The average Shoulder Press weight for a male lifter is 142 lb (1RM). This makes you Intermediate on Strength Level and is a very impressive lift. What is a good Shoulder Press? Male beginners should aim to lift 66 lb (1RM) which is still impressive compared to the general population.
Should you go heavy on shoulder press?
Start With An Overhead Press
Not only is choosing the right move crucial, but so is the weight: Go heavy with a resistance that causes muscle failure at about 6-8 reps. This is the lower end of the hypertrophy rep range, which goes as high as 12 reps.
Why can’t I progress on dumbbell shoulder press?
Most people do not properly train the smaller muscles between the shoulder blades which prevents them from progressing on the shoulder pre.
Why is shoulder press harder than bench press?
The muscles used in the press are all used to a degree in the bench press, and the reverse is also true. The supporting muscles simply need to work harder when executing the shoulder press, and this can lead to a greater discrepancy.
Why is the shoulder press machine harder than dumbbells?
It’s fixed resistance, so you can’t actually control how you move the weight. All you can do is follow the motion that the machine allows. This is the opposite of dumbbells, which are free weights and therefore allow you to move them any number of ways.
Why do I struggle with shoulder press?
Having a weak overhead press can be the result of many things, such as poor mobility, instability of the shoulders, previous injury, or simply lack of strength.
Is shoulder press a hard exercise?
It’s a demanding movement and one where it’s really easy to get stuck. Gains for the overhead press comes much more slowly and with much more effort than gains from squats or deadlifts.
7 Reasons Why Your Overhead Press Is Weak:
- You Aren’t Engaging Your Lower Body and Core.
- Your Hands Are Placed Too Wide or Too Narrow.
- You Are Training It Once a Week or Less or as an Accessory Movement.
- You Have an Inefficient Bar Path.
- You’re Pausing on Your Chest.
- You Have Poor Overhead Mobility.
- You Have Long Arms.