Military press

[Ozz2001]

Ok today i decided to move my hands on the bar abit to see how it would work and i got about 20lbs more by moving them in 4inchs and easyer on my bad shoulder too...Ok i use to have my hand, with index finger on the smooth little ring towards the outside of bar which anyone that uses a 45lb bar would know what i am talking about.Now i have my pinkie finger there which brings my hand in 4 inchs closer on bar..Now will this take anything away from doing this correctly? I seem to lift much more and easyer on the joints and get a good delt trap pump...This wont cause me to use more tri will it? I dont feel much of a differents other then less stress on my joints any good info would be apreciated...Thanks

 

[Vita]

it's obviously a good thing when you can feel less stress on your joints and can move more weight. go with what feels right/natural for you, as you don't want to injure yourself...

 

[LiftingDukkha]

Hmm, this seems like changing the grip width on bench press. At times I can do more with a wide grip, even a very wide grip, but this is mostly due to the physical fact that the bar has less distance to travel. When I go really wide, sometimes I have to be cautious if I start to feel some pain in my shoulders. The distance you're talking about, I normally bench press with my index or middle finger either right on that outer ring of the barbell, or I move my hands one thumb's-length inside (so thumb-tips just touch the rings when thumbs are stretched out). Both these positions seem about the same as your military press hand positions; and I consider both these "normal" bench pressing positions. Anything wider than that outer rings, and I consider that a Widegrip Bench; and anything closer than one thumb's-length inside of the rings, and I consider that a Closegrip Bench. IMO, having your hands in that position won't really add that much more triceps to the movement. And if it feels better for your shoulders, then IMO you ought to listen to your own body & go with the flow!

 

[musketeer]

I got a big boost from doing this too. My hands are literally beside my shoulders when I powerclean the bar. This will allow the front delts and triceps to drive more directly, but slightly reduces the action of the medial delts and traps. I decided to try the closer grip after seeing ronnie coleman do it in his Unbelieveable DVD.

Note that: I also do a wider grip clean and jerk and (very wide grip) snatches too. I lift overhead nearly every time I train - it gives your upper body a much more powerful look.

 

[cubuff27]

Same here..I usually bench with my first finger on the ring. When I do overhead military I put my pinky on the ring. Much morecomfortable for my shoulder joints.

 

[Ozz2001]

Ok thanks guys for the info K too all ! I wasnt sure if it was a give and take thing going there but it sure as hell gives me a much better push all round and no joint discomfort and we all know what happens when you trash a shoulder..down for a long count! Now lets see how high my press goes up in a month i bet alot more.....Lift Heavy Get Big...peace

 

[anthrax]

I do overhead press behind the neck
wide grip
and I lock out my elbows at the top

 

[blut wump]

If I'm doing military press, I prefer my hands on the second rings. When I'm doing push press I prefer my hands on the first rings.

 

[cubuff27]

FYI...don't do them behind the neck. That puts undo pressure on your shoulder joints...asking for an injury there.

 

[rbtrout]

I have more shoulder pain with the wider grip on shoulder press - index finger on the ring. I'm going to try them with the slightly narrower grip and see how it feels. I can't do behind the head with much weight - kills my shoulder.

 

[anthrax]

FYI...don't do them behind the neck. That puts undo pressure on your shoulder joints...asking for an injury there.

It's what I thought too

.... until a chiro (who lifts heavy) told me it was actually quite the opposite and that it was good IF done properly

 

[thelion2005]

Ok today i decided to move my hands on the bar abit to see how it would work and i got about 20lbs more by moving them in 4inchs and easyer on my bad shoulder too...Ok i use to have my hand, with index finger on the smooth little ring towards the outside of bar which anyone that uses a 45lb bar would know what i am talking about.Now i have my pinkie finger there which brings my hand in 4 inchs closer on bar..Now will this take anything away from doing this correctly? I seem to lift much more and easyer on the joints and get a good delt trap pump...This wont cause me to use more tri will it? I dont feel much of a differents other then less stress on my joints any good info would be apreciated...Thanks

On standing front presses .... my hands are 31" apart, little finger to little finger. This is inside the smooth rings on my bar. I don't feel anything in the tri's .... all delts and bit of upper chest. Makes the press rotary cuff friendly and centered down the torso.

I'm looking at a pic of Arnold doing front presses seating on a bench. He has a wide grip with the forefinger on the smooth ring. Handling 145 like it was a bare bar.

For seated behind the necks ... I like a wider grip ... 40". Really puts stress on the joint and the delts. I remember a pic of the Barbarian Brothers doing bnp with 3 plates each side ... Unreal!!

I think you found what works for you. Great!

 

[BOWTECH]

Listen to your body if you are feeling pain change hand placement, lighten the weight or whatever you have to do. Shoulder pain is a bitch and they are very easy to injure and very hard to recover from.