← Exercise library
Getting confident Upper
Overhead Press
Pressing straight overhead. Start lighter than you think — shoulders are small joints.
- Sets & reps
- 3 sets of 10 reps
- Type
- Compound (upper body)
- What you need
- Dumbbells or barbell
Muscles worked
- Shoulders
- Triceps
- Chest
- Traps
Shoulders (deltoids), triceps, pectorals (chest), trapezius
What do these muscles do? →How to do it
- Step 1Walk up to the bar and grab it slightly wider than shoulder-width apart, palms facing away from your body.
- Step 2Step back with the bar resting in your hands, right around collarbone level.
- Step 3Brace your abs, squeeze your glutes, and tilt your head back slightly to create a path for the bar.
- Step 4Drive the bar straight up toward the ceiling. Once it passes your forehead, bring your head back to neutral and fully straighten your arms overhead — abs and glutes tight, without arching your lower back.
- Step 5Slowly bring the bar back to your shoulders, tilting your head back again to let it pass by.
Watch it done
A demonstration of the overhead press from start to finish.
These videos are external resources found online and are not my own content. Feel free to do your own research as well.
Common mistakes
- Not keeping your elbows in.
- Not keeping your abs and glutes engaged throughout.
Can't quite do it yet?
Everyone starts somewhere. Try these easier variations until the full movement feels within reach.
- Use dumbbells instead of a barbell — easier on the shoulders.
- Seated dumbbell press — sit with back support to take the lower back out of it.
- Drop the weight: start light enough to press without arching your back.
Why it's worth doing
- Makes lifting things overhead — bags, boxes — feel simple.
- Builds shoulder stability that protects the joint.