Push Press

1. Take the bar from a rack into the front rack position, resting on your shoulders with elbows slightly in front of the bar and a grip just outside shoulder width.
2. Stand with feet hip to shoulder width apart, core braced, gaze forward.
3. Inhale and dip by bending your knees about 10 to 15 cm, keeping your torso perfectly vertical.
4. Reverse the dip immediately, driving hard through your whole foot to extend hips and knees explosively.
5. As the leg drive launches the bar off your shoulders, punch your arms to full lockout overhead, exhaling through the press.
6. Finish with the bar stacked over your shoulders, hips, and mid foot, biceps beside your ears.
7. Lower the bar back to the front rack under control, bending your knees slightly to absorb it.
8. Reset your breath and stance before the next rep.

Common Mistakes

• Dipping forward: letting the chest tip forward in the dip sends the bar out in front and turns the drive into a swing; the dip must be strictly vertical.
• Pausing at the bottom of the dip: hesitating kills the stretch reflex and the transfer of leg drive; the reversal should be immediate.
• Pressing around the chin: failing to move the head back slightly forces a forward bar path; clear the chin, then bring the head through at lockout.
• Turning it into a slow strict press: if the legs stop contributing you lose the entire point; keep the dip and drive crisp and connected.

Programming Tips

The push press uses a shallow leg dip to launch the bar past the sticking point of the strict press, which lets you handle roughly 10 to 30 percent more weight overhead. That overload is the whole point, so program it as a strength movement: 3 to 5 sets of 2 to 5 explosive reps early in the session, when speed is still sharp. It builds the delts and triceps through heavy lockouts and teaches full body power transfer.

The dip is the technical detail that decides everything. Keep it short and vertical, only 10 to 15 cm of knee bend with the torso upright, then drive hard through the whole foot and punch the bar to lockout. Letting the dip get deep and slow turns the lift into a thruster and kills the rebound. Control the bar back to the shoulders with re-bent knees on each rep; lowering stiff-legged is what makes heavy push pressing feel brutal the next day.

Common Questions

Is the push press cheating on the overhead press?

No, it is a different lift with a different job. The strict press builds the raw pressing strength, and the push press uses leg drive deliberately to overload the top half and train power. Strong programs usually include both.

How much more should I push press than strict press?

Most lifters land 10 to 30 percent above their strict press once the timing clicks. If your push press barely beats your strict press, the dip and drive need work, not your shoulders.

Why does the bar drift forward when I drive up?

Either the dip travels onto the toes or the elbows drop before the drive. Keep the whole foot planted, the elbows slightly in front of the bar, and think about pressing yourself down under a bar that goes straight up.