The fitness lover in you might have been more serious to upgrade your workout routine to the next level or go extreme. So, your eyes might have caught on to several apex strength training exercises. In that case, you might be thinking of the military press and the incredible transformation it could bring to your body. It is pretty sure that the best way to achieve the body of your dreams is to master them. However, the great challenge and risk that come on your way in performing it put you in a halt from trying it.
A Guide To Master Military Press
So you satisfy yourself with other forms of lifts whenever you hit the gym hoping that one day you would be able to do it without much effort. Believe me, you are not alone, this situation of yours is common among all, even those you see doing it perfectly were exactly in your shoes once before.
How To Master Military Press?
As nothing is impossible to achieve in the fitness world, you can also do and master the military press. All you want to do is invest trust in yourself and carefully achieve it step by step. And I am here to help you with some tips to make you an expert in doing it. Even if you have already included it in your workout regime, you can also assure whether you are doing it in the correct way after going through this guide.
Get The Perfect Warm-Up Session
To do military press correctly, don’t ever try heavy overhead presses all of a sudden. Because this may lead you to end up with injuries in the shoulder joints and the muscles around it. To begin with, you can set your body by doing 20 shoulders dislocates using a broom handle. Once you are done with it, you can do two sets of 30 light push presses. But ensure that you are taking 30 seconds to perform it and taking 30 seconds to rest after that. Repeat the two sets once again and you can rest for two minutes after that. Now you are ready to do some real moves.
Military Press Workout Guide
After you finish your warm-up session, you get to do sets of military press. But you need to make sure that you are beginning it light and expanding it into the maximum step by step.
Step#1
It would be ideal for you to get the support of a squat rack. Because you can avoid lifting the bar from the floor and go into position. You can set the barbell in the rack at the height of your middle chest.
Step#2
As you lift the barbell, you can hold it while keeping your hands a little bit more than the width of your shoulders. Place your palms facing forward. If your thumbs are over the bar, you can feel it is easier for your wrist to use the hook grip rather than placing it below the bar. But you are free to use your comfortable hold too.
Step#3
Now you can stand close to the bar and make a quarter squat by bending your knees. Now you need to take the bar off from the rack, so contract your core and glutes along with your legs to do it.
Step#4
Remember, the military press is different from the overhead press and you have to bring your legs too close together like a soldier who is ready to march on a parade. So you need to stand keeping your feet together and squeeze your glutes and core muscles hard and keep them tenses throughout. This will get you a strong base to perform well. Keep in mind that if you go soft in the middle, you will definitely lose power, and more pressure will be driven to your spine. In case you lose the tension in your muscles, you have to stop and put down the weight immediately.
Step#5
You can seek more support of your front body, side deltoids, and pec muscles in lifting heavy. In this way, you will also have more control over your movement too. So, keep the bar level with your chin and ensure to point forward your elbows and avoid flaring them out to your sides throughout.
Step#6
It’s time to drive the bar up. Inhale deep and tensing your glutes and torso, drive the bar straight up, and exhale as you press. When you are about to reach full extension, bring your biceps close to your ears by pushing your head forward. By doing this you can make sure that you are in good form and not bending your back.
Step#7
Bring the bar down without losing your control over it. When you bring it to the chin level, slightly move your head back to avoid clipping your forehead in between. Remember to keep your core tensed from the beginning to the end.
The military press is indeed an effective exercise to strengthen your shoulders, chest, triceps, and upper back. But remember to use the correct weight and avoid overloading the bar, as you may injure yourself.