Checkin in with my press 2.0

[Nick-H]

I recently tweaked my neck pressing, The last rep was too heavy and I tried to make it happen which resulted in me messing up my neck. So I took 10% off and wanted to do a form check.

Here is my video of my last set at 117.5lb
http://youtu.be/PhqtqyR3ZEs

Thanks for your time

[Paul Horn]

Hey Nick,

About every 6 months I start "tweaking" my neck pressing. It's a gentle reminder that I spend too much time in front of a computer, and I need to go get a real hard sports massage. It works wonders, buddy.

Regarding your press:

1. Get more aggressive with your hips. You're barely moving them. Shove the hips way out over the toes and rebound off that aggressive stretch.
2. Keep the bar closer to your face. Right now you are going around it. I'm sure the ladies love that devilish smile, but they also love guys that can press heavy. Aim for the nose!
3. Finally, at the top, lock it out, shrug up and then bring the bar back down. If you stand there with the bar over head too long, you'll wear yourself out. Pick up the pace a bit.

Keep pressing!

[Nick-H]

Right on the legend himself... Just wanna say I'm honored to be coached by he who has biceps bigger than my head. I'm glad you like my devilish smile as well, been working on that for a while. I'll take this to my next pressing session on Monday though. Thanks for the advice Paul.

[Paul Horn]

No problem. If you check back in, throw up a video or photo that shows your grip width. We should probably look at that too.

[Nick-H]

Alright here is a video of yesterdays work set.

http://youtu.be/YNOYcifquuk

I feel like I have made some improvements on the hip bounce, looks like twice as much as the previous video however the bar bath from my nose to lockout seems a little skewed? I know there is suppose to be some horizontal displacement on this lift but this just looks a little off to me. I tried keeping it much closer to my nose as well. As for my grip I wasn't able to get a picture but I line up feet about a shoulder width apart, then do half a thumb's length away from where the knurling starts and grip there. (like a bench grip but line it up in the middle of my thumb instead of the end) Forearms are vertical from both a front view and side view thanks to the convenient hundreds of mirrors...

Thanks for the help.

[Paul Horn]

This is much better. Nice work, buddy! Now I want you to work on getting tighter and more stable. Before you start pressing, make sure you take a big breath and squeeze the hell out of your quads and abs. It's hard to see your grip from this angle, but I'm guessing you could bring it closer. There are very few guys I know that need to grip the bar more than an inch outside the knurl. Play around with it. Try lining up your index finger with the edge of the knurl. When you take the bar out, squeeze your elbows together and up (slightly). See if this produces a vertical forearm. It may be uncomfortable at first but narrowing your grip will also help with stability.

[Briks42]

Hey Paul, just wanted to let you know that in your very few posts here so far, you have explained the press 2.0 in a way I better understand it than anyone previous. This isn't a knock on Rip or any of the other coaches, but your explanation just turned the light switch on for me personally regarding the form. Figured I'd let you know.

[Paul Horn]

Thank you. Feedback like that is always nice to hear, and I really appreciate you taking the time to write it. If there's one thing I've learned through the process of fixing my own lifts and helping others, it's that you have to keep looking for the cue that works for you. When I went through the Starting Strength Seminar I thought I would sail through the deadlift platform. When my turn came to pull my final set, the room was quiet and everyone, including Rip, was staring at me. I pulled my first rep and when I set it down all I heard was Rip's voice go, "Ewwwwwwww!" I was informed that I could not set my back properly and had to take a bunch of weight off the bar. It was pretty humiliating. I spent the next few months reading and re-reading the deadlift chapter. I'd highlight sections and write down cues to try in the gym. I filmed every set. I'd think of a cue, pull the set, look at the video and shake my head in disappointment when I saw my round low back. After months of this trial and error, I was re-reading the book and found a line I'd probably read 1,000 times about squeezing the hamstrings before pulling a deadlift. I had tried this before, but I was always thinking about the proximal aspect of the hamstrings. This time I tried squeezing them distally, behind the knees. It felt really good and when I looked at the video my back was almost perfectly flat. The point of my long-ass story is that it may take you a really long time to find the right cue. The answer is most likely in the book or on this board somewhere, and everyone here has a different way of explaining the material. What clicks for another guy might do nothing for you, but you've got to keep digging. All that being said, I'm glad I could help you with this one, brother!

[Nick-H]

Right on, I will work on keeping everything tighter, this is something I need to work on with all my lifts. I am only 5 months into lifting and never adopted that habit.. but I will really focus on it with my next set. When playing with my grip width what am I looking for? am I simply adjusting for more stability? what else should I feel improve throughout the ROM? also does my bar path look alright? Ill post back on monday with a video from the front with grip clearly distinguished.

Your deadlift adventure sounds like what my cleans are gonna turn into, hopefully not but I feel like I am still searching for that right cue! nicely put though thanks again for your help.

[Paul Horn]

The tighter you can get, the better you will recruit motor units, the more weight you can lift. It's a critical component of every rep, and each lift has a moment, before the bar moves, where you get set. You take a big breath and squeeze what you're supposed to squeeze, then you go. Make this a habit. The benefits are particularly evident on the bench press. Most novice lifters that come into my gym haven't been coached to pinch their scapulae and drive with their legs. As a result, they're rather wobbly on the bench. Once they learn to get tighter and more stable they can devote all their attention to driving the bar up, which usually allows us to add more weight.

Regarding your grip, you are looking for vertical forearms with the bar resting in the heel of the palms and your elbows just slightly in front of the bar. This is the most efficient position from which to drive the bar straight up. You will have to squeeze yourself into this position and it should feel very tight. If your grip is too wide, you will have a tendency to let your elbows drop behind the bar over the course of the set. This is will cause you to push the bar away from your body instead of straight up. If you aren't used to the close grip, it probably won't feel very natural at first. But, soon, you'll realize the added stability and efficiency of the position will keep your press moving in the right direction.

Try it. Repost. Rock on.