Press - Multi-rep sets

[MiddleMike]

How much am I missing out on by doing my multi-rep press sets with only the first rep starting from the bottom and the others coming from the top and utilizing some of the stretch reflex?
Should I reset the weight and focus on starting from the bottom on each and every rep? SSBT3 notes the approach but does not come out and say always start from the bottom.

43yr, 175lbs, still making slow gains with LP, though as expected presses have plateaued early.

[Michael Wolf]

In order to do the Press 2.0, you need to re-set at the bottom of each rep. This is the best way to do it and the way I recommend learning and then progressing upwards.

Many of us who learned the regular press (Press 1.0, if you will), never transitioned over in earnest. The two styles are sufficiently similar that it takes quite a bit of work to get the new way when you learned something similar but not quite the same. Many good lifters and coaches simply didn't want to take the time and weight off the bar that it would require to transition over to the Press 2.0 for an already proficient and strong presser in the 1.0 style.

Personally I did transition, but it took me a while and I never got quite as used to it as I was to utilizing the stretch reflex. When I do a set of 5, my first and last reps are Press 2.0 but the middle three I breathe at the top and use a stretch reflex at the bottom. One of my clients refers to this jokingly as the Press 1.5. When I do a single, it's ALWAYS Press 2.0.

In all honesty, I'd probably be best off in the long run by doing what it took to transition fully even for sets of 5. This is how I coach all new lifters I work with, and I highly recommend it since you're still doing LP and aren't all that strong on the press yet. Do it now, while the transition is much easier. If you get strong using the stretch reflex, it'll be a lot harder to switch later.

[sidd]

For us that are newer to this business, is Press 1.0 the same as the military press? A link to a video would be great, just for comparison. Thanks.

[Michael Wolf]

For us that are newer to this business, is Press 1.0 the same as the military press? A link to a video would be great, just for comparison. Thanks.

The problem is that the term "military press" is used by different people to mean different things. The main difference is that the Press 1.0 did not initiate the movement with the hips. The bar was held in position and rep 1 was pressed "strictly" with a bit of lean back to get your face out of the way of a vertical bar path, and then you got under the bar as it finished to lockout. Reps 2-5 could be performed in this manner, or touch-n-go style with a stretch reflex at the bottom.

[MiddleMike]

Thanks Wolf, I will reset today and see how it goes. Hopefully, it will get me through the plateau I've hit at 120lb. May be time to visit a coach again which really never seems to be a bad thing!

[perman]

In order to do the Press 2.0, you need to re-set at the bottom of each rep. This is the best way to do it and the way I recommend learning and then progressing upwards.

Many of us who learned the regular press (Press 1.0, if you will), never transitioned over in earnest. The two styles are sufficiently similar that it takes quite a bit of work to get the new way when you learned something similar but not quite the same. Many good lifters and coaches simply didn't want to take the time and weight off the bar that it would require to transition over to the Press 2.0 for an already proficient and strong presser in the 1.0 style.

Personally I did transition, but it took me a while and I never got quite as used to it as I was to utilizing the stretch reflex. When I do a set of 5, my first and last reps are Press 2.0 but the middle three I breathe at the top and use a stretch reflex at the bottom. One of my clients refers to this jokingly as the Press 1.5. When I do a single, it's ALWAYS Press 2.0.

In all honesty, I'd probably be best off in the long run by doing what it took to transition fully even for sets of 5. This is how I coach all new lifters I work with, and I highly recommend it since you're still doing LP and aren't all that strong on the press yet. Do it now, while the transition is much easier. If you get strong using the stretch reflex, it'll be a lot harder to switch later.

I changed to your method after I read it. Tried 2.0 when the video came out since you were supposed to get higher weight, but didn't. Discovered since then that my 1st rep when doing Press 1.0 always had had a little knee action, wasn't really conscious of it. Even when I devoted several months to Press 2.0, I found doing all 5 reps of it a little too technical.

Your method worked for me too, was a good compromise for a mechanically retarded person.

[Michael Wolf]

Thanks Wolf, I will reset today and see how it goes. Hopefully, it will get me through the plateau I've hit at 120lb. May be time to visit a coach again which really never seems to be a bad thing!

Definitely a good thing. At 43 and 175 lbs, you can almost certainly get your press past 120. Where do you live?

I changed to your method after I read it. Tried 2.0 when the video came out since you were supposed to get higher weight, but didn't. Discovered since then that my 1st rep when doing Press 1.0 always had had a little knee action, wasn't really conscious of it. Even when I devoted several months to Press 2.0, I found doing all 5 reps of it a little too technical.

Your method worked for me too, was a good compromise for a mechanically retarded person.

Are you calling me a mechanically retarded person, Perman?

[MiddleMike]

Lunch time training went pretty well, even with the reset. Definitely need some coaching on Press 2.0! My form felt decent until the work sets. Actually "felt" the hip movement working at 105, but only managed 3x3 at work weight of 120. I suspect it suffered form the change in form, mental focus was stuck on reminding myself to come back down and start over for each rep. Newbie problem I know, but I gotta work through the cues/focus for each lift as I get better.

I'm in San Diego.

[perman]

Are you calling me a mechanically retarded person, Perman?

It may work well for awesome natural athletes like yourself too.

[Adam Skillin]

Glad I'm not the only one who only manages to use 2.0 mechanics on certain reps. Reps 2 and 3 are almost always 1.0 for me, but I think I'm finally managing a decent 2.0 on reps 1, 4, & 5.