Press form check

[Rob G]

This is a press at 85 pounds. My progress is coming along very well however during this session I felt a slight pulling discomfort on the right side of my lower back.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v6UY...ature=youtu.be

[tmcnulty]

You're doing a good job keeping the intensity up--keeping the bar in motion and not wasting time--for the whole set. However, as a result, you're rushing through lockout. Think "higher, higher, higher," and get it as high as you can, every time.

Your back rounded at the end of your set. That's probably the cause of your discomfort. If you learn to thrust your hips forward to initiate the press, you'll lay back by hinging at your hips instead of overextending your back. They call it "Press 2.0" 'round these parts. If you decide you want to learn this technique, then there are good learning resources elsewhere on this site. I recommend getting some in-person coaching eventually, too.

[BareSteel]

Too loose. Squeeze your quads and you butt, clamp down HARD with the abs. Make your whole body tight and uncomfortable.

Pause at 0:22. Mcnulty said you rushed the lockout. See what he means? The bar is not over your head here. It's out in front. Finish the lift. Get under the bar.

It's a start. Let's see you clean these up a bit.

[Rob G]

Thanks for the feedback. Here's my attempt at the press 2.0 at 87.5 pounds. It's mentally difficult to keep track of the hips, the abs, the breathing, the quads, etc.. all at once.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MpfB...ature=youtu.be

[BareSteel]

Yes. It's definitely a lot to keep track of.

I want you to look at the bar path in that last video. Look at where the bar ends up at the very top. Is that plumb over your scapulae? If you looked at these from the side and drew an imaginary line down to your feet would the bar be over mid foot? I think you'll find that the bar, at the very top, is too far forward.

That, along with my previous comments about tightness.

[tmcnulty]

Like BareSteel said, the bar needs to be over your shoulder joint, not in front of your face, at lockout. And you gotta get tighter. But you're fully extended now, so good job.

Yes--there's a ton to work on. The press is surprisingly technical. It helps to prioritize one thing until it's pretty much automatic, then move on. I'd recommend working on things in this order:

1. Bar path and lockout position (start with the empty bar for this)
2. Anterior (ab/quad) tightness
3. Your grip
4. The Press 2.0 details, like hip hinging

Start this video halfway through, and mute the audio. Look at where everyone is locking the bar out, and copy them.

[BareSteel]

[*]Anterior (ab/quad) tightness

This is an excellent point to emphasize. In the press, when you fail to get tight enough and use your abs, glutes and quads to stay stable, the first thing to occur is lumbar over extension. This is not safe. For many lifts, people fear back rounding (flexion) as the worst enemy - for the press, it would be very unlikely to round. It's over extension that we're worried about.