As a beginner, one of the most important things you can do is practice and reinforce proper form and technique on the primary movements — The squat, military press, deadlift, bench press, and pendlay row. Secondly, you need a low testosterone booster which is going to help you with your workout in a significant way. These exercises target some of the main movement patterns your body can perform and provide the greatest stimulus for strength and size gains.
Learning and reinforcing proper form and technique as a beginner will set you up for a successful training career and help prevent injury down the road.
The military press is another name for a standing barbell overhead press. The military press is primarily a shoulder exercise but also involves recruitment of the upper back and upper chest, as well as requiring a stabilizing aspect from the back, midsection, and lower body.
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Here are form and technique cues to focus on when learning to military press:
Just like the squat, you want to set the bar up in the rack so that the height of the bar is about level with your collarbone.
Grab the bar just outside shoulder-width apart. As with the squat, I prefer a false grip when military pressing. This is personal preference but I actually feel more stable holding the bar this way versus wrapping my thumb around the bar.
Unrack the bar and take two steps back just like the squat. In the starting position, the bar should be just above your collarbone and your elbows should be tucked in. This means they are pointing out in front of your body versus if they were flared out they would be pointing out to the sides.
Your feet should be approximately hip-width apart during a military press.
Take a deep breath in and begin to press the bar up. You want to keep the bar as close to your body as possible throughout the entire movement. This means the bar should be as close to your face as possible as your press it over your head.
As you press the bar up and over your head, flare your elbows out on the ascent and push your chest out as you lock out the bar overhead.
In the lockout position your elbows should be locked and your upper back tight. Your upper back will take the brunt of the load when stabilizing the bar in the overhead position. The bar should be approximately in line with the back of your head when pressed overhead.
Bring the bar back down to the same position you started at remembering to tuck the elbows back in as you descend.
Keep your lower back arched, your midsection braced, and your chest up throughout the entire movement.
Your legs should be locked the entire time. Do not try to use leg drive to press the bar up.
