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Safety Squat Bar Overhead Press

IntermediateStrengthTier T3

You stand with a safety squat bar resting on your collarbones and your hands on the handles. You press the bar straight overhead, then lower it back to your collarbones.

Targets: Shoulder
Muscles: Quadriceps, Gluteus Maximus, Deltoids, Triceps

Stop if

If anything hurts or feels wrong, stop and ask a qualified health professional.

  • Pain 6 out of 10 or more: choose an easier exercise.
  • Pain 8 out of 10 or more: stop and rest.

Equipment needed

  • Works at the gym

fixed_horizontal_bar

Gym

  • squat rack (No safe home substitute has been reviewed yet.)

Dosage

3

Sets

8

Reps / Time

60 sec

Rest

controlled

Tempo

Step-by-Step Guide

Set up

  • Place the bar so the padded yoke sits on your collarbones and the handle padding rests against your chest, with the handles facing away as for a squat. Choose a light load and a clear space, and set up any rack, spotter or safety arms yourself.
  • Take the same grip you use for a standard overhead press, stand tall with your feet about shoulder-width apart, brace your core and keep your lower back and lats tight before the first press.
  1. A man standing tall with a padded safety squat bar resting on his collarbones and chest, both hands gripping the bar shaft overhand, elbows below the bar.

    Step 1 of 3

    Stand tall with the bar's padding resting on your collarbones and the handle padding against your chest. Hold the bar with your usual overhead-press grip, elbows below the bar, core braced.

  2. The same man with both arms locked out overhead holding the safety squat bar directly above his shoulders, hips and ankles, standing tall.

    Step 2 of 3

    Press the bar straight overhead until your arms lock out, with the bar stacked over your shoulders, hips and ankles and not out in front of you.

  3. A man standing tall with a padded safety squat bar resting on his collarbones and chest, both hands gripping the bar shaft overhand, elbows below the bar.

    Step 3 of 3

    Stand tall with the bar's padding resting on your collarbones and the handle padding against your chest. Hold the bar with your usual overhead-press grip, elbows below the bar, core braced.

Breathing

  • Breathe normally.

Safety Information

Never lose tightness in the lower back and lats, and avoid finishing with the bar too far out in front. If anything hurts or feels wrong, stop and ask a qualified health professional. Stop if the exercise causes pain or you become unwell. Seek appropriate professional advice about symptoms or suitability.