Q. on BB Shoulder press difference.

MentalTwitch

Well-known member
So how much of a difference does it make to do an army press(behind head) compared to in the front? I do face pulls to help focus on rear delt as well as bent side raises. Im tryin to get a little more rounded.
Other excersies i do.
Side raises
front raises(palm up and down)

I dont rain shoulders alot. I dont think mine are under developed but im try to fill them out so when i cut more i get the nice litle rips in there.

Thanks in advance fellas

EDIT----Sorry i just read this. Invalid Link Removed Ill prolly just try to throwon arnolds and switch front and behind up some.
 
Behind the head is not a safe exercise!!!! I would not do them.
 
Yea i read about the possible injury. What not good is when i first started i did them like that, dumb highschool gym teacher. Ill stick to DB or BB front. Thanks for stoppin in man.
 
Yea i read about the possible injury. What not good is when i first started i did them like that, dumb highschool gym teacher. Ill stick to DB or BB front. Thanks for stoppin in man.

Also consider doing a W press - a dumbbell press, but with palms facing eachother.
 
Everytime I've gotten up the nerve to do behind the neck BB presses, i've tweaked my shoulder so bad I couldn't even work chest. I will never do them again. Upright rows tend to hurt my shoulders also (this could be a form issue). Lateral raises and Arnold presses I can do pain free.
 
Hmm maybe i'll have to switch off them. I do enjoy them, and have been seeing nice progression on them
 
It puts the shoulder joint in a very vulnerable position. It's just a bad idea anatomically speaking.


I agree, its not a functional movement. You can include behind the neck pulldowns or pull ups with that. Shoulders are 1 of the most important joints when it comes to longentivity in BB and exercise.
 
so basically what other exercize would be best for me to sub in for its place where I usually do the behind the neck press for 3 sets of 6.
 
They actually feel good when I do em :) I'm following a specific routine (SAIS) and they have that as the main shoulder exercize
 
Behind the neck movements are considered to put your shoulder at risk for several reasons:

#1 The external rotation during a shoulder press creates a natural impingement in the subacromial space. This occurs even if you have no pathology.

#2 The external rotation moment is counterproductive during pulldowns because the lats have a secondary function of INTERNAL rotation. Hence, you're taking focus OFF of the lats.

Pulldowns are more productive with a 20-30 degree backward lean or pulling the bar slightly in front of the plane of your body. This elicits the most lat activity.

#3 Weight lifters frequently have arthritic conditions, with varying degrees of severity of course. The behind the neck press is a "closed packed" position which creates exactly what the term sounds like... grinding and shearing forces on the shoulder's cartilage.

Props to the poster who suggested dumbell presses with the palms in because this contributes to doing presses in a more "open packed" position. The second adjustment that should be made to address shoulder pain is to slightly incline the adjustable bench (70 or 80 degrees as opposed to the typical straight up and down 90 degrees).
 
This exercise really shaped my delts quite nicely. Give it a shot, but I prefer to do them with the cables. Invalid Link Removed
 
They actually feel good when I do em :) I'm following a specific routine (SAIS) and they have that as the main shoulder exercize

Actually a minority of people have the biomechanics to be able to do behind-the-neck presses w/o injury. You may be one of them. Don't discard them on a whim.

If you continue to do them make sure you are warmed up, don't drop the bar down too far, keep the movement tight (i.e. bar brushes the back of the head) and keep the weight reasonable (perhaps doing them later in your shoulder workout so they are a bit pre-fatigued).

Also do rotator cuff work routinely even if you don't feel the need.
 
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