Just wondering how many of you train the military press and what affect do you think it has on your bench press? Also what is your top military press at a weight?
Mine is 150@178. My goal is a bodyweight MP, but now the pounds are getting hard to come by.
Are you talking old school military press, feet together with little or no backward lean, or the modern faux-push press?
I personally find that the OH pressing strength is strongly correlated with strength on the Bench.
Since I’ve started concentrating on OH presses my Bench has begun to improve considerably.
The following article on EFS provides a similar account:
http://www.elitefts.com/documents/bench_pressing_for_dummies.htm
Bill Starr has always said that the guy who can press a lot will be able to bench a lot.
I rarely bench…I do some inclines, but concentrate on push press, push jerks, Military presses.
Don’t know my MAX max military, but I did 320 for 8 x 3. I can also go out and bench 410 any day of the week with virtually no bench training.
Now, I’d have to look it up, but when I was a bencher, I did 505 and I think I was pressing c. 300lbs at the time. It was a few years ago, so I dont know for sure…most lifts are done at a bdwt of 235-245.
[quote]jarvis wrote:
I personally find that the OH pressing strength is strongly correlated with strength on the Bench.
Since I’ve started concentrating on OH presses my Bench has begun to improve considerably.
The following article on EFS provides a similar account:
http://www.elitefts.com/documents/bench_pressing_for_dummies.htm [/quote]
I think because bench, for most people, is more of shoulder/tricep exerices. Presses are shoulder/tricep intensive, obviously.
I do DB Military Press seated for reps, not max. Lets me bring the Dumbbells to the side of my head. I honestly don’t trust myself to do max or high weight military press without turning it into a jerk or a dangerous seated high incline bench press.
Military Press is defiantly going to help a persons bench press. The only reason we have the bench press was so athletes who did the clean and press could improve their shoulder press.
I’m doing MP only right now and no direct bench work so guess we’ll see how it works out. Right now I’m doing standing Military Press (not push press) for 165@180.
Looking to get it up to at least body weight and then hopefully surpass that. I’ll let ya know how it works as far as my bench goes.
I regularly do Seated Dumbbell Military Press, I bring the dumbbells down until my upper arms are parallel to the floor, I find that Barbell causes way too much shoulder pain for me. Last week I had a new PR of 130’s for 6, I consistently do the 120’s for 12. I am 210@5’9’'. I also think that this helps my Bench out.
Well my bench seemed to have gone down a good bit while using MP for work instead of bench. This may seem obvious to some but I’ve heard of it working to one’s benefit before, especially those weak in the shoulders and triceps. So yah didn’t work so well for me.
Forgive me for calling the seated shoulder press the seated military press.
I’ve found that bench helps my military, but not the other way around. The lockout portion of the military is where I always have trouble. Last summer, I think I could military 200, but could only bench 240. I’ve heard guys say that military helps their bench, but I could never figure out why? Maybe weak shoulders?
I definitely think MP’s help your bench and vice versa. I do them standing and my best if I remember is 225 or 275lbs weighing approx 240. I think they really helped my shoulder and elbow strength for benching.
My PR in bench right now is 575, which I hope to jump to 600 in June at a meet here in Ohio. I like to alternate between standing barbell, one hand kettlebell w/ the ball up in the air, one or 2 handed dumbells. All done standing.
This is off topic but I started adding dumbell cleans after over head work and all my shoulder pain goes away.
MP 76Kg strict @ 87Kg.
I feel it helps my BP and vice versa.
Koing
Competed at O-Lifting for a few years way back when. Strict military press 315. Bench press plummeted. Lockout was good but I had a lot less strength to get it out of the hole. I’m talking raw bench here for what it’s worth. But my bench technique sucked back then and was much more pec dependent than it is now, so it’s debatable…
I think it probably depends on lots of factors. Levers and weaknesses and technique and shirts etc.
Just my .02
I’m a powerlifter but now training for a strongman meet so my focus is on increasing my overhead press. I’ve been gaining on overhead strength, but my bench just seems to go way down.
I used to raw bench 390 at my peak and could do 550 in a shirt. My raw bench is probably only about 340 right now. Now this could just be from simply overtrained shoulders right now, but I have not seen this affecting my bench in a positive way at all yet.
[quote]Gatorarmz wrote:
My PR in bench right now is 575,[/quote]
Let me just say…damn