Ass-Kicking Upper Body Training

Single Arm DB Pressing w/a light object in
opposite hand to enforce technique

In my last post about upper body training I talked about the overuse of the barbell bench press for developing and displaying upper body strength and power.  Today was a prime example of a movement that kicks the crap out of the bench press in this department.  When putting this dynamic, repetition effort upper body training session, I realized that we hadn't done overhead pressing AT ALL yet.  Now, some will argue until their death that overhead pressing is bad for the shoulders and will cause or aggravate shoulder injuries, blah blah blah...I disagree.  I think the overhead press, and its many variations, are an excellent way to build strength and muscle mass in the entire upper body.  The overhead press has great carryover to the horizontal press as well, because people often forget how important a role the muscles of the shoulder are in having a strong horizontal press.  Need proof?  Look up any powerlifter who does overhead pressing, whether it be strict press, military press, push press etc. doesn't matter.  You will begin to realize that guys who have a strong overhead press almost always have a strong bench press as well.  However, guys who do no overhead pressing, but bench press frequently, won't necessarily have a big overhead press.  Basically, the overhead press helps the bench while the bench doesn't help the overhead press as much.

Mattera killing pull ups

However, you should be smart when implementing overhead pressing.  If a doctor has told you not to press overhead, for the love of God listen.  Mike Mancino has a potentially serious shoulder injury right now, and I would never want him to aggravate that by overhead pressing.  So, he did repetition method with banded barbell pushups.  That being said, I love overhead pressing.  There's just something badass and primal about throwing heavy weight over your head.  I had missed it, and today we cranked out push presses to develop full body power and strength.  The reason I like the push press as opposed to the military press is because the push press protects the shoulder because the shoulders don't actually begin to move the weight until its already moving due to the momentum developed by dipping through the hips and driving through the floor.  At this point, the shoulder is in a much safer position to push the weight overhead, as opposed to the military press where the motion begins in the rack position and is initiated entirely by the arms, upper back and shoulders.  Additionally, the push press, because it involves the legs and hips, allows the athlete to overload the muscles and use more weight.  This is a case where more weight is absolutely better.  It teaches the whole body to operate explosively as a unit, recruiting more muscle fibers to move heavier loads, which the body responds to by secreting more testosterone into the blood stream.  Remember, the more muscle groups involved in a movement and the more motor units used, the more testosterone the body releases, and the greater your gains.  This is why movements like the deadlift, the squat, the standing barbell overhead press, the bench press, the clean and jerk, and the snatch are the best movements for building strength, power, and mass.  They incorporate more muscle groups into one movement than any other exercise.  Throw some assistance work in at the end and you got a kick ass workout that had each and every one of us beat up, tired, but feeling great.  If you want to pack on muscle in the upper body and back it up with some serious strength...PICK UP A BAR AND PUSH HEAVY SHIT OVER YOUR HEAD!


General Warmup
Dynamic Warmup

Pushup w/ groiner--2x10
Banded Rows--2x20
Two-Way Band Pull Aparts--2x20
Banded Shoulder External Rotations--2x15 each arm
Scapula Push Ups--2x15

Power
Jammer--4x5 each arm

Strength
Push Press--4x8-12
--Finished with 176 lbs for 8

Assistance
Weighted/Body weight/Assisted Pull ups--4x8 (Varied Grips)

Muscle Building/Conditioning--3 Rounds
Single Arm DB Bench--12 each arm
Inverted Rows--15
Hanging Knee/Leg Raises--Failure

Finisher--3 Rounds
Farmers Walks--2 Laps w/ chains and dumbbells

A couple jacked up fingers couldn't stop Pis

Gun Show
Straight Bar Triceps Pushdown--3x15