Many people think lifting a loaded barbell behind your head is asking for a shoulder injury, but like most exercises, whether or not you can or should do them isn’t a “yes” or “no” answer—it depends.
It’s hard to pinpoint exactly when the behind-the-neck press went from a gym staple to a stigma. Many bodybuilders used it in the 1950s up to and through the Golden Era.
That’s a good thing, but as more beginners flooded the gym, more advanced exercises—like the behind-the-neck press—became rarities among the mainstream.
Most folks don’t fully realize what the shoulder joint is capable of. But being a ball and socket joint, your shoulder is the most mobile joint in your body.
How heavy? Paul Carter of lift-run-bang.com can press 365 pounds, pain free, behind his neck.
“The big fuss against [behind-the-neck presses] is about impingement but that’s a far more complicated and individualistic issue than most people realize,” Carter says. He argues that Olympic lifts, mainly the snatch, put you in the same position and that those athletes don’t have major problems.
“I don’t see Olympic lifters complaining about shoulder pain. If you don’t have the mobility to do the press behind the neck, then don’t. But it’s not the boogieman people make it out to be,” he says. “Plenty of people blow out their shoulders from the standard bench press, but I don’t see anyone shying away from benching every Monday.”
2. Place your hands slightly wider than shoulder-width. You can start with your pinkies in the ring of the knurling (the rough part of the barbell) and adjust your hands from there.
3. Tuck your elbows in and then press the bar straight up until your elbows are fully extended.
