8.9
Excellent
Front Plate Raise Images
Front Plate Raise Instructions
- While standing straight, hold a barbell plate in both hands at the 3 and 9 o’clock positions. Your palms should be facing each other and your arms should be extended and locked with a slight bend at the elbows and the plate should be down near your waist in front of you as far as you can go. Tip: The arms will remain in this position throughout the exercise. This will be your starting position.
- Slowly raise the plate as you exhale until it is a little above shoulder level. Hold the contraction for a second. Tip: make sure that you do not swing the weight or bend at the elbows. Your torso should remain stationary throughout the movement as well.
- As you inhale, slowly lower the plate back down to the starting position.
- Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
Variations: You can use dumbbells, barbells, cables or exercise bands to perform this movement.
8.9
Excellent
Arnold Dumbbell Press Images
Arnold Dumbbell Press Instructions
- Sit on an exercise bench with back support and hold two dumbbells in front of you at about upper chest level with your palms facing your body and your elbows bent. Tip: Your arms should be next to your torso. The starting position should look like the contracted portion of a dumbbell curl.
- Now to perform the movement, raise the dumbbells as you rotate the palms of your hands until they are facing forward.
- Continue lifting the dumbbells until your arms are extended above you in straight arm position. Breathe out as you perform this portion of the movement.
- After a second pause at the top, begin to lower the dumbbells to the original position by rotating the palms of your hands towards you. Tip: The left arm will be rotated in a counter clockwise manner while the right one will be rotated clockwise. Breathe in as you perform this portion of the movement.
- Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
Variations: You can perform the exercise standing up but that is not recommended for people with lower back issues.
9
Excellent
Snatch-Grip Behind-The-Neck Overhead Press Images
Snatch-Grip Behind-The-Neck Overhead Press Instructions
- Load a barbell about chest level in a squat rack making sure the apparatus doesn’t impede your hand placement.
- Take a very wide grip on the bar equidistant from the midpoint and place it on your traps as if you were doing a squat.
- Step back from the rack using a shoulder-width stance, feet angled slightly outward, with your knees unlocked and torso upright while maintaining a big chest with your shoulders back. Keep your head facing forward throughout. Lift the bar off your traps; this will be your starting position.
- Keeping your elbows under the bar, press the bar overhead to full arm extension and lower under control without overextending your shoulders and leaning your head forward just a bit. Repeat for reps.
9
Excellent
Dumbbell Shoulder Press Images
Dumbbell Shoulder Press Instructions
- While holding a dumbbell in each hand, sit on a military press bench or utility bench that has back support. Place the dumbbells upright on top of your thighs.
- Now raise the dumbbells to shoulder height one at a time using your thighs to help propel them up into position.
- Make sure to rotate your wrists so that the palms of your hands are facing forward. This is your starting position.
- Now, exhale and push the dumbbells upward until they touch at the top.
- Then, after a brief pause at the top contracted position, slowly lower the weights back down to the starting position while inhaling.
- Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
Variations: You can perform the exercise standing or sitting on a regular flat bench. For people with lower back problems, the version described is the recommended one.
You can also perform the exercise as Arnold Schwarzenegger used to do it, which is to start holding the dumbbells with a supinated grip (palms facing you) in front of your shoulders and then, as you start pushing up, you align the dumbbells in the starting position described on step 3 by rotating your wrists and touch the dumbbells at the top. As you come down, then you would go back to the starting position by rotating the wrist throughout the lowering portion until the palms of your hands are facing you. This variation is called the Arnold Press. However, it is not recommended if you have rotator cuff problems.