Seated Barbell Shoulder Press
Muscles worked: Front delts (assisted by side delts, triceps).
How to do it
- Sit on a Military Press Bench with a bar behind your head and either have a spotter give you the bar (better on the rotator cuff this way) or pick it up yourself carefully with a pronated grip (palms facing forward).
- Once you pick up the barbell with the correct grip length, lift the bar up over your head by locking your arms.
- Lower the bar down to the collarbone slowly as you inhale.
- Lift the bar back up to the starting position as you exhale.
- Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
Coaching cues
The two cues IronPack shows on this exercise's card mid-workout:
- Back supported, feet planted
- Bar to the chin, press to full lockout
Logging it
IronPack suggests working in the 5 to 8 rep range, progressing in 2.5 kg jumps when you own the top of the range. Records are tracked automatically at every rep count from 1 to 12. Loading the bar? Use the plate calculator, and check your estimated 1RM from any hard set.
Related exercises
- Overhead Press - front delts
- Seated DB Shoulder Press - front delts
- Machine Shoulder Press - front delts
- Smith Machine Shoulder Press - front delts
Track the seated barbell shoulder press properly
IronPack logs every set, tracks your records at every rep count, shows these form photos mid-workout, and turns the training into a card game you play with your mates.
Get IronPack free on the App StoreFree download, iPhone. Currently on the New Zealand App Store, wider rollout to follow.
Photos and steps: free-exercise-db (public domain). Cues, muscle weighting and logging guidance are IronPack's own app data. Last generated 2026-07-17.