Exercise You Should Be Doing: Arnold Press

Arnold was light years ahead of his time when it came to bodybuilding. He was doing shit that scientists didn’t confirm worked until years later, and he was also doing shit that scientists confirmed didn’t work. He went solely by feel and his understanding of the human body, and his results showed for it.

His impact on the world of bodybuilding, and fitness as a whole is immeasurable. It’s safe to say that without Arnold I wouldn’t be writing this piece, for more than one reason.

One of the beautiful things about Arnold was his willingness to innovate and try new things in the gym. This led to quite a few different exercise variations, all in the search to help him build as much muscle mass as possible.

One of his greatest innovations was the Arnold Press.

The Arnold press, like the traditional shoulder press, is an excellent exercise to build up the shoulders and front delts. Unlike the traditional shoulder press, it changes the game by keeping constant tension on the delts throughout the entire movement.

With shoulders, tension is the name of the game.

Your shoulders have taken a beating for years now. They’re used to doing a ton of work day in and day out, and because of this they’ve got a high endurance threshold. Just banging out a few heavy sets isn’t near enough to shock the shoulders into growth.

That’s why you need to use tension. Keeping constant tension on the shoulders with your lifts is a surefire way to make sure that you’re getting in enough work to force the shoulders to respond by growing.

And this is where the Arnold press shines.

During the Arnold press you supinate your hands on the way down, and with that seemingly small little altering of the grip you suddenly prevent your shoulders from getting a chance to take a break.

Because they’re now working throughout the entire movement, they’re experiencing tension constantly. That’s a huge factor when it comes to growing boulder shoulders.

How to do the Arnold press.

The Arnold press isn’t all that different from a normal shoulder press, so there isn’t a ton of coaching required for the movement. However there are a few keys that you need to keep in mind if you’re looking to get the most out of this move.

  • You’ll need to go lighter than you’re used to. The rotating of your hands and moving the dumbbells through space that you’re not used to is going to mean that you’re not as strong in this movement as you may like to think.
  • Don’t stop and hang out at the bottom of the lift. That completely defeats the purpose of keeping constant tension on your shoulders. Hit the bottom and immediately start pressing again.
  • Don’t worry about locking out the press, either. This goes for any shoulder movement, since the last portion of the lift is dominated by the triceps. It’s okay to stop a few inches short in order to keep tension on your delts.
  • Arnold was onto something when he thought up of using the Arnold press as a way to build massive shoulders. It clearly shows when you look at the cannon ball delts the guy was rocking, and if you start giving the Arnold press a try I think you’ll see it can do the exact same for you.

The Arnold press is a next level shoulder exercise that can build cannon ball delts and create serious shoulder strength. Give it a try for the next 4-6 weeks. Your shoulders will thank you.

Tanner is a fitness professional and writer based in the metro Atlanta area. His training focus is helping normal people drop absurd amounts of fat, become strong like bull, and get in the best shape of their life.