Axle Bar Press

How to do it

1. Set the axle bar in a rack at upper chest height and load equal plates on each side.
2. Grip the thick bar just outside shoulder-width, step under it and unrack it onto the front of your shoulders.
3. Stand with feet hip-width, squeeze your glutes and brace your core.
4. Press the bar straight up, moving your head back slightly to clear the chin, then push the head through under the bar.
5. Lower the bar under control back to the front of your shoulders.

Tips

• Squeeze the thick bar hard: a tight grip helps the whole press stay stable.
• Keep the forearms vertical under the bar at the start.

Common mistakes

• Letting the bar roll toward the fingers so the wrists bend back.
• Leaning back to press instead of bracing.
• Pressing the bar forward around the face instead of straight up.

Muscles worked by the Axle Bar Press

• Front delts Primary30%
• Side delts Secondary15%
• Triceps (lateral head) Secondary9%
• Triceps (long head) Secondary7%
• Upper traps Minor6%
• Triceps (medial head) Secondary6%
• Serratus anterior Minor6%
• Upper chest Minor5%
• Spinal erectors (lower back) Stabilizer5%
• Forearm flexors Minor4%
• Rotator cuff Stabilizer3%
• Upper abs Stabilizer2%
• Rear delts Stabilizer2%

Share per muscle in the Zulta muscle model. The model spreads the load of one rep over 40 muscles, based on EMG and biomechanics research.

Thick or awkward implements add grip and trunk demand. Pressing overhead is shoulder flexion and abduction with elbow extension: the front delt leads, the lateral delt and triceps assist, and the upper traps and serratus rotate the shoulder blade up.

Axle Bar Press alternatives

Same equipment

• Log PressBarbell

Different equipment

• Viking PressMachine
• Arnold PressDumbbell

Easier

• Band Shoulder PressResistance band
• Overhead PressBarbell

No equipment

• Handstand Push UpBodyweight

Make it easier

• Viking PressMachine
• Arnold PressDumbbell
• Overhead PressBarbell
• Dumbbell Military PressDumbbell

Similar exercises

• Dumbbell Shoulder PressDumbbell

Frequently asked questions

What muscles does the Axle Bar Press work?

Mainly the front delts. The side delts, triceps (lateral head), triceps (long head) and triceps (medial head) assist.

Is the Axle Bar Press good for beginners?

The Axle Bar Press is rated advanced. If you are new, learn the Viking Press first and build up from there.

What is a good alternative to the Axle Bar Press?

For example the Log Press, Viking Press and Arnold Press. They train mostly the same muscles, some with different equipment.

Sources

• Saeterbakken and Fimland 2013, JSCR 27(7):1824-1831 (standing, seated, barbell, dumbbell)

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