French press with a barbell seated or standing

Like all French presses, this exercise should not be abused. The main load is concentrated very precisely (in the area near the elbow). Frequent execution can lead to microtrauma of the tendon and elbow pain. Try to keep your elbows closer together. I find this to be the most inconvenient of all the French presses. The elbows tend to drift forward, which is not ideal.

Nuances and Mistakes

1. As an option, you can perform this exercise seated with support against the backrest at a 60-70 degree angle. This angle will allow for a greater stretch of your triceps.

2. It’s more comfortable to perform with a curved barbell. This way, your joints will be in a more comfortable position compared to using a straight barbell.

3. You can also perform this exercise using a cable crossover from the lower pulley (when seated) or from the upper pulley (when standing). The advantage is that you can choose handles with different shapes and grip widths.

4. Instead of a barbell, you can use a weight plate. This may be more convenient for beginners.

5. Overall, I feel that this exercise is the least convenient of all the French presses. It is very difficult to keep the elbows stationary. With heavy weights, they tend to drift forward and spread apart. This is because the joints do not work very comfortably in this position with a barbell. It feels much more natural to perform this movement with the palms turned inward, but this can only be done with dumbbells.