Exercise guide · Intermediate · Compound

Barbell Pullover to Press: How to Do It & Muscles Worked

The barbell pullover to press is a compound exercise that targets the lats and also works the triceps, chest, and shoulders. It involves lowering a barbell behind your head while lying on a bench, then pressing it back up over your chest.

Primary muscles
Lats
Secondary muscles
Triceps , Chest , Shoulders
Equipment
Barbell
Level · type
Intermediate · Compound
Demonstration of the barbell pullover to press
Front view: muscles worked by the barbell pullover to press. Primary: lats. Secondary: triceps, chest and shoulders.
Back view: muscles worked by the barbell pullover to press. Primary: lats. Secondary: triceps, chest and shoulders.
Primary Secondary

How to do the barbell pullover to press

  1. Step 1: Lie flat on a bench with your head at one end and your feet on the ground.
  2. Step 2: Hold the barbell with a pronated grip (palms facing away from you) and extend your arms straight above your chest.
  3. Step 3: Keeping your arms straight, lower the barbell behind your head in an arc-like motion until you feel a stretch in your lats.
  4. Step 4: Pause for a moment, then reverse the motion and press the barbell back to the starting position above your chest.
  5. Step 5: Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Sets, reps and programming

Suggested sets, reps and rest for the barbell pullover to press by training goal
Goal Sets Reps Rest Effort
Strength 3–5 3–6 3–5 min 1–3 reps in reserve
Muscle growth 3–4 6–12 2–3 min 1–2 reps in reserve
Muscular endurance 2–3 12–20 1–2 min 1–3 reps in reserve

Ranges follow the ACSM position stand on progression in resistance training. Muscle grows across a wide range of loads when sets end close to failure (Schoenfeld et al., 2017), longer rests between heavy sets support strength and size (Schoenfeld et al., 2016), and stopping a rep or two short of failure works about as well as training to failure (Grgic et al., 2022). Estimate your working weights with the strength calculators.

Barbell Pullover to Press alternatives

More exercises that train the lats as their main target:

More lats exercises

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Sources

  1. American College of Sports Medicine. Progression models in resistance training for healthy adults. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2009;41(3):687-708.
  2. Schoenfeld BJ, Grgic J, Ogborn D, Krieger JW. Strength and hypertrophy adaptations between low- vs. high-load resistance training. J Strength Cond Res. 2017;31(12):3508-3523.
  3. Schoenfeld BJ, Pope ZK, Benik FM, et al. Longer interset rest periods enhance muscle strength and hypertrophy in resistance-trained men. J Strength Cond Res. 2016;30(7):1805-1812.
  4. Grgic J, Schoenfeld BJ, Orazem J, Sabol F. Effects of resistance training performed to repetition failure or non-failure on muscular strength and hypertrophy: a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Sport Health Sci. 2022;11(2):202-211.

Step-by-step instructions and demonstration media are from the ExerciseDB exercise dataset.

This guide is general fitness information, not medical advice. Stop if an exercise causes pain and speak to a doctor or physiotherapist about injuries or health conditions before starting a new programme.