Tip: The Athlete's Floor Press Search Skip to content Menu Menu follow us Store Articles Community Loyal-T Club Loyal-T Points Rewards Subscribe to Save Search Search The World s Trusted Source & Community for Elite Fitness Training Tip The Athlete s Floor Press Crank up the effectiveness of the floor press with this simple twist Bonus You' ll be able to lift more weight too by Chris Diamantakos September 7, 2019May 16, 2022 Tags Training The floor press is a classic bench-building, triceps-focused lift. It's also a great alternative for people who suffer from low back pain, especially extension-based pain. But for my athletes, I've found that the standard floor press doesn't have the greatest transfer when it comes to sports performance. The good news? One simple adjustment will not only make the exercise more athletic, it'll make you stronger in this position! Check it out: Floor Press With Glute Bridge Simply perform a glute bridge before you unrack the weight. Really focus on staying tight in the core by using your abs to pin the ribcage down. Contract your glutes hard to hold your hips in position. You'll notice a couple things: Your core is challenged hard, so you must focus on maintaining the bridge position throughout the lift. You're actually stronger in this position than a regular floor press. Try a rep without the glute bridge and a rep with it. You can lift slightly more in the bridged position. This probably has to do with energy transfer. A regular floor press doesn't utilize the lower body or core as much. This variation is much more athletic for a few reasons: Energy transfer from lower to upper body. Pretty much all athletic movements use ground force to initiate a movement. This creates a need to produce energy and transfer it from the ground, through the lower body, and then to the upper body. Challenging static hip stability while dynamically pressing with the upper body. Many sports require joint stability in one area while simultaneously performing a dynamic movement. Direct sport-specific transfer to ground athletes such as MMA fighters and wrestlers. Think of a wrestler pinned on the ground. You're not just going to use your arms to get a guy off of you; you're going to use your whole body. Bret Contreras thought of the hip thrust while watching MMA fighters. When they're on the ground, they thrust to get someone off. This takes that to the next level. Get The T Nation Newsletters Don' t Miss Out Expert Insights To Get Stronger, Gain Muscle Faster, And Take Your Lifting To The Next Level related posts Training Tip The Italian Tune-Up A fast metcon workout that melts fat and builds muscle. Works with cycling, running, or ropes. Check it out. Metabolic Conditioning, Metcon, Tips, Training Kyle Peabody October 26 Training Scratch List Training Structured strength programs are awesome, but sometimes it's best to just chip-away at training items you need to do. Here’s how to do it. Athletic Performance, Powerlifting & Strength, Training Dan Blewett September 30 Training 5 New Ways to Use a Foam Roller Think your foam roller is just for warm-ups and mobility? Think again. How to use it to build muscle and get stronger. It Hurts Fix It, Mobility, Powerlifting & Strength, Training Joel Sanders May 18 Training The New Science of Time Under Tension To get big, you have load up a muscle for 30-60 seconds per set, right? Well, maybe, but there are other ways. Check out the latest science. Bodybuilding, Training Brad Schoenfeld, PhD November 25