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Barbell Press vs Military Press

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Geoff Chafe said:
A Rack Press or Rack Jerk will always be stronger. It easier to get into and maintain your positioning. You are using all your strength for the Press.

If you can only Front Squat or Clean 225lb you are not going to have reserve strength for the Press. The stronger and more proficient you are in the Clean the more reserve strength you will have for the Press.

I don’t know of any rebound effect from the Clean. Typically on a Clean you will pop and reset your grip, and gather yourself before proceeding.
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If my goal was to Press I never reset my grip after the clean. Now, for a Jerk I would sometimes reset my grip if it didn't feel right. My Presses are closer to a military press than the olympic press though. Only difference is pretty much my feet are not set the same way. This is why my clean and press and military press was close to the same.





 
“Instead of using a very close grip to bring the elbows forward, I prefer, for that purpose, to hold them at the side. At the same time a considerably wider grip is taken. At one time I would hold the thumb and one finger inside the hand grip of the standard bar. Now I hold each hand about four inches wider. The elbows are held close to the side, so the upper arms are held quite a lot wider apart than the breadth of the shoulders. From this position the press is made with the elbows held in toward the body. Much more favorable leverage can be put forth in this manner. A good start is possible and it is easier to finish the press with this wider grip. I use the thumb-less grip. That is with the thumbs extended in the same plane as the fingers rather than encircling the bar. And I hold the bar well back on the fingers. This method makes possible about ten pounds more in the press, for the fingers impart additional leverage as they do in shot putting.”

Bob Hoffman The Tight Tan Slacks of Dezso Ban: Military Pressing (1937 and 1944) - Bob Hoffman

I used this method yesterday and got 195 x 7 without too much of a struggle. With a change in technique one can expect to be weaker, but maybe I can better use the strength I built with Bench. I did feel I had better leverage. Maybe it suits my body type better than close grip, elbows forward.

Moving forward I wil train in this style for a few cycles and test how I progress.
 
“Therefore you must practice considerable rowing to bring up your military press and two hands snatching. I believe that the best results are obtained when rowing is done with the body in the upright position. The common shoulder shrug will help. One of my favorite exercises is rowing with two dumbells while standing erect. These can be pulled higher than a barbell. Pull them up so that the hands are about as wide apart as the shoulders, the elbows extended straight out from the shoulder. In practicing compound dumbell exercises I may not use more than a pair of twenty-five pounders, in a series of five exercises each performed ten times, fifty movements in all, without setting the bells down. I frequently perform the exercise just mentioned as the first exercise and the fifth of such a series. I believe it had much to do with my own improvement in the press.”
-Bob Hoffman-

He states that the traps play a large role in the Press. He advocates that Upright Rows and High Pulls have driven up his Press more than any other exercise. I have not done either in a while. Something I will add because as a Weightlifter it was something we did for the Pull, but maybe we misunderstood and it was also driving overhead strength also.
 
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