Kettlebell Double Military Press
What Is the Kettlebell Double Military Press?
Kettlebell Double Military Press is a compound exercise that primarily targets the shoulders and also engages the triceps, upper back and core. It is an intermediate-level movement: you stand holding a kettlebell in each hand at shoulder height and press both overhead together, with the legs locked and no dip or drive from the knees.
The press builds overhead strength and shoulder size. Because it is strict, the shoulders and triceps do all the lifting, and because both hands are loaded, there is no free arm to counterbalance and no side to lean away from. Your abs and glutes have to keep the ribs down and the spine stacked while two bells travel overhead. Each arm also moves on its own path, so a weaker side cannot hide behind the stronger one the way it can on a barbell.
It is a staple of kettlebell strength programs and usually follows a Kettlebell Double Clean, which brings the bells to the rack, or is combined with it in the Kettlebell Double Clean and Press. The Kettlebell Double Push Press adds a leg drive to move heavier bells, while this strict version is the one that shows what your shoulders can press on their own. The front and side of the deltoid lead the press, the triceps finish the lockout, and the upper trapezius and serratus anterior rotate the shoulder blades upward so the arms can reach a vertical position.
It suits lifters who can already reach straight overhead without arching the lower back and who press a single bell well. Build up with the Kettlebell Single-Arm Military Press and the Kettlebell Alternating Standing Press, and practice holding two bells in the rack before pressing them together. If reaching overhead is limited, the Kettlebell Half-Kneeling Single-Arm Shoulder Press makes it harder to cheat with the lower back while you improve it.
Muscles Worked
- Deltoid
- Primary
- Serratus Anterior
- Medium
- Upper Trapezius
- Medium
- Gluteus Maximus
- Minimal
Instructions
- Stand with your feet about hip-width apart and two kettlebells on the floor between them, then clean both bells to your shoulders with a Kettlebell Double Clean.
- Hold each handle low and diagonal in the palm with your palms facing forward, so each bell rests against the back of its forearm just outside the shoulder.
- Set your forearms vertical with the elbows pointing down and slightly out, directly under your hands, and keep the wrists straight.
- Lock your knees, squeeze your glutes and brace your abs so your ribs stay down, then take a breath in.
- Press both bells straight up together, keeping your palms facing forward and your forearms vertical.
- Lock out your arms fully overhead with the bells over your shoulders, your upper arms beside your ears and the bells about shoulder-width apart. Breathe out at the top.
- Lower both bells under control along the same path back to your shoulders, keeping the elbows under your hands.
- Reset your brace at the shoulders and repeat for the planned reps, keeping your legs straight with no dip from the knees.
- After the last rep, hinge at the hips and lower the bells back to the floor between your feet.
Common Mistakes
Leaning back to finish the press
Arching the lower back to get the bells up turns the lift into a standing incline press and loads the lumbar spine, so brace the abs and squeeze the glutes to keep the ribs down.
Dipping the knees
A bend and drive from the knees turns the lift into a push press, so keep the legs locked and pick bells you can press strictly.
Bending the wrists back
Letting the handle roll toward the fingers folds the wrist back under the bell, so keep the handle low and diagonal in the palm with the knuckles pointing up.
Pressing the bells out in front
Bells that drift forward away from the face leave the load in front of the shoulders, so press them straight up until they finish over the shoulders with the upper arms beside the ears.
Starting with tilted forearms
Forearms that lean in or out in the start position push the bells off their straight path before the press begins, so set the forearms vertical with the elbows directly under the hands.
Dropping the bells into the rack
Letting both bells fall back onto the forearms and chest jars the wrists and elbows and breaks your brace, so lower them under control along the same path.
Injuries
Kettlebell Double Military Press is a medium risk exercise when performed with proper technique. The shoulders and lower back take most of the strain. Pressing two bells to a vertical lockout needs full overhead reach, and lifters who lack it tend to lean back and arch the lower back to get the bells up, which loads the lumbar spine and can pinch the front of the shoulder.
The wrists and forearms are the other common complaint. A handle that rolls toward the fingers bends the wrist back under the bell, and bells that drop hard into the rack bruise the forearms and jar the elbows. Keep the handle low and diagonal in the palm with the wrist straight, squeeze the glutes and brace the abs before every rep, and choose a pair you can press without bending the knees or leaning back. Lower the bells to the rack under control instead of letting them fall.
To make it easier, press one bell at a time with the Kettlebell Single-Arm Military Press, kneel on one knee with the Kettlebell Half-Kneeling Single-Arm Shoulder Press, or sit with the Kettlebell Seated Single-Arm Press. Once your strict reps are solid, progress with heavier bells, a slower lowering phase, or the Kettlebell Double Push Press to handle more weight overhead.
Stop the set if you feel a sharp or pinching pain in the shoulder, pain or tingling running down the arm, or pain in the lower back. If your arms start to shake and the lockout is no longer solid, lower both bells to the rack and end the set.
- Primary Focus
- Shoulders
- Equipment
- Kettlebell
- Modality
- Strength
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
Alternative Exercises
Frequently Asked Questions
- Q: What is the difference between this and the Kettlebell Double Push Press?
In the military press your legs stay locked and the shoulders and triceps move the bells from start to finish. The Kettlebell Double Push Press adds a short dip and drive from the knees, which lets you move heavier bells but takes some of the work off the shoulders.
- Q: How heavy should the bells be compared with my single-arm press?
Start with a pair lighter than the bell you press for clean single-arm reps. With a bell in each hand you have no free side to brace with and no room to lean away from the working arm, so many lifters need to drop a size per hand at first.
- Q: Should I press standing or seated?
Standing is the version shown here, and it trains your trunk to hold two bells steady overhead. A study of 15 healthy men pressing dumbbells at 80% of their max found more middle and rear deltoid activity standing than seated, even though their standing one-rep max was about 10% lower. If you want to take the legs out of the lift, the Kettlebell Seated Single-Arm Press is a seated option, though sitting on the floor with no backrest makes your trunk work harder to stay upright, not less.
- Q: How is it different from a dumbbell shoulder press?
A kettlebell's weight hangs behind your forearm instead of sitting centered in your hand, so the wrist has to stay straight and stacked under the handle, and the bell rests on the forearm in the rack between reps. The Dumbbell Standing Shoulder Press is easier to grip and to load in small jumps, and both build the same overhead pressing strength.
- Q: Should the bells touch at the top?
No. Each bell finishes over its own shoulder with the arms vertical and about shoulder-width apart. Bringing them together overhead pulls the arms in front of the head and invites the bells to knock into each other.