Stalder Press

Secondary muscles
Delts, Abs
Body part
Upper Arms
Position
Standing
Laterality
Bilateral (both sides together)
Category
Strength

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Borrowed from gymnastics, the Stalder press has you rise toward a handstand from a straddle position, hands planted, hips and legs traveling under strict control rather than with a jump. Compression, hamstring flexibility, and straight-arm strength gate this movement long before muscle does, and most lifters need months of tuck and straddle progressions first.

How to do the Stalder Press

  1. Start by standing with your feet shoulder-width apart and your arms extended overhead.
  2. Bend your knees slightly and engage your core.
  3. Lower your body down into a squat position while keeping your arms extended overhead.
  4. As you squat down, press your arms down towards the ground, engaging your triceps.
  5. Pause for a moment at the bottom of the squat, then push through your heels to stand back up while simultaneously raising your arms back overhead.
  6. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Tip: Squeeze the bar hard and keep the wrists straight over the elbows through the whole rep.

Muscles worked

Primary

Triceps · Arms

The triceps lock out the elbow on every press and dominate close grip and skull press variations.

Secondary

  • Delts — The front delts assist every press and take over on Bradford and behind the neck variations.
  • Abs — The abs brace the trunk on standing and single arm presses so the torso does not twist under the load.

Common mistakes

  • Elbows flaring wide — on horizontal presses keep the elbows at roughly 45 degrees from the torso; pressing overhead, keep them under the weight instead.
  • Losing the shoulder blade position — on bench-style presses set the shoulder blades back and down and keep them there; overhead, let the shoulder blades rotate up naturally with the arms.
  • Bouncing or rushing the bottom — control the bar down and pause for a beat before driving up, especially on decline and close grip variations.
  • Not committing to a variation — Bradford presses, skull presses and the like are hybrids; pick a fixed range and stick with it for the whole set.

Where it fits in a workout

Presses are the main movement in a push session and should go first or second. Superset them with a row or pulldown for a push and pull pair.

How many sets, how heavy and how hard: see what the ACSM position stands support.

Variations and alternatives

Similar exercises

Without bodyweight

Easier and harder

When to talk to someone

  • Chest discomfort, feeling faint or lightheaded, or trouble breathing during or after exercise can be signs of a heart attack. In the US, call 911 right away; elsewhere, call your local emergency number.
  • Heart, metabolic or kidney disease, or symptoms like these when you are active: talk to your doctor before you start or step up training.
  • Pregnant: ask your obstetric care provider which exercise suits you.

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More exercises

Sources

  1. ACSM position stand on exercise quantity and quality (Garber et al., 2011)
  2. ACSM preparticipation health screening (Riebe et al., 2015)
  3. ACOG Committee Opinion No. 804 on exercise in pregnancy (2020)
  4. CDC: About Heart Attack Symptoms, Risk, and Recovery (2024)

Sources checked on October 17, 2026. Full citations are in the exercise library.

Animation and exercise data: ExerciseDB, licensed to SetGrip. General information, not medical or coaching advice.