Today I'm going to break down the concepts for the "Anderson" Press. Also known as a pin press. This was popularized by Paul Anderson, one of the strongest men to walk the planet. He would use this style of training to perform a 1,200bs squat, 628lbs bench press and 820lbs deadlift oh and also a Gold Medal in weightlifting at the Olympic game in Melbourne. 

While often used for the squat, you can use the pins for your bench press (like board presses) and deadlift (like pulling from blocks) as well. By breaking the stretch reflex cycle you have to learn to get tight to really generate some power to get the barbell moving again; thus this helps build some true starting strength. 

  1. Set pins at appropriate height and get set. 
  2. Pack the shoulders, set the core down (ribs down) and plant your feet into the floor before pressing the bar to full lockout.
  3. Return the bar to a complete stop before performing another rep. 

I enjoy performing the Anderson "x" style lift for various reasons, a few of them for the pin press are:

  1. When pressing you don't have to worry about getting pinned by the weight and feeling embarrassed. This allows you to get close to your max without fear of decapitation.
  2. You have to really get tight to move a decent weight off the pins. Sometimes when repping weights you bounce the weight off your chest. No cheating here by relying on the SSC.
  3. Trains you to tear the bar apart (not literally but the tension created to "pull it apart") which helps to engage your triceps more. Big triceps = Big press.