Bulletproof your rotator cuff.
Keep your elbow glued to your side. The forearm rotates, the upper arm stays put.
This is targeted rotator cuff work, with your elbow pinned to your side, rotating the forearm outward against the cable trains the small external rotators at the back of your shoulder that keep the joint centred while you press and pull. The towel under the armpit is a simple trick that stops the elbow drifting and keeps the load exactly where it should be. It earns its place in any programme with serious pressing, because those small muscles decide how long your big lifts last.
It keeps your elbow pinned to your side, which stops your whole arm swinging and forces the rotation to come from the shoulder alone. If the towel drops mid set, your form drifted, simple as that.
Light, and lighter than your ego wants. These muscles are small, so pick a weight you can rotate slowly for 12 to 15 clean reps, momentum on cuff work is just wasted time.
Two or three short doses a week is plenty, tucked before pressing sessions or at the end of upper days. It's insurance work, cheap, boring, and worth every set the first time your shoulders don't complain.
