Blast Your Bench! Tips For Building Your Chest

Chest Training

A fully developed chest is one of the most desired body parts from the vast majority of trainers. I don’t know a single person that would choose perfect calves or quads over their pecs! With this in mind we are going to look at the anatomy of the chest and the exercises you can use to build perfect pecs.

Chest Anatomy

Pectoralis Major
The pectoralis major originates in two areas; the collarbone, called the clavicular head and the sternum or chest bone called the sternocostal head. The pectoralis major also has three actions; it flexes, adducts and rotates the arm.

Pectoralis Minor
This muscle is located underneath the pectoralis major and is used to draw the scapula (shoulder bone) downward.

Chest Exercises

Flat Bench Press
The classic bench press where you lie on a flat bench using either a barbell or a pair of dumbbells, this movement should be controlled and a real focus on using your chest to push the weight is needed. Far too many people let egotistical tendencies creep in; it’s not about how much weight you push but concentrate on form for maximum muscle growth!

Incline Bench Press
Incline bench focuses on the upper portion of the chest, which is underdeveloped in the majority of people. Most pros use this movement first in their workouts and so should you! Building your upper chest creates a full look from top to bottom making your pecs appear a lot bigger than they are. This movement can be performed with a barbell, dumbbells or on specific machines.

Decline Bench Press
Decline bench focuses on the lower portion of the chest and can be performed with a barbell on dumbbells.

Flat Bench Flye
An isolation movement designed to fully fatigue the chest muscles. Elbows should be bent and kept locked in that position. The dumbbells should be brought around the body like you are hugging a large tree.

Incline Bench Flye
Again performing the flye movement on an incline bench will focus more on the upper pecs.

Cable Flye
Using a cable machine can sometimes be more beneficial as the cable will keep constant tension on the chest muscle. the cable can be adjusted to low, medium or high for different angles of the flye

Chest Dips
A fantastic upper body mass building exercise, to focus on the chest lean your weight forward as much as possible.

Floor Press
Not many people use this move but it can really help the strength in your bench press. The action is exactly the same as the bench press but you lie flat on the floor. You will notice that you cannot lower the bar as far as you would on a bench – this is normal and why the movement is used to help your strength in a common sticking point – the top half on the bench. Always best to use a spotter with the move!

Chest Workouts
In reality the chest is not the biggest group of muscles in the body when compared to the legs or back for example, however it is large enough to require plenty of recovery time so only one specific workout per week is recommended. If you train 3 times per week you may want to add triceps and shoulders into the same workout, or if you train more times per week you could train chest on its own.

Sample Chest Workouts

Warm up exercise
Incline Machine Press 3 x 10-12
Flat Bench 3 x 7-9
Incline Dumbbell Bench 3 x 8-10
Incline Flye 3 x 10-12
Push Ups 5 sets until failure with 30-40 secs rest between sets

OR

Warm up exercise
Flat Dumbbell Bench 4 x 8-10
Incline Barbell Bench 4 x 8-10
Dips 3 x failure (increase weight – not more than 15 reps)
Decline Smith Machine Press 3 x 10-12
Dumbbell Flye 3 x 12-14

Remember Supplements And Nutrition
A quick note about supplements and nutrition; you should all know by now that training is just one half of the equation. Make sure you are eating enough quality calories in the form of slow release carbohydrates, lean proteins and healthy fats to make sure all your hard work in the gym pays off. Post workout nutrition is key and I would recommend fast release carbohydrates such as dextrose, creatine and fast acting protein like whey to be consumed immediately following your workout. These can be found in many muscle and size supplements.

So now you have the knowledge and information to make your own workouts or follow the well-rounded examples. Either way, you now have the power to build some quality muscle!