The Truth About Achieving A Ripped, Rock-Solid Chest
Everyone wants a huge chest, plain and simple. It is all too common to see inexperienced
lifters slaving away on endless sets of bench presses and cable crossovers in
search of full, thick pecs. The reality is that there is nothing complicated
about building an impressive chest. The bottom line for huge chest gains is
consistency, effort and steady progression in weight and repetitions.
The chest is made up of two main heads, the pectoralis major and the pectoralis
minor. To stimulate the chest using weights you will be using one of two motions:
a press or a flye. If you want the greatest bang for your buck from your chest
workouts, the true gains lie in your pressing movements. Flyes may have their
place from time to time, but nothing can compare to the overall anabolic effect
of high intensity pressing movements. I’m talking about the basic, bread-and-butter
lifts such as heavy barbell presses, dumbbell presses and wide-grip dips. Save
the pec-deck and cable crossovers for the pencil necked geeks on the treadmill;
real men train with real lifts.
Like I said before, building a thick and well-developed chest is fairly simple.
There are no secrets, magic formulas or killer techniques that will "shock"
your chest into massive growth. Stick to your basic presses, focus on overload
and progression, and I promise that you will see impressive gains. Here are
the most effective lifts for packing muscle onto the chest:
Flat/Incline/Decline Barbell Bench Press:
A standard barbell press is the meat and potatoes of any effective chest routine.
This basic compound movement will allow you to handle the most weight through
the given range of motion. The incline press will shift more of the stress to
the upper region of the chest while the decline does the opposite, targeting
the lower/outer region. The flat bench press works the upper and lower regions
equally. I highly recommend a standard barbell press as a basic component of
your chest routine.
Flat/Incline/Decline Dumbbell Press:
Dumbbell presses are another basic and highly effective movement for stimulating
chest development. The main advantage that they have over the barbell is that
they allow you to move through a more natural range of motion, helping to prevent
shoulder injuries. They also prevent strength imbalances from occurring since
one arm can't cheat for the other. The only drawback is that you are not able
to handle as much weight. Overall, a standard dumbbell press is an awesome movement
that allows for great chest stimulation.
Wide-Grip Dips:
An amazing movement for the chest that is often overlooked. Make sure to use
a wider grip and lean forward to shift the stress from the triceps onto the
pectorals. If pressing your own body weight is not sufficient then you can always
add weight using a weight belt. Dips are an excellent compound movement for
overall chest development.
Here are a couple sample chest routines:
1) Flat Barbell Bench Press: 2 x 5-7
Incline Dumbbell Press: 2 x 5-7
Wide-Grip Dips: 2 x 5-7
2) Incline Barbell Bench Press: 2 x 5-7
Wide-Grip Dips: 2 x 5-7
Flat Dumbbell Press: 2 x 5-7
All sets should stay within the 5-7 rep range and should be taken to complete
muscular failure. Write down the details of each workout you perform and focus
on progressing in either weight or reps from week to week. There is nothing
more to it than that. Good luck!
About The Author
Sean Nalewanyj is a bodybuilding expert, fitness author and writer of top-selling
Internet Bodybuilding E-Book: The Truth About Building Muscle. If you want to
learn how to build maximum lean muscle mass and strength as quickly as possible,
visit his website: Muscle
Gain Truth
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