Big chest muscles make you look stronger and give your entire body a balanced and impressive look. And if you're a good lifter, you dedicate one day a week to your chest training. This workout will help you grow your pecs, transform your entire upper body and take your training to the next level. Thanks to the results you'll be getting, you'll be able to improve your entire workout routine.
The exercise below will help you take your pecs to a whole new size, and not only will you grow in chest size, but you will also strengthen your pecs, which will boost your lifts further. If you are a beginner, make sure you use lighter weights to be able to do the recommended reps. Make sure you take the recommended rests in between your sets as well.
1. Butterfly
3 sets x 10 to 20 reps, 60 seconds rest/stretch
The Butterfly or the Pec Deck will get your pecs primed and ready for the rest of the workout, so make sure you start with a weight light enough to allow you to perform 20 reps. It will also stretch your muscle fibers, so you can pump more blood into them later in the workout.
- Sit on a machine with your back against the pad.
- Make sure your upper arms are parallel to the floor and hold the two handles.
- Push the handles together slowly, and squeeze your chest in the middle.
- Return to the starting position, until your chest muscles are fully stretched.
- Repeat!
2. Barbell Incline Bench Press
5 sets x 5 reps, 2 minutes rest
Use a slightly lower than normal incline with this exercise, because that will help you target your upper pecs even better. This will also help you push more weight. Make sure you choose a weight that allows you to do 5 reps and pause at the bottom of the movement before you press back up. You can explode your presses up and control the weight back down for better results.
- Lay on a bench with your feet flat on the grown and drive through your hips.
- Make sure your back is arched and shoulder blades are retracted.
- With a medium, pronated grip, grasp the bar and hold the weight above your chest with your extended arms.
- Lower the bar to your chest by flexing your elbows. Make sure you keep your lats and elbows slightly drawn in.
- After the bar touches your torso, extend the elbows to return to the starting position.
- Repeat!
3. Dumbbell Bench Press
3 sets x 10 reps, 90 seconds rest
This exercise will help your hypertrophy goals significantly. Hold the dumbbells at a slight angle as you lower them and make sure you don't let the weights touch at the top of the contraction. Make sure you choose a weight that allows you to do the higher number of recommended reps.
- Lie down on a bench with a dumbbell in each hand and make sure that your palms are facing each other.
- Lift the weights in front of you at shoulder width.
- Rotate your wrists forward, so that your palms are facing away from you, and make sure that the weights are just to the sides of your chest, with your upper arms and forearms creating 90 degrees angles.
- Use your chest muscles to push the dumbbells up and lock your arms at the top of your lift to squeeze your chest and hold for a second before coming back down.
- Lower the weights with a controlled movement, slower than you raised them.
- Repeat!
4. Incline Cable Fly
3 sets x 12 reps, 90 seconds rest
Make sure that your elbows are slightly bent, but not with a full 90 angle degree with this exercise. Remember to squeeze at the top of the contraction and lower the weights slower than you raised them. Also, rest for 90 seconds before you move into the next set.
- Place an incline bench in between two pulleys and adjust the weight accordingly.
- Lie down on the bench with the handles in each hand, and bring your hands together at arm's length in front of your face.
- Slightly bend your elbows and lower your arms out at your sides in a wide arc until you feel a stretch in your chest muscles
- Return your arms back into the starting position and squeeze throughout the movement.
- Repeat!
5. Chest Dips
3 sets to failure
If you want to make this exercise increasingly difficult, you can wear a dip belt or weighted vest to add extra resistance. But if dips are too difficult for you, make sure you find an assistant to help you perform them. Try to do as many reps as you possibly can and don't be afraid to take this exercise to failure, since it's a workout finisher.
- Stand in between 2 parallel bars and place your hands on the bars, to hold your body above them.
- Lower yourself slowly, with your torso leaning forward at 30 degrees, with your elbows slightly flared out, until you feel a slight stretch in your chest and squeeze at the top.
- Use your chest to bring your body back to the starting position.
- Repeat!
This workout will definitely help you achieve your chest goals. Perform this every week on your chest day, and you’ll see improvements within just one month. Make sure you respect the reps and sets recommendation and feel free to adjust your weights in order to be able to perform the recommended counts. Don’t be embarrassed if you have to start very light because you’ll be able to add more weight the next time you train your chest.
Remember to finish your workout with chest dips to failure, because nothing bodyweight exercises are the best finishers in a large muscle group, such as your chest. It will help condition your entire upper body. Make this your ultimate chest workout for ultimate chest gains, and you’ll see significant improvements in strength and size in no time!