anyone successfully built a genetically TERRIBLE chest?

[tumtum]

I know this isn't "correct" place to ask this.. but I only post here and in the IFBB forum.. all the others are garbage to me..

has anyone struggled to build their chest for multiple years and then finally found a method that worked? Not interested in someone who built a chest in their first couple years... i'm talking like.. you worked it for 5 yrs hard, with major emphasis with ZERO results and then suddenly you tweaked something and it just responded.

I've killed my chest for the past 8 yrs and literally nothing has happened... my front relaxed pose looks terrible because of it.. (obviously side chest is bad too)

again.. if you were born with a great chest i'm not interested.. pushups build chests for some ppl haha..

thanks guys..

last august

4859003

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=4859003&d=1347035767

[NextProtege]

First, you don't have a terrible chest. It's not elite and top 1% of chests, but it flows with your physique so be proud of your hard work man. Really isn't noticeably behind also. I also suffer from a weaker pec structure and bio-mechanically press through my triceps more than my chest on my movements. Now, I only do one or maybe two pressing exercises per chest day, but I do up to 3 flying movements at max intensity. To bring it up, I recommend always having a coach or spotter or trainer forcing your flying reps out of you. Use negatives, partial reps, rest pause, FST-7, and prioritize that bitch if you really want it to come up.

[tumtum]

thanks for the kind words.. it looks decent there.. but there is literally zero upper chest.. and i'm carrying a good bit of fat on my lower.. i'll see if i can find a better pic

[nlouisy]

I don't know for some reason my chest is the fastest growin muscle on my body, it's very easy to gain muscles on my chest.

[Logie_Bear]

My chest seems to respond more to higher rep / shorter rest methods. High intensity stuff. It always grows more this way and has more seperation than if I'm following traditional 4 sets of 8-12.

[demonwareltd]

First, you don't have a terrible chest. It's not elite and top 1% of chests, but it flows with your physique so be proud of your hard work man. Really isn't noticeably behind also. I also suffer from a weaker pec structure and bio-mechanically press through my triceps more than my chest on my movements. Now, I only do one or maybe two pressing exercises per chest day, but I do up to 3 flying movements at max intensity. To bring it up, I recommend always having a coach or spotter or trainer forcing your flying reps out of you. Use negatives, partial reps, rest pause, FST-7, and prioritize that bitch if you really want it to come up.

I would second the flying movements. Try making them a priority. Instead of starting right in with bench press, do several sets of DB flyes with max effort. The weights you will use on your subsequent bench sets will be much lower, but you can really feel the chest more and fatigue it more completely this way.

[tumtum]

i did that for a few month.. and i kept getting extremely sore around the bottom of my front delt/armpit area.. like my delts were taking over the movement.. no matter how light or heavy i went

[sloboda]

I had a weak chest when I was a few years younger. When I started following the PHAT system I was hitting my chest twice a week with different rep ranges. I can vouch that helped me bring up my chest quite a bit.

[tumtum]

Phat is by far my favorite routine.. yet i haven't been able to use it during a caloric surplus yet... 4 more weeks and i'll get to try it

[DiamondMaker]

My workout partner has excellent shoulders but terrible chest genetics - worse then yours by a long shot. His chest is high for one, but it also doesn't seem to flex correctly even in a basic isolation movement (like flys). Couldn't feel the muscle working, couldn't even get a pump...

After about a year of trying different things, what he found to actually work was to do smith wide grip bench press with technically incorrect form (by flaring the elbows out rather then keeping them tucked) and using constant tension without lockout. Now of course this technique is dangerous because it increases the risk of a tear so make sure you don't go extremely heavy and/or jerk the weight too quickly.

[tumtum]

yeah there is no way i could do that.. my left shoulder is garbage... it makes db flys pretty tough to do... i'll be midset and thinking i'm getting a good burn but it's actually my front delt that is killing me..

reps for everyone with suggestions, regardless of if i've done them or not.. and if i need i'll get them to you after recharge.. i really do appreciate all the advice

[SuburbiaNY]

nice man cave sir. And your side pose in the avatar looks pretty good.

[tumtum]

nice man cave sir. And your side pose in the avatar looks pretty good.

thanks man.. wish i could claim it was my cave.. but it's my dad's.. had to move in with the parents for a few months last year during a moving process

my side tri is my favorite shot.. can't wait to hit it on stage next year for my first time in june!!!

[AustrianOakJr]

You dont have a weak chest. I think thats more in your head than anything. Id rather have your wheels with a weak chest anyday.....so, from that standpoint, dont get down on yourself.

In general, genetics are going to limit weak bodyparts to a large degree due to insertion points and overall shape of the muscle. It just "is what it is". That said, you might find more success in varying your overall volume, intensity and frequency rather than focusing on certain exercises. Exercise variation is an element at play, but it is a small player compared to the big three (volume, frequency, intensity). And more often than not for a natural, more is not better.....you may need to lay off and allow more grow and recovery time.

[tumtum]

You dont have a weak chest. I think thats more in your head than anything. Id rather have your wheels with a weak chest anyday.....so, from that standpoint, dont get down on yourself.

In general, genetics are going to limit weak bodyparts to a large degree due to insertion points and overall shape of the muscle. It just "is what it is". That said, you might find more success in varying your overall volume, intensity and frequency rather than focusing on certain exercises. Exercise variation is an element at play, but it is a small player compared to the big three (volume, frequency, intensity). And more often than not for a natural, more is not better.....you may need to lay off and allow more grow and recovery time.

yeah i definitely know it's not do to doing the wrong exercises per say.. because in 8 yrs i've definitely tried them all lol.. for the first 7 yrs i did chest once a week.. i was so paranoid about "overtraining"..

the past year has been the first time i've experimented with twice a week (phat)

and thanks for the compliment on the wheels.. been trying to get those boys to grow and they only look decent in single digit BF.. but hey.. more the reason to not let myself go in the offseason right?

just curious oak.. how far out do i look in that pic?.. I was thinking about 8 weeks. (trying to plan for my comp next june).. i know it's tough to tell because there are no rear shots.. but the back matches the front.. pretty lean up top but lower back (like my lower abs) is still holding some fat

[AustrianOakJr]

just curious oak.. how far out do i look in that pic?.. I was thinking about 8 weeks. (trying to plan for my comp next june).. i know it's tough to tell because there are no rear shots.. but the back matches the front.. pretty lean up top but lower back (like my lower abs) is still holding some fat

Really hard to say.....some people can handle a harder 8 weeks in a steeper cal deficit and they lose nothing but fat. Others might need 16 weeks to come down from where you are if they struggle with real stubborn fat in the last stages of dieting. I am one who can cut to 8% or so without even blinking and then its like I hit a wall at 6%.....and I need another 6-8 weeks to get the last bit off. Its trial and error. I will say that its pretty hard to come in too early. Extra time buys you some fullness that you most guys never achieve. So if I were you I would say plan on at least 12 weeks from where you are. If you come in a bit early, up the calories and cruise into the contest chock full and freaky.

[tumtum]

perfect advice.. thanks Oak..

last yr when i was this lean ppl would say.. "you're ready for the stage".. and i'd always think... "damn this guy doesn't have a clue what stage lean is"

[AustrianOakJr]

perfect advice.. thanks Oak..

last yr when i was this lean ppl would say.. "you're ready for the stage".. and i'd always think... "damn this guy doesn't have a clue what stage lean is"

Well, you could step on stage today and do well. But if you want to win, then you will need more shred. The bummer is that the difference between "doing well" and "winning" is usually another 8-12 weeks of dieting.

[tumtum]

Well, you could step on stage today and do well. But if you want to win, then you will need more shred. The bummer is that the difference between "doing well" and "winning" is usually another 8-12 weeks of dieting.

i hear ya bud.. that's how i felt. this june i went to the show i will be doing and watched the Novice.. i feel like in my avi i was in better shape then all of them, so i felt i could have gotten the win. there were a lot of 4 packs out there, and legs with zero detail, but honestly winning isn't a priority at all.. my goal is too look seasoned (conditioning wise) If i get 1st overall novice but i but i'm not stage lean i consider it a failure (of course it's still a learning experience and such)... but i would prefer to get dead last and be happy with my conditioning and package than get first and feel i could have done better.

[PopeGregorius]

4859003

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=4859003&d=1347035767

It might just be posing, but if you draw a horizontal line across the nipples. everything below looks stunning & shows years of dedication. Above the line (chest, tri, even neck) doesnt look as well developed.

http://imagecdn.bodybuilding.com/img/user_images/growable/2004/07/06/18676/gallerypic/113551e.JPG

Here traps, tris look great; I would agree chest is the least developed on both pics. Dont know if any of that helps buddy.

[tumtum]

man i haven't looked at that pic in years haha.. yeah my traps and tris are still pretty good.. the pose doesn't show them very well.. but i'm definitely wanting the tris to tbe bigger.. my biceps are very developed and take away from them..

loving all the imput from everyone.. helping me out for sure

[Mundungus]

I have the same problem although I've only been training for 1.5 yrs. I just started doing incline guillotine bench press on a smith machine and it has been great so far. I can finally feel the top of the chest working and getting a little pump. I know you said your shoulder is wasted but maybe with some light weight you could do high rep sets to get them activated?

[NextProtege]

This is how I isolate my chest into getting my shoulders/triceps out of the movements:

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[y0lked]

This is how I isolate my chest into getting my shoulders/triceps out of the movements:

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Wow, dips have never been a chest activator for me. Your db press with rotation would be all shoulders for me. If it works for you man keep at it! However, pec deck and posing FTW!

OP ive never been able to feel my chest work until about 3 months ago. I took out every heavy pressing and switched it out with pre-fatigue, higher reps yet lower sets, and supersets. When i had a bad chest i mean terrrrrible! Everyone would always say "whats up with your chest? your shoulders arms and traps are sick but your chest looks like it never gets worked." i tried everything from heavy benching, to weighted dips, to pushups.

Heres what actually made my chest grow

Shoulder warm up
Cable flys 3 x 20
Incline DB bench 2 x 10
Flat DB bench 3 sets of 10, all sets supersetted with DB flys 12 reps
Pec deck 2 x 15

At first when i would get to DB bench and SS my frist set would be killer, my chest would be ripped and then id drop the weight a bit and hit real good burn sets. after each DB fly SS i could ACTUALLY feel my chest working and it was getting BLASTED!

Good luck man! Just gotta listen/feel your body and do whats right for you. Not everyone builds a big chest from BB bench press