My lower chest towards the middle is too far apart and forms a shape like a triangle, basically the lower middle corners are too far from each other and I would like to grow that part so that my chest looks bigger and fuller. In the middle my chest is not far apart like how it is at its lowest point in the middle.
It is even rather boney.
what exercise would you recommend to target that part of the chest?
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Thread: Growing the Lower Middle Chest
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12-01-2008, 03:48 AM #1
Growing the Lower Middle Chest
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12-01-2008, 03:56 AM #2
- Join Date: Dec 2007
- Location: Adelaide, SA, Australia
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There are two views:
(1) there is no middle chest, just upper/lower. You have to make the entire chest bigger to make the middle chest bigger; or
(2) you can target the middle chest (close grip bench; cable or DB flys or DB pressing motion focusing on inner contraction)
I have heard both views. I want my upper middle chest bigger, so I'm seeing whether view 2 is correct ATM
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12-01-2008, 04:21 AM #3
- Join Date: Jan 2006
- Location: Lakeland, Florida, United States
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Yes, close grip bench it up. Tricep exercises ftw!!
I'd say focus on working your lower chest (flat bench, decline bench, gironda dips). Chances are, your genes don't want those corners to touch as easy as some other people. So now you need to work extra hard and blow it up, so they have no choice but to smoosh into each other.-
Alchemist of Alcohol
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Journal: http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=126418493
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12-01-2008, 04:44 AM #4
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12-01-2008, 04:57 AM #5
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12-01-2008, 07:19 AM #6
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12-01-2008, 07:21 AM #7
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12-01-2008, 07:58 AM #8
I think I understand you.
if your chest is not connected at the bottom (like the pic below) that it just genetics. You cant grow new muscle there
commonly associated with the above is pectoralis excavatum which is a "dent" in the chest, it kind of caves inLast edited by d16daily; 12-01-2008 at 11:40 AM.
"A big guy don't need floor poses... that's only for midgets."
-Lee Haney
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12-01-2008, 10:12 AM #9
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12-02-2008, 11:54 PM #10
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12-03-2008, 12:18 AM #11
It is a "winner" if you believe that you can build separate sections of one singular muscle.
Though, the realistic answer is that there is no true way to achieve hypertrophy of any significance in different area's of the same muscle.
Decline, Incline, Flat - they all place differential stress on the muscle - this will assist in preventing staleness / plateau'ing - it will assist with developing the neuromuscular signalling - it will assist in producing strength in that particular plane of motion. However, it will not produce any true additional growth in the "targeted" chest area moreover the rest of the chest. The difference over the short-to-medium term is negligible.
It's still wise to perform variations of the chest press. Variety is always a good inclusion to any exercise program. Just don't add it with this false belief that you'll solely build a specific area of your chest. It won't happen. It is not designed in the same manner as the deltoid (for example); which has an anterior/middle/posterior section.
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12-03-2008, 12:22 AM #12
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12-03-2008, 12:38 AM #13
I want to believe one can hit the area the OP is asking bout but i don't know.
However I do know that one can EMPHASIZE and place more tension on the upper pec. All i ever did before were flat bench and when i finally decided to ditch flat bench for incline benching/cable flyes on different angles, my upper pec started to grow.
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12-03-2008, 01:35 AM #14
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12-03-2008, 03:21 AM #15
- Join Date: Jan 2006
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I'm more with this group. I do not take up on the idea that you can work inner or outer, since it is muscle fibers that run horizontally. I am under the thinking that if you activate a muscle fiber, it is activated over it's entire length, not just on one part of it or another.
However since the pecs, are made up of horizontally running fibers, arranged top to bottom, I feel you can activate individual fibers. So flat and decline bench hit the middle to lower ones, while incline hits the upper ones. i'm not saying they completely neglect the other parts, but their primary area of emphasis is that.-
Alchemist of Alcohol
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12-03-2008, 04:51 AM #16
Muscle fibres are activated to contract through motor units, which are recruited based on the load (stimulus) being provided.
Motor units actually control multiple fibres, all of which are not parallel to eachother across the entire muscle - meaning that the convergent arrangement of the muscle fibres (in the Pectoralis Major) are activated at various levels. While the 'all or none' principle applies to "wholly contracting, or not contracting at all" - it only applies to the active motor unit(s). Therefore, if the load is not strong enough to activate ALL motor units controlling a specific muscle (such as the case of differential stress applied via various inclinations), then some fibres will receive greater activation than others.
This is, however, such a minor consideration. It has minimal impact on the development and growth of the overall muscle as a whole, and clearly underlies the notion that you cannot ideally "target" any segment of the Pectoralis Major.
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12-03-2008, 10:20 AM #17
if i understand correctly, you guys are claiming that you cannot target outer/inner upper/lower chest??
and if so, does this also mean that incline/decline chest exercises are completely useless by this theory??
I apologize if I misread the above. just curious
and to sherif: You have a nice chest already but I don't know if you understand that it really is genetic you can't grow "new" muscle. or else we would all have a chest like arnold...
so don't sweat the little gap, you look fine
Last edited by d16daily; 12-03-2008 at 10:39 AM.
"A big guy don't need floor poses... that's only for midgets."
-Lee Haney
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12-03-2008, 11:18 AM #18
- Join Date: Jan 2006
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I claim that you can't work inner to outer. Which has been debated to no end on this board. Just do a search and you can see both sides.
What Nicolas is saying is the first time I've heard you can't work upper to lower. I don't think anyone has ever contested that fact.-
Alchemist of Alcohol
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Journal: http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=126418493
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12-03-2008, 11:36 AM #19
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12-04-2008, 12:05 AM #20
haha katz where did u fish that pic from?
as you can see in that pic my lower chest in the middle forms a stupid triangle, looks like the bermuda triangle or something :P
My current workout is 3 x incline DB press, 3 x flat DB press and 3x cables flies from bottom to top. i do this twice a week and change my routine every 2 months.
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12-04-2008, 12:22 AM #21
Man, nothing wrong with the triangle in the lower chest at all. One of the all time greats had these genetics...
Here's him a little younger
And the glory years
The triangle rocks bud...and from your above pic, your lower chest is not lacking. Actually i'd hit the upper more
Beef it up and wear that **** proudLast edited by TrainOfThought; 12-04-2008 at 12:26 AM.
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12-04-2008, 12:45 AM #22
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12-04-2008, 12:52 AM #23
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12-04-2008, 01:34 AM #24
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