Exercises for a big chest

[MilosLDN]

I don't know whats the big deal with people trying to always find good exercises to build a big chest? People on my ********(Milosldn) constantly ask me about which exercises they should do for a big chest but i thought it was obvious isn't Bench press really the bread and butter of building a nice huge chest. In my chest workout all i do is Bench press flat, incline, decline, and flies not too complicated i just up the sets, reps or weight if it gets easier. Just wanted to know your opinions or if you guys think that there is a better exercise to build a nice all round chest

[tastan]

I don't know whats the big deal with people trying to always find good exercises to build a big chest? People on my ********(Milosldn) constantly ask me about which exercises they should do for a big chest but i thought it was obvious isn't Bench press really the bread and butter of building a nice huge chest. In my chest workout all i do is Bench press flat, incline, decline, and flies not too complicated i just up the sets, reps or weight if it gets easier. Just wanted to know your opinions or if you guys think that there is a better exercise to build a nice all round chest

You got it. It's simple flat, incline, decline or dips, flys. Incorporating barbell and dumbbells. Keep it simple. Look at chest development of the guys from the 60s and 70s, they had great chests, but they didn't have any fancy equipment.

[MilosLDN]

You got it. It's simple flat, incline, decline or dips, flys. Incorporating barbell and dumbbells. Keep it simple. Look at chest development of the guys from the 60s and 70s, they had great chests, but they didn't have any fancy equipment.

completely agree

[magician27]

bench press is the only exercise. db press is a bench press too. people usually think that they need to find a fancy exercise that nobody else does

[MilosLDN]

bench press is the only exercise. db press is a bench press too. people usually think that they need to find a fancy exercise that nobody else does

haha yeah people always trying to find fancy exercises hence why you see so many vines with people doing dumb stuff

[Brozef]

I think a lot of people fail to get a good chest because is very tempting to go to failure on every set when working the chest. I personally believe that is the biggest reason for stalling size wise when all other factors are in order.

[thinkgreen]

Eat food = bigger chest.

[MilosLDN]

I think a lot of people fail to get a good chest because is very tempting to go to failure on every set when working the chest. I personally believe that is the biggest reason for stalling size wise when all other factors are in order.

yeah i do agree that people do take chest to failure a lot of the time it has nothing to do with exercise but the way they go about their workout as a whole i guess

[MilosLDN]

Eat food = bigger chest.

eat BIG to get BIG lol

[JenW1990]

Incline bench and dumbbells, can't beat that. 6-8 reps and negative reps on last 2 reps.. I've recommended this to so many people and they always say how it has started to work.

[MilosLDN]

Incline bench and dumbbells, can't beat that. 6-8 reps and negative reps on last 2 reps.. I've recommended this to so many people and they always say how it has started to work.

yeah i love dumbbells prefer them to barbell personally

[alwayschestday]

The only problem is most gyms or allot run out of Dumbbell lbs pretty quick. Mine only goes to 100lb pair.

[M1seryD1str1ct]

Agreed with the key to a hearty chest is in the consistent simplicity. I've always used the rule of thumb 'after every pressing movement follow it up with a flying movement' to keep a good pattern of deep tears, pump, deep tears, pump. I also only cable fly in a downwards direction too with the pin set high to really knot up that pec.

[SicilianPower]

I do DB Incline/Flat Presses, DB Flys, and Push ups. I used to barbell bench, I actually benched 300lbs last year at 17 years old but I never saw any good gains till I started doing the dumbbell presses/flys. I would still barbell bench but it hurts my shoulder and it really isn't necessary in my opinion.

[Asianhulk82]

Eat food = bigger chest.

THIS ^^^

And Max Weights you can possibly handle for at least 3-4 reps at the last set.

No need to decline, just Incline and Flat. No need for dumbells unless your pecs/delts are way uneven.

[Asianhulk82]

The only problem is most gyms or allot run out of Dumbbell lbs pretty quick. Mine only goes to 100lb pair.

THIS^^^ is correct also. My gym only goes to 35kgs dumbells or 70 lbs. so I only dumbell on flyes

[Vitalero]

my gym got only 65lb DB, and then it jumps to 85lb so we all only bench, impossible to make that jump lol

[MilosLDN]

my gym got only 65lb DB, and then it jumps to 85lb so we all only bench, impossible to make that jump lol

yeah my gym the dumbbell goes up to 30kg so i have no choice but to barbel but i personally would prefer heavy dumbbell press

[MilosLDN]

Agreed with the key to a hearty chest is in the consistent simplicity. I've always used the rule of thumb 'after every pressing movement follow it up with a flying movement' to keep a good pattern of deep tears, pump, deep tears, pump. I also only cable fly in a downwards direction too with the pin set high to really knot up that pec.

agreed

[grouchyjarhead]

You got it. It's simple flat, incline, decline or dips, flys. Incorporating barbell and dumbbells. Keep it simple. Look at chest development of the guys from the 60s and 70s, they had great chests, but they didn't have any fancy equipment.

Amen to that. I always thought the powerlifter Doug Young had an awesome chest, he was stretching the tape at almost 60" and was 5'11" and competed as a 242. He mostly just benched heavy (he once benched 611 in a T-shirt) and added in some DB work and dips when he needed to.

[Tommy W.]

Amen to that. I always thought the powerlifter Doug Young had an awesome chest, he was stretching the tape at almost 60" and was 5'11" and competed as a 242. He mostly just benched heavy (he once benched 611 in a T-shirt) and added in some DB work and dips when he needed to.

The thing is You aren't Doug Young and nobody else is either. That works good for him but maybe not you.

[grouchyjarhead]

The thing is You aren't Doug Young and nobody else is either. That works good for him but maybe not you.

So far following the same advice has been pretty good to me (just heavy bench and dips), don't think I'll change it any time soon.

[Tommy W.]

So far following the same advice has been pretty good to me (just heavy bench and dips), don't think I'll change it any time soon.

See now you're throwing dips in there. That isn't just benching now is it ;-))

[Khalicks]

BB bench, DB bench, slight incilne versions of either/both, weighted dips, cable flyes (or pec deck flyes). That's what works for me.

[alwayschestday]

"See, the trouble with the bench press is that it is more an exercise for the front deltoids of your shoulders, than it is an exercise for the chest. EMG studies reveal that the front deltoids receive the same stimulation as the pectoralis major of the chest during the flat bench press.

The front deltoids are very small in comparison to the pectoralis major muscle of the chest.
Since the front deltoids are a very small muscle compared to the huge pectoralis major of the chest, it stands to reason that during the bench press the deltoids of your shoulders will fatigue way before your chest even starts to get a proper workout. As a result you will end your workout before fully involving your chest."

"Due to the rising popularity of the bench press, rotator cuff surgery is at an all time high.
The bench press places too much strain on the rotator cuff muscles of the shoulders, and very commonly leads to injury, damage and wear & tear of the rotator cuff over time.
For this reason, the bench press is widely reported as being the most common cause of shoulder injuries in the gym."



Couldn't agree more with these excerpts.

[Xuaxace]

^^^ depends how you bench

I bench really wide, with a big arch, which increases emphasis on the pec major in two ways (pre tension, origin point is moved further up which increases tension in the muscle) and a very large momment arm (so the pec has to create considerable more torque (effort). The arch also helps in planting the shoulderblades which moves the glenoid fossa down, which reduces the required shoulder flexion in the movement (reducing front delt requirement)

So while all of this seems like PL bench technique, it is also the goat for targetting the pec major (sternal/costal head) on a barbell movement.

Obiously i throw some incline to fill the gaps in the clavicular/delt area here and there.

[Tommy W.]

"See, the trouble with the bench press is that it is more an exercise for the front deltoids of your shoulders, than it is an exercise for the chest. EMG studies reveal that the front deltoids receive the same stimulation as the pectoralis major of the chest during the flat bench press.

The front deltoids are very small in comparison to the pectoralis major muscle of the chest.
Since the front deltoids are a very small muscle compared to the huge pectoralis major of the chest, it stands to reason that during the bench press the deltoids of your shoulders will fatigue way before your chest even starts to get a proper workout. As a result you will end your workout before fully involving your chest."

"Due to the rising popularity of the bench press, rotator cuff surgery is at an all time high.
The bench press places too much strain on the rotator cuff muscles of the shoulders, and very commonly leads to injury, damage and wear & tear of the rotator cuff over time.
For this reason, the bench press is widely reported as being the most common cause of shoulder injuries in the gym."



Couldn't agree more with these excerpts.

This^^^^

For many people it isn't bad form that's causing them shoulder problem while flat benching, it's the way their shoulders are structured internally. Some people just don't have the room in there to perform the exercise without causing problems.

[Vitalero]

This^^^^

For many people it isn't bad form that's causing them shoulder problem while flat benching, it's the way their shoulders are structured internally. Some people just don't have the room in there to perform the exercise without causing problems.

What you are saying is if training shoulders well enough it supposed to remove the pain and problem while benching?
any specific shoulder exc to hit the right side of the muscle ? front deltoid as in military press?

[Tommy W.]

What you are saying is if training shoulders well enough it supposed to remove the pain and problem while benching?
any specific shoulder exc to hit the right side of the muscle ? front deltoid as in military press?

No. There are different types of Acromium (Internal shoulder part). If you have a "Hooked" acromium you'll have a good chance of having impingement issues during certain exercises, benching included. There really isn't anything you can do short of surgery (sumacromial decompression). The best defense is to do very light rotator cuff exercises on a regular basis.

[muhr]

When your goal is to build bigger pecs as soon as possible, getting creative with exercise selection is not only unnecessary, but in most cases counterproductive. Machines certainly have their place in a hypertrophy routine, but anyone who tells you he got a big chest by doing only the pec deck is either (a) a liar or (b) a pec deck salesman. Adding size requires focusing on the most basic lifting equipment in the gym: barbells, dumbbells and benches.