A problem for anyone else???.....

[gneal]

When I do workouts for my chest I don't get the same muscle pain the next few days like I do when I work my arms or legs.

My guess is I'm probably using too much of my arms to move the weight instead of my chest muscles....does anyone else have this issue? Any solutions to this?

Thanks,
Greg

[dot1]

My tri's get the sorest of everything, hard to move my arms sometimes! My chest can stay sore for a day or two.

[Capt_Lou]

You can try to pre-exhaust.

I had the same problem as you, once I did a month of pre-exhausting I noticed a huge differance of size and weight.

[MR]

Can't tell what your chest workout is like, but I'm willing to guess that you need change your chest workout more often. Try all kinds of exercises to target different areas. Inclines, declines, extra-wide grip, dumbells, supersets, trisets, various push-ups, cable flyes. Mix it up!
I'm still working on getting my chest bigger and have a long way to go, but since I started changing my routines often and REALLY concentrating on the muscles that I want to work EVERY rep...my chest aches the next day every time. And the weights keep going up.

Mike

[techo]

My chest gets almost as sore as my legs. If your triceps get sore and no pain in the chest.....your grip might be a bit narrow. Just an idea.

If you post your chest workout you might get about a hundred suggestions.

[bgnb]

grab some light db's and lay down on the floor ...

now figure out where your elbows are pointed and see
if sliding them closer to your body or further from your
body isolates the pecs ...

also then experiment with putting your hands further out
or closer to your body ...

eventually you will find the right position for your hands and
arms relative to your body that isolates your pecs and uses
less shoulders and triceps.

its better on the floor because your elbows don't drop out of
sight and you can 'map' the best position better ...

do these with progressively heavier weights and then
try on a bench with lighter weights again emphasizing
positioning for isolation rather than lifting for max weight.

the weights will come up fast as your chest gets more involved
and the strain comes off your shoulders and triceps ...

Just remember that no one can tell you the 'right' position for
you ... its up to you to find it and you will know when you do!

[gneal]

Originally Posted by bgnb

grab some light db's and lay down on the floor ...

now figure out where your elbows are pointed and see
if sliding them closer to your body or further from your
body isolates the pecs ...

also then experiment with putting your hands further out
or closer to your body ...

eventually you will find the right position for your hands and
arms relative to your body that isolates your pecs and uses
less shoulders and triceps.

its better on the floor because your elbows don't drop out of
sight and you can 'map' the best position better ...

do these with progressively heavier weights and then
try on a bench with lighter weights again emphasizing
positioning for isolation rather than lifting for max weight.

the weights will come up fast as your chest gets more involved
and the strain comes off your shoulders and triceps ...

Just remember that no one can tell you the 'right' position for
you ... its up to you to find it and you will know when you do!

Thanks, I'll try this tomorrow since it is chest day.

Thanks to everyone for all the responses also.

[PeteB]

Besides grip and elbow position, some other things to consider:

You might want to note if anything else (triceps, front delt) gets sore after a chest workout.

Are the tri's or shoulders tired from the previous workout.

Is the weight too high and reps too low, compared to when you work arms or legs.

Do your lats get sore after a back workout (same issue as above).

[Minotaur]

After a chest workout my biceps and triceps are pumped and sore, less so my chest. Fitty once told me to widen my grip. I go as wide as I can (pinky on middle rings, which is wider than shoulder width for me) without risking bicipital tenonitis, but I still use a lot of arms.

[hammergunz]

Originally Posted by gneal

When I do workouts for my chest I don't get the same muscle pain the next few days like I do when I work my arms or legs.

My guess is I'm probably using too much of my arms to move the weight instead of my chest muscles....does anyone else have this issue? Any solutions to this?

Thanks,
Greg

Lay off the bench and do some flys- cable and dumbell, and pec-deck. That will isolate the chest. My 2 cents.