Underdeveloped chest & overdeveloped upper abs?

[KlaasKev]

Hi lads
I’ve never like the side view of my body. My upper abs & ribs stick out which makes me look fat when wearing a t shirt. What is the fix for this? Would it be to go into a deficit & lose some muscle mass or do I just need to work my chest hard? I’ve been hitting my upper chest with incline dumbbell presses & my lower chest with decline bench & dips. Would this sort my physique out? I’m 28 years old, 5”11 & weigh 166 pounds. Any advice would be appreciated. I wasn’t sure how to upload a pic so I just put a sideview as my prof pic

[Natty1980]

You cannot change they way your ribcage and sternum protrude but you can 1) build your pectorals in order for them to stick out and 2) improve your posture.

[air2fakie]

At your height and weight w/ the way your stomach looks so thick and your chest at a 45 degree angle, it looks like you're breathing in to try to suck in your stomach and stick out your chest to make it look bigger, but b/c you're chest is not developed and you might carry any weight you have in your belly, it gives off a different look.

That being said, working on your pecs will help with your physique. Your upper abs are not overdeveloped.

[Hutrapper]

I could be way off base, but I often wonder about how the body stores visceral fat vs subcutaneous fat. I know some carry on their hips, vs stomach, and some carry fat all over...

I wonder what role visceral fat plays in terms of where fat is gained and lost first, whether on a cut or bulk.

My laymans hypothesis would consider that perhaps a person could have abs and still look thicker because of visceral fat being the last to go.

Might not be the case for the OP, but I have often wondered about it.

[air2fakie]

My laymans hypothesis would consider that perhaps a person could have abs and still look thicker because of visceral fat being the last to go.

Might not be the case for the OP, but I have often wondered about it.

I've definitely seen bodybuilders who have 6-pack abs on top of what looks like a beer belly, which is confusing. I don't see that type of ab development here though.

[TolerantLactose]

Is it possible to see a pic that isn't cropped? I have a tough time not seeing that as exaggerated posture.

[KlaasKev]

Thanks for the feedback. I’ve managed to attach a few pictures to my original post

[TopHeavyMirin]

i think you might have a natural ribcage deformity.
i was born with it too, mine is called pectus excavatum.
it could also be pectus carinatum.

nothing you can do about it except build muscle on top of it and learn to accept it

[KlaasKev]

Cheers! I have heard of that condition but never went to a doctor myself. Did you not have surgery to correct yours?

[Ghawk21]

Not a doctor but it doesn't look like you have either condition. Just keep working out and building all your muscles and it will likely work its self out.

[Natty1980]

I've definitely seen bodybuilders who have 6-pack abs on top of what looks like a beer belly, which is confusing. I don't see that type of ab development here though.

Certain Celltech cause organs to increase their size, especially intestines.

[Jakeh1]

Based on the first picture alone it could possibly be caused by anterior pelvic tilt. Can't really tell because the pictures are taken at very unhelpful angles.

[KlaasKev]

Has anyone ever heard of flared ribs? I had never heard of it before but it’s seems to be a common issue and ribs stick out as a result

[SuffolkPunch]

There is nothing unusual there OP. Body dysmorphia is messing with your head. We all get this to some degree, the important part is to recognise it for what it is. Spend less time looking in the mirror is my advice.

[TopHeavyMirin]

There is nothing unusual there OP.

i dont know man. his chest is at a 25 degree incline from the rest of his body. even if it was a postural issue it wouldnt be so drastic. but i do agree about not looking in the mirror too much. dont care for it too much.
with my condition (pectus excavatum) i basically can never have visible upper abs because my abs are just dragged back into my ribcage, i have a huge gaping hole under my pec which makes one of my pecs looks bigger, but i dont stress about it and i like the way i look.

[Ghawk21]

i dont know man. his chest is at a 25 degree incline from the rest of his body. even if it was a postural issue it wouldnt be so drastic. but i do agree about not looking in the mirror too much. dont care for it too much.
with my condition (pectus excavatum) i basically can never have visible upper abs because my abs are just dragged back into my ribcage, i have a huge gaping hole under my pec which makes one of my pecs looks bigger, but i dont stress about it and i like the way i look.

You have an actual medical condition. OP does not. If you ever met someone with pectus carninatum you would be able to see OP does not. He just needs to keep building out his chest more.

[TopHeavyMirin]

You have an actual medical condition. OP does not. If you ever met someone with pectus carninatum you would be able to see OP does not. He just needs to keep building out his chest more.

I mean its really hard to see in pics, check out the pics on my bodyspace you might not be able to spot it.
cant rule it out completely. OP's chest is not all that bad.

[Jakeh1]

Has anyone ever heard of flared ribs? I had never heard of it before but it’s seems to be a common issue and ribs stick out as a result

Flared ribs are also caused by an anterior pelvic tilt ...

[rshropsh]

Hit the pec dec 3 sets of 12 reps and really good reps don't get stupid with the weight. In the middle contraction of each rep hold for 3 seconds and than go slow on the negative contraction. This will stretch out your Pectoralis minor (upper chest) muscle fibers and cause them to grow. Also hi the smith machine on an incline and do drop sets and go to failure till you can't move the bar off your chest thats why your using the smith. THIS WILL WORK TO GROW YOUR UPPER CHEST, its going to be painful if done correctly.

[dazitmayn]

yeah .... no.

[RapidFail]

I could be way off base, but I often wonder about how the body stores visceral fat vs subcutaneous fat. I know some carry on their hips, vs stomach, and some carry fat all over...

I wonder what role visceral fat plays in terms of where fat is gained and lost first, whether on a cut or bulk.

My laymans hypothesis would consider that perhaps a person could have abs and still look thicker because of visceral fat being the last to go.

Might not be the case for the OP, but I have often wondered about it.

In my case, visceral fat was the first to go - lost a lot of waist circumference while retaining a layer of subcutaneous fat that hid my abs, even when getting into the 150s at 6'1". Not sure if that's usually the case or not.

[melpa64]

You have a good chest, especially lower, I think some heavy barbell incline presses in the 3 - 5 rep range will certainly help, the best chests I have seen are from the inclines not flat. I haven't done flat bench press for chest in nearly a year and my chest is the best it have ever been, I normall do heavy inclines then chest press in a decline position for around 10 reps and some flies around 10 reps. Hope this helps