Dips or Cable Chest Flies for Outer Pecs

[kisrobyyy]

Hello, guys!

My outer pecs are lagging, so I want to target them more.

Are dips or cable chest flies (high to low) better for targeting them or are they equally good?

[jaxqen]

Both dips and high to low cable flyes emphasize lower chest.
Barbell bench pres, dumbell bench press or hammer machine press should work the entire chest (and they clearly work the outer area)
Dumbell flyes emphasize the outer chest.

Hard to believe the outer area is lagging, though.
Usually, people complain about the inner area or the upper area.
I assume you are happy with the way your chest grew except your outer area who somehow didn't grow?! Seriously?

[CommitmentRulz]

OP, I'm not trying to be a jerk with this response...

According to your previous posts, you are 17 years old and have been "lifting" for just 3 months. You are not far enough along to determine if any body part(s) are lacking or lagging. You don't need to be targeting any areas specifically, but hitting everything while following a good program with progressive overload.

[Garage Rat]

Dips depending on how you do them can work.
Also a wider dip bar would be better.
Search for "gironda dips"these are a great outer pec emphasis movement.
Elbows wide,upper back curved over,chin to the chest.
Be careful with how far you go down,these can be shoulder wreckers if your not careful.

[smokinal]

Dips are shouder wreckers as Rat said; at least for me they are; I don't do them.
And as Rulz said, you are too new at this to try to focus on any one bodypart. Keep training, eating and filling out and you'll see where your weaknesses are a little later.

But I still like to answer original questions, so, I prefer decline BB bench and cable flies. The thing to keep in mind with the fly, if you're really targeting the outer pec, is to keep your torso very upright, don't be too far out in front of the stacks, and bring your hands together very low and right in front of your groin area. A true high-to-low fly. I like standing almost directly even with the pulleys; maybe just a hair in front of them.

If you go too far out in front of the pulleys, or you start bending over more, the more the focus shifts to middle/full pec activation. And while I don't believe you can fully isolate a part of a muscle, doing what I described is the closest you'll get.

[BeginnerGainz]

OP, I'm not trying to be a jerk with this response...

According to your previous posts, you are 17 years old and have been "lifting" for just 3 months. You are not far enough along to determine if any body part(s) are lacking or lagging. You don't need to be targeting any areas specifically, but hitting everything while following a good program with progressive overload.

^^^

[MG5]

OP, I'm not trying to be a jerk with this response...

According to your previous posts, you are 17 years old and have been "lifting" for just 3 months. You are not far enough along to determine if any body part(s) are lacking or lagging. You don't need to be targeting any areas specifically, but hitting everything while following a good program with progressive overload.

This.

Most people don't have specific parts of their chest that's lagging. They just need to get stronger and bigger overall and watch their chest grow, fill out, take it's shape, and develop enough to the point it's actually impressive.

Why not do both? Flyes and dips?

A great chest workout could be....

Flat Barbell Bench
Incline Dumbbell Bench
Dips
Cable Flyes

3 sets of each

[jk202]

Has no one mentioned it’s impossible to emphasize one end of a muscle more than the other? Upper and lower, sure, but growing inner vs outer chest does not existed

[BeginnerGainz]

Has no one mentioned it’s impossible to emphasize one end of a muscle more than the other? Upper and lower, sure, but growing inner vs outer chest does not existed

Unfortunately certain talking heads in the fitness industry really put some weird ideas in people’s heads

[jaxqen]

Has no one mentioned it’s impossible to emphasize one end of a muscle more than the other? Upper and lower, sure, but growing inner vs outer chest does not existed

Reminded me of an older comment on this forum

"Alright. Listen and listen good, I'm only going to say this 500 more times lol. The evidence is VERY strong that you can or at least emphasize muscles near their proximal or distal portions (top, bottom) or even belly. Here's why. FIRST. There is NO DOUBT, that you can work lateral sections of linear muscles. Meaning, you can work outer or inner biceps apart from the two heads of the muscle in this case. Meaning, work "outer" long head . Muscular compartments/partitions exist for very specific motions. They definately run linearly throughout muscles. Now, in terms of lower/upper. You have the above re: muscular partitions as one possibility/partial explanation. But something that cannot be ignored. Myosin/Actin pairings, which are optimal or non optimal based on resistance curve/range of motion and extension or contraction. The individual muscle fibers DO NOT run the whole length of a muscle. Get that through your head. They are not like rubbers bands. What appears as a fiber is a grouping of fibers actually. Since myosin/actin act as "parallel ratchets", at certain ranges of motion, they are either going to be not in contact and unable to contract, or PAST contraction and unable to contract. Between these two extremes, you have best<->worst combinations that get favored. If you think about it. If the above were not true, then every exercise would be equally effective for everyone, and no range of motion would be necessary"


And I may be wrong, but even your guy, Hypertrophy coach, had a video saying that you can emphasize inner, giving several tips during bench press.

[jk202]

And I may be wrong, but even your guy, Hypertrophy coach, had a video saying that you can emphasize inner, giving several tips during bench press.

I think he said something along the lines of yes, there is some scientific evidence that some exercises may bias more prox or distal, BUT it's extremely unlikely that it's actually going to be enough to drive more hypertrophy or result in any actual visual changes.

That's basically where I'm at with it.

[Ironface]

My outer pecs are lagging

I'd bet my left nut they aren't.

[air2fakie]

OP if your outer chest is truly lagging after a few months of working out, then eating more might be the best way to fill out that area.

[MyEgoProblem]

Outer pecs lagging? Its just small pecs
Inner pecs lagging? It's just small pecs

Cure? Grow bigger pecs. And make sure you have one lift that has horizontal adduction past your midline

[GeneralSerpant]

Just depends on the stretch you get but you shouldn't really deviate too far from your core strength training.

Also if you're doing dips then they should be chest dips if you plan on growing the chest just a thought.

[MrCarrot]

Doesn't really answer the question, but I injured my shoulder and whilst I can't be 100% how, I'm fairly sure it was from doing dips. I don't do them any longer. I find cable flies are pretty safe and target the pecs particularly well, especially after your triceps are fatigued from pressing.

I have a poor chest and my own development improved from lowering body fat, which revealed the line between my inner pecs and seperation between upper and lower pecs, and adding more muscle to my chest which improved the outer sweep somewhat.

[MyEgoProblem]

I think he said something along the lines of yes, there is some scientific evidence that some exercises may bias more prox or distal, BUT it's extremely unlikely that it's actually going to be enough to drive more hypertrophy or result in any actual visual changes.

That's basically where I'm at with it.

There certainly is some good evidence for locational hypertrophy in muscle belly.

How much this affect 99.9% of people in yet to truely be sure. Maybe for a pro bodybuilder to shape a head they cant site shoot too hard, it's gonna matter.

Especially if we all use a variety of lifts (or close variations of the same lifts) this will all be covered regardless. And gen pop all just need to get bigger and stronger.

As for strength athletes? Specificity will be king for your sport especially in weight class sports, so will be of minimal use outside of maybe post injury rehab.

I'm open to more data to change my mind. But right now. I think we are on the same page atm.

[TheShadowMan]

Between a cable fly machine and an exercise that combines the benefits of calisthenics and resistance training if weight is added like a weighted dip does? That's a no brainer, dips every time. The movement is challenging in itself, but you have to learn balance and stabilization, have a strong core just to begin using them. Weighted dips are the hard way, but in my experience it's the hard way that has the highest return in the end. And actually, as I hear it Vince Gironda was so in favor of dips that they say he once removed all the benchpresses from his gym and replaced them with dip stations instead. The EMG scores rate them pretty well too, in all areas of pec development. What more could you need really, unless you're doing sled pushes - those would be pretty great for chest.