Proven Principles For Thick, Powerful Pecs
Chest Exercises
Given this information, here is my list of “approved” chest exercises. If you don’t see an exercise listed here then you don’t need to perform it…
- Flat barbell bench press
- Incline barbell bench press
- Decline barbell bench press
- Flat dumbbell bench press
- Incline dumbbell bench press
- Decline dumbbell bench press
- Wide-grip dips
That’s it!
That’s all you need. These are the most effective chest exercises available and will stimulate growth as efficiently as possible.
Let’s now talk about how to structure a proper chest workout using these exercises…
Frequency
For maximum gains in size and strength, you should only directly stimulate your chest once per week.
After every high intensity chest workout you should allow a full week for your body to recuperate and to rebuild. Anymore than this is counter-productive and will lead to overtraining.
Sets
Most lifters in the gym perform way too many sets for their chest. They’re caught up in the idea that “more is better” and usually perform something like 10, 12, 15 or more sets for the chest.
High intensity weight training is far more stressful to the body than most people think, and stimulating your chest for growth really only requires a few hard, focused sets.
I recommend that you perform anywhere from 5-7 sets TOTAL per workout for your chest. As long as you train hard and with full focused effort, you should not perform anymore than this. And remember, that’s total sets per WORKOUT, not per exercise.
Reps
In order to stimulate chest growth as effectively as possible I recommend performing 5-7 reps for every set that you perform.
This means that the weight should be light enough to allow for 5 full reps using proper form but heavy enough that you cannot complete more than 7 reps using proper form.
There’s no need to “pyramid” or mix up your rep ranges in order to “shock” your muscles into new growth.
The goal is to logically and intelligently stimulate your chest to grow, and 5-7 reps is the best rep range to accomplish this.
Exercise Selection
I recommend that you perform 3-4 chest exercises per workout and 1-2 sets per exercise.
Try to include at least one barbell and one dumbbell pressing movement into your routine, since each of these tools has its own unique advantages and this way you can reap the benefits of both.
I would also suggest using various angles throughout your workout by mixing it up between flat, incline and decline exercises in order to allow for full, complete chest development.
* Wide grip dips are such a powerful chest movement that I’d recommend including them in every workout.
Given all of this information, here are 3 sample chest routines that you can use for yourself…
Sample Chest Routines
Routine#1
Flat Barbell Bench Press - 2 sets of 5 to 7 reps
Incline Dumbbell Press - 2 sets of 5 to 7 reps
Wide-Grip Dips - 2 sets of 5 to 7 reps
Routine#2
Incline Dumbbell Press - 2 sets of 5 to 7 reps
Wide-Grip Dips - 2 sets of 5 to 7 reps
Decline Barbell Bench Press - 2 sets of 5 to 7 reps
Routine#3
Incline Barbell Bench Press - 2 sets of 5 to 7 reps
Wide-Grip Dips - 2 sets of 5 to 7 reps
Flat Dumbbell Press - 1 set of 5 to 7 reps
Decline Dumbbell Press - 1 set of 5 to 7 reps
Any of those routines will work just fine.
You should follow each individual workout for a period of 8 weeks, at which point you should take a full week off from the gym.
Workout Details
• Make sure to perform all sets to concentric muscular failure, that is, to the point where you cannot complete any additional reps using proper form despite your best efforts.
• Write down the exercises, sets and reps that you perform for each workout and then strive to improve upon those numbers each week by either increasing the weight or by performing more reps.
• Rest as long as you need to in between sets so that you can perform each individual set with full effort, strength and intensity.
• Always use a spotter for all of your barbell pressing movements as a safety precaution.
• Make sure to perform all movements with a full range of motion, that is, by lowering the weights all the way down to your chest and pressing them up until your elbows are just short of locking out.
That’s it!
That’s all you need to know in order to see the best chest gains of your life. Forget about all of the crazy routines you see posted in the muscle magazines and on message boards across the Internet. Most of those routines will do nothing more than overtrain your body and hold you back from making the gains you deserve.
Achieving maximum muscle growth is all about using an intelligent, logical approach just like I’ve outlined here. Building the largest, roundest and thickest set of pecs that you possibly can only requires a few hard, focused sets of a few basic exercises.
I hope you learned some useful new tips for accelerating your chest development, but I just want to mention that as much as you desire a muscular, well-developed chest, I HIGHLY recommend that you do NOT give your chest any special priority over your other muscle groups.
Most people in the gym tend to give special attention to their chest because it’s a “showy” muscle and because the bench press has somehow become a landmark for measuring your strength.
This is a BIG mistake!
If you’re trying to develop an impressive, muscular physique, then you must train every muscle group with equal focus and intensity. Not only does it look ridiculous having a lop-sided, unsymmetrical body, but it can also throw your joints out of whack and this can lead to serious injury.
Chest Exercises
Given this information, here is my list of “approved” chest exercises. If you don’t see an exercise listed here then you don’t need to perform it…
- Flat barbell bench press
- Incline barbell bench press
- Decline barbell bench press
- Flat dumbbell bench press
- Incline dumbbell bench press
- Decline dumbbell bench press
- Wide-grip dips
That’s it!
That’s all you need. These are the most effective chest exercises available and will stimulate growth as efficiently as possible.
Let’s now talk about how to structure a proper chest workout using these exercises…
Frequency
For maximum gains in size and strength, you should only directly stimulate your chest once per week.
After every high intensity chest workout you should allow a full week for your body to recuperate and to rebuild. Anymore than this is counter-productive and will lead to overtraining.
Sets
Most lifters in the gym perform way too many sets for their chest. They’re caught up in the idea that “more is better” and usually perform something like 10, 12, 15 or more sets for the chest.
High intensity weight training is far more stressful to the body than most people think, and stimulating your chest for growth really only requires a few hard, focused sets.
I recommend that you perform anywhere from 5-7 sets TOTAL per workout for your chest. As long as you train hard and with full focused effort, you should not perform anymore than this. And remember, that’s total sets per WORKOUT, not per exercise.
Reps
In order to stimulate chest growth as effectively as possible I recommend performing 5-7 reps for every set that you perform.
This means that the weight should be light enough to allow for 5 full reps using proper form but heavy enough that you cannot complete more than 7 reps using proper form.
There’s no need to “pyramid” or mix up your rep ranges in order to “shock” your muscles into new growth.
The goal is to logically and intelligently stimulate your chest to grow, and 5-7 reps is the best rep range to accomplish this.
Exercise Selection
I recommend that you perform 3-4 chest exercises per workout and 1-2 sets per exercise.
Try to include at least one barbell and one dumbbell pressing movement into your routine, since each of these tools has its own unique advantages and this way you can reap the benefits of both.
I would also suggest using various angles throughout your workout by mixing it up between flat, incline and decline exercises in order to allow for full, complete chest development.
* Wide grip dips are such a powerful chest movement that I’d recommend including them in every workout.
Given all of this information, here are 3 sample chest routines that you can use for yourself…
Sample Chest Routines
Routine#1
Flat Barbell Bench Press - 2 sets of 5 to 7 reps
Incline Dumbbell Press - 2 sets of 5 to 7 reps
Wide-Grip Dips - 2 sets of 5 to 7 reps
Routine#2
Incline Dumbbell Press - 2 sets of 5 to 7 reps
Wide-Grip Dips - 2 sets of 5 to 7 reps
Decline Barbell Bench Press - 2 sets of 5 to 7 reps
Routine#3
Incline Barbell Bench Press - 2 sets of 5 to 7 reps
Wide-Grip Dips - 2 sets of 5 to 7 reps
Flat Dumbbell Press - 1 set of 5 to 7 reps
Decline Dumbbell Press - 1 set of 5 to 7 reps
Any of those routines will work just fine.
You should follow each individual workout for a period of 8 weeks, at which point you should take a full week off from the gym.
Workout Details
• Make sure to perform all sets to concentric muscular failure, that is, to the point where you cannot complete any additional reps using proper form despite your best efforts.
• Write down the exercises, sets and reps that you perform for each workout and then strive to improve upon those numbers each week by either increasing the weight or by performing more reps.
• Rest as long as you need to in between sets so that you can perform each individual set with full effort, strength and intensity.
• Always use a spotter for all of your barbell pressing movements as a safety precaution.
• Make sure to perform all movements with a full range of motion, that is, by lowering the weights all the way down to your chest and pressing them up until your elbows are just short of locking out.
That’s it!
That’s all you need to know in order to see the best chest gains of your life. Forget about all of the crazy routines you see posted in the muscle magazines and on message boards across the Internet. Most of those routines will do nothing more than overtrain your body and hold you back from making the gains you deserve.
Achieving maximum muscle growth is all about using an intelligent, logical approach just like I’ve outlined here. Building the largest, roundest and thickest set of pecs that you possibly can only requires a few hard, focused sets of a few basic exercises.
I hope you learned some useful new tips for accelerating your chest development, but I just want to mention that as much as you desire a muscular, well-developed chest, I HIGHLY recommend that you do NOT give your chest any special priority over your other muscle groups.
Most people in the gym tend to give special attention to their chest because it’s a “showy” muscle and because the bench press has somehow become a landmark for measuring your strength.
This is a BIG mistake!
If you’re trying to develop an impressive, muscular physique, then you must train every muscle group with equal focus and intensity. Not only does it look ridiculous having a lop-sided, unsymmetrical body, but it can also throw your joints out of whack and this can lead to serious injury.
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