The Best Chest Workouts For Outstanding Pectoral Growth and Development

Best Chest Workouts

Optimal Chest Training Regimen

Seeking the "Ultimate Beach-Ready Chest"? Look no further! Harness the transformative potential of chest workouts. They offer a comprehensive solution for aesthetics and strength. Picture-perfect physique? Check. Functional power for daily tasks? Double check. Plus, an uplifted mood accompanies your physical gains.

This definitive chest regimen zeros in on the pectoral muscles, encompassing inner, outer, and lower regions. While robust pectorals are key, don't overlook the significance of ancillary muscles for optimal chest development. This includes the latissimus dorsi (lats) and trapezius muscles.

Ready to begin your journey towards a sculpted chest? Let's dive in.

Barbell Bench Press

While the incline presses are known to be the most effective chest workout, the typical barbell bench press is still reliable. It’s very popular as the best workout for massive chests. It’s a true chest workout that’s popular in gyms across the world. You can say it’s synonymous with strong, big, and healthy pecs. However, you should never overdo it. And when working out, have a spotter or workout partner to help you reach the ultimate rep.

To do this:

·         Lie on the bench with your back straight and your feet touching the floor.

·         Grip the bar with your palm facing in front. Then, wrap the thumb and the four fingers around it in the opposite direction

·         And position your arm a few inches shoulder-width apart.

·         And with enough force, dislodge the weight from the rack and hover it over your chest.

·         Inhale the air and gently descend the weight towards your mid-chest and your elbows remaining in. at the tip of the chest, maintain the weight for one second, and then exhale as you thrust it up the air to the initial position. Repeat the same steps severally until you reach the ultimate limit of your muscles' resistance and push power.

Targets: chest, outer pecs, delts, and triceps

Cable Cross-over

With this workout, you will need a pulley workout machine. It can be performed from high to low or perhaps low to high.

Starting with high-to-low:

·         Set up the workout machine cables to the highest level.

·         Through overhand-grip grasp the handles

·         Set your feet slightly apart or one in front of the other for balance.

·         In a T sort of shape, extend both arms uniformly outwards. Meanwhile, keep your elbows slightly bent for support and prevent straining the arm joint.

·         Once you’ve reached the extension limit, it’s time to push in and down both arms uniformly until they touch at your hip level. Meanwhile, brace the core, squeeze in the pecs, and then gently releasing the arm back to the initial starting point.

·         Also, do this severally for optimal impact.

Starting low to high

·         With the pulley machine at the lowest level this time, grasp the handle with palms facing up.

·         Your back straight, chest up, and feet shoulders length apart, bend your elbows slightly.

·         Then push uniformly each handle forward and up to meet at your eye level.

·         Thereafter, retreat them gently to the starting point.

·         Maintain the weights light and do relatively fewer reps.

Targets: Inner Pecs, outer pecs, and sterna heads muscles

Push-ups

If you didn’t know, Push-ups are one of the best chest workouts. It doesn’t require any gym equipment, and it’s convenient wherever you are. By engaging in a normal pushup, you can achieve close to 61% activation of chest muscles.

While it's way less than the impact from bench-pressing, the triple-action muscle impact and convenience are worth it. You can work on shoulders, arms, and chest all at the same time with pushups. And here is how to perform pushups effectively:

To avoid insulting your intelligence, we’ll keep this step simple. At the press-up position, maintain the legs hip-length apart and the hand's shoulder-length apart. And when you are descending during your reps, the elbow should attain a perfect 90o angle.

Targets: serratus anterior, abdominal muscles, triceps, deltoids, and pecs

Dips

You can make a big difference in your chest workout routine by Including Dips. If you are ready, step into the dip machine let’s start:

·         Positioning yourself at the middle of the parallel bars, and grab them with your thumb in.

·         Holding the bars firmly and bracing your core, lift your body from the floor.

·         Lean forward allowing your chest to face down slightly, and then lower yourself gently by bending your arms.

·         Meanwhile, your legs should be together and bent close to 90 degrees at the knee to avoid touching the floor.

·         Maintain this posture until you complete your reps.

Targets: chest, back, arms, outer pecs, and shoulders

Decline Dumbbell Bench Press

While you can use a barbell for decline bench press, Dumbbells are more effective. They target the lower pecs and also permit various ranges of motion. To start:

·         Set your bench to a decline angle of 45o and then lie flat at the top.

·         Grasping the dumbbells each on a hand, place them on your thighs.

·         Then lie flat with your back on the bench and your head at the lowest end.

·         Lift the dumbbells and bring them right above you’re your chest, the arms facing inwards.

·         Maintaining them at a shoulder-width distance, rotate your wrist to face your feet in the direction.

·         Thereafter, gently descend the weights by bending your arms to 90o from the elbow

·         During the lift, exhale as you thrust the dumbbells up.

·         During the whole workout, maintain the weight within your lower chest range.

Targets: bottom pecs

Bench Press, Close-Grip

The normal bench press is the best when using the barbell. But the close grip is another common variation with multiple impacts. Besides your chest, it targets the delts and triceps muscles. The steps to achieving this workout are similar to that of a bench press using a barbell. And the only difference is in the close grip of the bar.

Targets: Chest, delts and triceps, inner pecs

CONCLUSION

Finally, do these chest workout routines at least thrice weekly for optimum impact. And with every workout, approach gently and use weights you can comfortably support. And at the gym, try and mix these workouts. Switch to different pieces of equipment to make it more interesting and impactful.  Lastly, have at least 2-3 reps in every workout with reps ranging between 8 and 12. And after every rep or workout, rest 60 to 120 seconds.