A Guide to Chest Growth
A Guide to Chest Growth
WARNING: The following workout should only be attempted by those wishing to add thick slabs of muscle to the top of their rib cage. Pencil-neck geeks with concave chests who are happy with their current state should not attempt this. Also, people who shun attention at the beach, guys who enjoy a smooth flat appearance and women with breast implants should also avoid this program. Muscular Development and its contributors cannot be held responsible for shirts that no longer fit or fatigue resulting from an inordinate amount of sex as a result of completing this program.
KICK START YOUR PECS
Do you feel like you’ve tried just about every chest exercise known to man, with no real results? You’ve gone heavy, you’ve gone light, you’ve even tried those shaping exercises, but the only thing you have to show for it are overpowering front delts and aching rotator cuffs. You probably feel your chest will never grow!
Now introducing a revolutionary way to train your chest that nets unlimited results! At the risk of sounding like a corny commercial, there is a better way of getting your chest to respond. The solution is NOT to perform a full range of motion, wherein you take the elbows as low as possible (on pressing exercises) and lock at full extension. By limiting your range of motion on chest exercises, you’ll be able to keep most of the tension on your chest muscles and off your shoulders, especially at the bottom (stretching portion) of the exercise. Also, by repositioning your arms and concentrating more on the squeeze at the top of the movement, rather than just pushing the weight up, you can help isolate your chest. Though some will call them unorthodox, these adjustments can help you really see results in a matter of just weeks.
Sure, guys in the gym will say, “Those are only half reps— your elbows are barely breaking parallel; your chest will never grow like that.” But will they ever be wrong! While they’re nursing their aching rotator cuffs and torn pecs, you’ll just keep on benching and growing.
Secret to Success: When you feel your shoulders more than your chest on a chest exercise, you’re going too deep. Limit your stretch at the bottom, and let the squeeze at the top tell you you’ve finished a rep. Don’t let your arms lock out.
THE ROUTINE
Exercise One: Bench Press
This is the foundation to any chest routine— especially this one. Since it involves so many muscles of the upper body, we can’t stress enough the importance of warming up thoroughly. In fact, the first set should be done with no weight on the bar at all! Your ego is also going to be affected if you think slamming the bar down on your chest is good form. Never lower the weight past the point where you feel your shoulders stretching more than your chest. We know we said this earlier, but this point cannot be stressed enough. This will cut back on shoulder/chest injuries due to over-extension, especially as the weight gets heavier.
Some guys may find touching the bar to their chest represents no problem at all for their shoulders. Others will find such depth painful and counter productive. The idea here is to be able to keep benching, not be sidelined with shoulder injuries because some idiot told you that benching counts only if you go all the way down. Instead, concentrate on squeezing the muscle at the top of the movement. The stretch at the bottom should be minimal, allowing you to keep tension on your chest with as little as possible on your shoulders. If you get accused of doing partial reps, remember that half a rep is better than none. If your own particular physiology is such that touching the bar to your chest represents excessive stress on your shoulder, it’s only a matter of time before you stop benching. Bench smart— listen to your body! Also, since this routine requires that you find your bench-pressing limits, a spotter— preferably a training partner— is required.
Warm up set: 20 - 30 slow deliberate repetitions with no weight on the bar. Stop at the bottom of your range of motion and stretch past your pecs into your shoulders. Don’t bounce the bar and don’t go too deep into your shoulders.
First set: 15 repetitions with enough weight to easily complete the set— probably 40-50% of your one rep max.
Second set: 10-12 reps with an increase of 20-25% in weight. You should just barely be able to complete the last rep by yourself.
Third set: 8-10 reps to failure with a weight that stops you dead between the 8th and 10th rep. Have your training partner spot you through two to three additional forced reps. (You’ve reached failure when it’s impossible to move the weight upward and it begins to head south no matter what you do.) Make sure you have a spotter!
Fourth set: Strip the bar back down to your first set weight and rep out to failure with perfect form, then have your training partner spot you through 3-5 forced reps. This will completely torch your chest and insure adequate stimulus for growth. It’s going to hurt— but make sure the pain is in your pecs— not your shoulders.
Rest between sets: 1-1-1/2 minutes
Exercise Two: Incline Dumbbell Press
The bench should be inclined at a 45-degree angle or less. This can be accomplished on most incline benches by adjusting the seat to the last setting. If you need to go back farther, lift the front of the bench and rest it on a 25-pound plate. Start the exercise with a dumbbell on each knee and lift them into position one at a time by kicking your knee up as you hoist the weight. Once you get into heavier weights, have your training partner spot you under your elbows and help you lift a significant amount of the weight up into the starting position— arms at a 90-degree angle, perpendicular to the floor. Make sure he doesn’t let go until he is sure you are set and in a locked-out position. On the descent, control the weight; a slight stretch at the bottom is fine, just be careful not to allow your elbows to drop too far below parallel, as this would put the emphasis on your shoulders while also increasing your chance for injury. On the effort, push the weight toward the top; squeeze the weight together, but don’t bang dumbbells.
First set: 12-15 repetitions (chest is already warm so have at it), train to failure with a weight that stops you between 12-15 reps. Get 2-3 forced reps from your partner.
Second set: 10-12 reps. Again, use a weight that stops you somewhere between the rep range and get 2-3 more from your spotter.
Third set: 8-10 reps. Increase the weight and head for the wall. Have your partner give you two or three more.
Fourth Set: Pick a weight 10-20% lighter than your starting weight and rep out to failure using an extra-deliberate strict form. Squeeze each rep at the top and hold it, contracting your pecs as hard as you can for a count of two. By the time you hit the wall, your chest should be totally fried and pumped up enough to obscure your view of the floor.
Rest between sets: 1-1-1/2 minutes
Exercise Three: Dumbbell Pullovers
This exercise is not intended to absolutely torch your pecs (you already did that). It’s function is to stretch and widen your rib cage, thus giving your muscle more surface area to cover, which translates into a bigger, fuller chest.
First set: 12-15 reps with enough weight to perform the exercise with flawless form from beginning to end, squeezing each rep at the top. Try to keep your pecs flexed through the whole range of motion.
Second Set: Increase the weight 15-20% and go for 10-12 strict reps, squeezing just like before.
Third Set: Increase the weight another 15-20% and go to failure within the 8-10 rep range.
Rest between sets: 1 minute
Go home, suck down a protein shake and rest! Your chest should be screaming bloody murder by 2 o’clock the next afternoon. Do not train your chest again until all the soreness is completely gone. If you normally train your chest every five or six days and it is still sore on chest day, wait another day. Rest and proper nutrition with adequate protein are as important as the workout. Now go out and order a new set of shirts in a bigger chest size.
ULTIMATE PEC WORKOUT
Exercise Sets Reps Workload
Bench Press 1 20-30 Warm up set
1 15 40-50% of One Rep Max
15 reps should be comfortably done
1 10-12 Increase of 20-25% from 1st set
Failure should be reached around last rep
1 8-10 Failure should be in that 8-10 rep range
Upon failure do 2 to 3 forced reps
1 To failure Use poundage used in 2nd set
Upon failure do 3-5 forced reps
Incline DB Press 1 12-15 Failure should occur around 12-15th rep
Upon failure do 2-3 forced reps
1 10-12 Failure should occur around 10-12th rep
Upon failure do 2-3 forced reps
1 8-10 Failure should occur around 8-10th rep
Upon failure do 2-3 forced reps
1 To failure Use weight 10-20% lighter than 1st set
Go to failure in super strict form
DB Pullovers 1 12-15 Poundage should be one where failure
occurs around 12-15th rep
1 10-12 Poundage should be one where failure
occurs around 10-12th rep
1 8-10 Poundage should be one where failure
occurs around 10-12th rep
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