Building a Big Chest with Lee Haney
Build a Big Chest with Lee Haney
8x Mr. Olympia Goes Back to Basics
Part 2: Chest Training
Last time, I began a series in which I take a look at what I feel are the exercises most people don’t do properly for each body part. By pointing out common errors in technique and telling you how you should be performing the movement, you will be one step closer to the physique you want! Last time, we talked about back movements. And now, it’s all about another body part I was known for— chest!
Bench Press
The flat barbell bench press is the bread-and-butter movement for mass in the chest. It should form the platform of every bodybuilder’s chest routine. One thing I want to start off with is that you need to pyramid up in weight. Some of the “heavy duty” guys just do a little warm-up, and then start off with the absolute heaviest weight they can bench for six to eight reps— utterly ridiculous! That’s the easiest way to tear a pec, an injury that can and has been the end of many a bodybuilder’s career. In all sports, practice sessions have the athletes start off light and easy and then increase the intensity. It’s just common sense to warm up the body as a whole, and the muscles and connective tissues in particular. Another common error I see is bodybuilders lowering the bar to their neck, what used to be known as a “guillotine press.” It’s bad biomechanics and puts far too much stress on the shoulder joints. You want to bring the bar down a couple of inches above the sternum, across the nipple line. And the granddaddy of all transgressions on the bench press is simply going too heavy. You see it every day in every gym across the world— guys using so much weight that they can’t even do a single rep on their own without help from a spotter, and flopping around and contorting their bodies as they struggle to get a rep. The bar is usually stuck.
Your reps, as I’ve said before, should resemble a “check mark.” That means an explosive lift followed by a controlled lowering with no pause at the top or bottom— constant motion and tension on the muscle. There is never a reason to max-out for a single, either. I did it just a few times in my entire career, and only once in the eight years I was Mr. Olympia. After doing 315 x 8, 405 x 7 and 465 x 3, I put 500 on the bar and did it just to see if I could. It actually went up easier than I thought it would, but I never did it again. The risk of injury just wasn’t worth it.
Incline Press
Incline presses are essential for full development of the upper chest, but you need to take extra care with them. The flat press is a more natural movement, while incline pressing tends to be somewhat awkward and puts more stress on the shoulders. But the results are worth the effort, because nothing else gives you that “shelf” across the top of the chest and tying into the front delts in a side chest pose. Because of the body position, you don’t want to lower the bar at the nipple line. Instead, it should touch just an inch or so below your clavicles. Really, you need to find your own “groove” on the incline press that feels natural and right to you.
Dumbbell Presses
I love dumbbells for pressing, and used to do both barbell and dumbbell presses in the same workout about every third or fourth workout. They build both size and quality in the muscle, they allow for a more natural motion with less stress on the shoulder joints, and they also give you a greater range of motion than a barbell. The fact that you need to keep them balanced and work each side of the muscle independently means the muscle has to work even harder. Now that I am retired from competition, I do most of my pressing with dumbbells. One pointer is not to touch them together at the top of the rep, as that takes some of the tension off the pecs. Also, keep them moving. You should try to flex and squeeze the pecs while doing dumbbell flyes, but not on presses.
Dips
Dips are an incredible movement. I love them! In fact, I feel all athletes, and especially bodybuilders, should master chin-ups and dips. These should be in your workout routines from day one as a bodybuilder. I know back when I was in junior high and high school, we always did plenty of dips. Dips hit the entire chest, as well as the triceps and front delts, and all the great Olympians have done them. You want to avoid locking out the elbows, as this takes tension off the chest and puts it right on those tendons. As far as adding weight, only do that once you can get a couple of good sets of 12-15 reps with your own bodyweight. My off-season training weight was around 260 pounds throughout most of my career, so I didn’t need to add extra resistance. But if you are 140 pounds and knocking out 30-40 reps, by all means you should. To make sure you are hitting as much chest as possible rather than the triceps, lean your torso forward and tuck your knees up under you. Also, be careful not to lower too far to get an extra deep stretch. Once you get below a certain point, all you’re doing is stressing your shoulder joints. Listen to your body!
Dumbbell Flyes
Flyes are an excellent finishing movement to add quality and detail to your chest. Because it’s a polishing movement, save it for last after you’ve done all your foundational pressing movements. Flyes call for concentration and isolation, so they are not a heavy movement. In my prime, I would usually handle 120s or 130s for my dumbbell presses, but no heavier than 80s for flyes (nowadays more like 45s). With your elbows slightly bent, bring your arms out to your sides until you feel a stretch (not an extreme stretch), and then flex and squeeze the pecs to bring your arms back up. You can straighten your arms out slightly as you near the top of the rep, and also rotate your thumbs away from your torso to get a more complete contraction.
Cable Crossovers
The cable crossover is also a great exercise, but they should only be done by fairly advanced bodybuilders and even then, only in the final 12 weeks leading up to a contest. I used to do them at every other chest workout at 12 weeks out, then made them part of every chest workout for the final eight weeks. The standard cable crossover machine is fine, but I prefer the newer “functional training” types that allow you to set the cables at any height from the floor to above your head as well as being able to adjust the space between. One thing that always makes me shake my head is seeing guys who still haven’t built any chest thickness coming into the gym and heading straight for the cables. Beginners need to focus on just pressing. Once there is some meat on the pecs, you can add in flyes. Cables are a finishing touch for detail. So if you don’t have anything to add detail to yet, don’t bother with crossovers!
Decline Presses
If you’re wondering whether I forgot about decline presses, no I did not. I omitted them from our discussion because I’ve never felt they were an effective exercise. I probably did 10 or less sets of them in my entire life, and that’s just because I happened to be training with someone else who liked them. Guys love declines because they can pile on a ton of weight. Of course you can go heavy, because the range of motion is just a few inches! Arnold, Franco and Robby never did declines, and neither did I. I think our results in terms of chest development speak for themselves!
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