Chest Training

Highly Effective Chest Training

Although I don't feel that the chest is necessarily the most important muscle group to develop for overall body size, it is the one that I get the most questions about. It is considered one of the "showy" muscles, and most definitely the muscle group that most people try to develop to the fullest.

Everyone wants a huge chest, plain and simple. It is all too common to see inexperienced lifters slaving away on endless sets of bench presses and cable crossovers in search of full, thick pecs. It is also used as a landmark for strength (although it shouldn't be). If I had a dime for every time I've heard someone ask that question we've all heard a million times, "how much do you bench?" I'd be rich. Either way, the chest is still a very important upper body muscle group that helps contribute to that look of overall thickness.

The reality is that there is nothing complicated about building an impressive chest The bottom line for huge chest gains is consistency, effort and steady progression in weight and repetitions. There are no shortcuts to any place worth going, and a huge chest is no exception. Some are genetically blessed with well-developed pectorals, and for others their chest lags behind. Either way, hard work and dedication is the most important factor.

The chest is made up of two main heads, the pectoralis major and the pectoralis minor. To stimulate the chest using weights you will be using one of two motions: a press or a flye. If you want the most out of your chest workouts, the key lies in your pressing movements. Although flyes may have their place every once in a while, the pressing movements are where your true strength lies. The more weight you can move, the more muscle fibers you can recruit. There is absolutely no replacement for heavy barbell presses, dumbbell presses and wide-grip dips. These are the basic, bread-and-butter lifts and should always be the cornerstone of your chest workouts. Save the pec-deck and cable crossovers for the pencil necked geeks on the treadmill; real men train with real lifts. You don't have to eliminate them altogether, but definitely use them sparingly.

Like I said before, building thick and well developed pec muscles is fairly simple. There are no secrets, magic formulas or killer techniques that will "shock" your chest into massive growth. Stick to your basic presses, focus on overload and progression, and I promise that you will see impressive gains.

Here are the most effective and ineffective lifts for packing muscle onto the chest:


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