Your chest muscles, or pectoralis major muscles as they are known, are responsible for drawing your arms horizontally across your body at shoulder-height in a movement called horizontal flexion and bringing your arms down to the side of your body in a movement called adduction. The pectoralis major, or pecs for short, can be trained using a variety of exercises but to get the most from your chest training, follow these exercise tips.
Use a Full Range of Movement
When performing exercises for the chest it's important to try and use the largest range of movement you can safely manage. If, for example, when performing bench presses, you fail to lower the barbell all the way down to your chest you will lose some of the benefit of the exercise. Assuming you have no shoulder problems that will prohibit your range of movement, try to use a full range of movement in all chest exercises. You will experience greater muscle activation and better results from your training, according to fitness expert and bodybuilding coach Robert Kennedy.
Use a Variety of Exercises
Although the pecs are a single muscle, it can be subdivided into different regions that can be affected by different exercises. The upper or clavicular region is best worked using incline exercises such as incline bench press, the inner or sternal region is best worked with fly or crossover type movements and the lower pecs are best targeted with decline movements such as parallel bar dips or decline bench press. By using a variety of movements you can ensure you develop all regions of your chest muscles equally.
Train the Muscle and Not Just the Movement
Pec exercises such as bench presses lend themselves to lifting large weights. While this practice will develop strength, it's all to easy to end up using muscles other than your chest. Choose weights that allow you to focus on the muscles that you want to develop--in this case the chest. If you can't feel your chest working, you may be trying to lift too heavy a weight or using an exercise that doesn't suit your individual body type.
Use Training Systems
To intensify your chest training and make it more productive, you can use training systems. Training systems are recognized methods that manipulate the variables of exercise to provide you with a better workout. Supersets are one such example. Try performing a set of dumbbell flies and then immediately a set of push-ups. This pairing of two dissimilar chest exercise will challenge your pecs far more than either exercise could do if performed alone.
Don't Forget to Stretch
Training your chest muscles will improve their condition, shape, tone and strength but unless you stretch them you may find your posture deteriorates and with it your shoulder health and function. Make sure you stretch your chest muscles after workouts and also on the days between workouts. One way to stretch the pecs is using a standard doorway. Open the door and place your forearms against the door frame with your elbows bent to 90 degrees. Gently lean through the door frame keeping your arms in place to stretch your chest. Hold this position for 30 to 60 seconds, trying to stretch a little deeper each time you exhale.
References
- "Encyclopedia of Bodybuilding: The Complete A-Z Book on Muscle Building"; Robert Kennedy; 2008
- "The Body Sculpting Bible Express for Men"; James Villepique, Hugo Rivera and Maria Courtier; 2009
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