To develop your chest and the muscles in your arms, complete exercises that target the pectoralis major, or your chest, the deltoids, or your shoulders, and the biceps and triceps. Most chest exercises also recruit shoulder muscles and either the biceps or triceps, so it's beneficial to perform each of the exercises on the same day and within the same workout session.
Schedule
According to Georgia State University's Department of Kinesiology and Health, your muscles require at least 48 hours of rest in between sessions. Therefore, to maximize your results, work out three days per week, such as Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Beginners will see results from working out two days per week, but should adjust their training schedules so that there's not an excessive amount of time in between sessions when detraining can occur. If training two days per week, follow a Monday and Thursday or Tuesday and Friday schedule.
Chest Exercises
Dumbbell exercises that effectively develop your chest muscle include chest press, chest flys and pullovers. To complete chest press and chest flys, lie on your back on a bench with a dumbbell in each hand. For chest press, hold the dumbbells at your shoulders with palms facing your feet. Push the dumbbells up towards the ceiling, extending your elbows fully and bringing the dumbbells together at the very top. Chest flys begin with your arms extended out parallel to the floor, and you keep your elbows straight as you bring your arms together over your face. Pullovers are done while lying on your back on a bench, but you use just a single dumbbell, held with both hands. Hold the dumbbell over your head with arms extended. Keep your arms straight as you extend the dumbbell back behind your head.
Shoulder Exercises
For your shoulders, complete shoulder press, upright rows and lateral raises. To perform shoulder press, hold a pair of dumbbells at your shoulders with palms facing forward. Push the dumbbells up towards the ceiling. For upright rows, allow your arms to hang in front of you with palms facing the front of your thighs. Pull the dumbbells up towards your chin while allowing your arms to flare outwards. For lateral raises, hang your arms down to your side with palms facing your thighs. Keep your elbows straight as you raise your arms out until they're parallel with the floor.
Arm Exercises
You can target your biceps with bicep curls and hammer curls, and your triceps will benefit from performing lying tricep extension and overhead tricep extension. To perform bicep curls, hold a dumbbell in each hand and allow your arms to hang down to your side. Keep your elbows into your torso, and bend your elbows, bringing the dumbbells up to your shoulders. Hammer curls are done exactly the same way, but you complete the movement with your palms facing each other. For lying tricep extension, lie on your back on a bench and hold a single dumbbell with both of your hands. Extend your arms up towards the ceiling to get into starting position. Bend your elbows to lower the dumbbell down towards your face. Overhead tricep extension is similar, but you complete the movement from a standing position and bend your elbows to lower the dumbbell behind your head.
Training Volume
Georgia State University's Department of Kinesiology and Health states that increases in strength are seen from completing a single set of each exercise for eight to 12 repetitions. However, to develop muscle size in the chest and arms, National Strength and Conditioning Association's Dr. Joseph Chromiak recommends completing each exercise for four to six sets of six to 12 repetitions each.
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