The word "natural" pertains to no synthetic drugs or questionable supplements that might have a negative impact on the body. People looking to gain mass often resort to these extremes. If you want to pack mass onto your chest, you do not need to take a risky route. The most important thing is that you do the right type of routine, exercising discipline as well as your body.
Pre-Workout Warm-up
A chest workout to build mass involves intense movement of the upper body. Take the time to warm up and stretch first to avoid injury. Spend five minutes doing a light form of cardio to slowly raise your core body temperature, then do a series of dynamic stretches. These are performed emphasizing a steady range of motion that acclimates your body to the movements used in exercising. Perform stretches such as arm crossovers, arm circles, shoulder shrugs, bear crawls and side bends.
Specifics of Exercises
The chest, or pectoral, muscles take up a lot of surface area. Doing one exercise targets only part of this large muscle group. To gain mass, you need to do exercises with your upper body at different angles and with different movement patterns. This ensures you target as much muscle fiber as possible. Perform exercises such as incline, flat and decline bench presses, pull-overs and flies.
Free Weights
Free weights consist of dumbbells, barbells and weight plates. Choose these over machines because they lead to a higher amount of muscle-fiber recruitment. You are forced to contract stabilizing muscles to hold the weights steady as you lower and lift them.
Proper Technique
Proper technique is pivotal when you are trying to build mass in your chest. You need to move the weights through a full range of motion and never use momentum, as this will take work away from your muscles. For incline bench presses, lie face-up on an incline bench and grasp a barbell with a wide, overhand grip. Keeping your back tight to the bench and abs tight, push the bar off the supports and hold it straight above your body with your arms fully extended. Slowly lower the bar by bending your elbows and stop when it lightly touches your upper chest. Push the bar back to the starting point in a steady motion and repeat. As you lower the bar, inhale a big breath and exhale as you push the bar back up.
Heavy Resistance
Free weights give you plenty of resistance to choose from. Dumbbells for instance, range from 1 to well over 100 lbs. To gain mass, it is imperative to use a heavy weight with your exercises. Aim for a resistance that you can lift only eight to 12 times with proper form. Do four or five sets of each exercise and take long rest breaks in between so you are completely rested and can go all out.
Resting the Chest
You may be eager to bulk up your chest, but do not train every day. Your pecs need to be taxed, but they also need to be rested. This actually is when they grow. Take two days off between your workouts to allow for recovery.
Member Comments