Building mass on your pecs.....chest training

[PHIL HERNON]

When building pec mass, drop the flys and cable cross overs. Its time to build REAL MUSCLE. The ONLY options I recommend are
1. Flat bench
2. Decline bench
3. Dips
To save your shoulder cuff AND to keep constant tension on the target muscle ( pecs) at all times, do not go more than 1/2 way down to the chest. Take a slightly wider than shoulder width grip and keep wrists straight, like punching a bag. Use constand motion and think of a circle, no stops or kinks along the way. I like to do 3-5 sets TOTAL here..............if you need to do any more than this then you are not training hard enough. You can do this 2-3 times a week, especialy if you do 3 sets total. A few more sets sets back recovery time by up to a day or two. God luck!

 

[ajdos]

Thanks for the insights PHIL. Look forward to more of your installments.

 

[Sylva]

Thanks for the insights PHIL. Look forward to more of your installments.

This.

Keep them coming, they are needed around here.

 

[Calpoly]

Thanks! Chest is definitely a weak point for me. My shoulders take a majority of the load when I do flat bench

 

[epoxy]

Phil do you have recommendations on DB vs Barbell vs Smith. I really like decline DB press but I often find myself without a spotter so I'll go something like Decline BB on the Smith, Flat DB, and finish up with a few sets of dips to failure. I'm doing 10-12 reps per set with my chest exercises focusing on slow negatives and pushing my chest out to ensure I'm using as much chest as possible in the exercise.

 

[KUVinny]

Thank you for sharing these gold nuggets!

 

[itrain]

keep wrists straight, like punching a bag

can you elaborate on this ... I feel more pec involvement when I use a underthumb grip . instead of griping overhand havin my wrists straight

 

[james caan]

My greatest gains in chest size came from doing decline press!! I always disliked incline presses, and never felt they added much at all to my pecs. I see people do them all the time, and i feel like telling them "drop that, and try some declines" but you know how people can be, so i just leave it alone.

I've always loved dips, it's on my top 5 favorite movements, and for good reason. Some people say they don't get anything from it in regards to chest, but they're just not doing them correctly. Another great installment from Phil!!

 

[CMM913]

I do heavy dips (for me anyway) when I do tri's, always my first exercise to get the blood flowing real good. I normally do mid-weight machine dips on my last chest exercise, about 12-15 reps and do maybe 3-4 of those. Do you recommend leaning forward on dips when doing chest to take the tri's out of it more?

 

[Johnny Ringo]

Phil, thanks for taking the time to post up info.

 

[pbmpp]

Wow, the exact opposite of the way I train chest and mine refuses to put any mass on. Gonna have to give this a shot.


3-5 sets total?? Or per exercise? 3-5 total seems so ridiculous but clearly you know what you're talking about 100x more than I do.

 

[jay_dub]

Wow, the exact opposite of the way I train chest and mine refuses to put any mass on. Gonna have to give this a shot.


3-5 sets total?? Or per exercise? 3-5 total seems so ridiculous but clearly you know what you're talking about 100x more than I do.

3-5 sets total. Remember he also said 2-3 times per week. So essentially you're talking about anywhere from 6-15 sets per week and each set is to all out failure.

 

[pbmpp]

3-5 sets total. Remember he also said 2-3 times per week. So essentially you're talking about anywhere from 6-15 sets per week and each set is to all out failure.

It does make much more sense when you think of it that way. I'm always stuck just thinking in that 5 day split mindset

 

[PHIL HERNON]

Yes

Thanks! Chest is definitely a weak point for me. My shoulders take a majority of the load when I do flat bench

That is an issue with many..........to avoid this, focus on forcing shoulders DOWN to the bench and DOWN towards your feet.......

 

[PHIL HERNON]

Well

I do heavy dips (for me anyway) when I do tri's, always my first exercise to get the blood flowing real good. I normally do mid-weight machine dips on my last chest exercise, about 12-15 reps and do maybe 3-4 of those. Do you recommend leaning forward on dips when doing chest to take the tri's out of it more?

Leaning too far forward makes it a bench press.....Lean back, kick elbows outwards......make sure to find YOUR groove......we are all built a bit differently.

 

[PHIL HERNON]

Well

can you elaborate on this ... I feel more pec involvement when I use a underthumb grip . instead of griping overhand havin my wrists straight

A grip like you punch a bag......bending wrists back expose them to injury.....keep them tight and straight.

 

[PHIL HERNON]

Well

Phil do you have recommendations on DB vs Barbell vs Smith. I really like decline DB press but I often find myself without a spotter so I'll go something like Decline BB on the Smith, Flat DB, and finish up with a few sets of dips to failure. I'm doing 10-12 reps per set with my chest exercises focusing on slow negatives and pushing my chest out to ensure I'm using as much chest as possible in the exercise.

I say NO to the smith machine........I love DBs or barbell

 

[NOSUPERMODEL]

Leaning too far forward makes it a bench press.....Lean back, kick elbows outwards......make sure to find YOUR groove......we are all built a bit differently.

Not quite understanding this. I will do a search on Youtube to see if I can find a demonstration.

 

[Gunsmith]

When building pec mass, drop the flys and cable cross overs. Its time to build REAL MUSCLE. The ONLY options I recommend are
1. Flat bench
2. Decline bench
3. Dips
To save your shoulder cuff AND to keep constant tension on the target muscle ( pecs) at all times, do not go more than 1/2 way down to the chest. Take a slightly wider than shoulder width grip and keep wrists straight, like punching a bag. Use constand motion and think of a circle, no stops or kinks along the way. I like to do 3-5 sets TOTAL here..............if you need to do any more than this then you are not training hard enough. You can do this 2-3 times a week, especialy if you do 3 sets total. A few more sets sets back recovery time by up to a day or two. God luck!

So would you do 3 sets of Flat bench , decline and dips on the same day , looking at 9 sets total or just one movement?
What rep range do you suggest?

Ive been dlong 3 sets to failure working for a total reps in the 15-18 range BUT, im gonna have to use much less weight now that im rehabbing a tricep tendon injury so i was planning much more reps or sets

 

[james caan]

Phil in regards to the set/rep set up, would the normal 2-3 warm up sets be used? I see you mentioned 3-5 sets total, so would this be for example
flat bench 4 sets..sets 1-3 warm up set 4 actual work set to failure? (i know you mean 3-5 sets total for the workout, but im just wondering how warm ups fit in) Also would in your opinion a few warm up sets for each exercise be recommended, or just on your first exercise. Thanks in advance