HELP! Upper-inner chest advice needed!

[hammers]

Hello everyone,

I'm relatively new to the bodybuilding game - I first got into weight training about 2 years ago but it's only over the last year as I learned more about diet and physiology that I've made some good progress. However, this may sound silly, but I really want to hit the inner portion of my upper chest to develop a line/cleavage(!) so that it runs right the way up between my pecs to the top.

Does anyone out there a. know what I'm talking about! and b. can anyone suggest training exercises +/or supplement advice to help me achieve this aim? Any advice would be MUCH appreciated dudes!

hammers

 

[xcelbeyond]

Welcome to the board hammers!

I believe that what your describing (cleavage) is a result from increasing chest mass - not a result from specific exercises.

I say stick with heavy barbell bench. I started placing a 6-8 inch block under head-side of bench to place more emphasis on upper chest. I believe that "normal" inclines place too high a stress off chest and onto shoulders - does for me anyways.

xcel

 

[hammers]

Thanks a lot for the advice xcelbeyond - I'll try it. I've made reasonable chest gains but it seems to me that the upper inside portion isn't developing - that's what made me think it was perhaps a specific exercise(s) I was neglecting. I also thought it might be genetic as some quite small guys (eg Brad Pitt!!!) seem to have it without necessarily size.

Regards Hammers

 

[PHIL HERNON]

Damn Excel!!!

I was placing the 6-8 inch block under my head!!!!!

 

[Swolecows]

The 30' incline Barbell is the best of both worlds. The poundages are only 5-10% decreased off the flat, there is more upper chest activation and very little front delt involvement.

 

[CaBdyBldr]

I also thought it might be genetic as some quite small guys (eg Brad Pitt!!!) seem to have it without necessarily size.

Actually you are correct. Some guys have virtually no cleavage because their pecs both grow together at the middle. Other guys have great cleavage because both pecs are clearly separated by the sternum and then there are those that are in between. You can not change your genetics so you have to work with them. Anything that thickens the pecs will help emphasize whatever cleavage you have. For the upper pecs, I prefer varying the incline angle for incline bench presses or incline dumbbell work. But if you are one of the guys that has both pecs completely connected together without natural cleavage in the middle, you aren't going to develop it appreciably no matter how thick your pecs get.

 

[LATS]

xcel hit it on the head..you do not need a high incline at all. also, you can not "build" the inner pecs..overall chest mass will give ya the cleavage you want..as sson as the chest thickens up, the inner mass will be there..

 

[Johnny Bravo]

4 words

High Rep Pec Deck

 

[PHIL HERNON]

NEWSFLASH!!!!!

THERE IS NO UPPER CHEST!!! THERE IS PEC MINOR AND PEC MAJOR AND NO AMOUNT OF INCLINES WILL TARGET THE UPPER CHEST BECAUSE IT DOESNT EXIST. IS THERE AN UPPER BICEP??? HOW DO I HIT THE UPPER BICEP? THE UPPER HAMSTRING?? WHAT CAN I DO FOR MY UPPER CALF? BUILDING THE PEC MINOR WILL GIVE THE APPEARANCE OF A LARGER UPPER CHEST. INCLINES, THE HIGHER THE INCLINE, JUST EMPHASIZES MORE SHOULDER, UNLESS YOU ARCH YOUR BACK AND CHEAT, THEN YOU MIGHT AS WELL JUST DO FLATS ANYWAY.

 

[Steak Helmet]

Re: NEWSFLASH!!!!!

THERE IS NO UPPER CHEST!!! THERE IS PEC MINOR AND PEC MAJOR AND NO AMOUNT OF INCLINES WILL TARGET THE UPPER CHEST BECAUSE IT DOESNT EXIST. IS THERE AN UPPER BICEP??? HOW DO I HIT THE UPPER BICEP? THE UPPER HAMSTRING?? WHAT CAN I DO FOR MY UPPER CALF? BUILDING THE PEC MINOR WILL GIVE THE APPEARANCE OF A LARGER UPPER CHEST. INCLINES, THE HIGHER THE INCLINE, JUST EMPHASIZES MORE SHOULDER, UNLESS YOU ARCH YOUR BACK AND CHEAT, THEN YOU MIGHT AS WELL JUST DO FLATS ANYWAY.

DR. PHIL...I would have to agree 100%

 

[MikeS]

Re: 4 words

High Rep Pec Deck

John how can you say that? Considering you have such a shallow chest? LOL!

Kidding-one of the deepest most massive chests Ive ever seen.

 

[hammers]

My thanks to Swolecows, CaBdyBldr, Lats, Johnny Bravo, Phil, Steak Helmet and MikeS for taking time out to offer their perspectives / anatomical info (Phil!).

I live and train in England so it's cool to get training ideas from elsewhere. I know we're all basically the same but you hear different philosophies.

Great forum by the way, look forward to reading more threads.

Regards
Hammers

 

[Swolecows]

I have to respectfully disagree with Phil. The insertion of the pec is on the humerous, but the pec has two origins, the sternum and the clavicle. The pec minor runs underneath and is the muscle that gets sore under the armpit after lots of heavy bench. You are correct on the bicep and the calf(although you can emphasize Gastroc over soleus and vice versa). Any muscle group that has a fan shaped origin eg. Chest, Lats and Traps need to be hit with multiple angles to maximize muscle potential because they are responsible for more than one range of motion.

 

[PHIL HERNON]

CHEST

I see your theory, but why not just do pec minor specific exercises to give the upper chest area a bigger look. Are you saying that less upper fan chest fibres are fired off doing flat benches as opposed to incline presses?

 

[TooPowerful4u]

This is an interesting subject.Is the pec minor able to be made large enough to push out the upper portion of the pec major significantly? What ways can you hit the pec minor except pullovers?

Also, i gotta add in and say i know someone who had a thick ass outer chest and a shallow inner and upper chest. He juiced out his mind for 6 months, and focused on inclines and lots of closer grips and squeezing, and at the end he sure looked like he balanced it out very well. I mean, there was a NOTICABLE difference.

 

[Swolecows]

The pec minor runs up and down, and increasing its thickness is parially responsible for filling in the gap between the pec and delt.
The flat bench does not fire the upper fibers as much as an incline. If you have ever had a knot in a muscle group, you know that certain fibers will activate to a greater extent than others. Also, if you have been to a powerlifting contest, even the lean guys look like they have breasts. The point I was trying to make is that the incline works the pec the most evenly at 30' of any angle. The insertion on the humerous is above the pec midline. If the lower back is arched whatsoever the flat bench becomes a decline.