The pectoral muscles are one of the largest and most complex muscle groups in the body. That is why, for proper chest training, it is important to use not only basic, but also isolating exercises that load the muscles at different angles.
In addition, to pump the pectoral muscles, constant progress of working weights is necessary, since the chest responds well to hypertrophy – and this, in turn, requires perfect adherence to the exercise technique. How often should you pump your breasts? You will find the answer in the material below.
How to pump up the chest?
In order for a beginner to pump up his chest, you first need to learn how to feel the work of the muscles when performing basic exercises – first of all, push-ups from the floor. Since most pectoral exercises involve the arms and shoulders, it is important to be able to properly distribute the load.
Basically, pumping your chest involves developing your entire core muscles – especially strengthening your upper back and deltoids. Only in this case is it possible to use a serious working weight when performing exercises for the pectoral muscles.
Barbell exercises are recommended for increasing the mass of the pectoral muscles, while exercises with dumbbells, on simulators and on blocks are suitable for pinpoint muscle work, improving the shape of the chest and pumping lagging beams – for example, the center line.
Chest workout program
To achieve the maximum effect, the study of the pectoral muscles is recommended to be combined with the pumping of the triceps, muscles of the shoulders and the press. The strength training of the chest itself should be carried out no more often than once every 72 hours – otherwise the muscles will not have enough time for full recovery and subsequent growth.
When it comes to choosing the best chest exercises, it is usually sufficient to perform one or two basic exercises (for example, a bench press) with a large weight and in 5-7 repetitions, as well as one or two isolation exercises (for example, information on blocks and dilutions with dumbbells) with a lighter weight and in 12-15 repetitions.
Pectoral Muscles – Anatomy
The main muscles of the chest are the pectoralis major and minor. The pectoralis major muscle has a triangular shape, woven directly into the shoulder – it is thanks to this that the muscles of the chest and shoulders are connected. The pectoralis minor is located under the pectoralis major and has a stabilizing role.
Also in the pectoral muscle group is the serratus anterior muscle, which lies closer to the lateral part of the body and to the shoulder. This muscle has nine characteristic “teeth” attached to the upper ribs. Since its main function is to retract and approach the shoulder blades, pumping requires information and dilution.
Best Chest Exercises
Exercises for the pectoral muscles can be performed both with a barbell and with dumbbells or on blocks. Dumbbells and blocks allow you to use stabilizing muscles in the exercise and target individual chest bundles, while the barbell is the preferred choice when working with large weights, since its range of motion is reduced:
1. Push-ups from the floor
Exercises on the chest – push-ups
Push-ups are a key anatomical exercise for the chest muscles. If you want to pump up your chest, you first of all need to learn how to do push-ups in order to be able to feel the pectoral muscles in work. However, we note that push-ups have an extremely limited resource for breast growth, since they do not allow you to work with additional weight.
2. Push-ups on the uneven bars
Exercises on the chest – push-ups on the uneven bars
One of the best exercises for a comprehensive workout of the upper body, and especially the lower pectoral muscles, the entire shoulder girdle and triceps. When going down, the movement should be slow and controlled, while going up – powerful and jerky (you seem to push the body up).
3. Bench press lying
Chest Exercises – Bench Press
The bench press is a basic strength exercise for the pectoral muscles. It is important to follow the technique when performing – do not relax the muscles at the top and bottom points of movement, do not straighten your elbows, and never touch the chest with the barbell. Raise the bar up, slowly counting 1-2, hold on to 3-4 and lower it to a count of 5-6.
4. Breeding dumbbells lying
Exercises on the chest – lying dumbbells
A key exercise for working out the serratus anterior and giving the chest the correct “square” shape. Use dumbbell weights that are not too heavy, focusing primarily on the feeling of the stretch. At the bottom of the movement, do not lower your elbows too low and do not spread your arms too wide.
5. Press of dumbbells on an incline bench
Chest Exercises – Incline Dumbbell Press
Exercise to work out the upper pectoral muscles. When performing the exercise, do not lift your legs off the floor and make sure that the muscles of the body (especially the press) are in constant slight tension – when lifting the dumbbells, you should feel how this tension helps to push the weight up.
Chest muscle development program
Since the chest is a fairly large muscle, its mass is increased by strength training for hypertrophy with a constant increase in working weight. In addition, negative repetition techniques (when you are helped to raise the bar, but you lower it yourself), as well as failure techniques and pumping exercises, are effective for growing chest muscles.
In a simplified form, an exercise program for developing chest muscles might look like this:
Dips on the uneven bars – 2 sets and max. the number of repetitions.
Bench press – 4 sets of 10 reps
Dumbbell Lying – 4 sets of 12 reps.
Working out the shape of the muscles
The shape of the pectoral muscles is largely dependent on genetics, however, the tilt of the body during exercise and the width of the arms will affect how the muscles develop. For example, the most massive outside chest is best worked with horizontal bench presses, performed with a barbell, dumbbells, or blocks.
The upper chest is included in the work in exercises such as dumbbell or barbell bench press with an incline (both 45 and 30 degrees), the lower one – push-ups on the uneven bars or a barbell press with a reverse incline (head down). The center of the pectoral muscles – with the help of all kinds of dilutions on blocks and simulators, as well as with a narrow grip bench press.
Why is there no result?
If you pump your chest vigorously, but the muscles do not stubbornly grow and the chest does not acquire the desired shape, most likely you are making one of three typical mistakes – either chasing excessively large working weights to the detriment of technique, or training the same pectoral muscle bundles, or pumping your chest too often, preventing your muscles from recovering.
Training the pectoral muscles is one of the key to creating an athletic and athletic body, since it is these muscles that form a strong and massive core. The main rules for successful breast pumping are the constant progress of working weights, a variety of exercises, ideal execution technique, as well as sufficient time for rest and recovery.
