Tag: Flat Bench

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Weight Loss Exercise

The keys to getting a big chest


Getting a big chest is a big deal. For most people lifting weights and getting ready for summer there are a few big priorities. One of the things that most guys want is a big chest. There are a few exercises that are key to increasing chest size but also there are a couple of important facts to remember. I think that if you follow all of these you will have huge pecs in no time.

Getting a Big Chest – Don’t Overtrain

First of all you need to be aware that it is fairly easy to overtrain your chest so especially for someone that has been weightlifting for a yea or less it is very important to make sure that all of your chest exercises and related are done in the same workout, this includes chest as well as shoulder exercises. First things first, make sure that your chest workout is hitting all three angles to his all of the muscle fibers of your chest but do not do to many exercises or sets as this is the easiest way to overtrain.

There are three parts of your chest pec muscles. Your pectoral muscles can be broken up into three parts, well kind of anyway, the top near your shoulders, the middle of your chest and the bottom of your chest.

Getting a Big Chest- Upper Chest Exercises

getting a big chest

getting a big chest

To his the upper chest you can do incline bench or incline flyes. Try switching each workout to doing one or the other and try to keep your reps are 6-10 reps for three sets, each set to failure.

Getting a big chest – Middle Chest Exercises

To hit the middles of your chest you can do flat bench bench presses or flat bench flyes. For your lower chest you can do flat bench flyes or cable crossovers. Make sure that you are changing your exercises each workout but try to always hit the upper and middle of your chest and every second or third workout do some decline bench for your lower pecs.

Getting a big chest – Lower Chest Exercises

Lower pec muscles will grow very quickly but really what people are looking for is a bigger upper chest as a bigger lower chest makes your chest look a little saggy. The difference between doing flyes and bench press are important to think about. When doing flyes you will get a very focused chest exercise but in doing bench press you will be heaving more weight and most people seem to agree that the increases to your chest size will be higher.

I know that I have glossed over the exercises for increasing your chest size but there are a couple of issues that are almost as important as the exercises and that is the shoulder influence as well as the frequency of the workouts for your chest.

Most of the time in magazines you are told to do 12 – 16 sets to work your chest muscles but no one really looks at the mechanics of how your shoulder muscles will really influence your chest workout and this is critical. After you have finished your chest workout you should work your shoulders, I say this because a tough chest workout of nine sets or so is really going to burn your shoulders and if you try to isolate your shoulders again in the next couple of days then you really do risk overtraining your deltoids.

Work Chest and Shoulders Together

Make sure that after your chest and shoulder workout that you rest at least two days before hitting pecs and delts again as you will really need the rest to let your chest and shoulders heal. I do not want to dwell on nutrition again but it is very important to eat lots of protein, 30 or so grams of high quality protein per meal.

There is always an urge to workout more often than this but I really believe that if you really nail all of the angles of your chest and do all of your sets to failure then you are going to have a good chance to getting a big chest.

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Weight Loss Exercise

Weight Training Bench – Important Things You Should Know



If you are buying weight training equipment for a home gym one of the most important things you will need is a weight training bench. When choosing fitness equipment, you should never compromise on quality. There are several types of weight training benches and you will have to decide which one suits your needs best. Just keep in mind that the weight bench you choose must be strong and stable enough to provide support while you perform a variety of workout exercises.

A weight training bench is a standard piece of exercise equipment that provides support while you do weightlifting exercises. A weight bench can help you maintain proper form while working out with free weights. Weight training benches should be sturdy enough to withstand the strain of heavy weights. They also need a wide base to maintain stability. In most cases, the top surface of the bench is padded for comfort and safety of the user.

Flat Benches

A flat bench is the most common type of weight training bench. There are many exercises that can be performed on a flat bench, including flys, bench presses, and lying rows. Exercises that require you to be seated can also be done on a flat bench.

A flat bench is essential when performing bench press exercises with free weights. You can find flat benches that come with brackets to hold barbells. This accessory makes it easier, safer and more convenient to perform your bench press because it provides a place to set the weight before and after the lift.

You will also find flat benches that fold. This allows you to perform incline bench presses, decline bench presses, and many other exercises.

Hyperextension Bench

A hyperextension bench is a weight training bench designed to provide support for the abdomen and has padded braces behind the ankles and above the knees. A hyperextension bench is used for back exercises and exercises for the lower back, glutes, and hamstrings.

Abdominal Bench

As the name suggests, an abdominal bench is used to exercise the abdominal muscles. The bench can be set at different angles of decline to give you a more intense workout when doing crunches. Padded rollers at the highest end allow you to secure your feet so you can exercise your abs safely and effectively.

Preacher Bench

A preacher bench can help you maintain proper form and technique when doing arm curls. When doing biceps curls, for example, you sit on the weight training bench and place your arms on the padded surface that slopes away from you. In this position, you cannot use momentum to complete the biceps curls. Using a preacher bench isolates the biceps and provides a more intense workout.


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Weight Loss Exercise

Three Angles of Bench Press

The bench press is one of the best exercises for the upper body. Not only does the bench press hit the chest but also works the shoulders and the triceps. I know that there is lots to this fantastic exercise so I thought an article was in order to look at how to make the bench press a better exercise for you.

Three Angles of Bench Press

There are three angles that you can do bench presses. Incline bench press, flat bench press, and decline bench press. Here are the advantages and disadvantages of each.

Flat Bench Press – As I stated before the flat bacnh is a great exercise. The flat bench works your entire top, middle, and lower pectoral muscles (chest)Amazingly when you do this exercise you think it is a chest exercise but I find that the front deltoids (shoulders) are recruited quite a bit as well as the triceps. I have almost done away with arm work thanks to the compound exercises like bench press that I do.

Incline Bench Press – Inclines are one with the bench up a little, although some people I believe overdo this. You will notice that the weight lifted is a lot less as you will be using your upper chest muscles which are not as strong or dense as the rest of your chest. As you increase the andle of the bench you will find that you are getting more recruitment from the deltoids but also hitting higher up in the chest and less in the middle and not any lower chest.

Decline Bench Press – I think the lower bench is not used very often at all. I have done this a lot in the past and the weight that you can lift is significantly higher than you can lift doing a flat bench. The decline bench is a lot more of a lowering and then shoving up of the bar and you can really feel the lower pecs being used. The problem is that you most people want a bigger upper pec, above the nipple, not a big lower pec.

There is no way that you can avoid the bench press and while walking though the gym you have probably seen many people doing lots of kinds of bench presses you now know that there are many options of bench presses and different ways to hit your chest. This will be good and I have made sure that I alternate these angles quite often.

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