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Which exercise is best for building Mass in the Chest? And Why?
Best Chest Builder
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MonStar1023
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Gtg with dips bro.. after that is DEFINITELY
Incline Barbell Press though... really bulked up my pecs all the way.
Incline Barbell Press though... really bulked up my pecs all the way.
supersizeme
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i didn't see tricep kickbacks on the list of choices
punkassmofo
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Decline Dumbbells and weighted Dips
NoMoreExcuses
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An other one for flat dumbells
weightsRgreat
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I agree these are all great chest exercises, but I would have to say flat barbell bench is the best for putting on mass.
mikelong23
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someone's been reading the magazines, I think I remember an article that said something very similiar to that, but it was that inclines recruit the most and declines were second.MJay95 said:
Cackerot69
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Actually the declines recruiting most fibers thing is based on electromyography analysis, which measures electrical activity in the muscle and gives us an idea of what muscles or fibers are working in a given movement. Whether or not they are reliable is up for debate, but it really only makes sense that declines would work the chest the most if you think about it.
calvesodeath
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I have become a believer in decline dumbell presses and flies. I know many disagree but this has been my personal experience and where I have seen the most gains
louden_swain
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Inclines. . . . they stress the most muscle fibers in the chest.
i feel that inclines indeed tax the shoulders a lot but it also DOES shift the focus away from the lower chest to the upper chest.
This can be a good or a bad thing....
Flat bench jedis will argue that this is a bad thing because the sheer heavier weight used for the flat bench create a spillover to the upper chest that they feel practically equals the amount of stress placed upon the upper fibers using incline benches. and even if EMG studies would show that inclines stress the upper chest more, the overall net mass gain in chest would be better from the flat bench they argue.....
I feel they have indeed some points but what i think what's truely important limiting or suporting factor in upper chest development is the strength in your front delts. I think that people wth favourable strong front delts, people should definately do incline as the delts will not hold them back so they can create more substantial stress on upper chest than the spillover from the flat bench could. People with relatively weak front delts are limited in the weight they can incline bench hench the spillover from flat benches might actually EQUAL or MORE (!) than they could get from the incline bench.
Moral of the story get your front delts and your rotators up to par so you can profit from incline work.
Here is a no brainer chest workout using 2 exercises only:
12-10-8-6 low incline dumbell press
12-10-8-6 low decline dumbell press
4*10 low incline dumbell press
4*10 low decline dumbell press
That's it !
This can be a good or a bad thing....
Flat bench jedis will argue that this is a bad thing because the sheer heavier weight used for the flat bench create a spillover to the upper chest that they feel practically equals the amount of stress placed upon the upper fibers using incline benches. and even if EMG studies would show that inclines stress the upper chest more, the overall net mass gain in chest would be better from the flat bench they argue.....
I feel they have indeed some points but what i think what's truely important limiting or suporting factor in upper chest development is the strength in your front delts. I think that people wth favourable strong front delts, people should definately do incline as the delts will not hold them back so they can create more substantial stress on upper chest than the spillover from the flat bench could. People with relatively weak front delts are limited in the weight they can incline bench hench the spillover from flat benches might actually EQUAL or MORE (!) than they could get from the incline bench.
Moral of the story get your front delts and your rotators up to par so you can profit from incline work.
Here is a no brainer chest workout using 2 exercises only:
12-10-8-6 low incline dumbell press
12-10-8-6 low decline dumbell press
4*10 low incline dumbell press
4*10 low decline dumbell press
That's it !
honestly i think one is as importnt as the other, you just need to do them at different times. Last month when i was stuck on my bench i decided to switch to db's for awhile and within a few weeks i broke that sticking point. After a couple more weeks with db's i will probably rotate back to bench for awhile.
DanielBishop
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For those who bagged inclines, both Dorian Yates and Mike Christian (to name but two) believe that incline stuff is the best mass builder for chest.
(Not necesarrilly my opinion)
(Not necesarrilly my opinion)
louden_swain
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Most bodybuilders do not perform bench presses. Bodybuilders such as (only list a few of many):
Kevin Levrone - 495lbs for heavy reps
Dorian Yates - 435lbs for heavy reps
Greg Kovacs - 585lbs for reps
Jay Cutler - 405lbs for reps
Chris Cormier - 505lbs for heavy reps
Dennis James - 495lbs for heavy reps
Flex Wheeler - 455lbs for heavy reps
perfom incline barbell presses as the core of their workout. Look at their pectoral development and the weights they use. This is why incline presses are important. Would you argue with them about how the incline press is worthless?
Kevin Levrone - 495lbs for heavy reps
Dorian Yates - 435lbs for heavy reps
Greg Kovacs - 585lbs for reps
Jay Cutler - 405lbs for reps
Chris Cormier - 505lbs for heavy reps
Dennis James - 495lbs for heavy reps
Flex Wheeler - 455lbs for heavy reps
perfom incline barbell presses as the core of their workout. Look at their pectoral development and the weights they use. This is why incline presses are important. Would you argue with them about how the incline press is worthless?
emptywallet
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louden_swain said:
Where did that come from? What article?
louden_swain
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EmptyWallet said:
Just read through 6 years of FLEX magazine. Most of these guys have posted their chest workouts. Most people on this board forget about the weight these guys can shift around. In 1997, I saw an article where Ian Harrison and Nasser El Sonbaty were performing incline barbell presses with 495lbs.
Extra_Strong
Well-known member
Ingram said:
Wow !!! U people ha.. do me a favor. flex your chest. then look at the placement of your arms. if you were flexing your chest would you raise them up in the air like you were doing incline? would you stick them straight out like doing flat bench? or would you place them in a positoin like you were doing decline? try it out. thank about it.
JarheadChiro
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Incline will stress pec major, minor, ant delt and serratus anterior mostly.
Decline, pec major and serratus mostly.
Decline, pec major and serratus mostly.
Do me a favor. Stretch your chest using the flat/incline/decline (all of them) motions. Do you feel the most stretch when pulling your arms up and back (decline movement)? Or do you feel it stretching more when you pull them straight back and down slightly (incline)? Try it out. Think about it.Extra_Strong said:
For building mass, heavy loads on a stretched muscle is much more important than a heavy load on a contracted muscle. If you could only do 50% of the ROM of any exercise, you'd be better of doing the lower 50% (stretched) portion rather than the top 50% (contracted) portion.
Extra_Strong
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jwwpua said:
ok guess i will try lifting staying in a stretched position 
Extra_Strong said:
That's not what he meant, bro -- though I definitely agree decline presses are underrated. Depending on how "high" on the chest you take the bar, it can afford an appreciable stretch.
My $0.02 on-topic: the exercise that allows you to move ever-greater weights (in good form and a full ROM) over time. Some people like dips. Some like flat bench. Others swear by inclines. Lots do more than one movement.
I say just pick a couple of those movements and focus on getting super-strong with them. I think flat vs. incline vs. decline vs. dips won't make that big a difference, truly.
Extra_Strong
Well-known member
u can build a big chest many ways but the chest is functionally stronger in the decline postion or in a back arched flat bench.
incline has its place in the upper chest. clavicular area but there is obvisuly more contractive tissure in the lower chest
incline has its place in the upper chest. clavicular area but there is obvisuly more contractive tissure in the lower chest
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