Chest Workout... Need to Change

[lucidblue]

I'm currently doing a 5x5. I had shoulder injury from tennis in high school and in the spring re-injured it lifting. I backed down on the weights and did some rehab and was feeling 100%. So, currently I'm doing the following:

DB Flat bench 5x5
Hammer Incline 2x8
Cable Fly 2x8
Some rotator rehab

I've been taking it easy on weight going in smaller increments than 5lbs on the 5x5. I'm only at 25lbs on the DB flat bench. If it weren't for my shoulder I know I could do more. I also seem to get stuck on the Hammer incline (maybe I should just do DB incline). Would DB inclines put less stress on my shoulder? I just feel like chest day is a waste of time every week. It's really frustrating.

Any advice?

Thanks!

 

[supersizeme]

db inclines would put less stress on your shoulder considering the fact that you can vary the angle of incline that you're using on the adjustable bench. hammer strength keeps you on a fixed plane and you can't adjust the angle of incline. if that's uncomfortable for you, i'd go with a lesser angle on incline dbs which will in turn recruit the shoulders a little bit less and take some stress off that shoulder. do you experience discomfort on flat db bench at all?

ideally you'd want to switch up between hammer, db, and machine inclines to keep your muscles guessing. if you feel confident that you won't tear your shoulder apart, do that. i've always felt that cable(also db) flyes are harder on my front delts than any pressing movement in that i can get more depth on flyes than i can just a regular press.

 

[lucidblue]

db inclines would put less stress on your shoulder considering the fact that you can vary the angle of incline that you're using on the adjustable bench. hammer strength keeps you on a fixed plane and you can't adjust the angle of incline. if that's uncomfortable for you, i'd go with a lesser angle on incline dbs which will in turn recruit the shoulders a little bit less and take some stress off that shoulder. do you experience discomfort on flat db bench at all?

ideally you'd want to switch up between hammer, db, and machine inclines to keep your muscles guessing. if you feel confident that you won't tear your shoulder apart, do that. i've always felt that cable(also db) flyes are harder on my front delts than any pressing movement in that i can get more depth on flyes than i can just a regular press.

I'll give DB inclines a shot. Do you think I should switch the 5x5 to inclines? I am starting to feel the twinges of discomfort on flat bench. I don't want to hurt my shoulder again and have to change my entire workout b/c of this stupid shoulder.

 

[louden_swain]

LucidBlue,

One other option would be to pre-exhaust your chest using flye movements. When using preexhaustion, your chest will become fatigued before your triceps and delts. Here might be a possibility:

Flat Bench Dumbell Flyes - 4 sets, 12,10,10,8 reps
Incline DB Presses - 2 x 8-12
Hammer Strength Flat Presses - 2 x 8-12

 

[supersizeme]

I'll give DB inclines a shot. Do you think I should switch the 5x5 to inclines? I am starting to feel the twinges of discomfort on flat bench. I don't want to hurt my shoulder again and have to change my entire workout b/c of this stupid shoulder.

louden's suggest is a good but would be getting away from 5x5 altogether.

if you want to stick with 5x5, i personally would have gone with incline dbs to begin with because i feel they are more beneficial than flat. in the immortal words of Thickdog(old member), "you can never have too much upper chest." even on a female, a defined chasm between the upper pecs looks good. for guys it's the female equivalent of cleavage. as to whether or not this is going to be better for your shoulder, i would think it would put more stress on your shoulder than flat, but that may not be the case. give them a shot and see how your shoulder likes it.