Chest workouts
To generate chest workouts to develop the pec major for maximum strength gain, it helps to understand the chest muscle structure,its located directly on the front side of the body underneath the collarbone.
When creating the chest workouts you need to realise that the chest muscle is one of the largest in the upper body. It is a very powerful body part when trained correctly and is responsible for a number of movements. The chest musclestrength has the primary function of pushing things away from you as well as helping to regulate the movements of the shoulder.
As there are many ligaments that connect to it through the shoulder joint, it is also one that can become pulled or strained quite easily. When this occurs, you usually experience a slight painful pulling feeling just in front of your under arm area.
The two main components of the chest muscle are the clavicular head and the sternal head. The clavicular head is located just beneath the collar bone and is much smaller as far as width is concerned. The sternal head is the larger portion and makes up most of the area around the breast.
Common exercises that you will perform for this region of the body include the bench press, cable flyes, incline flyes, decline flyes, incline presses and bench dips. It should be noted as well that most of these exercises are compound moments in nature meaning that along with working this part you will also work other areas of the body such as your triceps, shoulders and potentially even biceps. Because of this, these are wonderful exercises to include in a program because they are going to give you the most bang for your time spent. When you are trying to create a workout that you can move through quickly, this will be just what you are looking for.
Make sure you do perform some stretching movements after your upper body workout however as, like it was said in the beginning, this is an area of the body is prone to muscle soreness.
Chest Stretch
How often do you perform chest stretches? While many people do some flexibility work as part of their workout, chest stretches often get ignored.
This is actually an area that needs regular flexibility work. Chest stretches are important because of the huge combination of muscles that combine in this area.
In addition to the pectoral muscles, this is also the anchor point for the biceps, and the muscles of the shoulders. Regularly stretching this area will help all these areas stay flexible.
It can also help with good posture, as tightness in this area can pull the shoulders forward, leading to an unattractive round shouldered look.
The good news is that it’s easy to keep this area flexible. The best stretch is performed against a doorway, or any convenient piece of gym equipment.
Standing with feet shoulder width apart, hold your arm out straight to the side, parallel to the floor, and place the fingers of the left hand against the doorway/equipment.
Gently turn the body to the left – you should feel this in the front of the shoulder, where the pectorals meet the shoulder muscles. Turn until you feel a tightness, then hold for thirty seconds. Relax, and repeat with the other arm.
Alternatively, try this easy one – you can even do it sitting at your desk at work!
Bend your arms and place your hands behind your neck. Clasp your fingers and draw your elbows back as far as they will go. Hold for thirty seconds, then relax. Be sure to keep your neck relaxed while you do this, and don’t push against your head/neck.
Chest Exercise
The nice thing about performing chest exercises is that when you do it you are also indirectly working a few other muscles as well. The triceps in particular are really called into play in the various chest exercise movements you do so this means you will not have to devote as much time to working them singularly.
The top chest exercise to perform is a bench press. This one is usually considered the ‘king’ of movements because it is where you are able to develop the most force and thus stimulate the greatest number of muscle fibres. It is really important to remember while performing it however that you must breathe. Far too many people have a tendency to hold in their breath while performing it which can lead to a big rise in blood pressure if not careful. Furthermore, when you utilize proper breathing technique you are also able to generate even more force so that again aids in the progression of your lift.
The second point to remember on this movement is that your back must stay flat against the bench. If you let it rise up, as often it does when one lifts a heavy amount of weight, you will really place a lot of force upon the lower back vertebrae that could potentially lead to back pain. Think of squeezing your stomach muscles while attempting the bench press to avoid this.
Whether or not you want to place your feet on the floor during the movement or up on the bench is a personal preference. Some like it one way while others prefer the opposite. Usually individuals who like it on the bench find it helps them maintain that flat back position so for them it is definitely beneficial to do it this way.
So when reviewing your workout plan, make sure the bench press is included in there if you want to see maximum results and muscular development.