The higher the intensity of the workout, the greater the gain in muscle mass it will give. This is a well-known fact. Meanwhile, the intensity directly depends on our working weights - the higher they are, the correspondingly higher the intensity of the load. However, it is not easy to increase the working weights, especially if you are already working to the limit - this requires a special training program and a special regimen.

Our today's article will be entirely devoted to the issue of increasing working weights in chest exercises, and in particular, the issue of increasing the strength of the pectoral muscles.

Pectoral Strength Training Principles

Before starting to write a training program, it is necessary to formulate the basic principles of the future complex:

• Cyclical increase in working weight while decreasing the number of repetitions

It will not work to increase from training to training, so we will use microcycles with an increase in working weights every second week and with working out an increased working weight with a small number of repetitions.

• Emphasis on basic exercises

The mistake of many athletes is the desire to increase working weights in isolated exercises, while many of them perform these movements as basic ones - they do not pay enough attention to technique and use a small or medium number of repetitions. Such training is fundamentally wrong. It is only necessary to work to increase the working weight in basic exercises, while isolating exercises should always be performed with ideal technique and in a large number of repetitions. As the strength of the pectoral muscles grows in the base, the weights and in isolation will increase.

• Taking creatine

Since chest strength training involves high intensity, intake is a prerequisite for effectiveness. If this is not done, its reserves in the muscles will be used up rather quickly, which will lead to the impossibility of maintaining a high level of load during training.

Training complex for the strength of the pectoral muscles

Based on the above principles, we will create a training program. A detailed technique for its implementation will be described below.

Weeks 1, 3, 5, 7

Weeks 2, 4, 6

Program execution method

• Every second week (2, 4, 6), it is necessary to increase the working weight in the first two exercises by 2-2.5 kg and perform 4 repetitions with it.
• In weeks 3, 5, 7, we work out the increased working weight, trying to do not 4, but already 6 repetitions with it.
• Do not try to add more than 2.5 kg per week when you need to do 4 repetitions. Keep in mind that with this weight you will have to do 6 reps next week.
• The total duration of the complex is 7 weeks.
• This program can be done on back or bicep workout days.

What results to expect from the program?

With the correct implementation of this complex, adherence to dietary regimens, training and rest, you are guaranteed to increase the working weights in basic exercises for the pectoral muscles by about 7.5 kg.

At the end of the complex, you can switch to any program for mass - due to the increased strength of the chest, such a program will be intense and, as a result, more effective in terms of gaining muscle mass.

How can beginners build massive breasts? Try these 5 great workout programs for building chest muscles and find out for yourself.

Beginner's Pectoral Building Guide

Does your chest look more like a sheet of plywood than the mountain of muscle you've always dreamed of? Do you spend endless hours doing bench presses but your chest size is not increasing? Have you already started to think that you are simply not destined to have developed? Stop immediately, you are wrong.

I cannot promise you that you will ever have breasts like the great Arnold Schwarzenegger, but I can promise you that if you listen to me, you will be able to develop your breasts to impressive sizes.

Later in the article I will tell you about the anatomy of the chest, its function, location in the body and some exercises for each section of the pectoral muscles. Finally, and this is exactly what you are waiting for, I will share with you five of my favorite workout programs that will help you transform your flat chest into bulky muscles.

Breast Anatomy

The chest is made up of two muscles that work together to make the rib cage work. These muscles are the pectoralis major and the pectoralis minor. Typically, the pectoralis major muscle is located directly below the pectoralis major muscle.

Location:
It starts in the inner half of the collarbone and runs through the sternum to the axillary fossa (Humerus).

Functions:
It has 3 different functions:

• Rotates the shoulder
• Raises and lowers the hand at the sides
• Performs an arm wrestling movement

Exercises:
Bench press and swings with dumbbells

Press the bar on a horizontal bench perfectly trains the middle section of the pectoral muscles

Although the chest is composed of a single muscle mass, it must be trained as if it were in three parts. The upper, middle and lower chest are pumped better depending on the angle at which the exercises are performed.

The upper chest is best developed when doing exercises on a bench at an angle of 30-45 °. For example, barbell presses and dumbbell presses or dumbbell curls on an incline bench are great exercises for pumping up your upper chest.

The middle chest gets the best stimulation when the exercises are done on a horizontal bench. For example: a barbell press and a dumbbell press, or a flattened dumbbell curl on a horizontal bench perfectly trains the middle section of the pectoral muscles.

The lower chest is best trained with exercises performed on a reverse incline bench (30-45 °). For example, barbell presses and dumbbell presses, or dumbbell flattening on a reverse incline bench are great for increasing the lower pectoralis muscles.

I find that all chest regions respond best initially to low (4-6) or medium (8-12) reps. I very rarely include high reps for beginners as I find the heavier weights help lay the solid foundation that beginners need. I'm also sure it's best to focus on free weights early in your workouts, especially if your chest is your weak point. In my opinion, free weights develop the pectoral muscles much better than exercise machines.

Now that you understand what muscles make up your pectoral muscles and know about their function, location, and the exercises required to grow them, let's look at some workout programs that can help you build chest volume.

All exercises must be performed exactly according to the rules, because improper exercise becomes a habit that will haunt you and prevent you from achieving great results, or in the worst case, lead to injury. So read the section first.

My 5 Favorite Pectoral Workout Programs

Upper Pectoral Muscles Day

• : 3 sets of 8 reps

Day of the middle section of the pectoral muscles

• : 3 sets of 4-6 reps
• : 3 sets of 8 reps
• : 3 sets of 8-12 reps
• (lowering should take 5-10 seconds): 3 sets of 12 reps

Lower Pectoral Muscles Day

• : 3 sets of 4-6 reps
• : 3 sets of 8 reps
• : 3 sets of 8-12 reps
• (lowering should take 5-10 seconds): 3 sets of 12 reps

Barbell Day

• : 3 sets of 4-6 reps
• : 3 sets of 4-6 reps

Hello! Let's take a look at the very best chest exercises that can take you to a whole new level. Naturally, I will give specific practical schemes for different levels of training and I will note many interesting features in the training of the pectoral muscles.

On the anatomy and growth rules for the pectoral muscles

The most basic thing that must be paid attention to and must be remembered is that the pectoral muscles consist of:

• LARGE CHEST MUSCLE(m. pectoralis major);
• SMALL CHEST MUSCLE(m. pectoralis minor);
• Serratus anterior muscle(m. serratus anterior);

Another VERY IMPORTANT POINT is that the pectoral (pectoral) muscles are unique to some extent, because they are attached at different angles to the sternum and collarbone, FORMING the LETTER "G", which is why they need to be trained at different angles.

As you can see, everything is not complicated enough. We must train different parts of the pectoral muscles at different angles.

Now a little about the rules for the growth of not only pectoral muscles, but also all muscle groups, in principle.

For high-quality powerful growth of any muscle group, you need to follow only three basic rules:

(creating FAVORABLE conditions for the body to grow).

QUALITY RESTORATION(fractional meals 6-12 times a day + 8-10 hours of sleep).

MUSCLE SENSE(the load must hit EXACTLY INTO THE PURPOSE, you can learn more about it).

I already talked about this in the article, about training the pectoral muscles at home, I gave the link above, read it.

(weight on the barbell, the number of approaches, repetitions, exercises, super moves, etc.).

You must recover well.(often eat 6-12 times a day and sleep well for 8-10 hours).

You should feel the muscles you are training., and turn off all other muscles from work.

That, in fact, is all that can be said about this.

The main mistakes when training pectoral muscles

Many people make the same mistakes when training their breasts. These mistakes severely inhibit possible progress.

Too much weight on the projectile

In any gym, you can see a similar error when, even not always a beginner, uses too much weight on a barbell or dumbbells.

He writhes, twists, helps himself with his legs, back, all parts of the body, just to squeeze out the weight, believing that the more he presses, the better the progress of the pectoral muscles.

This is not true. The load in this way is simply "smeared" over other muscles, leaving the chest. Naturally, the breast does not grow.

The body always strives to conserve energy., therefore, will tend to disrupt the exercise technique.

Your task is to monitor the progression of the load, but so that at the same time you keep the correct technique.

Using only a horizontal bench in exercises

Many people overestimate the importance of the flat bench press for chest growth.

As we said, the pectoral muscles (pectorals) are attached to the collarbone and sternum at different angles, respectively, they need to be trained at different angles of the bench.

The bench press on a horizontal bench affects mainly the lower chest region, which itself grows much easier than the upper one, but it is much smaller in size.

Accordingly, for the development of the pectoral muscles, this is not the most preferred bench press option.

Only by experimenting with the sensations of the pectoral muscles at different angles of inclination of the bench can one achieve their all-round development.

By the way, I don’t press the bar at all on a horizontal bench, but only press on an incline (20-30 degrees), and my chest often look better than many people who focus on the press on a horizontal bench.

Few basic exercises and lots of isolation exercises

Some beginners focus on isolation exercises, believing that in this way they will expand the chest, and work "in shape." THIS IS MISTAKE!

It is possible, but not in the form in which they do it. More on this a little later, but in general, a classic version: FIRST BASIC EXERCISES (presses), and THEN ISOLATING (dumbbell spreading, information in a crossover, pullover, etc.).

It is the basic exercises that will allow you to take more weight on the apparatus and it is easier to progress the load.

Then there are isolation exercises that can tire your muscles even deeper, and fill them with blood.

There is an option when you can do isolating exercises instead of basic ones, namely when training SLOW MUSCLE FIBERS! This is the so-called STATODYNAMICS!

In order for the pressure in your body not to create problems during the MMV training, you need to focus on isolating exercises and give preference to "sitting" exercises instead of "standing" ones.

However, we talked about this ... And we'll talk in even more detail in other articles.

Too much rest between sets and exercises

This point is very important. If you want beautiful, aesthetic breasts for yourself, then you should not rest for more than 1-1.5 minutes. Maximum 2 minutes!

With each approach, the fatigue should get stronger and stronger.

A good indicator that you are doing everything right will be a REDUCTION IN THE NUMBER OF REPEATS IN EACH APPROACH!

If you do a set to failure every time, then you most likely will not be able to complete the same number of repetitions in the next set. It will be something like this:

1. 80 kg x 10;
2. 80 kg x 9;
3. 80 kg x 8;
4. 80 kg x 7;
5. 80 kg x 6;

Too Much Exercise in Chest Workout

This dissipates your efforts. I always think that it is better to do 3-4 of the most effective exercises for one muscle group, but increase the number of approaches to 5-6, or even 7, than to perform 7-8 exercises, doing 2-3 approaches in each.

When people run from one simulator to another, first the barbell press, then the dumbbell press, then the uneven bars, then the hummer, then the wiring, then the crossover, etc., then, most likely, as strange as it sounds, they give insufficient load.

I'm not talking about professional athletes who can train for 2 hours or more. I am counting on the average person who wants to develop impressive breasts.

And in the training of professionals, you can often find only 4-5 exercises for 1 muscle group.

CORRECT "bodybuilding" technique

These tips are for the bodybuilder, not the powerlifter. The main goal of bodybuilding is to increase muscle volume while maintaining an aesthetic physique.

NOT OVERCOMING MAXIMUM WEIGHT, BUT INCREASING MUSCLE VOLUME, WHILE MAINTAINING IDEAL PROPORTIONS! Do you feel the difference?

In order for the muscles to grow, the load must grow, we talked about this at the very beginning of the article. But the load should grow not only stupidly due to the increase in weight on the apparatus, but also due to the "shutdown" of the rest of the muscles from work and the complication of work for the target group, i.e. breast.

Naturally, this will reduce your weight on the bar, but the load will hit right on target.

To complicate the work of our breasts, the following conditions must be met:

• Partial range of motion- an excellent solution for bodybuilding, because allows you to keep the muscles in constant tension (no rest). By reducing the amplitude, the weight on the bar will practically not drop. You can work with your previous working weight.
• Boom trajectory- the bar should move IN AN ARC! Beginning at the bottom of the pectorals, and at the end at the top of the pectorals.
• Leg position- the legs of the bodybuilder should be higher than that of the powerlifter. You can put them on a stand or move the bench to the dumbbell row and put them there. Thus, you remove the "bridge" (do not bend in the back), thereby further isolating the pectoral muscles. Plus, in this position, you do not help yourself with your legs, without involving other muscles in the work.
• Breast reduction at rest- you must learn to contract the pectoral muscles in a calm state, i.e. how to "twitch" them. Focus on cutting them down so you can feel them more easily as you work in the gym.
• Grip width and forearm position- the width of the grip should be such that at the lowest point of the range of motion of the barbell, the forearms become PARALLEL to each other. If you are working in partial range, then the grip should be slightly wider than usual.
• Do not flatten the shoulder blades- it helps to squeeze out more weight, but takes the strain off the chest. You will squeeze more weight, but your chest will receive less stress.
• Bench tilt- about 20-30 degrees up from the horizontal allows you to distribute the load more evenly over the entire chest.
• The number of approaches and reps- the classic reps for the bodybuilder 6-12. This applies to the training of fast muscle fibers. For the slow ones, the range is slightly different (there they are guided by the time of failure of 30-50 seconds). As a rule, approaches should not be done less than 4. The chest is still a large muscle group.
• Open grip- This is a grip when the thumb does not close the hands in a ring around the bar. It helps to better focus on chest contraction, BUT THIS GAP IS DANGEROUS FOR BEGINNERS, therefore only suitable for more advanced athletes.

Exercises for the muscles of the chest

Exercises for the muscles of the chest should be divided into two large groups:

1. PRESS(barbells, dumbbells, in Smith).
2. Breeding(dumbbells, crossovers, hummers, etc.).

Presses are basic exercises (2 joints work: shoulder + elbow), and dilutions are isolating (1 joint works: shoulder). That is why we will begin our workout with bench presses and end with dilutions for deeper fatigue.

PRESS (depending on the projectile):

• Barbell;
• Dumbbells;
• Frame (in Smith);

PRESS (depending on the angle of the bench):

• Head up;
• Horizontal;
• Head down;

PRESS (depending on the width of the grip):

• Wide;
• Average;
• Narrow;

As you can see, there are a lot of options.

The higher the incline of your body, the more the upper chest works and the lower the lower. But the slope should not be more than 40-45 degrees, because the higher the tilt of the head, the more they are included in the work and triceps.

Therefore, I advise you to tilt your torso at about 20-30 degrees. So the load will fall more evenly than in the absence of a tilt angle.

If the tilt of the trunk, on the contrary, is lower than the horizontal, then the lower chest works more, but the triceps are more involved in the work. Deltas with a negative tilt angle are turned off.

The narrower the grip, the greater the range of motion and the harder it becomes to press. But the narrower the grip becomes, the more triceps are included in the work.

Accordingly, if you select a certain ideal formula, then from the point of view of efficiency, you need to reap:

Medium grip, on a bench with a positive incline of 20-30 degrees from the horizontal.

Now let's pick the best chest exercises in terms of effectiveness.

The Most Powerful Chest Exercises

These chest exercises should be in every bodybuilder's arsenal.

Incline Bench Press

Perhaps the # 1 exercise for building huge pectoral muscles.

As I said, a tilt of about 20-30 degrees is optimal. Above is not necessary, tk. deltas will definitely be included in the work.

Very often, sports equipment manufacturers make a fixed 45 degree bench angle. It really sucks because necessarily includes the delta in the work.

Therefore, I would advise you to take a regular incline bench with the ability to change the incline angle and put squat racks on the sides of it, put the bar there and voila. The bench we need for the bench is ready.

About the width of the grip. We take the bar with an MEDIUM GRIP, because this gives us a large amplitude of movement, and accordingly complicates the work, and does not allow the triceps to engage in work.

We try to work INSIDE the AMPLITUDE (do not touch the chest with the bar and do not straighten the elbows completely at the top point), this will not allow the chest to turn off.

The next big thing is, LET YOUR LEGS UP! You can bring yourself a footrest, for example. This will prevent you from arching with a bridge so that the load does not go to your legs, back, etc. you need to press WITHOUT BRIDGE (back straight). You are deprived of the opportunity to "cheat".

Now about breathing... Nothing out of the ordinary here. Exhale on effort, inhale when we lower the barbell down.

As for the elbows, THEY SHOULD BE DISTRIBUTED TO THE SIDE! This will focus on the pectorals, not the triceps (when the elbows are parallel to the torso, the triceps work).

I also recommend doing 6-12 reps. I generally work in the 6-10 rep range. Although, if you are just starting out, then you can do even more reps, about 15-20. Adjust the weight so that muscle failure occurs precisely in this repetition range.

You DO NOT NEED to do any other barbell presses yet!

Let's structure a little of the information we received about this type of bench press.

Execution technique:

1. Lie on the bench, REMOVE THE BRIDGE, press your back firmly against the bench! You can additionally TURN your legs UP to isolate the pectoral muscles. This way you will be able to lift less weight, but the LOAD WILL GO CLEAN INTO THE CHEST MUSCLES, and not spread over the front delta, triceps and back.
2. Take the bar slightly wider than your shoulders (at the bottom, your forearms should be parallel).
3. After that, lower the barbell down without TOUCHING THE BREAST MUSCLES AT THE LOWER POINT! Feel your chest stretch. At the same time we draw air into the lungs.
4. Now with a POWERFUL MOVEMENT, focusing on the work of the pectoral muscles, squeeze the bar UP.

Important: DO NOT FULLY STRAIGHTEN THE ELBOWS, so as not to relieve the load from the pectoral muscles and not take it to the elbow joints.

1. Now Squeeze YOUR BREASTS with a PEAK CONTRACT.

Important: Imagine that your arms are up to the elbows from the shoulder, it is just a LINK, and your arms end at the elbows. PUSH ELBOWS, NOT HANDS! So you will focus on the load on the pectoral muscles, removing it from the front delta and triceps.

Elastic, toned breasts are the pride of women and the admiration of men. But a chic neckline is not only an aesthetic pleasure. It is also a subconscious signal to the opposite sex that in front of a man is a successful expectant mother, capable of fully feeding her offspring.

There is something to fight for. And in addition to balanced nutrition and cosmetic breast skin care, thoughtful and most effective breast lift exercises at home will help you achieve your goal. But first - briefly about how the female breast works.

The area of ​​the female décolleté can be conditionally divided into two components: a mammary gland that does not have muscle fibers and a muscular corset that supports it. Between themselves - to provide nutrition to the gland, supply it with oxygen and remove oxidation products - they are connected by connective tissue with a network of blood vessels.

So, the mammary gland does not have muscles. What does it consist of? These two simple-looking hemispheres have, unlike muscles, a very complex structure. And it is aimed at the woman's fulfillment of her main physiological mission - motherhood and child-rearing.

Mammary gland

The mammary glands are a paired multicomponent hemispherical structure adjacent to the chest between the 3rd and 6th-7th ribs, with small nipples surrounded by the areola and located in the center. In the nipple, which, together with the areola, has a dark pigmentation different from the skin of the rest of the bust, the ends of the milk ducts and many nerve fibers are located. By the way, nerve fibers of the intercostal, cervical and shoulder regions pass through the chest, and it can ache with osteochondrosis of the cervicothoracic spine.

Internal filling of the mammary gland - several glandular lobes, subdivided into lobules filled with vesicles-alveoli and interconnected by the milk ducts. This structure looks like a bunch of grapes and called the glandular region, which is responsible for the secretion of milk. It is fed to the top of the nipple by expanding milk ducts in this place.

The mammary glands are permeated with lymphatic channels and blood vessels, in the appropriate position of them supports the ligamentous apparatus - Cooper's ligaments.

The glandular section is surrounded by loose tissues - connective and adipose. This promotes the mobility of the mammary gland relative to its base and largely determines its external shape. There are even special classifications of types and forms of the female bust, as well as their connection with the character of the owner. But one thing can be said with certainty: there are no two completely identical busts in nature. And yet the formula for an ideal female bust exists, and the following geometrical parameters are characteristic of it:

• the upper part of the mammary gland, mentally divided in half by a horizontal line running along the nipples, should make up 45% of 100% of the breast volume, and the lower one - everything else (55%);
• nipples relative to the same line should look up at an angle of 25 ° to 45 °.

Of course, the perfect toned chest is as rare as the notorious parameters 90-60-90. But in a sense, each breast is perfect in its own way.

Muscle corset

The pectoral muscles are divided into two groups:

• located directly on the chest - internal, external and diaphragm;
• muscles of the shoulder girdle and arms.

The most massive is the fan-shaped convex pectoralis major muscle. Under it is the flat pectoralis minor muscle, which has 4 teeth and is attached to the scapula.

The functions of the chest muscles include:

• support of the upper limbs and, together with the muscles of the back, participation in turning, tilting and lifting the body;
• participation in the process of breathing with the help of the diaphragm.

What can influence how the breasts look?

There are several factors:

1. Body fat balance. Usually the mammary glands of fuller women are more impressive than thin ones. If a lady begins to lose weight intensively, as a rule, her breasts also decrease. we covered in a separate article.
2. Pregnancy and lactation. During this important period, thanks to hormonal changes in the body, it undergoes a significant transformation and becomes fuller. But it is quite possible to correct the situation in this case as well.
3. Age. Until the age of 20, the bust is steadily increasing and shaping. After adulthood, estrogen no longer affects its shape and size. Here, pregnancy and childbirth, weight gain, etc. are beginning to play a significant role. It is worth mentioning the "Balzac age", when natural sagging processes begin due to a decrease in collagen production, stretching and weakening of the ligamentous apparatus, etc.
4. Genetics. It is enough to look at the women of a particular family in order to assume with a high probability what shape and size the breasts of a girl born here will develop. Unfortunately, genetics is one of the.
5. Smoking. Cigarettes contain compounds that break down elastin. The general tone of the skin, including the bust, falls, and the mammary gland begins to sag.
6. Plastic surgery. With their help, you can significantly change the shape of the breast. But women have a lot to think about before deciding on this last resort. The most gentle, but at the same time effective method of surgical intervention is.

7 main pull-up movements

As we found out, the mammary gland is attached by its base to the pectoralis major muscle. Is it possible to give it its former elasticity and with what exercises can this be achieved? The growth of the pectoral muscles, an increase in their endurance will improve the shape of the breast, enhance its nutrition, blood supply and lymphatic drainage, and become an obstacle to sagging and prolapse. Immediately, we note that in addition to the workouts below, there are more.

What is important when working out the muscles of the chest:

• It is necessary to work out all the muscles to the maximum. The load must be multidirectional, because the muscle fibers of the pectoral muscles run at different angles.
• Correct exercise technique is important to strengthen sagging muscles without unnecessary injury. Be sure to warm up and cool down.
• Excellent exercises for are considered push-ups, pull-ups, various repulsion in blows (tennis, basketball, volleyball), planks. But the most tangible results are given by weights with progressive resistance. Among them - .

1. Knee push-ups

The muscles of the chest, shoulder girdle, back, abs, and also triceps are involved. This is a basic free weight multi-joint exercise. Unlike standard full-length push-ups and other varieties, since it relieves some of the load from the legs, and, accordingly, is easier to perform.

1. From a prone position, place an emphasis on the palms and knees of the legs bent at an angle of 90 ° and crossed at the top. Straightened arms (palms are under the shoulders and look with fingers forward) and bent legs - shoulder-width apart, the whole body constitutes an even oblique diagonal. This is the starting position.
2. Inhale and begin to lower your torso down by bending your elbows - until your chest touches the floor.
3. At the bottom point, push off and as you exhale, rise to the starting position.

Do push-ups 10-12 times, do 3 sets with a half-minute break.

Don't make mistakes in technique:

• When moving down, do not spread your elbows to the sides of the body - this can overload the shoulder and lead to injury;
• Watch the pelvis - it should neither sag, nor bulge up, but form a straight line due to the inclusion of the gluteal muscles in the work;
• Stretch your wrists to avoid overloading them due to unnatural position and strong pressure;
• Lower yourself down using the strength of your hands, slowly, and not as if you were knocked down.

Attention! Use such a lightweight version of push-ups only for the first time, until your muscles get stronger, do not get hung up on it, go to the usual classic push-ups as soon as possible.

2. Classic push-ups

Classic push-ups are perfect for tightening the pectoral muscles in girls. The muscles of the shoulder girdle, back, abs, triceps are also involved, as well as, unlike the previous version of the exercise, legs.

The technique is like push-ups from the knees, but in the starting position the emphasis is on the toes.

Do push-ups 10-12 times, do 3 sets with a break of half a minute. Gradually bring the number of repetitions to 20 and reduce the break between sets to 10-15 seconds.

3. Squeezing the palms

The pectoral and shoulder muscles are included in the work, the inclusion of the triceps is a mistake. Well suited for beginners with weakened muscles and as a final isometric exercise in strength training.

1. Place your feet shoulder-width apart, back straight, bend your arms at the elbows in front of you at chest level, put your palms together and put them vertically (prayer pose).
2. Inhale, hold your breath for 10 seconds, and while filling your chest with air, perform frequent maximum contractions of the pectoral muscles by resting your palms against each other.

Repeat 5-8 times for 10 seconds with a break of 10-15 seconds. Gradually bring the time back to 20 seconds.

It is interesting! The exercise can be varied by closing your arms over your head or shifting your closed arms alternately to the left and right chest.

4. "Support against the wall"

The muscles of the chest and shoulders are included in the work, straining and stretching. The exercise is performed anywhere there are doorways. It's good.

1. Take the starting position, resting your arms slightly bent at the elbows on the sides of the doorway or wall, and begin to press on them with your hands in the forward direction - about 1-3 minutes.
2. Bend forward slightly and continue pushing for another 1-3 minutes.

Three approaches will be enough.

5. Bench press dumbbells lying on an incline bench

An extremely effective exercise for lifting the pectoral muscles for women and girls. The work includes the large and small muscles of the bust, delta and coracoid shoulders, muscles of the ribs, shoulder blades and biceps of the arms.

1. Lie on a bench with an incline of 20 ° -30 °, rest your feet on the floor at your sides, lift your forearms with dumbbells up 90 °. The position of the extended elbows - just below chest level, dumbbells - higher.
2. Inhale, and as you exhale, squeeze the dumbbells up on straight arms, after a second delay at the top point, the arms return down.

Do 3-4 sets of 10-12 presses, with a break for about 2 minutes.

6. Routing dumbbells lying on a horizontal bench

The pectoralis major muscle works, the muscles of the shoulders and ribs are included. This movement is effective.

1. Lie with your back on a bench, arms slightly bent at the elbows with dumbbells lift up to eye level, hands look at each other.
2. Inhale - spreading arms to the sides, a slight delay at the bottom point, on exhalation - a new rise.

Do 4 sets of 12 dilutions.

7. Exercise pullover

The pectoralis major and

is one of the most important parts of the entire bodybuilder training split. The peculiarity of the pectoral muscles is that they are always in sight, therefore, pumping them up is one of the highest priority tasks, in addition, the pectoral muscles constitute a large muscle group, namely, the large muscles should be paid attention first of all. Nevertheless, even though this article will consider all aspects of training the pectoral muscles, the anatomy of the structure of the chest, practical recommendations for working out different parts of the pectoral muscles, the reasons for breast lagging, how to properly train the chest and what should be emphasized, but still in this In this case, we are talking about a training program that specializes in the development of the pectoral muscles, and not on the basic principles of chest training.

If you are just starting out in the gym, then we recommend that you familiarize yourself with breast training scheme , as well as study the material about bodybuilding for beginners ... However, this article will also be useful to you, but before starting to study the intricacies, we recommend that you study the basic information. Also required subscribe to updates , so as not to miss out on the rest of the useful information!

What are breasts? The pectoral muscles are composed of the external pectoral muscles, the internal intercostal muscles, and the diaphragm. Bodybuilders, of course, are primarily interested in outdoor ones, since it is their hypertrophy that is most noticeable. The greatest importance is played by the pectoralis major muscle, which is paired, that is, located on both sides of the chest. Less important is the pectoralis minor, which is of interest because it pushes the pectoralis major forward, making the chest appear larger. The rest of the muscles are usually not exercised by athletes, but this, of course, is wrong, since these muscles also perform important functions. Moreover, for example, if you feel discomfort in the clavicle, then you definitely need to work out the subclavian muscle.

Pectoralis major muscle - takes the lion's share of chest training, it is she who is trained with all kinds of barbell presses and dumbbells. The function of this muscle is to bring the hand toward or away from oneself, respectively, due to this muscle, a pushing movement is performed - press. Also, this muscle performs a rotational function, it is due to the pectoralis major muscle that a person can rotate with his hand, well, in this case, if we are talking about bodybuilding, then this is the breeding of dumbbells. This is very important, because during training, the athlete trains muscle fibers that perform certain functions, respectively, since the functions are different, then the muscle fibers are involved in different ones. This does not mean that the press trains some fibers, and the layout of others, but the emphasis of the load shifts and, yes, different muscle fibers are additionally involved.

Since the pectoralis major muscle, one way or another, is the target, then in chest training it will be given special importance to it. Conventionally, the chest can be divided into middle, upper and lower, although all this will be the same muscle. The meaning of dividing the pectoralis major muscle into segments is that the muscle fibers have different attachment points, some are attached to the middle of the chest, others to the clavicle, and they are all attached to the humerus. Accordingly, depending on the position of the body, different fibers will be at different angles, when the athlete lies on a horizontal bench, then those fibers that are attached to the middle of the chest are at right angles, when the athlete lies at an angle up, then those fibers are at right angles that are attached to the collarbone. And it is anatomically more convenient for you to use those fibers that are exactly at right angles, therefore, to shift the load on the required muscle fibers, you need to change the load vector.

Pectoralis minor and subclavian muscle in many ways are similar, but the first is responsible for bringing the shoulder blades down and forward, and the second for bringing the clavicle down and forward. To load these muscles, it is necessary during the execution of the wiring, and preferably on the block, to perform additional effort when bringing the hands together, bringing the shoulder forward. That is, you can simply bring your hands together, or you can additionally contract the pectoral muscle a little by bringing the scapula and shoulder forward, this is the training of the pectoralis minor and subclavian muscles. The rest of the muscle groups are not interesting to bodybuilders from a practical point of view. The only thing that can be useful to those athletes who use strength training program , this is intra-abdominal pressure, which can be increased using a safety harness. The pressure increases due to the squeezing of the diaphragm, which allows you to shake heavier weights, which is why powerlifters even train their chest in the belt.

Breast lag reasons

Lack of progression - this is the most important reason for lagging behind something, because if an athlete progresses the load at the expense of the target muscle group, then, one way or another, but its hypertrophy will occur. From a practical point of view, the key points that make progression possible are training diary and the system. You can progress the load in different ways, but it is most effective to do this by increasing the working weights on the bar. In practice, no matter how effective your chest workout is, you will progress through both working weight and increasing repetitions in working sets. The optimal number of repetitions for building muscle mass is 8-12 reps per set. In this range, you will be manipulating the number of repetitions.

After you have increased the weight on the barbell, you will do 8 reps, gradually trying to increase the number of repetitions in the set to 10-12, and then move on to the new weight and 8 reps. This does not mean that you should increase weight or reps on all sets at once. Let's say you performed 12 repetitions in the first approach with your working weight, respectively, on the next workout you put more weight and performed 8 repetitions in the first approach, and in the second 7. So, in the third approach you drop the weight to the previous one and perform with it the maximum number of repetitions. In the next workout, you perform 8 repetitions in the first approach, in the second you try to perform 8, if it works, then in the third you try to perform 8 repetitions with a new weight. If you succeed, then on the next workout you try to do more in the first repetition, etc. If you follow the principle of progression in your chest muscle training, then it will not go anywhere and will still grow!

Poor muscle feeling - this is also not an important reason, since the progression of loads should be carried out at the expense of the target muscle group, that is, when you increase the weight in the bench press, this should be due to an increase in the load on the chest, and not on the shoulders, latissimus dorsi, triceps, legs or whatever. What is needed for this? Correct technique! But not only, muscle feeling can be developed, so experienced athletes can afford cheating.

Wrong priorities - this reason can be expressed in the fact that the athlete prefers strength indicators, or the wrong segment of the chest. Chest training for hypertrophy is precisely the training of the chest muscles, therefore, if you use a power bench press, and your chest is a genetically lagging muscle, then it should come as no surprise that the chest does not grow. Lagging muscle groups need to be isolated, since stronger muscles will naturally steal all the load. This is precisely the principle of the progression of loads at the expense of the target muscle group. As for the lagging of the breast segments, then everything is the same! If your upper chest lags behind, and you stubbornly press on a horizontal bench, then your top will never grow, since to shift the load to the upper chest, you need to perform an angle press. The priority muscle areas should be those that are lagging behind!

Features of breast training

Expansion of the skeleton - this is a very effective technique that allows you to expand the chest not due to muscles, but due to bones, which not only makes the breast visually larger, but increases the final potential of its growth. We already wrote about how such a training looks in practice in the article about breast enlargement .

Preliminary fatigue - This is a way of emphasizing the load on the pectoral muscles in conditions when the auxiliary muscle groups during chest exercises reach a positive failure before the chest. For example, you do a bench press, did 6 reps, your chest is still capable of doing 1-2 reps, but the triceps are already tired and you cannot squeeze the bar any more. Accordingly, in such conditions the chest is underworked, but if you tire it out with an isolating exercise beforehand, it will already be tired, and you will be able to achieve a positive refusal in the chest earlier than in the accessory muscles. In addition, this method allows you to stretch your breasts well, filling it with blood, and tune your brain specifically to work out the pectoral muscles.

Supination and pronation - these are methods of increasing the complexity of the load in isolated exercises, but their main advantage is not only that they allow you to load the muscle more, but also that they load the necessary segments of the chest. Supination is the turn of the hand towards the face, and pronation is from the face. For example, you perform dumbbell breeding, your hands at the lowest point are in a neutral grip, and when you lift them up, you pierce the hand, turning it away from you, that is, as if trying to bring your thumbs together. During supination, on the contrary, you are trying to bring the little fingers together, while in the lower phase the palm may not be in a neutral grip, when the palms are looking at each other, but in a pronated state. That is, at the bottom point, the palms are turned towards the legs, and at the top towards the face. Very important rotate the hand by turning the shoulder, not the elbow joint.

Chest and Triceps Workout - This is one of the commonly practiced types of chest muscle training, which during the training itself does not provide any particular benefits to the pectoral muscles, but it does have an advantage in terms of recovery. The bottom line is that during triceps training, the chest also indirectly receives a load, especially during bench presses, and if you combine triceps and chest training, then, accordingly, the contractile proteins rest more fully.

Chest and biceps workout - this is also a type of combination of muscle groups, in which the chest wins slightly during the training itself. Yes, of course, as in the previous case, you combine the training of the chest muscles with the training of a small muscle group, which allows you to concentrate more on the pectoral muscles. This workout is one of the most optimal if you do not specialize in the chest, since during the triceps workout the chest is indirectly involved, which, in fact, is for it a light workout that maintains energy.

Chest and back workout - this is already a fairly advanced version of training the pectoral muscles, since it involves the combination of the muscles of the antagonists. The chest is a pushing muscle group, and the back is pulling, but both are large muscle groups, as a result of which it is difficult to fully pump both of them. A huge plus is that during your back workout, you stretch your chest. During the chest specialization, this workout can be applied using supersets, but in this case, the back should be trained with lighter weights.

Chest and Shoulder Workout - this is also the training of the antagonist muscles, so with the chest you will not train the front delta, but the middle and back. This workout allows you to pump your shoulders in the event that you have nowhere to insert their workout, which, in fact, is the plus of this combination of muscle groups. That is, there are no particular pluses, but there are no minuses either. If you need to train your shoulders, and there is nowhere to insert them, then you can use this workout.

Chest and legs workout - this is a very effective scheme for training the muscles of the chest, but, of course, the legs in this case are not the goal, that is, they are trained only as much as it helps to train the pectoral muscles. At the beginning of the workout, you do light squats at 50% of the working weight for 5 sets of 10 repetitions, after which you go directly to training the main muscle group. The bottom line is that squats stimulate testosterone production, making further training much more fun. The only drawback is that squats will take you 10 minutes, and the workout should be done in 1 hour.

Training program on the chest

Monday - heavy chest and light legs Two days of rest and then the program is repeated again. Very important perform all chest exercises within the amplitude, that is, without fully extending the elbows so that the load does not go from the pectoral muscles to the triceps and elbows. In general, for a better muscle feeling, you should imagine that your arms end at the elbows and mentally squeeze not the barbell, but the elbows. Try, experiment, the road will be mastered by the walking!