Although it is not easy to build a big and well-sculpted upper torso, most men desire a well-defined chest and the good news is that there are several things that can be done to help you obtain a body and chest that you can be proud of. Most men don't have a defined upper body and desire one that is firm and well sculpted just as their female counterparts do.
To build muscles, it is more effective to focus your workout on working the muscles instead of the up or down movement of the weight. For a more directed concentration, knowing something about the muscles in the chest that need to be worked will help. Understanding what muscles are in your chest and how they work to shape the overall look and fitness of your chest will help in building them.
In the chest area there are two main muscle groups, the pectoralis major and the pectoralis minor. The pectoralis major is the group of muscles on top, the ones that are mostly visible and the pectoralis minor lie towards the top of chest near the shoulder beneath the pectoralis major muscles. Many will think that you should focus your attention on just the pectoralis major muscles but if you develop the pectoralis minor muscles you stand to push the major ones forward making them look bigger.
The chest muscles enable you to cross your arms and to an extent your shoulders, too, in front of the body. Like all muscles, they contain fibers. To exercise them effectively, you need to target them from different directions, because the fibers do not grow in the same direction.
To add build and definition to the upper torso there are two types of exercises that target these muscles. These are known as presses and flys. Although presses involve more than one muscle group, namely the shoulders and triceps and is therefore called a compound movement, the flys are more effective for isolating the chest and adding bulk. Exercises such as presses that involve weights help you to maximize not only your energy but your time as well. Flys, on the other hand, do involve more than one joint movement but are not call a compound exercise. When doing presses you move the weight away from the body by straightening the arms. Flys require you to begin with your arms stretched out to the side so that the body forms a "T" then the arms come together in the front of the body.
The press exercises that you are going to be doing most of are flat bench presses which are considered to be the best and most effective way to build chest muscles. If you change the position of your hands on the bar you can affect different parts of your chest. Wide spread of the hands affects the outer chest while a more narrow spread of the hands affects the inner part of the chest. An incline press helps to target the upper chest while a decline press targets the lower chest. If you have no spotter and are at the gym, make use of the various press machines to help keep you safe.
In order to target the chest using the fly exercises you will need to alternate between using the dumbbells and the cables, both of which effectively target the chest muscles. To exercise the whole chest you will use a flat bench. However, when focusing on the upper chest with fly exercises you need to do them on an incline. For the lower part of the chest, the exercise must be done on the decline. It is advisable that you begin by doing 3 sets of 10-15 reps in each set.
You will have to decide the number of sets/reps/weight that is best for you to build chest muscles. Generally try to do 3 sets with 10-15 reps on each exercise. Try to pyramid them in such a way that you use the early set to warm you up for the heavy set that is your middle one and then follow that heavy set with a cool down set. Increase the amount that you lift gradually. Each repetition will be more effective if you do each motion slowly. You may find out by doing each motion slower you will be able to use less weight but don't be discouraged, you will be getting the best workout possible. All of this will go a long way in your efforts to build large chest muscles.
To build muscles, it is more effective to focus your workout on working the muscles instead of the up or down movement of the weight. For a more directed concentration, knowing something about the muscles in the chest that need to be worked will help. Understanding what muscles are in your chest and how they work to shape the overall look and fitness of your chest will help in building them.
In the chest area there are two main muscle groups, the pectoralis major and the pectoralis minor. The pectoralis major is the group of muscles on top, the ones that are mostly visible and the pectoralis minor lie towards the top of chest near the shoulder beneath the pectoralis major muscles. Many will think that you should focus your attention on just the pectoralis major muscles but if you develop the pectoralis minor muscles you stand to push the major ones forward making them look bigger.
The chest muscles enable you to cross your arms and to an extent your shoulders, too, in front of the body. Like all muscles, they contain fibers. To exercise them effectively, you need to target them from different directions, because the fibers do not grow in the same direction.
To add build and definition to the upper torso there are two types of exercises that target these muscles. These are known as presses and flys. Although presses involve more than one muscle group, namely the shoulders and triceps and is therefore called a compound movement, the flys are more effective for isolating the chest and adding bulk. Exercises such as presses that involve weights help you to maximize not only your energy but your time as well. Flys, on the other hand, do involve more than one joint movement but are not call a compound exercise. When doing presses you move the weight away from the body by straightening the arms. Flys require you to begin with your arms stretched out to the side so that the body forms a "T" then the arms come together in the front of the body.
The press exercises that you are going to be doing most of are flat bench presses which are considered to be the best and most effective way to build chest muscles. If you change the position of your hands on the bar you can affect different parts of your chest. Wide spread of the hands affects the outer chest while a more narrow spread of the hands affects the inner part of the chest. An incline press helps to target the upper chest while a decline press targets the lower chest. If you have no spotter and are at the gym, make use of the various press machines to help keep you safe.
In order to target the chest using the fly exercises you will need to alternate between using the dumbbells and the cables, both of which effectively target the chest muscles. To exercise the whole chest you will use a flat bench. However, when focusing on the upper chest with fly exercises you need to do them on an incline. For the lower part of the chest, the exercise must be done on the decline. It is advisable that you begin by doing 3 sets of 10-15 reps in each set.
You will have to decide the number of sets/reps/weight that is best for you to build chest muscles. Generally try to do 3 sets with 10-15 reps on each exercise. Try to pyramid them in such a way that you use the early set to warm you up for the heavy set that is your middle one and then follow that heavy set with a cool down set. Increase the amount that you lift gradually. Each repetition will be more effective if you do each motion slowly. You may find out by doing each motion slower you will be able to use less weight but don't be discouraged, you will be getting the best workout possible. All of this will go a long way in your efforts to build large chest muscles.
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To get more excellent information about ways to build your pectoral muscles, go to grow muscle without lifting weights : upper torso and for building muscles in general, to the main building muscle site at growmymuscles.com
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