Build a Bigger, Stronger Chest
Our 2006 poster series delivers the results you want in
the time you have. Get the ultimate chest with our March
workout
Photographs by: Piotr Sikora, By: Myatt Murphy
The Payoff
A Stronger Upper Body!
The heavy weights you'll use in this workout develop
muscle fibers that produce strength and power. And because
your chest is one of your largest muscle groups, this added
strength improves performance in many upper-body and
total-body lifts.
Extra Muscle!
This routine uses several body-weight moves that train
stabilizing muscles, in addition to your largest muscles, so
you end up working more muscle overall while improving your
sense of balance.
_________________________________________
DOWNLOAD: Get a PDF of the complete workout.
_________________________________________
Fewer Crunches!
The pushups and dumbbell single-arm bench press in this
routine challenge your core stabilization while building
your chest. The result: Your entire midsection works just as
hard as in any ab exercise.
Benchmark of Success
How Do You Measure Up?
The best barometer of chest strength is your maximum
bench press -- the most weight you can lift for a single
repetition. To determine your max, you'll need a spotter.
Grab an empty bar and perform 10 repetitions of the
barbell bench press. (Go to page 4 of this poster for a
description.) Rest for 30 to 90 seconds, then add 20 to 40
pounds and repeat. Continue this process until the weight
feels difficult. Then do only one repetition per set until
you work up to the heaviest weight you can lift once -- your
one-repetition maximum, or one-rep max.
Track Your Progress
Record your one-rep max on a piece of paper. Then follow
the plan on the next few pages of this article and retest
yourself every 4 weeks. Click here to
compare your improvement with that of other Men's Health
readers or to use our one-rep-max
calculator, if you prefer not to complete this test
Your Goal: The Perfect Chest
Your Time: 18 Minutes
This routine attacks the primary cause of puniness. "The
mistake most men make when looking for more chest size and
strength is always sticking to the traditional
eight-to-12-repetition principle," says Jason Ferruggia,
owner of Renegade Strength and Conditioning, in Warren, New
Jersey. Ferruggia's first rule: Diversify your repetition
schemes and emphasize heavier-weight, lower-repetition sets.
This allows you to target your body's fast-twitch muscle
fibers, the ones with the greatest potential for growth.
At times, this workout calls for you to lift only your
body weight while in a suspended position. Think gymnasts,
who build rock-hard bodies without ever picking up a weight.
"Moving your body through space is more taxing to your
central nervous system than regular weight training," says
Ferruggia. This means you'll improve your brain-to-muscle
connection, which will train your body to recruit more
muscle in every exercise.
Do Phase 1 for 4 weeks, working your chest twice a week
with two separate routines (Day 1 and Day 2). (Do the
exercises shown here as the chest portion of your upper- or
total-body routine.) Rest at least 2 days between workouts.
Complete Phase 2 workouts in the next 4 weeks.
Phase 1: Weeks 1-4
Day 1
Dumbbell Single-Arm Bench Press
Lie on your back on a bench with a heavy dumbbell in one hand
along the side of your chest, palm facing in. Hold your opposite
arm straight out to the side for balance.
Push the weight up so your arm is straight above your chest.
Pause, then slowly lower the weight to the starting position.
The plan: Do five to seven repetitions with each
hand. Complete four sets, resting 2 minutes after each set.
Dumbbell Incline Bench Press
Lie faceup on an incline bench and hold a pair of heavy
dumbbells along the outsides of your chest with a neutral grip
(palms facing in). Slowly press the weights straight above your
chest. Pause, then lower them to the starting position.
The plan: Perform six to eight repetitions. Do three
sets and rest 2 minutes after each set.
Day 2
Suspended Pushup
If your gym has Blast Straps (elitefts.com,
$55) or chains, try this pushup variation. Otherwise, do the
weighted pushup below. Loop the straps or chains around the bar
so the handles hang a few inches off the floor.
Now assume the standard pushup position with your hands
grasping the handles, so only your feet touch the floor. Bend at
the elbows to lower your body until your upper arms are parallel
to the floor, then push yourself up.
The plan: Do as many pushups as you can, then rest
for 90 seconds. Do a total of three sets.
Dumbbell Incline Fly
Lie on an incline bench and hold a pair of dumbbells over
your chest with your arms straight, palms facing forward.
Keeping your palms forward, slowly sweep your arms down and out
to your sides in an arc until the weights are level with your
chest.
Pause, then reverse the motion until the weights are once
again above you.
The plan: Perform this exercise as a superset with
the next move. That is, do eight to 12 repetitions of the
dumbbell incline fly, then immediately move to the parallel-bar
dip.
Parallel-Bar Dip
Grab parallel dip bars and lift yourself so your arms are
straight. Keeping your elbows tucked close to your body, slowly
lower yourself by bending your elbows until your upper arms are
parallel to the floor.
Pause, then push yourself up to the starting position.
The plan: Do as many reps as you can, then rest for
3 minutes and repeat the superset one time, performing a total
of two sets of each exercise.
Side-Lying Single-Arm External Rotation
Lie on your left side with your left arm bent and your head
resting on your left hand. Holding a light dumbbell in your
right hand, bend your right arm 90 degrees and tuck your upper
arm against your right side. Let the weight hang in front of
your midsection. Keeping your upper arm stationary, slowly
rotate your forearm until it points toward the ceiling. Then
rotate your forearm back to the starting position.
The plan: Perform 12 to 15 repetitions, then rest
for 1 minute. Do two sets.
Phase 2: Weeks 5-8
Day 1
Barbell Bench Press
Lie on a bench with your feet flat on the floor. Grab the bar
with your hands slightly more than shoulder-width apart, and
hold the weight over your chest. Pull your shoulder blades back
and together, then lower the bar to your chest. (Tuck your
elbows in at 45 degrees; don't let them flare out to the sides.)
Pause, then push the weight back up.
The plan: Do five sets of four repetitions using 80
percent of your one-rep max (1RM). In week 6, do six sets of
three reps with 85 percent of your 1RM. In week 7, do five sets
of two reps with 90 percent of your 1RM. In week 8, repeat the
test described on the front of the poster, then do four sets of
one repetition with approximately 90 percent of your new 1RM.
Day 2
Weighted Pushup
Assume the standard pushup position, with your hands beneath
your shoulders. Ask your workout partner to place a weight plate
on your back, between your shoulder blades. Keeping your body
straight, lower yourself by bending your elbows until your chest
touches the floor. Pause, then push yourself back up.
The plan: Perform this exercise as a superset with
the next move: Do eight to 12 repetitions, then immediately move
on to the cable lying fly.
Cable Lying Fly
Place an exercise bench between the stacks of a cable
crossover station and attach stirrup handles to the low-pulley
cables. Grab a handle with each hand and lie faceup on the bench
with your feet flat on the floor. Hold your arms straight above
your chest, palms facing each other. Keeping your elbows
slightly bent, lower your hands out to your sides in an arc,
then reverse the motion to return to the starting position.
The plan: Do eight to 10 repetitions, rest 150
seconds, then repeat the superset (pushup and cable lying fly)
two times for a total of three sets.
Seated Single-Arm External Rotation
Sit on the floor with your left knee bent and your right leg
flat on the floor. Hold a light dumbbell in your left hand and
rest your left elbow on your left knee. Bend your left arm 90
degrees and allow the weight to hang down over your right leg.
Keeping your elbow in place, slowly rotate your left arm upward.
Pause when your forearm points to the ceiling, then reverse the
motion until the weight is again hanging over your right leg.
The plan: Do 10 to 12 repetitions with each hand,
then rest 60 seconds. Repeat one time, for a total of two sets.
|
