Chest Exercises: Which Ones Build the Most Mass?

by Steel Care
fit buff man holding dumbbells showing chest muscle

When it comes to building mass in any muscle group including the chest, alternately were looking for the least amount of time invested to get the most results.  Efficiency is usually the number one thing people looking for stars are working to are concerned, as many of us don’t have a lot of free time.

While getting the most bang out of your buck is certainly a concern you should have, going too hard too fast can lead to injury which can halt your progress, and will inevitably prolong your efforts in reaching your goal.

This means that not only should you be worried about throwing up big waves during your workouts, but you should be concerned about warming up before hand and afterwards as well.  Doing so can not only prevent you from injuring yourself during exercise, but loosening up your muscles can increase your range of motion and help improve your gains overall in the long run.

With all that being said, putting on a significant amount of muscle in a reasonable amount of time all comes down to your workouts, and the knowledge behind what types of exercises you should be doing to reach your goals.  To get a bigger chest you’re going to have to include exercises that involve transverse flexion, transverse adduction, and of course extension.  Here are some of the best exercises to help build up your chest.

  1. Barbell Flat Bench Press

fit man doing bench press with barbellThis is the exercise the first comes to mind when the majority of us think of the chest and strength training.  It should be because this exercise is going to be the one where you can move the most amount of weight, making it an essential chest exercise as far as mass building is concerned.

Another benefit to using the barbell here is that it allows for more control instability throughout the exercise, further enabling the user to lift more weight than they could from doing the exercise with free weights.

This exercise is one which is best saves for the beginning of your workouts, as it is going to require a tremendous amount of energy.  Heavy sat and low wraps are best save tours the beginning of your workouts when you’re feeling for ash so make sure to start your chest workout out with the flat barbell bench press.

  1. Low Incline Dumbbell Press

Switching up the angle here allows you to isolate the lower pectoral here as opposed to the flat bench which requires the recruitment of the deltoids. Aim for a closer grip here as well which is going to further target the pectorals without incorporating too much help from other muscle groups.

Doing this exercise with dumbbells instead of a straight bar provide you with the benefit of isolating each pectoral muscle.  This will help you to avoid problems with asymmetry, and having one side of your chest and being stronger than the other.

Working with dumbbells over straight bar also provides the additional benefit in that you are helping to develop your stabilizing muscles, as using dumbbells over the straight bar means that you’ll have less control over the weight.

Another benefit here that tumbles have over shape bar is that it allows you more freedom of movement with the weights, allowing you to hit the muscles at different angles, developing them in ways you wouldn’t be through using barbells exclusively.

fit man doing dumbbell press on inclined bench in gym

  1. Modified Dips

The dip machine is one of the most neglected ones you can find that your gym, as many people are under the false impression that dips are only good for developing the triceps.  The reality is that dips can be one of the most effective exercises you can use to develop your chest, with a slight modification to the exercise.

Instead of doing dips like you normally would wear your body is perpendicular to the floor, when you’re targeting your chest you want your body to be closer to being parallel with the floor.  This means that you should be leaning forward to where your legs are slightly in the air when you’re doing dips to target your chest.

If you’re new to this exercise, this is one that you should definitely do in the beginning of your routine, as if you save it towards the end you may not be able to complete it.  If you’re a more advanced weightlifter you can save this exercise towards the middle or end of your routine to get a nice burn at the end of your workout.

  1. Seated Machine Press

You may be surprised to see a machine listed here under one of the most effective mass building exercises for your chest are concerned.  While this machine definitely isn’t going to be one you should primarily use as far as building masses concern, it is definitely one that can be used in a supplemental manner.

Machines are best used at the end of our workouts when we’re starting to feel fatigued and are winding down.  One major advantage that machines have over free weights is that’s the individual has much more control over the eccentric and concentric movements of the exercise.  Another reason why these machines are great to save towards the end of your workout is because you can easily do drop sat on them by quickly removing a plate or two.

This makes these machines excellent tools to use at the end of our workouts if you’re looking to work till exhaustion with  very low risk of injury. Give an extra pump to your pecs at the end of your routine by taking advantage of the seated machine press and other chest building machines.

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