The REAL Reason Your Pecs Won't Grow
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- Опубліковано 15 жов 2024
- If you ever wondered what the real reason your pecs won’t grow is, this is a must watch video. Here I’m going to take you through a series of just a few questions to unpack the exact reason your chest muscles are not responding to your chest workouts the way you want them to. In just minutes you are going to know not only exactly why you aren’t getting good chest gains but, more importantly, what to do to get them started.
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And it starts with the first question. Are you even bench pressing. A lot of times, people with underdeveloped chests don’t even do the most effective exercise for building a big chest - the bench press. This can be for fear of doing the movement, shoulder injury, or even just not wanting to showcase their weakness on the chest exercise in a public gym.
The sooner you learn to bench press properly and safely however, the sooner you will start to kickstart the size of your pecs. The rule of thumb is, if you haven’t incorporated this exercise into your chest workout routine consistently for at least a year and a half, then it is too early to tell if you are truly a chest non-responder. You need to start the exercise again and work to progressively build up your strength on the move.
That said, speaking of strength, what is yours on the bench press? In other words, how much ya bench? If the answer is less than 1.25 times your own bodyweight, then again this is an indicator that you likely haven’t invested enough time and reps into the movement to really tell if you are a pec non responder or not. Do this first. If you have and you still haven’t seen enough chest growth, then proceed to the next step.
The next question I ask is, are you supplementing? No not in terms of the food you are putting into your body but in the other chest exercises that you are including in your chest workouts. The bench press alone is not going to do the trick for most, save for the most genetically gifted or enhanced. You need to do more. The exercises you choose however are not created equal. If your pecs won’t grow then you are going to want to find the chest exercises that help you to engage and activate the chest fully.
Here you’re going to want to include exercises that help the chest to reach a complete contraction - namely those that incorporate adduction of the arm across the midline of the chest. While there is adduction performed during a bench press, pushup and dip there simply isn’t the type of full contraction capable as you can achieve with something like the cable crossover.
Lighten the weights and work on letting the chest do the work on every single rep of this exercise and you will start to build up the mind muscle connection that is necessary for driving not just new gains but the improved activation of the exact muscle you are struggling to build right now.
If the incorporation of this exercise or others that also help reach a better contraction still doesn’t do the trick, then it’s time to look in the mirror. I’m talking about, questioning your genetics. Now before you go and blame mom and dad for your underdeveloped pecs, not so fast. Everyone can have a great looking chest, even if it doesn’t necessarily look as full as Arnold’s or Larry Wheels. The key is optimizing the chest development through carefully selected exercises and techniques.
The length of someone’s clavicles can easily determine the size of their pecs. Quite simply, if someone has a much wider span between their AC joints they are going to have longer clavicles. This gives more opportunity for upper chest fibers to attach and ultimately build - leading to a bigger upper chest and overall chest for that matter. Just because you can’t fight your own anatomy doesn’t mean that you cannot build a big chest though.
That is where the other recommendations really help. My three favorite are to perform pause reps on dumbbell bench press and dips to start. Most underdeveloped pecs are at the expense of dominant delts. If you have access, the cable bench press is a phenomenal way to build a big chest.
Remember, this is not to be done at the expense of the bench press. Instead, compartmentalize the bench press as a strength movement that you are going to continue to do for that purpose.
If you’re looking for a complete workout program that will not only help you build a big chest even if you struggle to build one right now, head to athleanx.com via the link below and use the program selector to find the plan that matches your exact goals right now.
If you’re looking for a video on how to get a better upper chest or lower chest, be sure to click on the links at the end of this video and remember to subscribe to our channel here on youtube via the link below and turn on your notifications so you never miss a new video when it’s published.
Bigger pecs is just part of the equation, you want them to be DEFINED too. Sculpt your chest with this video here => ua-cam.com/video/wMmy2MlH55U/v-deo.html
I hope you can find the time to answer this question :) You're talking about bench press, will dumbbell press on flat bench work too? Because that's what I do, because my right arm is my dominant arm I found myself pressing unevenly without knowing it, so I moved from bench to dumbbell press to independently train my muscles. Almost pressing my own body weight with dumbbell press :)
Are you neutral?
@@zakzwijn8410that’s impressive for dumbbell pressing. Why do you use only flat bench though? At least incorporate some incline dumbbell presses to better target the upper chest
1.) lighten the weights
2.) slow the pace
3.) allow the chest muscle to do the work
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4) Focus & Concentrate
5) Work AGAINST Gravity NOT WITH IT
I've seen so many times people put so much weight on the bar and then not even make a full range of motion because it's too heavy
@@RmX. this is all new to me, and I’m up 30 lbs, but I’m still making tons of mistakes. Since I have no training partner, I have no way of knowing if I do that :(
@@AzraelPercussionNEO 6) Stonks
I’ve been lifting for over 10 years, struggled by far the most with chest, it wasn’t until I started doing heavy weighted dips, as low as the shoulders will comfortably allow you to go, that I got good chest growth
Same here
I just do some normal bodyweight dips after doing a heavy bench press. Works fine.
@Emr4h yeah it seems like my shoulders take over on any kind of press, but when you go deep on heavy dips, your chest has no choice but to grow
I live doing dips , they are definitely the best exercise.
Agree with this
Listen man, I just wanted to say Thank You. I had not touched a weight or walked into a gym in 10 years. I was about to turn 35 in October and told myself, "Damn, now is the time." I went down a bit of a youtube rabbit hole. Luckily I found this channel, among others, and have applied the great knowledge Jeff has provided. Now I am addicted to going. It feels great. No matter what age you are, it is never too late. I've got my nutrition plan on point, and am slowly cutting towards a 6 pack while building muscle. Thanks for all the tools, Jeff! Fairfield County represent, haha.
Yeah, jeff will get you excited to work out alright! So much great info, i tend to watch a clip or two before heading to the gym, just so i can try out his tip's and tricks! Honestly thank my lucky stars i found athlean x
A guy I recommend even more than Jeff is Sean Nalewanyj. Just type in that name and a load of solid, No-BS advice is waiting for you…
*NOTIFICATION SQUAD GIVEAWAY* - Alright guys, I’m giving away a complete 30 Day Workout program to 100 lucky clickers within the first hour this video is published! Remember, this is NOT THE FIRST 100, but those randomly selected within the first hour the video is published. Click the link to see if you’ve won. No strings attached!
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If you don’t win, no worries, you’re not going away empty handed. Just be sure you have your notifications turned on so you can get to my next video quickly and try again. Good luck and thanks for being a loyal subscriber…
I will never win
Hlo good video jeff
😿
Reverse psychology doesn't work either
Lmao I was too caught up in the video to read 😂 I'm still winning with the quality of content 🤙🏾
Jeff strikes again. I've been following him since 2013 and still seeing consistent gains and this video is needed for myself and others who have complained in the past about chest gains. Thanks Jeff!
I did the floor fly and saw results Immediately
I've been following him a while too. I love his stuff!
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full on professional
One of the best ques when benching to activate the chest properly is to imagine that you are pushing your body away from the bar rather than pushing the the bar up.
Great timing Jeff! Tomorrow is international chest day and I will be training mine restarting for the second time Jacked! The results of my first time through have been great: gains in muscle and strength and particularly in my case a very big improvement in hip strength and control. I needed this kind of training with limited equipment after my lumbar stenosis surgery 18 months ago.
Thank you so much for your tips and inspiration.💪
International chest day being on a Monday is so poetic
And that’s one of the problems actually which is training it only once a week
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I was put to quarantine for 1 month and i got this muscle imbalance one pec bigger than other ( left one big) I don't know whether it's because of poot nutrition, no workout or fap 😅 .
Getting a mental breakdown every time i see my chest
Your consistency and quality of content never disappoints! ❤️
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I have massive legs and a super strong back but zero pecs (partially because injury I haven't dealt with yet prevents range of motion, but only very partially) and pointy nipplays (mostly because I was a super cool teenager who thought nipple rings would ... I gotta admit I don't have a response here as a much older adult & I'm not sure why I did this but it makes your nips permanently hard)...
I try volume and weight but I'm getting nowhere fast ... and slow
Complimenting Athlean X is killing your gains!
If nobody's gonna ratio this bot I will.
Ratio.
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I get better at bench press by doing push up, and get better on push up after doing bench press. Now i feel the squeeze of muscles. Never stop developing.
always challenge yourself!
What I’ve been doing and worked for me is I change my exercise up every month. So for a month I’ll do mostly bench press and dumbbell press and then like 2 sets of flys after the pressing movements. Then the next month I’ll warm up my chest with 2 sets on the bench and then do all fly movements like dumbbell flys and cable flys and machine flys. Then after a month of that back to pressing. This REALLY helped me build and shape my pecs fast. Also gotta eat enough protein. Your nutrition needs to be on point and ultimately some people just build their chest slower. I may have a strong chest and bench more than most guys and a naturally big rib cage and torso but what I noticed is that my chest development is slower than the rest of my muscles for some odd reason and it’s always been like that my entire life so I put extra emphasis on my chest workouts and do chest at least 2 times a week. That’s just what works for me personally
The idea is simple. Train every segment of your chest during your workout. Ideally, you'd want to focus on dumbbells at first to develop some mind muscle connection. Start with regular dumbbell press. Then go on to incline dumbbell, then use a pec fly machine with a range if motion that isn't to wide. If you did 4 sets of 10 reps on each exercise, and gradually increase the weight by maybe 5 pounds per set, you're gonna make some gains if you stay consistent
Yo that's literally what I do bro. Screw the barbell first of all, dumbbells are just so much more natural in terms of the movement range. I just do flat dumbbell press, then I use the incline press machine (I use it because it minimizes my use of shoulder for stability, allowing me to solely focus on my upper chest) and some cable flies to train a larger rom. Dips and loads of pushup variations are also very necessary, to train your lower chest and pushups are just dope in general.
I won the giveaway! In my mid-forties, and the content that Jeff and his team produce has been my foundation for the last 3+ years that I have been back in the gym. Thank you!
😊
Wow!!
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Was it the Anabolix program? I've won that one a while ago and I wondered if everybody gets the same one
@@CudaNick Yes. Four weeks of training content, I believe.
You make me put in the work every single time I exercise. Thank you good sir!
nicee, for how long are you already working out?
Thanks for the great videos… you have increased the effectivness of my workouts 10 times. Over forty and still building muscle.
My chest is sore today. I notice that you can really feel the activation of the muscle when it sore. Like the activation of center chess and lower chess muscles. People can use soreness to really understand what muscle groups are training. For me anyway. Thought that might be helpful for someone.
i love that feeling, makes you feel like the hulk even though your weak as a kitten!😂 Bro i never realised chest muscle intertwined to the sternum till my first chest day, next day was watching t.v, i beat my chest over something one time (hand to heart type deal) and nearly caved from the soreness lol never doing THAT again!😂
There is no center chest
Ray he shows the work out in another video how to work the center chest area. Pretty good watch
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@@travismora9046 yes he does, doesn’t mean there is an inner chest specifically, you cannot target the inner chest
0:17 "Do you even lift, bro?"
It wasn't until I started using bands and doing straight arm pulls parallel to the wall that I started getting good growth. Better than bench and flys. Pull Mid, low and high. With a focus on high reps instead of strong bands. 120 to 180 reps per pec.
I wish I had that level of free time. That workout has got to take way too long but I admire your commitment!
I can't seem to picture a straight arm pull that is parallel to the wall. Is this working the back?
@@neophytosdm band attached to the wall at 12 o'clock. Body turned facing 9 or 3 o'clock. Arm straight out holding the band. The band needs to be in tension. Slight bend at the elbow. Thumb pointing to 9 o'clock. Pull. Put your other hand on the working peck. You'll feel it working.
@@AndrewTheTransformer you can reverse it (I do) and get a sweet nasty little back workout.
@@Krptokrayon sounds like a cable/band fly but just the last little bit of adduction for a very small ROM?
Jeff how many videos a day do I need to watch to be ripped? I willing to sit here and put in the work.
Agree with these tips. For me however, has been frequency, and not getting hung up on that one day- International Chest day. Lol. Once I started doing chest 2-3 days per week, thats when I saw real results.
Thats right and that applies to every other muscle as well. Bro splits are trash man..
@@moeabdelhameed progressive overload is everything. Doesn’t matter what your workout split is. Consistency and making progress strength wise is key.
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@@officialthomasjames
Agree that progressive overload is big. But some of us doing a few body parts once a week, even with p-o, is not enough. Combine that in equal parts with frequency of days to see real gains. Not everyone. Maybe you can do a few body parts once a week.
Some form of pressing movement straight after cable/band crossovers is my contribution to this conversation
Been religiously doing dumbbell bench press the past months and I think my greatest struggle so far with chest workouts is that my arms give out first before feeling any significant pumps to my chest.
maybe you train your arm first, that's why its exhausted when your doing your chest.
Do seated cable flies with elbows locked when starting that will put more on chest activation
Love the part about slowing down and developing the mind-muscle connection.
yes this is so important
I literally searched for this on your channel an hour ago. Timing bro
I do pause reps on bench a lot. Lighter weight and pause halfway through every eccentric and concentric. Halfway down, pause, up, halfway down, pause, down, pause, halfway up, pause, down, pause, halfway up, pause, up. One complete eccentric and concentric is two reps with a ton of time under tension. Great burnout after heavy bench.
Love the channel Jeff. I have been watching for several years and default to the information you put out for all of my training. If possible I would like to request a video on correcting rib flare, it's an issue I've been struggling with for years that I can't seem to fix. I feel like it is keeping me from having the aesthetic look I'm aiming for. I would really appreciate it.
He made a video on pectus excavatum, same exercises will help that out - also check Riley Byrne if you haven't already bro
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Hi Jeff
Names Tony from the UK and I'm 49 years old going 50 in July.
Watching your videos for the past month or so, on You Tube has inspired me to start training again. So far, so good. Wish your You Tube videos were around back in the early 90's, that way I would have trained properly with minimal or no injuries at all.
I'll try not to borr you too much, but following an endoscopy in October 2021, I have been told that I have a small Hiatal Hernia. I think I may have agrevated it a bit either by weight training or the change to eating more protein foods than my body has in a long time. I could be talking a load of rubbish, what do I know.
My goal is to bulk up a bit and build muscle again. It's definately starting to work with the help of your videos. Thing is now although this may sound stupid, I googled abdominal pain due to a Hiatal Hernia and a few sites state not to lift weights. Some say not heavy weights. Can I still build muscle using lighter weights. I dont want to give up now after noticing the changes in my body structure following your channel.
Is there any advise you can give me. Have you come across this before.
I personally think your way of training is the best for me. Probably the only way.
Thanks
Tony Christophis
Jeff just read my mind this morning and posted this video, thank you Jeff 💯
Bench press doesn’t seem to do much for my chest; because I noticed my chest doesn’t do a whole lot of work. It’s all arms. Now these other exercise you’re talking about seem to help
I definitely have a hard time with chest activation recently. Too much delt/shoulder overtaking
yes, I know what you talking about!
Hi Jeff! Thanks for the amazing content! It would be great if you could bring on David Goggins for a workout session!
yo what a collab! :)
I struggle in the gym because of information overload. One guy says do A the other says do B. Gives me anxiety
First off, know you’re not alone feeling that way. I was in the exact same boat. Here’s my best advice to you: learn about the basic function of each muscle and lift in ways that feel good to you. Not every exercise is gonna produce the same results but knowing how each muscle works is going to let you choose smart exercises while not injuring yourself. So the chest for example is meant to get the arms out and away from the body. Therefore, pushing movements are going to work my chest. Then test what makes your chest burn then stick to it. Don’t deviate from that lift for a little longer than a month and you’ll see results I promise. Thats what I did and I am now in the best shape of my life. Hope this helps
for your chest try to focus on biceps, focus on pushing them in like u want ur biceps to touch each other while u keep ur scapulas locked, ive been training casually for 10 years, once i found this advice i started feeling my chest working for real for the first time, i have bad chest genetics, but with this tip i can feel my chest working, ive been restarting training since 5 months now noticed a slight better grow in my chest then in last 10 years, try it
Just be consistent. Work each body part good at least once a week. Slow down the pace definitely and work on form. Remember time under tension is important. Holding for 2 seconds is good. And full range all the way down and all way up. Squeezing at the top of motion is good. But it takes time, few years to build up everything. So after a few months go by you'll see results and where you see your lacking you focus on that. For example, I needed to build up my lower chest I did. Then I realized I wanted to work on line between my chest so I did. It never ends but if you keep going and actual do the work when at gym. Everything will turn for the best
I’m a small frame Asian dude who’s been lifting for close to 20 yrs and I’ve always struggled w chest, due to thin torso & inverted chest. What helped was when I stopped going to the gym 2 yrs ago when they all shut down & I switched to elastic cables & calisthenics. Specifically the one arm push up developed my chest more in the last 1.5 yrs than the previous 15 yrs of lift.
If you've got an inverted chest, there is a surgical option to help. Not to mention that your inverted chest may also be causing harm to your heart. Have you ever been diagnosed with pectus excavatum? If so, your pec problem may be due to no fault of your own.
@@The_Kirk_Lazarus thanks for the suggestion. it’s a mild case, not enough to justify surgery. If you see some small frame Asian women around, you may notice many of them have a very thin torso from back to front, where the distance between the sternum and the spine is close together, with a very flat rib cage. Ok if you have tits, terrible to build out a full chest. Not making excuses though. Just keep building.
How did you train to be able to do the one arm push up? I’ve been trying for a while but I can’t do it. Yet im able to do other push up variations easily
Same. There are stretching and deep breathing exercises that help with that, especially if it's a mild form.
@@olivier7210 I followed this video for 1-arm pushup tutorial. For me it took a bit over 2 months
This is the second time I watched this video I gotta say I learn more every time I watch it Your a fantastic teacher Thank you
haha yes there is so much info in here
Jeff I've been following you for 10 years and I distinctly remember you saying that since the bench press doesn't incorporate horizontal adduction at the midline of the chest, it's not optimally activating the chest fibers because those fibers run horizontally 🤨
Ya if he said that he also said bench press is still king, but you need a fly or crossover to get a complete adduction to "supplement" your chest training.
@@1ChristopherCampbell I suggest you scroll through his previous videos. Jeff specifically said unless you train a muscle via the direction of its fibers then the exercise isn't optimal. By this logic, bench press will not be "king" because it does not carry chest activation through its entirety. If you plan to refute this, take it up with him. I'm simply regurgitating what HE said. Do you at the end of the day bro. To each his own.
I'm not sure where you are coming from, the bench press has always been the foundation for chest development. Your pecs have more than just horizontal midline fibers, so why are you cherrypicking something out of context to support your argument against the bench press. If you want to talk about muscle fibers take another look at a detailed picture of the chest fibers.
@@yamahateam5d in every video where he calls it king, it is because you can overload it the most of all chest exercises. That was not so hard to conclude right?
He mentioned that in the video on using cables to strengthen the ligaments in the center and those attaching muscle fibers that need a lot of abduction.
He was right
So I need to ask. 20 something me used to lift VERY heavy weight (heavy as I could for 6 sets of 12). But now in my 40’s I’m doing lighter weights (4 sets of 25). Not sure which is best, still learning how my body will respond at this age . . . at 32 I was in the best shape of my life. But then kids and career got in the way, so I’m back in the gym after 10 years off.
Thank you Jeff for these daily tips, I am a personal trainer and thanks to you I learn every day and it helps me in my job to coach my current clients 🙏
More like weekly lmao
Wenn du Personal Trainer bist, brauchst du keine Videos zum bessern Verstehen wie was funktioniert
Bro if youre a personal trainer and you dont already know all these common sense tips that jeff hands out then good luck 😂
Imagine paying someone to teach you what they learned for free from youtube lol
Just in time. I'm going to put this into effect today. Jeff has never steered me wrong!! Ty, for all the useful info :)
did it work?
My left pec gets good activation but my right pec does not.
My right LAT takes over and gets all the tightness in it in Chest workout.
Can you please help me solve this?
Hi jeff, thank you so so much for the greatest content on the internet, i learned a loooot from you, and my body and my mindset about training has changed alot since i know you, as well as my confident and motivation and consistency.... I also have a suggestion! Your videos are kindda more useful for men as you have thousand of videos about chest arms shoulders that men are looking for growing and shaping, but women focus more on their lower body. Can you pls make more videos that cover women's need. Also talk about women's body, their capacity and what they need to develop a stronger body.
There's an athlean-x channel for women
Thank you so much but I've already substituted it, it's great, but I'd like to see videos from him, also most of their videos are home-baised and kinda simple i need more advanced contents like he does here
@@zahrasazesh6287 I agree. I don't like the women's one, which is why I'm here too =)
Wow has Jeff cut back on his preworkout sup? I could actually watch this without feeling like I was being yelled at. Great advice. Thanks
You forgot to mention the most important thing, which is getting lean enough to get a more defined chest
Whatever muscle i have today is just because of your videos,which made me learn the right exercise
what is your favorite exercise?
Hi Jeff. Thanks for all your material and sharing your wisdom with us. I ve followed your advices for a while now and I'm very happy with the results and better posture and well being. Is there any extra advice you can give on fixing rounded shoulders and posterior chain imbalances on hyperlax individuals? Thanks 🙏💪!
darn good video!!! I see so many guys just trying to push weight on the bench and complain about not being able to grow pec muscles.. you explain it here perfectly... just stop ego lifting and focus on technique/form!
A small surplus on calories helped grow my chest. I finally decided and stopped maintaining and did a little surplus for a bit then went back on a cut a few months later. My chest blew up after the reverse diet to my maintenance.
The cut lasted 4 weeks and the reverse diet took about 2 weeks.
Diet plays a big role on muscle gain as we can't always stay shredded and grow muscles.
Thank you for, making myself more confident about myself, and dw your chest looks great ! Your physique is by far very lean and clean looking ! Keep up the work man 💪💪
his physique is awesome
I bench press, with dumbells and use bands at home. But my chest is flabby and sagging because
1. I inherited my grandfathers manboobs (not true man boobs because I still have them when I’m
lean
2. I don’t pay much attention to my diet other than, avoiding too much sugar and not drinking more than once a week.
So, should incorporating a bar into the work out help develop my chest and help the manboob struggle?
Hey Jeff, would you do a video about growing the lateral head of the triceps? Also a video on your opinion on the 3 body types? Thanks Coach Jeff.
I hate to add this on Jeff’s post but…. This is Amazing!! Especially if you have cables or bands. Blasts my triceps all around. Dr. Gains actually responds to comments as well. Between him and Jeff I get all my techniques and lifts.
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This one too
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@@Lpj4 I was literally about to write the exact same thing!
Dr. Kamalu has some great exercises and especially for the tricpes
@@beisser03 😂. Yes!! He has some excellent information and workouts!! I actually found him on here and then then Jeff. So I use both of their techniques and advice. Glad to see someone else using his stuff too!
JM presses, and close grip bench with chains will build them nicely, also pin press
I have a question regarding bench press. My right shoulder becomes aggravated when I do barbell bench press. When I do dumbbell I have no pain. Normally I rep 50-70 pounds for 8-12 reps on dumbbell. Is doing dumbbell bench press an okay substitute?
Jeff still the best with the best advice.
his advice is incredible!
Is dumbbell bench press as good as regular bench? I’ve been using dumbbells as substitute because bench press bothers my shoulders and it just feels safer. I feel a good mind-muscle connection with both though.
Hi Jeff, Ive been dealing with sternum pain which I think is costochondritis for more than 2 years now. Have visited more than 6 doctors and PT's but still couldn't fix the problem. Could you please do a video or just comment about how to fix this? Thanks a lot!
Same, I've mostly healed but dips make it flare back up. Jeff pls
@@LilDumpOnYourHead you gotta warm up properly on every chest workout you do plus perfect form always! and you have to follow a stretching routine that you do every day this will most likely help. I mean It helped me I often had sternum pain too you have to crack your sternum with stretching I know that sounds painful but it’s so relieving when you do it trust me ;)
You might find this video helpful: ua-cam.com/video/uvJbQFDeyOk/v-deo.html
Instead of the backpod he's promoting you can just as well use a lacrosse ball or something similar, as long as it's not squishy. If you want the main point of the video, massage your upper back with a hard ball along the spine on both sides because the source of your problem could be a stiff upper back that forces your rib joints in the front to move excessively
I dealt with this issue in my client by asking them to exaggerate the in breath, puff up the chest and perform the rep on brace. Don't do reps on out breath. Breath between reps if you have to. :)
Have you seen a DO that is skilled in OMT?
Only doing dumbell chest presses instead of barbell can’t hurt right? I always preffered the former and I don’t even know my 1RM in barbell chest press
Jeff always with the helpful tips 👍🏼 Thank you as always
love it!
Good day.
Is it possible to perform exercises with dumbbells if you suffer from hemorrhoids?
I feel that the main thing is to know how the muscle fibers are going and to be able to stimulate them and see more gains and even more with the correct exercises, right Jeff
Yup. The best thing I've learned is to look at the mirror to see my form, and to start out a new movement with very light weights to play around and see where I get the most desired muscle activation. Visualizing the muscle fibers help, but sometimes it can be misleading. Just stick to feeling whether or not your desired muscles are doing the work, and if not then correct your form.
What if we don't have access to a gym? Recommendations??
Jeff turns both left and right at the same time when driving to prevent muscle imbalance.
Lol
Been a viewer and subscriber since my senior year of high school man! Always loved your videos and content! Was wondering if I could get some on one advice and pointers sometime? Even if it's just a message
You’ll be lucky! There are plenty of other strength and fitness UA-camrs out there who do regular Q&A sessions.
hey jeff, i really love all your videos and find them really helpful, I've been suffering with posterior pelvic tilt for a while now, request you to make a video on how to fix it
hope your pelvic gets better!
I’ve have roughly 5 of your workout programs & I’m currently on the All American Muscle. I cannot remember what a touch up set is & crazy enough, I’m unable to find anywhere on the internet what a touch up set is & it’s not explained thoroughly in the program. Thanks!
I'm old, and I'm short, so yeah - chest has always been a problem area for me. My favourite had been an old suggestion from Jeff - do bench until failure and then hop off and crank out a few pushups until you collapse in the floor. I did that yesterday, and now I'm feeling it in my boobs! Love it!
Same here Tony. I'm getting back into working out after a 20 year layoff lol. I'm 50 and trying like hell to get rid of my man boobs. Any suggestions? Also I got lucky and scored 2 bottles of Test!!
@@theadjuster151 Ha! I totally understand you! I was an athlete in my youth, but at 49 and approaching the Big Half Century, I decided to hit the gym again. Lost a couple of inches around my waist, but put on twenty pounds muscle - mostly arms, shoulders and legs. Even have a sort of six pack again. That was six years ago.
But that damn chest! Still working on that.
Still, it's amazing if you had muscle and were fit, how quickly it seems to come back. Just keep at it. I did find fewer reps, but taking each rep really slow helps reduce strain on your joints. And sadly, I find I need two rest days, not just one anymore.
Best of luck to you man! I know you can do it!
Do I have to do barbell bench? I have only been doing dumbells because barbell hurts my shoulder
Hey Jeff I know you say the bench press is the foundational exercise to build the chest. I often workout solo so I tend to use mostly dumbbells instead of a barbell. I realize I can't overload with dumbbells like with a barbell but can I still realize the same results if I increase reps or set done? Thanks
I think dumbels are better than barbells for pec growth tbh
And a good gym will have heavy ones
Yeah I agree. I always used dumbbells and got huge gains from it.
You can definitely overload with dumbbells. I would say it’s even easier to overload with them. I guess the hard part is getting into position so you have to roll back with them but you definitely get a better stretch with dumbbells
What i discovered is that dumbbell bench press has the most effect on PECS (for me) if i do it with two hands holding one heavy dumbbell or two dumbbells (neutral grip) and squeezing them together while bench pressing.
Jeff: "How is your strength at the excersise, are you at least at 1.25 of your body weight?"
Me lifting the same 50 kg for the last year while being 75kg body weight: 😅
Bro how
Is he talking about a one rep max?
@@zack.123. Probably
As someone who has a naturally thin frame and build, I've accepted that I'll never look like a body builder. However, I've also come to learn you should compare your progress to yourself not necessarily others. Be proud of your own achievements!
That was probably the most fluid, non stuttering, smoothly worded video I've seen him do.
Thanks for pointing out what I was doing wrong. I'm not a bench press person, but adding that in seems very useful now. Thanks, as always. Big help.
Jesus I feel like every time im thinking about my chest workouts, Jeff uploads a video answering my questions
Friggin psychic
5:12 this
I have Pectus excavatum, terrible chest genetics. It basically means my muscle stops 2” from center on both sides. Still worked up to a 250LB 1 rep max on bench, and sets of 7-10 on incline bench of 185.
Just train to get as strong and best looking as you can relative to yourself, don’t worry about how other people look.
Jeff, awesome video as always. I'm struggling to increase the weight of my bench press. I weigh around 75kg but have been stuck at bench pressing pressing 60-65kg max for quite a while now, which may explain why chest doesn't get any bigger. I've tried switching to dumbbell presses and can only do 30kg dumbbells there too. What can I do to get up to the 1.25xbody weight figure that you mentioned?
Honestly man, most likely you are not eating enough to gain muscle and get stronger. I'm sure if you get in more calories and keep training hard its gonna go up very soon
1.25 is crazy for the average person. When I watched the video I thought it was some kind of mistake! There is also no mention if this is a one rep max or a set he's talking about.
I'm at 70kgs and the most I can push is 70 with 4 reps - there is no way I'll be able to push 90kgs unless I increase my weight.
I’d say if your max is 60, go for 45-50 for reps. And slowly add a rep to each set and once you get to 12 reps for 3 sets with the same amount of rest each time, then add 5kg and repeat the process till you get 12,12,12. At the end of October 2021 i could bench 60 for 12.10.10 and 80 for 2 reps, now I can hit 75 for 9,9,8 and at least 4 reps with 80kg. (At 75kg body weight)
Zack123 depends on What You mean by average, 1.25 is not crazy at all if you’ve been Going to the gym for one or a couple of years.
Might be obvious to all but total newbies, but just in case anyone reading this might be unsure: be sure to count the weight of the bar as part of the total you can lift. And Zack alluded to this, but I assume Jeff must have been referring to a single-rep max?
I've been following AthleanX for about 3 years now. I'm 59 years old and I'm currently working through ElastX after a great run through Beaxst (and a bunch of others!) When he says he is science-based, he is definitely not lying. It took me 40 years and a bunch of fitness oriented education to finally find Jeff, but I'm now here to stay.
I do dumbbell press instead of bench, is that okay?
Its even better more chest activation
@@geert1734 that’s what I have always thought and the reason why Ive always stuck with it
First notification squad
The real reason is that you are a natty
Good information. Right now I'm limited to push ups, and varied pushups.
Bench is over rated
I've ve been doing bench since the beginning of my training journey and it led to an overdeveloped chest, definitely S Tier exercise 🎉 Do what you feel and works the best for you!
-cant bench a hunnid
Its not.
It’s not especially reverse grip
How dare you
One thing that seemed to help me was to train it less often,but with more volume
I'm just doing Bench press, very slowly progressively overloading with pathetic weights but, I know I'm doing it with perfect form, I eat my protein and caloric surplus. My chest gets bigger every day and it's the easiest muscle for me to grow for whatever reason. 🙃
How many times a week shall we do chest day? Same problems here, my shoulders/biceps/triceps are bigger than my chest 😐
My personal favorites as a small framed short ass guy is the inclined bench, dumbbell press and pec fly but you have to know how to work to failure to grow and you have to train all of your supporting muscles to supportive the extra weight when your chest can handled it
Jeff, you said on a prior video not to do flat bench presses to avoid shoulder damage. You pointed to an old injury you had from doing them. Did I understand wrong?
I don't have a bench but it seems to be the same range of motion as a proper push up. Wouldn't a push up qualify as "benching"?
I have been benching on and off for 25+ years…..and what I discovered about 4 months ago totally transformed my pecs. What did I do? Simply bringing my grip in about 2 inches. For me,,,it changed EVERYTHING. Pumps immediately increased,,,and within weeks, I swear, my pecs thickened significantly! Give it a shot💪
Same here! Was getting some shoulder issues too, brought my grip in a little and did less weight but felt more in my chest and triceps!
I always felt like when I brought my grip in that it involved my triceps way too much. I would go wide and then it would bring my delts into the game however, it stretched the middle layer of my pecs and forced that area to work harder. Its great you guys got results that way... but if you want to get wider and broader, add a couple sets of wide grip bench press. Trust me, it will make you look bigger. Front delts and outer pecs with the wide grip. Triceps and inner pecs with the narrow grip. Mix it up. I bet you thank me after a few weeks
Your consistency and content quality are always unique
Thanks for your videos Jeff, you're helping me a lot, i'm from Argentina
Hey I’m curious if there’s a plan for you guys to set up some workout plans with Tonal, I don’t have space for a full gym so the Tonal was a great option for me. I only ask because I’ve had back pain for a long time, bulging disc, sciatica, and anterior pelvic tilt, I’ve watched only a handful of your videos for those issues and honestly just after a day I feel so much better in the lower back so I’m interested in you and your programs because well frankly the shit works and the results can’t be denied.
Can I use a chest press machine instead of a bench press?
Yes, its actually a lot better. Its safer and easier to take to failure. It also has a higher range of motion
I only half way follow this dudes advice and it has changed me insanely
Is standard technique perhaps least efficient. Eg 2 second reps. What if we held the rep at the point of peak contraction/intensity for much longer, less reps per set but maybe more tears in the muscle fibers, therfore more potential repairs?
"Do you even bench bro?" has been validated. Thank you Jeff!!
I use 3 ratchet straps on the door at the top, middle and bottom. Slide d-rings or o-rings on the straps and buy d handle tube bands with cabeneers on the other end. Works the same as pulley cables and much cheaper. You can find them up to a 100 lbs and double, triple them up, the skys the limit l like the go-fits tubes
If my chest hurts for a couple of days after every work out (like tired muscle hurt) is that good. I only do 6 bench sets of about 6 heavy with the last one to absolute failure, incline dumbbells for 6 sets of 8 reps as heavy as possible, 6 sets of 8 ultra slow bench flys with light dumbells. every workout my chest feel likes its been abused and I am hoping this will prove with results. I'm a big guy and after 16 months I can see muscle under my huge amount of fat. Ive lost 35lbs and I am now cycling to try to preserve my upper body for heavy weight sessions
I dont know what I would do without you , X!
Does a dumbbell press count? Or has to be barbell bench press
I mostly work out with pure bodyweight, but I do use resistance bands and dumbbells too. Are pushups a, albeit a slower, replacement exercise for bench presses?
Does it matter if you dont care about being strong and just do light weight high reps?
Since I'm not part of a gym, pushups are the only option I have for chest exercise. I'm not sure what else to do to build chest without a bench.
A few years ago I broke my clavicle and dislocated my left shoulder in a car accident. Ever since, I have difficulty with building my chest. Regardless of what I try I feel like my shoulders are being over engaged. Any tips on what I can do to mitigate this so I can focus my efforts on the chest without over use of my shoulder?