Making Chest Workouts Manageable and Fun

Learn about Making Chest Workouts Manageable and Fun and see if it's the right choice for you or not.

If you want to get started on a program of chest workouts, you're about to learn that there's no quick road to getting ripped, but you can still have a lot of fun on the long haul to your goal.

Maybe you've been hanging around your gym long enough to know that most guys-and gals who are into bodybuilding-love to ask one another how much they're benching. Don't worry if you're not benching much during your chest workouts.  In case you're not already aware of it, it's going to take about two years for you to advance to the level of true bodybuilder.  So while you're on your way, you want to keep it easy and fun.

The first thing you should do is get to know the anatomy of your chest.  The bone that runs down between your pecs is called the sternum.  You have twelve ribs on each side of your chest; they are attached to your spine in the back, and they curve around the sides of your body.  The top seven ribs on each side attach firmly to the sternum.  Another three turn into cartilage as they run toward the sternum.  The bottom two ribs are not attached to the sternum at all; you've probably heard them called the floating ribs.

Your pecs-the pectoralis major muscles-are fastened to the sternum and collar bones.  Then they fan outward to each side of your chest, and they attach to the top ribs all the way down to the sixth or seventh ribs on each side.  These are the muscles you will be mainly working on. The pectoralis minor muscles are smaller, attaching from below the shoulder and running beneath the pecs major.

You're going to begin workout using barbells.  You'll hear a lot of back-and-forth about whether you should use a barbell or a dumbbell.  Some people believe you should use only barbells in the beginning.  The idea is that dumbbells will hurt you if you can't maintain your center of balance.  But most people work both of them into their chest workouts pretty early on.

When you start with your barbell, for your first session just lift it without any weights on it.  That way you'll get used to the feel and heft of the bar, and you can practice proper grip.  Then you can load some weight onto it--gradually.

If you place your hands too far apart on the bar, you're going to use some of your strength pushing outward instead of upward-you don't want to do that!  But if you have your hands too closely together, you'll push inward.  Practice your grip and keep your forearms lifting vertically from the bottom of your reps.  Good chest workouts depend on stability and attention to detail.

Begin your dumbbell routines with exercises involving your triceps, biceps, and lats.  You can develop your flexibility on each side before you move on to an incline press.  Try incorporating some rows or pull-downs with dumbbells before you add dumbbell presses to your chest workouts.

Remember that if you're goal is fitness and general strength, stick with lighter weights and more reps.  For bulk, increase your weights and decrease your reps.  For starters, try three sets of six to eight reps each.  Rest for one or two minutes between sets.  If you find that you're eager to do more than the eight reps, you can add some weight.

Here's an important point that most people forget:  Include some lifts to strengthen your forearms.  If you don't develop them, you won't be able to perform your chest workouts as effectively.

And don't forget to rest up-you should only do a full chest routine every other day, or no more than four times a week!  Your muscles need time to repair, to build up that new tissue that you've been working on.  Take a cardio class on your days when you don't lift, or just give it a arrest-that's the fun part!

Article Tags: Chest Workouts, Each Side

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