Trainerdan
Thu, Jan-31-02, 05:48
Are you bored with powering through the same old chest workout week after week? Tired of waiting in line for an open bench? Of course you are. The bench press at any gym sees alot of action. And rightfully so. For building pectoral mass, the bench has no equal. But if you’ve hit a sticking point in your workouts, a little variety wouldn’t be such a bad idea.
In fact, stick to any workout for too long, and you’ll see your gains start to diminish over time. It’s only natural. Muscles are inherently lazy, and if you’re adhering to the same routine over an extended period of time, they’ll grow accustomed to the stimulus and won’t grow as fast as they had been.
Lifting heavier weight is one way to get past a plateau; switching up your workouts is another. To that end, use the following chest workouts. They’re unorthodox, sure. But if you mix them in with your normal chest routine, say, once a month, they just might provide the missing impetus needed to take your physique to another level.
“From an appearance point of view, flyes are important if you want to improve your pecs so they look better,” says Dave Harris, C.S.C.S. “Sometimes, with compound exercises [such as bench presses] it’s difficult to isolate a particular muscle group. In order to encourage the shape of specific muscles, isolation exercises are often more effective.”
THE WORKOUTS
There are two options, both designed to enhance the overall development of the entire pectoralis. If appearance is your primary goal, these routines should do the job. But improved looks aren’t their only benefit.
Workout #1
Rest for about a minute between sets. Take two minutes after completing an entire set of multi-angle dumbbell flyes. Note that there is no rest between sets on the standing cable cross overs, only enough time for you to adjust the weight to 25% lower (or so), and start your next set.
Multi-angle dumbbell fly; 3 sets; 6-8 reps
Decline dumbbell flye; 3 sets; 12 reps
Standing cable crossover*; 3 sets; 12 reps
* After your first set, perform two consecutive "drop sets"
Multi-angle dumbbell flye : Lie on an incline bench angled at about 60 degrees and hold a pair of dumbbells at arm’s length above your chest, palms facing inward. With a slight bend in the elbows, slowly lower the weights out in a wide arc to the sides of your chest. Maintaining the same arc, slowly raise the weights back to the starting position. Repeat. After the first set, decrease the angle of the bench to 30 degrees and repeat. After the sedond set, adjust the bench to a flat position and repeat.
Decline Dumbbell Flye : Lie on a decline bench and hold a pair of dumbbells at arm’s length above your chest with an overhand grip, elbows slightly bent. Slowly lower the weights in a wide arc to the sides of your chest. Raise the weights up to the starting position, maintaining the same arc throughout the movement. Pause, squeeze your pecs and repeat.
Standing Cable Crossover : Attach a handle to each side of a high-cable pulley. Grab each handle with an overhand grip and step slightly in front of the imaginary line between the pulleys. Step forward with one foot and bend slightly forward at the waist. With your elbows slightly bent, bring your hands forward and down, maintaining a wide arc by acting as if you are hugging a barrel. Bring your hands together, flex your chest, and return to the starting position. Repeat.
Workout #2
Rest for about a minute between sets.
Swiss-ball dumbbell flye; 3 sets; 8-10 reps
Flat-bench cable flye; 3 sets; 10-12 reps
Low-pulley cable crossover; 3 sets; 12-15 reps
Swiss-Ball Dumbbell Flye : With a dumbbell in each hand, lie back and rest your head, neck and upper shoulders on a Swiss ball. Hold the dumbbells over your chest with your arms slightly bent. Maintaining the slight bend in your elbows, slowly lower the dumbbells to the sides of your chest. Pause, return to the starting position and repeat.
Flat-Bench Cable Flye : Position a flat bench in the middle of the cable-pulley apparatus and attach handles to both sides of the machine. Lie on the bench and grab each handle with an underhand grip.
Keeping a slight bend in your elbows and maintaining a wide arc (as if you’re hugging a barrel), bring the handles above your chest. Pause, squeeze your chest together, and return to the starting position by maintaining the same arc. Repeat.
Low-pulley cable crossover : Attach a handle to each side of the low -cable pulley and grasp them with an underhand grip. Step forward with one foot, in front of the imaginary line between the pulleys. Keeping your elbows slightly bent, bring your hands together in front of your upper chest, maintaining a wide arc on the way up. Pause, flex your chest and return to the starting position. Repeat.
More info
“Even if you’re trying to improve your bench press, flyes are important because they isolate the pecs,” Harris says. “When you bench-press, you’re using your shoulders, triceps and pecs. Somewhere in there is the weak link. The only way to strengthen a weak muscle is by isolating it, and the best way to
isolate your pecs is by doing some sort of flye movement.”
When doing these exercises, it’s important to keep a few things in mind: Concentrate on proper form, focus on the muscle you’re working, and don’t try to lift more weight than you can handle. Whether you’re using cables or dumbbells, the movements are basically the same. Always keep a slight bend in your elbows, as if you’re hugging a barrel. And don’t straighten out your arms at the top of the movement.
With cable movements, don’t cross your hands in front of your chest—simply bring them together and flex your pecs. With dumbbell movements, don’t bring the dumbbells together; to keep continuous tension on the muscle, stop before they touch, then squeeze for a peak contraction. Bringing the weights together can relieve tension from the muscle, which decreases the total amount of time your pecs are working.
In fact, stick to any workout for too long, and you’ll see your gains start to diminish over time. It’s only natural. Muscles are inherently lazy, and if you’re adhering to the same routine over an extended period of time, they’ll grow accustomed to the stimulus and won’t grow as fast as they had been.
Lifting heavier weight is one way to get past a plateau; switching up your workouts is another. To that end, use the following chest workouts. They’re unorthodox, sure. But if you mix them in with your normal chest routine, say, once a month, they just might provide the missing impetus needed to take your physique to another level.
“From an appearance point of view, flyes are important if you want to improve your pecs so they look better,” says Dave Harris, C.S.C.S. “Sometimes, with compound exercises [such as bench presses] it’s difficult to isolate a particular muscle group. In order to encourage the shape of specific muscles, isolation exercises are often more effective.”
THE WORKOUTS
There are two options, both designed to enhance the overall development of the entire pectoralis. If appearance is your primary goal, these routines should do the job. But improved looks aren’t their only benefit.
Workout #1
Rest for about a minute between sets. Take two minutes after completing an entire set of multi-angle dumbbell flyes. Note that there is no rest between sets on the standing cable cross overs, only enough time for you to adjust the weight to 25% lower (or so), and start your next set.
Multi-angle dumbbell fly; 3 sets; 6-8 reps
Decline dumbbell flye; 3 sets; 12 reps
Standing cable crossover*; 3 sets; 12 reps
* After your first set, perform two consecutive "drop sets"
Multi-angle dumbbell flye : Lie on an incline bench angled at about 60 degrees and hold a pair of dumbbells at arm’s length above your chest, palms facing inward. With a slight bend in the elbows, slowly lower the weights out in a wide arc to the sides of your chest. Maintaining the same arc, slowly raise the weights back to the starting position. Repeat. After the first set, decrease the angle of the bench to 30 degrees and repeat. After the sedond set, adjust the bench to a flat position and repeat.
Decline Dumbbell Flye : Lie on a decline bench and hold a pair of dumbbells at arm’s length above your chest with an overhand grip, elbows slightly bent. Slowly lower the weights in a wide arc to the sides of your chest. Raise the weights up to the starting position, maintaining the same arc throughout the movement. Pause, squeeze your pecs and repeat.
Standing Cable Crossover : Attach a handle to each side of a high-cable pulley. Grab each handle with an overhand grip and step slightly in front of the imaginary line between the pulleys. Step forward with one foot and bend slightly forward at the waist. With your elbows slightly bent, bring your hands forward and down, maintaining a wide arc by acting as if you are hugging a barrel. Bring your hands together, flex your chest, and return to the starting position. Repeat.
Workout #2
Rest for about a minute between sets.
Swiss-ball dumbbell flye; 3 sets; 8-10 reps
Flat-bench cable flye; 3 sets; 10-12 reps
Low-pulley cable crossover; 3 sets; 12-15 reps
Swiss-Ball Dumbbell Flye : With a dumbbell in each hand, lie back and rest your head, neck and upper shoulders on a Swiss ball. Hold the dumbbells over your chest with your arms slightly bent. Maintaining the slight bend in your elbows, slowly lower the dumbbells to the sides of your chest. Pause, return to the starting position and repeat.
Flat-Bench Cable Flye : Position a flat bench in the middle of the cable-pulley apparatus and attach handles to both sides of the machine. Lie on the bench and grab each handle with an underhand grip.
Keeping a slight bend in your elbows and maintaining a wide arc (as if you’re hugging a barrel), bring the handles above your chest. Pause, squeeze your chest together, and return to the starting position by maintaining the same arc. Repeat.
Low-pulley cable crossover : Attach a handle to each side of the low -cable pulley and grasp them with an underhand grip. Step forward with one foot, in front of the imaginary line between the pulleys. Keeping your elbows slightly bent, bring your hands together in front of your upper chest, maintaining a wide arc on the way up. Pause, flex your chest and return to the starting position. Repeat.
More info
“Even if you’re trying to improve your bench press, flyes are important because they isolate the pecs,” Harris says. “When you bench-press, you’re using your shoulders, triceps and pecs. Somewhere in there is the weak link. The only way to strengthen a weak muscle is by isolating it, and the best way to
isolate your pecs is by doing some sort of flye movement.”
When doing these exercises, it’s important to keep a few things in mind: Concentrate on proper form, focus on the muscle you’re working, and don’t try to lift more weight than you can handle. Whether you’re using cables or dumbbells, the movements are basically the same. Always keep a slight bend in your elbows, as if you’re hugging a barrel. And don’t straighten out your arms at the top of the movement.
With cable movements, don’t cross your hands in front of your chest—simply bring them together and flex your pecs. With dumbbell movements, don’t bring the dumbbells together; to keep continuous tension on the muscle, stop before they touch, then squeeze for a peak contraction. Bringing the weights together can relieve tension from the muscle, which decreases the total amount of time your pecs are working.