How to pump up the top of the chest? What equipment is needed to train the pectoral muscles? How to pump up breasts at home? These questions are quite popular among people who have only recently begun to engage in fitness and bodybuilding. And this is not surprising: training the pectoral muscles (especially their upper part) is a very painstaking and laborious process that requires a lot of patience and strength. This publication describes in detail how to pump the upper chest and other sections of this muscle group at home or in a gym.
Anatomy
Before you learn about how to pump the upper chest, you need to understand the anatomy of this muscle group. Anatomically, the muscles of the chest are divided into the following subgroups:
- upper (clavicular);
- average;
- lower (abdominal).
Many regulars at fitness centers and gyms often ignore clavicular chest exercises, focusing on the sterno-rib and abdominal sections, which respond better to the load and allow you to perform presses with heavier weights. But any professional athlete will tell you that for the harmonious development of the chest, it is necessary to combine exercises for all three parts of this muscle group.
In addition, it is worthwhile to understand that the upper region of the pectoral muscles is the smallest, so it is more difficult to work out than the lower and middle ones. It receives an indirect load during the performance of many classical exercises (for example, when pressing the barbell or dumbbells while lying down), but this load is often not enough for a full study. As a result, in almost all cases we can see a disproportion: the middle and the bottom are quite voluminous and massive, and the top against their background looks underdeveloped.
Features of the upper chest workout
Each novice athlete should understand that the upper chest only works when the body is inclined more than 30 degrees and less than 60 degrees. For these purposes, it is best to use a special bench on which you can adjust the desired position. If the angle of inclination is less than 30 degrees, then the middle part of the chest will “eat” most of the load, and if it is more than 60 degrees, then deltoid muscles will actively participate. The most optimal when working out the upper bundle of pectoral muscles is an angle of inclination of 45 degrees.
When should you start training your upper chest?
If you are still a completely “green” athlete who does not even have a hint of muscle, then at this stage you should not even ask yourself about training the upper chest. To begin with, you need to increase your total muscle mass, and only then proceed to “polishing” certain muscles.
How to pump up the upper pectoral muscles? Professional Tips
The famous bodybuilder Gunther Schlerkamp has always been a fan of harmoniously developed chest muscles. The famous bodybuilder believes that in order to fully develop the upper chest, it must be trained as seriously as other muscle groups. Here are a few Gunther Schlerkamp tips on pumping the upper torso:
- Start your training session with a bench press on an incline bench. You can perform movements with a barbell, dumbbells or on Smith's simulator. Starting the workout with an exercise on an inclined bench, you will "find" the lagging bundles of pectoral muscles fresh. This will allow you to work with large weights, which, in turn, will “start” the processes of building muscles in your body. Then you can proceed to the exercises on the horizontal bench and bench with a downward slope.
- Do not neglect dumbbells. Using these shells, you get a completely different load than with the classic barbell press, since the mechanics of movement are radically changing.
- Wiring dumbbells. Breeding dumbbells on a bench at an angle of 45 degrees is one of the best ways to not only build muscle in the upper chest, but also draw muscles in more detail.
Tilt barbell press
We figured out the theory, now let's talk about how to pump up the top of the chest with exercises in the gym. We will start with the bench press at an angle. This movement is aimed at working out the outer part of the top of the chest.
- Take the starting position: sit on an inclined bench, take the barbell in such a grip that a 90 degree angle is formed between the forearm and shoulder.
- While exhaling, slowly and uncontrollably lower the bar until it touches the upper chest.
- Taking a breath, squeeze it up.
- Repeat the movement 8-10 times. Just need to do 3-4 approaches.
With large weights, it is advisable to use a partner who will help remove the bar from the racks and, in case of which, be safe.
If you want to know how this exercise looks in dynamics, then check out the video below.
Incline Bench Dumbbell Bench Press
The dumbbell bench press on an incline bench follows the same principle as the previous exercise. As in many other exercises using dumbbells, the total lifting weight in it will be less than in a similar exercise with a barbell, since the athlete needs to make a lot of effort so that his hands do not twitch in different directions.
In the previous exercise, the partner’s role is insignificant and, as a rule, consists in helping to remove a heavy projectile from the racks or to raise the bar in a critical situation, and then help to put it back on the racks. In the dumbbell press, the opposite is true. Heavy and bulky shells are sometimes simply impossible to lift alone. That is why it is better to use the help of an insurer (and in some cases two insurers) who can give you your dumbbells.
Performing a dumbbell press, you need to understand that the amplitude of motion in this exercise will be greater. Therefore, it is worth doing it very carefully.
Technique of execution:
- Take the shells yourself or with a partner. You need to keep them at about shoulder height.
- As you exhale, squeeze the dumbbells up.
- Taking a breath, slowly and slowly, feeling a stretch in the chest, lower them to the lowest point.
- Do 3-4 sets of 8-10 times.
How to pump up a man’s chest? Training video on pumping the upper chest using dumbbell wiring:
Dumbbell Wiring
Many professional athletes recommend using this exercise as a “finisher” after the tilt press. Since the wiring is done at the end of the chest workout, the weight of the dumbbells should be less than what you used during the bench press.
- Accept the starting position: the shells should be up in front of you, and the arms are slightly bent at the elbow joint.
- While breathing in, spread the dumbbells to the sides, maximally feeling the stretch.
- As you exhale, raise them to their original position.
How to pump up the top of the chest at home?
You already know how to train the upper chest muscles in the gym. But what to do to those people who do not have additional equipment? Or for those who can’t afford a fitness center membership? If you are one of them, then do not worry, there is a way out!
A good exercise for training the upper chest at home are push-ups from the floor at an angle. They are performed on the same principle as the classic push-ups, but with the only difference that in this variation the legs should be above shoulder level. To do this, put your lower limbs on a stool, sofa or any other hill. It is important to understand that if you do a large number of push-ups, then you will develop endurance, and not muscle mass and strength. For your muscles to grow, a progression of loads is needed. If you are already a more or less experienced athlete who can easily do several tens of high-quality push-ups, then you will be able to start exercising with additional weights. It can be a regular backpack full of books, bottles of water, etc.
Exercises for the entire chest at home?
It should immediately be noted that pumping up the chest at home without additional equipment is a difficult task, but not impossible. In the last section, we gave an example of an exercise that is a good alternative to tilting the barbell press. Below we attach a video that shows the best and most effective exercises for all areas of the chest at home.
Videos can be a good help in training, especially if they are educational. How to pump up a man's chest at home? This video will help to understand the issue.
Recommendations for beginner athletes
You already know how to pump the upper pectoral muscles at home or in a gym. The following are some important tips to help you achieve your desired results faster.
- Do not exercise your chest too often. One of the most common mistakes among beginners is to train too often. Novice athletes naively believe that the more often they engage, the faster their muscle mass will increase. In fact, this approach will not only not accelerate muscle growth, but, on the contrary, will slow it down significantly. In order for your nursing to grow, and working weights to increase, you need to recover. This applies not only to the pectoral muscles, but also to the muscles of the whole body.
- Breathe correctly. Breathing is an important training aspect, which determines how many repetitions you can do in one approach. Remember that in the positive phase of the exercise you need to exhale, and in the negative - inhale.
- Keep track of technology and safety. Before you begin to do any new exercise for you, study its technique in detail. If you feel that the selected working weight is being given to you very hard, lower it so as not to get injured. Do not forget to warm up carefully before each training session in order to prepare the muscles and joints for subsequent power loads.