Building upper chest

manif3st · 29-Mar-04, 10:24 PM

my chest routine has been doing well for a couple of months now, but when i look in the mirror from the side, i still notice my chest kind of slopes down, like my lower chest sticks out more than my upper chest. i was wondering what i could do to really build up my upper chest to get that fuller, broader look. my current routine looks like this: (everything is 3 sets, 4-6 reps)

incline bench
flys
weighted dips

anything i can add to this for upper chest development?

**MAURER** · 29-Mar-04, 10:30 PM

well this the case for everyone. anyway, incline bench will work your upper pecs a good amount. in general, though, increasing mass on the chest in general is what is going to make your chest look fuller, including up top.

Karl · 29-Mar-04, 10:30 PM

Just incline movements, I have always thought building upper chest came slower than the lower.

30-Mar-04, 05:41 AM

When you are doing your dips, at the very top of the movement, give an upward "shrug". This little bit of extra movment in the exercise really hits the inner, upper portion of the chest.

**Gooseneck** · 30-Mar-04, 07:20 AM

Incline presses on a light angle. Sit up too much and you're hitting your front delts instead. Try and find an adjustable bench and keep it around 30*

**jgriffith** · 30-Mar-04, 07:43 AM

thats a good point goose, but I think that by setting it near 45* at times you can hit even higher on your chest, yes you'll be hitting the front delts as well, but it'll help develop your chest. For about 6 weeks this summer I set the bench around 45* while doing incline, and had that be the first lift on my chest days and I made huge improvements on the wideness of my chest and development up top.

**Gooseneck** · 30-Mar-04, 08:10 AM

You're absolutely right Griff. Maybe alternating angles periodically would be good for optimum all around growth.

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manif3st · 31-Mar-04, 11:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by IronMan

When you are doing your dips, at the very top of the movement, give an upward "shrug". This little bit of extra movment in the exercise really hits the inner, upper portion of the chest.

im not quite sure i understand what you're saying. do you mean i should try to push my body upwards more than normal? like squeeze out and extra inch or two at the peak of the motion? sounds like a good idea if thats whta you meant

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manif3st · 31-Mar-04, 11:28 AM

thanks for all the advice guys, i'll try to alternate angles with my incline bench. i think im doing about a 45 right now, and it seems like its working for me, i just wanted to know if there are any other exercises i could do to work my upper chest even more, so it can catch up to my lower chest.

31-Mar-04, 11:38 AM

Yes, manif3st, that is exactly what I meant. The range of motion is very small. Like you said only about an inch, but it will really hit the upper center portion of your pecs. Try it on your next workout and see how it feels.

manif3st · 31-Mar-04, 02:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by IronMan

Yes, manif3st, that is exactly what I meant. The range of motion is very small. Like you said only about an inch, but it will really hit the upper center portion of your pecs. Try it on your next workout and see how it feels.

oh yeah, i forgot to ask: when doing dips, is it better to keep your body straight up (perpendicular to the ground) or lean slightly forward? i lean forward a bit because i feel like it hits my chest a little more, whereas keeping straight hits my tris, but less chest.

31-Mar-04, 05:26 PM

You are doing them correctly to hit the chest. Straight up makes it more of a tricep exercise.

Jimmy. D · 01-Apr-04, 04:38 PM

This has been debated many times, but it is to my understanding that it is impossible that you can train and develope certain parts of the same muscle faster then other parts. You may feel it more in the upper chest during incline press, yet that doesnt mean it will develope faster then the rest of the chest.

01-Apr-04, 06:12 PM

Different angels do make a difference in development. Look at the pics of Larry Scott after changing the way he trained biceps. Big difference in the appearance of the muscle -- and it can all be attributed to the exercises he chose.

Spinster · 02-Apr-04, 03:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jimmy. D

This has been debated many times, but it is to my understanding that it is impossible that you can train and develope certain parts of the same muscle faster then other parts. You may feel it more in the upper chest during incline press, yet that doesnt mean it will develope faster then the rest of the chest.

There are three heads on your pectoralis major. Focusing on a specific head by changing the motion of the excercise will indeed develop certain parts of that muscle faster.