Spector wrote:
What would be the best exercises out there to do to achieve good chest development. What's up with the incline/decline bench pressing, what do those work respectively out of the lower, mid, and upper chest. What would be the best way to attack chest exercises?
Hello Spector,
When you alter the angle of the bench you're changing the muscles that you use to lift the weights. Consider the difference between doing a set of pectoral presses (bench press) while resting on a horizontal bench, to the same press done with the bench adjusted so that it becomes a chair (at 90 degrees). The "bench press" becomes a "shoulder press" and an entirely different set of muscles are now involved (more shoulder than chest muscles). By increasing the angle (from horizontal to vertical) with each set, you're more apt to work the entire pectoral region.
I can pick out "basement benchers" at the beach. These guys only have a bench and barbell, and all they've ever done is to lie flat on their backs and do this one exercise. The result is a narrow bulge of muscle across their chest and another across their triceps. The rest of their body is non-descript. The other type I too often see is the guy who's forgotten that he has legs. IMO the result is rather silly looking.
Spector, it's fine to concentrate on the pecs if you think they're deficient. Any exercise is better than no exercise, but best of all is a balanced workout routine that hits every muscle-group at various angles.
Lifting for me is a delicate balance between getting a decent bull-moose workout and injury. BTW, most guys eventually have a problem with rotator cuff pain. I thought it was something we just have to live with. I simply gritted my teeth and suffered until my nephew (Mr. New Hampshire) introduced me to some simple exercises that he always begins with. It took about three months, but his advice worked beautifully; the rotator cuff pain is gone. You can get an idea of how to do these by going here:
http://www.ohsu.edu/som-Orthopedics/dc_cuff.htm
IMO dumbells are the safest way to lift, followed by barbells. I try to avoid machines (Nautilus, etc.). The reason is that when you lift a dumbell you invariably use a balance of muscles to guide it up. With a machine, all you have to do is push against a stupid lever. All of us can raise far more weight in a machine than we ever could with free-weights (with equivalnet rise in stress on your muscles and joints). For example, if I have to use a machine for a benchpress I'll work in the range of 330 pounds (150Kg). On a barbell I do sets in the range of 215-235 pounds (98-106Kg). With dumbells I'll only use 65-75 pounds (30-34Kg) in each hand.
Everyone, it seems, has a personal theory about how best to lift (number of reps, slow-fast, rest between sets, rest between workouts, etc.). I currently do split-sets. For example, I alternate sets of tricep dips with sets of bicep curls. Another reason I like dumbells is that once I've worked a muscle to failure (can't complete a rep), I like to quickly drop that dumbell for a lighter one. Without this smaller weight there's quite a bit of "burn" left untapped. I work the large muscles three times per week. It seems to work for me, though some guys think that's too often.
Well, as far a putting up a picture; there is already a photo of me (
sans shirt) in the picture thread. Since that picture was taken I've put on around 18 pounds (8Kg) of muscle mass. Now, if only
Men's Health would call about that cover photo...
Hope this helped,
Michael