Building Bigger Pecs: 4 Workouts For Improved Chest Size
These workouts are part of a training series I am putting together to provide lifters with some new, interesting and fun muscle building choices. While the other chest workouts here at Muscle & Strength are highly effective when coupled with progressive resistance, it is often nice to take a mental break and try something different.
Each of these 4 chest workouts are fairly intense. I would recommend running them for 8-12 weeks at a time, then taking a complete week off from training. From there you can try a new approach, or choose to stick with something that is working well.
Keep in mind that no matter which workout approach you use, overload must be part of the equation. Use as much weight as you can for each listed set, and add weight when it makes sense.
Here are the 4 workouts:
- Workout #1 - Cluster Sets and Supersets
- Workout #2 - Pre-Fatigue and Burn
- Workout #3 - Upper Chest Blast
- Workout #4 - Dumbbell and Barbell Volume
Workout #1 - Cluster and Superset Chest Program
- Bench Press - Pick a weight you can perform about 12-15 reps with. Rest 30-45 seconds between sets. Don't worry if you can't hit 4-5 reps per set. Keep the rest periods tight and do what you can.
- Supersets - Jump from one exercise to the next, keep rest to the bare minimum.
- Dips & Push Ups - AMAP equals as many reps as possible.
| Workout #1 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Cluster & Supersets | ||
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
| Bench Press - Cluster Sets | 8 | 4-5 |
| Incline Dumbbell Bench Press - Superset #1 | 3 | 8-12 |
| Incline Dumbbell Flye - Superset #1 | 3 | 8-12 |
| Machine Chest Press - Superset #2 | 3 | 8-12 |
| Pec Dec or Cable Crossovers - Superset #2 | 3 | 8-12 |
| Dips - Superset #3 | 3 | AMAP |
| Push Ups - Superset #3 | 3 | AMAP |
Workout #2 - Pre-Fatigue & Burn Chest Program
- Dumbbell Flye - The point here is to get in a good 40 to 50 reps before moving on to compound lifts.
- Paused Bench Press - Sets should be able one rep shy of failure. Add weight when you can. Pause for only a one thousand one count on the chest.
- Pec Dec - These sets are burn out sets. Pick a weight you can perform 15-20 reps with. Once you get close to failure, only rest for a brief amount of time before trying to knock out more reps. Continue this rep and limited rest pattern until you reach 30-40 total reps.
| Workout #2 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Pre-Fatigue & Burn | ||
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
| Dumbbell Flye or Cable Crossover - Pre-Fatigue | 4-5 | 10 |
| Paused Bench Press | 4 | 8-12 |
| Dumbbell Bench Press | 4 | 10-12 |
| Decline Bench Press | 4 | 8-12 |
| Pec Dec or Machine Bench Press - Burn | 2 | 30-40 |
Workout #3 - Upper Chest Blast Program
- Set Intensity - Each set should be pushed to about one rep shy shy of failure. Add weight when you can.
- AMAP - AMAP equals as many reps as possible.
| Workout #3 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Upper Chest Blast | ||
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
| Incline Bench Press | 5 | 8-12 |
| Incline Dumbbell Bench Press | 5 | 8-12 |
| Cable Crossovers to Upper Chest | 5 | 8-12 |
| Push Ups with Feet on Bench | 5 | AMAP |
Workout #4 - Dumbbell and Barbell Volume
This workout is also perfect for the home trainee who has limited equipment.
- Bench Press - Pick a weight that allows you to perform a 5x5. When these 5 sets feel manageable, meaning the last rep of the last 5 rep set was not close to failure, add 5 pounds the following week.
- Set Intensity - Each set should be pushed to about one rep shy shy of failure. Add weight when you can.
- AMAP - AMAP equals as many reps as possible.
| Workout #4 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Dumbbell & Barbell Volume | ||
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
| Bench Press | 5 | 5 |
| Dumbbell Bench Press | 5 | 10 |
| Incline Bench Press | 5 | 8-12 |
| Dumbbell Incline Bench Press | 5 | 10 |
| Dumbbell Flyes | 5 | 10-15 |
| Dips or Push Ups | 5 | AMAP |