Q: I like decline cable flyes for my chest. I really feel those. Can I use that exercise instead of dumbbell decline presses as my ideal exercise? Dumbbell flyes and dumbbell declines hurt my shoulders.
A: The decline cable flye is a great exercise for chest. The main problem with it is that the strength curve is wrong—too difficult at the top contracted position…
Ideally, the movement should be harder at the bottom stretch and get easier up to the contracted position—like dumbbell decline presses.
Cable chest presses are the next best move. It has the proper resistance curve if you set it up right. But let’s focus on the exercise you prefer, decline cable flyes.
You’re pulling your arms toward the pecs’ origin, so that’s important, a necessary factor for optimal fiber activation…
But that doesn’t help the incorrect strength curve. There is something that will, however…
If you’ve been reading this newsletter for a while, you know that X-Rep partials, quarter reps in the stretch position at the end of a set, can help “patch” the strength curve of an inferior exercise…
Luckily, that’s the case here. Once you reach positive failure and can’t pull the handles together over your midsection, you’ve still got strength at the bottom of the stroke…
So lower to near full stretch and then fire out some quarter reps.
Those X-Reps will keep the muscle firing in its strongest position on the stroke and activate a number of growth fibers you’d miss if you just stopped at full-range failure.
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Till next time, train hard—and smart—for BIG results.
Steve Holman
Former Editor in Chief, Iron Man Magazine
www.X-Rep.com
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