I’ve mentioned that we featured an EMG study back in the ’90s in Iron Man magazine that compared incline presses to decline presses for best-chest activation. I’ve been digging for it… [Read more…]
Ring Flyes for New Chest Size?
My daughter and her firefighter husband were over to wash their fierce Doberman-esque dog—and of course they always drift to my favorite topic: slap fighting—kidding—workouts… [Read more…]
Why Press to Mass Up Your Chest?
Q: You said that most of Doug Brignole’s ideal exercises are isolation, but that he considers the dumbbell decline press for chest his ideal. Why? Isn’t the more isolated decline flye just as good or better since triceps aren’t involved? [Read more…]
New Method for “Hulk-like” Upper-Chest Mass
I’ve mentioned how incline presses, with a barbell or dumbbells, aren’t efficient at building upper-pec mass.
That’s because the active levers, the upper arms, move toward your chin as you press. They should move toward the insertion of the pecs, the sternum… [Read more…]
Dips Ideal for Chest Stretch/Mass?
Q: With the past few newsletters, you really hit it out of the park. Since using stretch exercises and Speed Sets on selected exercise, [as in the [OMYM] workouts], I’ve increased my muscle size considerably. Now, with your dissection of the study on stretch partials, I think those will give me more new gains. My question is, Do you consider parallel-bar dips a good stretch move for chest? [Read more…]
Incline Flyes for Upper-Chest Size? (study)
Q: In a recent newsletter, you showed a photo of incline flyes. I know you’re not a fan of incline presses, but do you still think incline flyes are valuable for some upper-pec mass?
A: I do, but at a low angle—around 30 degrees.
Trebs, et al. found moving higher to 45 degrees activates way too much front deltoid. [Read more…]
Best-Chest Building Tip from Hercules
A few newsletters back I praised the aesthetic physique of Steve Reeves, movie Hercules who won the 1947 Mr. America and the 1950 Mr. Universe… [Read more…]
Incline Press for Massive Upper Chest?
Q: Doug Brignole says that the incline press is worthless for upper chest. I’ve read your explanation, and you agree. Then why does my upper chest get sore when I include it?
A: It’s not completely worthless for the upper pecs; however, it is limited and almost totally front-delt dominant.
The only upper-chest benefit you get from incline presses is at the bottom when the fibers are fully elongated. That will get you sore, plus… [Read more…]
Pushups for Chest Mass?
Q: In Old Man, Young Muscle, you end your chest workouts with close-grip bench pushups for chest contraction. I think I read you do cable flyes now since you have a cable machine. Are cable flyes as good as the pushups? I really like the bench pushups. [Read more…]
Flyes: “Ideal” Chest Exercise?
Q: I have a good grasp of the ideal-exercise factors from your ebook Old Man Young Muscle and Brignole’s The Physics of Resistance Exercise. I understand why dumbbell decline presses are ideal for chest, but what about flyes? They appear to encompass the same ideal factors, and you don’t have to use as much weight to get the same load on the pecs because of a longer lever [arms extended]. [Read more…]