The Pec Deck

[ritch]

far better than flyes.

flyes only work your pec for about 1/3 of the motion. once the bell goes past the point level with your shoulders, it is moving more inwards than up. dumb bells only work when they are moving against gravity.

pec dec has force all through the motion cos its attached to a stack that moves up and down. if you arent feeling it, then you arent doing it right.

its the most isolated way of training the pecs, even better than crossovers because they dont have a cable that follows an arc. pec dec is easy on the shoulders also if you dont go too far back, and you can vary the angle by changing the seat height. you can also do partials from top down, or bottom up etc.

talking like someone who has taken courses... What does your real life experience tell you with the movement?

[Montague]

I have to agree and disagree.. the machine funky Bro posted i hate. The other version i find better with just a slight bend in my elbows. Has itīs place as you wrote Monty but i like Decline Flys better. Now and again i use the machine but i see some guys able to use a lot of weight on it, try that with a heavy set of Bells. Just my 2 cents Bros...

^^Good post.

This should not be a topic of "is the exercise good or not," but rather "is it good/better for YOU?"

Years ago, Rusty Jeffers offered someone on here the great bit of advice to only do the exercises you feel. I honestly believe that, from a hypertrophy standpoint, this is some of the best advice you can follow.

[Mawse]

cable machine press/fly combo at a decline is the best thing for getting my pecs feel like theyre going to pop with zero shoulder trauma

the hand positions on most fly machines means I cant do them unless I loop free-motion handles around their handles (so I can rotate my hands during the lift)

[POB]

I always feel this more in my shoulders than I do my chest. SF1900 does not use the pec deck any more.

Bro, try sitting in it with your back on the pad not your chest

[NaturalWonder83]

If your internal rotation is shit
If your pecs are tight
If u have lousy t spine mobility
Then the pec deck is not for u

[ritch]

but the word "pec Deck" is one of the best exercise names ever! Along with "clean and snatch" obviously.

[Immortal_Technique]

cable machine press/fly combo at a decline is the best thing for getting my pecs feel like theyre going to pop with zero shoulder trauma

the hand positions on most fly machines means I cant do them unless I loop free-motion handles around their handles (so I can rotate my hands during the lift)

AKA you are short

[2Thick]

I've been training a good 27 years, and I can probably count on one hand the number of times I've done pec deck flies - and this was many years ago when I was just starting out and trying to figure things out. I tried them a few times and concluded that I wasn't really working my chest to any real degree and was just wasting time and energy. Ditto for cable crossovers and even db flies. And chest is one of my stronger bodyparts that I've always gotten compliments on.

I've always done lots of barbell flat and incline presses, incline db presses, and dips. Occasionally doing a little "decline" work by slightly elevating the bottom end of the bench off the floor a few inches just for a little variety - I'm not into doing decline on such a steep angle that I'm practically upside down. 

Maybe a couple of sets of higher rep, moderate weight seated machine flat or incline presses to finish the workout. But mostly just moderate to heavy free weights for a good 12-15 work sets, aligning the body properly and using good form.

[affeman]

I hate those with angled arms, don't feel shit




The ones with straight arms on the other hand gives me an insane pump and soreness; don't do it every workout though, maybe every other week.

[The Onion]

I used it but got too big. 

[Obvious Gimmick]

I hate those with angled arms, don't feel shit




The ones with straight arms on the other hand gives me an insane pump and soreness; don't do it every workout though, maybe every other week.


X2.  Provides a nice stretch at the end of a chest workout. Light weight, 20 reps