the secret to big chest is lower chest

[Ropo]

Lifting the legs up so the lower back is flat on the bench takes a whole lofts workload OFF the pecs and shifts it to the anterior delts.

Study some kinesiology.

You want to work just? Think about it... Where are your hands and arms when you flex your chest say, in the mirror for example?

They sure as fuck arnt straight out in front of you. They're down by your lower abdomen or belly button. That is the hand position you need to be near at contraction when training the chest. Doing bench presses with your legs up and your back flat sure as hell doesn't place your hands in that position.

If you want to put as much pressure on the packs as possible, you need a large arch in your back with your feet/toes pressing into the floor, further ensuring you have a sufficient arch in your lower back.

You mentioned dips... When doing dips for chest, you want to lean as far forward as possible. Not straight up & down, which hits triceps and some anterior delts. Look at dips from the side... Where are your hands at full contraction? They're down in line by your belly button, just like youre flexing your chest.

EMG studies have proven decline pressing activates more "upper chest" fibers than incline pressing. Why? (Broscience vs. Real science) Because you're in the best position possible to activate chest fibers throughout the entire movement,& mimicking the body mechanics of when you are flexing chest in the mirror (or on stage). Doing flat bench with a big arch mimics closely a decline press.

I also find it amusing how some guys will talk shit about the decline press, yet praise dips... When looking at both movements from the side, they are pretty goddamn similar.

True...but you are missing the point: You can't build thick and wide chest if your main goal in the gym is showing off how much weight you can bench. If you want a big chest your training would be different, long sets, no partial reps, no one rep max, no cheat in every fucking set you bench. Just work work work with good range of motion, good concentration and good stretch in every rep. You know, old school bench pressing back from the times when bodybuilders have thick and wide pecks..

How many of you guys have ever done any wide grip bench presses? Have any of you guys ever wonder if that flat bench is too wide for you? Arnold and Haney used to train with quite narrow bodybuilding style benches, while all modern benches are designed more by the terms of powerlifting. Same exercise, why bother to do two different kind of benches? Because the goal isn't same  

You don't understand why "how some guys will talk shit about the decline press, yet praise dips"? Have you ever seen what they call "dips"?  It's include lots of weight hanging from your belt, and 1½" range of motion  

[jpm101]

Bench press:   Actually with the ankles crossed and the knees up you will be allowing  more strict attention to the targeted muscle area, that being the pecs. Somewhat confused as to why more tension (rather than pressure....we don't want pressure) would be directed to the anterior delts rather than to the pec's (major and minor) in that position. Hand gripping will dominate the influence of either the pec's themselves, the anterior delts or even the triceps..  When arching the lower back to the extreme and pressing the legs/toes from the floor, a lot of that direct tension is lost. That is a PL'ers style, not a pure BB'ers style.

Decline press: This has been a rewarding movement for some, with DB's usually the choice for experience BB'ers. But for most, it can be annoying just to get into the position without a good spotter and does not always reap the results wanted. Truth be told, some just do not like the feeling of the exercise with the head in that lower position. Personal view only.....is that dips (weighted) can be a more result producing experience than decline presses (or even flat bench presses), recruiting the whole upper body, including the ab's strongly. And a more effective movement , taking the TUT (time under tension) into consideration on the whole of the chest structure (major/minor pec's) . Weighted dip's referred to here.

Just to note, if keeping the body at a 180 degree angle when dipping (have a training partner hold the feet/lower body or brace the lower body/feet against a bench or whatever) than you have a superior tricep builders. Might also suggest using a "V" bar when dipping, if your gym has one. Allows different hand gripping, going from narrow to wide. Like the bench, trying different grip positions can make all the difference in the world when seeking development and strength.  Dips are one of my favorite exercises. I will usually start from a dead stop at the bottom  of each rep..with a 2 to 3 second pause.  I use that same protocol on the bench and bench squats from time to time

A greatly overlooked exercise for the chest/pecs are pullovers. I prefer the bent arm version with either a BB or DB's. Also a great lat and triceps builder. Also affects the ab's strongly. One of my all time compound exercise is the pullover & press, a prime mass builder for the upper body.  . When doing GVT (10X10's) of the pullover& press, I found my best gains.

Good Luck.

[Grape Ape]

nah, I'm not required, relax

Oh really now sexybanned777times?

[pamith]

Without the genetics, you'll never have a monster chest, an Arnold chest

[pamith]

[pamith]

[pamith]

[pamith]

He has a small chest and did the same workouts like everyone else did for decades and it was still small, like Titus, it’s genetics. It’s already predetermined lees chest wasn’t going to develop a massive chest no matter he did or took

Just like guys like Johnnie Jackson who has a massive chest but no matter how many calf raises he does he won’t have calves like flex Lewis, Phil, or even branch

You mention Titus, I assume you mean Craig Titus, Craig didn't have a small chest, idk where you get that

[pamith]

His chest looked pretty big to me

[pamith]

[pamith]

[Hulkotron]

Art Atwood biggest chest in the cemetery

[bigbychoices]

building the chest ( as with every bodypart) is determined by genetics. PERIOD.  hand spacing diferent angles amount of weight etc does contribute SLIGHTLY to the development. bench presses are a good exercise but not the best for everyone. in my opinion the dumbell fly flat bench or slightly inclined ( slightly  not like most incline benches ) is the best pec developer done properly. its pretty much pure pecs.  I have pondered over the years if doing basic compound exercises are really the way to go for mass. it sounds good and right in THEORY  but in alot of people they dont hit the targeted bodypart. example in benches. more delts and triceps than pecs. barbell curls more front delts than biceps. we were always taught that isolation exercises are not best for mass etc.  I personally feel that they work great for mass because you actually work just the muscle you want to work. they are not ego builders cuz no one ever says hey how much can you fly?  lol.  every one is different with what actually works and where they feel it.  i believe it was vince gironda or maybe joe gold ( i could be wrong) who said to see what and where you feel an exercise do just that one for like 10 sets and then see where you are sore at for the next few days. try it you might be surprised and change your way of training

[pamith]

Art Atwood biggest chest in the cemetery

Bro...

[pamith]

building the chest ( as with every bodypart) is determined by genetics. PERIOD.  hand spacing diferent angles amount of weight etc does contribute SLIGHTLY to the development. bench presses are a good exercise but not the best for everyone. in my opinion the dumbell fly flat bench or slightly inclined ( slightly  not like most incline benches ) is the best pec developer done properly. its pretty much pure pecs.  I have pondered over the years if doing basic compound exercises are really the way to go for mass. it sounds good and right in THEORY  but in alot of people they dont hit the targeted bodypart. example in benches. more delts and triceps than pecs. barbell curls more front delts than biceps. we were always taught that isolation exercises are not best for mass etc.  I personally feel that they work great for mass because you actually work just the muscle you want to work. they are not ego builders cuz no one ever says hey how much can you fly?  lol.  every one is different with what actually works and where they feel it.  i believe it was vince gironda or maybe joe gold ( i could be wrong) who said to see what and where you feel an exercise do just that one for like 10 sets and then see where you are sore at for the next few days. try it you might be surprised and change your way of training

I hear what you are saying but not everything is genetics, when I do benches I get sore in my chest, no soreness in front delts or triceps

[bigbychoices]

great. so that means benches do in fact work for you cuz you feel it in the chest. some people dont. only delts and tris. so thats a perfect example of how to find out what works. but even still just cuz your chest is doing the work doesnt mean you will get a chest like arnolds.  that is GENETICS.

[residue]

I hear what you are saying but not everything is genetics, when I do benches I get sore in my chest, no soreness in front delts or triceps

and soreness is an indicator of?

[tatoo]

and soreness is an indicator of?

after 25 years in the gym, i still cant answer that question... ive gone months without delts or traps being sore.... they still grew... been sore every week in the legs for months.. they still grew.... forearms never sore... still grew..

[bigbychoices]

sorenes is really just an indication that the body did something it wasnt used to. period.  stretch and your sore. flex hard and your sore. get punched and your sore. did any of those build muscle?  no. its the bodies response to some form of trauma. in exercise does it mean growth? maybe. maybe not. BUT at least you will know what body part is doing the work ( or its new to that body part).   i have seen guys do benches inclines etc for years and get little chest development but stuck to it cuz they always heard thats the best. they started doing flys and dips and got a nice chest.  now maybe their form was off in the compound movements ( as it is with alot of guys cuz they get carried away with how much weight they can bench and their form sucks).  my point is dont be afraid to let go of something if its not working for you. what do you have to lose? if your chest isnt getting bigger from benches why not try something else?

[pamith]

The muscle will adapt

[pellius]

sorenes is really just an indication that the body did something it wasnt used to. period.  stretch and your sore. flex hard and your sore. get punched and your sore. did any of those build muscle?  no. its the bodies response to some form of trauma. in exercise does it mean growth? maybe. maybe not. BUT at least you will know what body part is doing the work ( or its new to that body part).   i have seen guys do benches inclines etc for years and get little chest development but stuck to it cuz they always heard thats the best. they started doing flys and dips and got a nice chest.  now maybe their form was off in the compound movements ( as it is with alot of guys cuz they get carried away with how much weight they can bench and their form sucks).  my point is dont be afraid to let go of something if its not working for you. what do you have to lose? if your chest isnt getting bigger from benches why not try something else?

I was probably in my mid-twenties and training six days a week -- hard! I had the time, motivation, energy, and a great training partner. He pushed me harder than I would have pushed myself.

The day after going bowling for the first time I was completely sore in my biceps and front delts. Bowling FFS! Sure we bowled for hours but I never came even remotely close to any type of intensity. That experience caused me to rethink this whole muscle soreness thing.

[AsianExpat]

Dips?

[Van_Bilderass]

building the chest ( as with every bodypart) is determined by genetics. PERIOD.  hand spacing diferent angles amount of weight etc does contribute SLIGHTLY to the development.

You are sort of giving mixed messages. First it's genetics, "PERIOD"

but then you say:

i have seen guys do benches inclines etc for years and get little chest development but stuck to it cuz they always heard thats the best. they started doing flys and dips and got a nice chest. 

 

I think bodybuilding is mainly genetics, absolutely. I'm all for choosing exercises that hit the targeted muscle best while minimizing wear and tear and injury risk, short and long term. However if someone can't build his chest at all with barbell presses it's unlikely he will suddenly build a wonderful chest with dumbells or machines or whatever.

I've made a certain point many times, which I've rarely seen others make, and it's that many say they are growing and gaining with this or that exercise or routine when the reality is that most of the time we aren't growing anything. We are maintaining, losing and RE-gaining lost muscle 99% of the time. Very little time is spent actually gaining new muscle.

For example, many oldtimers often say they have lightened the loads or switched exercises and are gaining "just as well" now. No, you aren't gaining shit, you were bigger 20 years ago.

And I include myself in the group that isn't gaining shit, hasn't really gained much at all in decades  To actually gain, you need some drastic change in stimulus, you need to
change some parameter drastically.

[pellius]

You are sort of giving mixed messages. First it's genetics, "PERIOD"

but then you say:
 

I think bodybuilding is mainly genetics, absolutely. I'm all for choosing exercises that hit the targeted muscle best while minimizing wear and tear and injury risk, short and long term. However if someone can't build his chest at all with barbell presses it's unlikely he will suddenly build a wonderful chest with dumbells or machines or whatever.

I've made a certain point many times, which I've rarely seen others make, and it's that many say they are growing and gaining with this or that exercise or routine when the reality is that most of the time we aren't growing anything. We are maintaining, losing and RE-gaining lost muscle 99% of the time. Very little time is spent actually gaining new muscle.

For example, many oldtimers often say they have lightened the loads or switched exercises and are gaining "just as well" now. No, you aren't gaining shit, you were bigger 20 years ago.

And I include myself in the group that isn't gaining shit, hasn't really gained much at all in decades  To actually gain, you need some drastic change in stimulus, you need to
change some parameter drastically.

This is an excellent point and I have noted you've made it in the past as I've noticed the same thing. Even on this thread, you will hear someone say that they've made gains doing such and such but they haven't gain shit. You would think that people who are long time trainees and have been at various gyms for years would notice that nobody really changes. They look the same year after year -- even themselves. Sure you gain and lose weight so your body composition changes but actual lean muscle stays the same or gets less. Obviously, if you are a teenager this doesn't apply as you grow anyway if you have adequate nutrition. Only a drastic upping the dose will make a difference but this levels off too. Then it's all about conditioning. Ramy, Phil, Brandon, Roelly will not get any bigger but only more condition. There are exceptions like with Jay in 2007. But it does crack me up when I hear so many people in real life and here on this board say, "I'm still making gains." If they are it's not from any kind of training or diet they're on. It's more gear and peptides.

[Van_Bilderass]

Only a drastic upping the dose will make a difference but this levels off too. Then it's all about conditioning. Ramy, Phil, Brandon, Roelly will not get any bigger but only more condition. There are exceptions like with Jay in 2007.

Roelly was at his biggest ever a year or two back. Most probably don't appreciate what he had to do at that level to make gains. Probably saw a doctor every day at Oxygen gym who checked his vitals and blood work to see if he was in imminent danger and in need of hospitalization. I'm serious too.
He downsized a bit for a good while recently, no doubt to keep from dying but I think he's doing the O now.