My Top 3 Upper Chest Hacks
Summary
TLDRIn this fitness video, the host discusses strategies for effectively training the upper chest, emphasizing proper form on incline bench presses. They suggest using a 30° incline without arching or opting for a 45° incline with significant arching to target the upper chest. The script also advises against pressing low on the chest and recommends a vertical pressing line for better leverage and pec stretch. Lastly, it introduces the reverse grip bench press as a safer and more effective alternative for upper chest engagement.
Takeaways
- 📏 **Proper Arching**: To effectively target the upper chest during incline presses, ensure your chin is higher than your upper chest to avoid turning the exercise into a flat press.
- 🔍 **Angle Analysis**: A 30° incline bench press is ideal for upper chest development if done with a flat back and without excessive tightness.
- 💺 **Bench Convenience**: Gym-goers often default to the most convenient option, which is typically a 45° incline bench, rather than the optimal 30°.
- 📱 **Use a Leveling App**: To ensure the correct incline angle, use a leveling app to check the bench's angle because many preset stations are inaccurate.
- 🤸♂️ **Arching Benefits**: Arching pre-stretches the pecs, enhances stability, and standardizes form, making it a safer way to incline press.
- 🚫 **Avoid Flaring Elbows**: When pressing on an incline, avoid flaring out your elbows excessively; instead, aim to press with a more vertical line.
- 📉 **Higher Pressing**: Pressing higher up on the chest, towards the clavicle, is more beneficial for upper chest development compared to pressing low.
- 🏋️♂️ **Reverse Grip Variation**: The reverse grip bench press engages the upper chest more and is safer on the shoulders, making it a valuable variation.
- 🔄 **Change of Angle**: To prevent shoulder overuse, consider changing the angle of your presses, such as incorporating reverse grip for variety.
- 🏆 **Golden Era Wisdom**: The upper chest biasing technique used in incline pressing was intuitively discovered by bodybuilders of the past, emphasizing the effectiveness of this method.
Q & A
What is the main focus of the video?
-The video focuses on providing strategies to effectively train the upper chest area during incline bench press exercises.
Why is it important to keep the chin higher than the upper chest during incline bench press?
-Keeping the chin higher than the upper chest ensures that the exercise targets the upper chest rather than mimicking a flat bench press, which is crucial for isolating the upper chest muscles.
What is the recommended incline angle for effectively targeting the upper chest?
-A 30° incline angle is recommended as it is considered the sweet spot for effectively targeting the upper chest.
Why might someone prefer a 45° incline bench press over a 30° incline?
-Some people might prefer a 45° incline bench press because it might be more convenient or accessible in their gym setup, and they can compensate by arching to achieve a similar effect to a 30° incline.
What is the significance of using a leveling app when setting up the incline bench?
-Using a leveling app ensures that the bench is set at the correct angle, preventing underestimation or overestimation of the incline, which can affect the effectiveness of the exercise.
How does arching during incline bench press affect the stretch and engagement of the pectoral muscles?
-Arching during the incline bench press pre-stretches the pecs, allowing for better muscle engagement and a more effective stretch in the bottom part of the movement.
What is the 'Guillotine' style mentioned in the video and how does it relate to incline bench press?
-The 'Guillotine' style refers to pressing the barbell higher up on the chest, closer to the clavicle, which is said to enhance the stretch and contraction of the upper chest muscles during incline bench press.
Why is the reverse grip bench press suggested as a way to increase upper chest involvement?
-The reverse grip bench press forces the lifter into an external rotation, which locks the elbows in and biases the upper chest more, leading to increased activation of the pectoral muscles.
How does the reverse grip bench press affect shoulder safety?
-The reverse grip bench press is considered safer for the shoulders as it reduces the strain on the rotator cuff and allows for a more secure grip, which can be beneficial for those with shoulder issues.
What is the 'RTO' mentioned in the video and how does it relate to chest training?
-RTO stands for 'Reverse, Tuck, Open' and refers to a variation of dips that emphasizes the upper chest by altering the hand position and movement, providing a different angle of stimulation.
Why is it suggested to avoid pressing the barbell low on the chest during incline bench press?
-Pressing the barbell low on the chest during incline bench press can reduce the stretch on the pectoral muscles and create worse leverages, making it less effective for targeting the upper chest.
Outlines
💪 Optimizing Incline Bench Press for Upper Chest Development
The paragraph discusses the importance of correct form in incline bench pressing to effectively target the upper chest muscles. It emphasizes that many lifters unknowingly perform a flat press instead of an incline press due to improper arching. The narrator suggests that a 30° incline with a flat back and minimal scapular retraction is ideal for upper chest development. They also mention that if one uses a 45° incline bench, they should arch their back to simulate a lower incline. The paragraph also touches on the anthropometric considerations and the importance of using a leveling app to ensure the correct incline angle.
📏 Advanced Techniques for Incline Press Variations
This section delves into advanced techniques for incline bench press, such as retracting and protracting at the top of the lift to enhance the stretch on the pectoral muscles. It also discusses the importance of starting from a higher angle and arching downwards for dumbbell incline presses. The paragraph stresses the benefits of pressing higher up on the chest, akin to a clavicle Guillotine style, rather than low on the chest, to achieve better leverages and muscle stretch. The narrator shares personal experiences and insights from other professionals in the field to support their recommendations.
🏋️♂️ The Reverse Grip Bench Press for Upper Chest and Tricep Engagement
The focus of this paragraph is on the reverse grip bench press as an alternative exercise for targeting the upper chest. It argues that the reverse grip is safer and more effective for chest activation compared to the traditional grip. The narrator refutes common misconceptions about the reverse grip being hard to unrack or dangerous, explaining that it naturally leads to a safer pressing position. They also mention that this grip is beneficial for those with shoulder issues, as it is easier on the rotator cuff. The paragraph concludes by highlighting the reverse grip's potential to build upper chest and triceps mass while reducing shoulder joint overuse.
🔄 Variations and Alternatives for Upper Chest Training
The final paragraph suggests variations and alternatives for training the upper chest, such as the reverse grip bench press, which can be performed with dumbbells or rings for a different stimulus. It also mentions RTO dips as an effective exercise for the upper chest, despite dips typically targeting the lower pectoral muscles. The narrator emphasizes the importance of changing up exercises to avoid redundancy and overuse injuries, particularly for those with limited equipment or who have already performed incline presses and are looking for a different angle of muscle stimulation.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Incline Bench
💡Arching
💡Tightness
💡Scapular Retraction
💡Anthropometry
💡EMG Data
💡Guillotine Style
💡Reverse Grip Bench Press
💡Cable Crossover
💡Lockout
💡Torso Dominance
Highlights
The importance of proper form in incline bench press for targeting the upper chest.
Arching on an incline bench can transform the exercise into a flat bench press.
The chin should be higher than the upper chest to effectively target the upper chest.
A 30° incline can be an excellent upper chest builder with the right form.
The risk of injury with a 45° incline press can be mitigated by proper arching.
The convenience of using a 45° incline bench and the importance of form over the angle.
The significance of not arching during incline press to maximize upper chest engagement.
The recommendation to use a 30° incline bench without tightness for a safer press.
The concept of scapular human rhythm and its application in incline pressing.
The benefits of retracting and protracting at the top of an incline dumbbell press.
The importance of pressing higher up on the chest during incline press for better leverages.
The vertical line pressing form for incline barbell press for optimal upper chest stretch.
The safety and effectiveness of reverse grip bench press for upper chest activation.
EMG data showing 30% more chest activation with reverse grip bench press.
The reverse grip bench press as a safer alternative for those with shoulder issues.
The recommendation to change the way you flat bench to get more chest involvement.
The use of reverse grip bench press to correct torso dominance and build upper chest and triceps.
The suggestion to vary bench press exercises to avoid redundancy and reduce shoulder joint overuse.
Transcripts
you don't have bad upper chest genetics
you just don't train it correctly in
today's video I'll share three
game-changing strategies that is
guaranteed to blow up this area starting
with the most important tightness see
you have been taught that arching on an
incline bench transforms the exercise
into a flat bench similar to how many
power lifters Arch on a flat turning it
into a decline where the chin is lower
than the chest you can't even see the
guy's face from a front angle well the
same applies to inclines if your chin is
not higher than your upper chest then
from an absolute angle perspective not
the angle of the bench
itself you're doing a flat press and
this explains why so many people are
lifting similar loads to their flat
bench put it like this if you're incline
pressing between 185 to 205 for refs
that your flat bench is only 225 ak2
plates that tells me right there there's
something off about your incline
pressing form because what I want to
emphasiz size is that 15° can be an
excellent upper chest Builder provided
that you're doing it flatback with
little scapular retraction you are
letting them move freely also there's an
anthropometry concern usually the size
and tilting of the rib cage therefore it
goes back once again to the idea of your
chin being higher than your pess and
this is why we often recommend 30° it
seems to be that sweet spot that works
for basically everyone but that
30° also means that you need to be doing
it without being overly tight because if
you try to stay tight which is a queue
that youve probably been doing all your
life you'll just Arch into 15° and so
it's still a great overall chest Builder
we can argue it's an alternative to
deficit benching but it's not the best
exercise for the upper chest unless
you're willing to do it with no ego just
laying flat and this is what the data
seems to be pointing to the fact that
when you go to a 45 to 60° incline press
disproportionately a lot more shoulders
but again this assumes that you're not
arching which is The X Factor in this
discussion just like you can Arch from a
low incline down to a flat so can you
Arch from a high incline down to a
medium optimal incline meaning you have
a choice here but you need to know
what's going on either you do that
perfect 30° incline bench
but you're not going to Arch there's
going to be no tightness you're just
going to press dummy style or you
actually use the 45° classic incline
bench but you Arch like a
[ __ ] now you might be tempted to
just say yeah I'll stick to 30 and
that's fine but let me ask you a
question if you're doing a barbell
incline bench do you even have access to
that setup or are you willing to do it
because you need to bring an adjustable
bench to a power rack and adjust it to
that angle and by the way you should be
using a leveling app on your phone to
determine what it is because I see a lot
of guys saying yeah I'm doing 30°
incline bench and they're actually doing
15 or people say yeah I'm doing 45 and
they're at freaking 30 so what I can
tell you is that the preset stations N9
out of 10 times are
45° and that's probably what you will
default to just because we tend to be
lazy as lifters we want what is
convenient if there's five incline
benching stations versus versus a power
rack and a Ben you got to drag over from
one side of the gym to the other what
are you going to default to I already
know people cannot fool me anymore they
want what it's convenient so therefore
if you're stuck using a 45 degree bench
or rather it's more convenient for you
instead of doing the 30 with no
tightness why not do 45 but Arch so hard
that it brings you down to 30 because
here's the thing about arching it
pre-stretches the pecs and allows you to
better feel them in the bottom just
think about trying to stretch your peck
on a doorway are you going to lean into
it where your shoulders roll forward or
you going to retract and really open up
so it's all about that opening up
resisting the Puppet Master chest up
towards the ceiling keeping it there
right and it maximizes tightness which
will enhance your stability plus
standardize his form so I would argue
that this is the safer way to incline
press especially if you tend to feel
your front delts way too much now am I
saying that letting your scas move
freely is bad absolutely not this what
we do in the calics world and there is
this thing called the scapular human
Rhythm you can adapt to that style of
pressing but don't do it on 45° and know
that there is a higher risk of injury
even though no position is inherently
dangerous you just have to have greater
tissue capacity to handle that so I
think powerlifters are 100% correct that
being tight having a massive strong back
that can hold that position is generally
safer and again I'm not trying to
fearmonger you into anything but this is
what the best lifters in the world are
doing and I'll continue training that
way and recommending it on average now
if you want a little hybrid you can
retract and protract at the top which
actually works quite well on incline
benching so we have a safer press that
better stretches the PCS and puts you in
the perfect angle that this is where
you're going to use anyway now if you're
doing an incline dumbbell press well I
would say this still applies see
actually learned this cue from Jared
feather ifb Pro when I train Renaissance
puz we went to that preset 45° station
and he told me straight up that it's
better to start from a high angle and
Arch the [ __ ] out of it down to a lower
angle than to start low but have no
tightness because the angle is the exact
same the upper chest biasing is
equivalent but all the other factors
that I mentioned are not and again just
for the stretching alone this is worth
considering yo I love that reaching que
it makes such a difference cool right oh
my God so you like uh arching on the
incline I [ __ ] L really eh yeah that's
why we have varying degrees right
exactly like an arch really [ __ ] hard
on a high incline and put the degrees
change a little bit but the stretch is
just so much better for the PS exactly
so it's better to do a higher incline
and Arch to an angle lower 100% than
just keeping it low but you're not
Tight cuz the arch sets up your chest it
sets up your scap it does everything to
align you it also collapses you down so
that there's no movement possible cuz if
you start with a flat back and then as
you press you start arching more it's
going to change the [ __ ] while you're
doing it exactly and that's kind ofir we
like to lock into the technique once
we're locked in we stay
in beautiful man beautiful so that is
your choice and in my opinion 15°
incline benching is the riskiest option
of all it's a great accessory to the
flat bench but I don't think it's best
for upper chest now for those who say oh
it's awkward to lock out at the top of a
higher incline when you're tied I would
say that it's not and you could protract
like I said earlier but if you don't
want to if you want to stay tight the
whole time well why not just do length
and partials they they might actually be
superior if H pery so you can literally
just do bottom up Reps don't lock out at
the top problem solved it's not like the
converging aspect matters much anyway
when we're talking about the barbell
version so you do whatever you want but
that's the key analyzing the absolute
angle of the exercise not the angle of
the bench so 30° is best but that means
you need to be at 30° your chin needs to
be higher than your upper chest you yes
it goes back to you so as long as you're
honest with yourself you should be all
set for any incline press moving forward
now my second tip relates to how you
perform the incline barbell press which
is going to look different from a
traditional flat bench especially if you
Ed to powerlifting form see you do not
want to be pressing low on the
chest or resembling a traditional J
curve where it's low and then high but
not too far back no you actually want to
mimic more so of a vertical
line AKA high up on the upper chest the
clavicle Guillotine style or at least
closer to it please do not be bringing
the barbell down to your nipple line
because this will actually make your
leverages worse and doesn't stretch the
pecs to the same extent because on an
incline bench if you bring the barbell
low the sternum angle is more pronounced
by comparison what I mean is if you're
laying on a flat bench whether you bring
it a little bit lower or higher you're
not affecting the stretching portion
that much it's just having worse
leverages but here you're taking away
from the range of motion and it's not
the best way to press off an incline and
I would actually argue the same thing
for a 60° press or even 75° you do not
want to be pressing the bar away from
you and this is something I learned as
someone who has hypermobile elbows the
Smith machine of all things was
instrumental in teaching me how to press
correctly which is not necessarily
flaring out out your elbows but at least
bringing the bar higher up that is the
most important thing I could tell you
and again I'm going to give credit to P
cerion for really opening up my eyes on
this one because for years I was trying
to incline bench like a powerlifter and
it was not the best by perge Fe I had
horrible lockout issues and the stretch
on the upper chest was not to the same
level and if we know that the bottom
portion is most important on this
exercise then just bring it up no you
will not destroy your shoulders heck you
can eventually work up to flaring out to
the sides regardless I just want to
encourage you to sue more so of a
vertical line kind of pressing form
doesn't have to be perfect but you
actually do want to be pressing further
back you're going to have a lot less
mlfts and you might get way more reps
this way like I was shocked when I
started bringing the bar towards my face
like literally all the way back what you
were taught not to do on a flat bench
you want to do this on incline press it
it's the exception and again it's no
coincidence that all the Golden Era
bodybuilders did their incline pressing
this way they weren't doing machine
training or even had much understanding
of bi mechanics at all but they
intuitively figured out that this is the
way to do it higher up and you press
back which leads to a superior lockout
and a greater stretch try it I'm telling
you you will never go back to Incline
pressing low as if you're doing a power
lifter style bench they are not the same
exercise stopped treating it that way I
made that mistake for years and I always
wondered why the exercise didn't feel
right for me well now I know why oh and
for those who are going to criticize the
fact that the upper chest fibers run at
a 45° angle and therefore bringing the
bar higher up doesn't align you the best
for one this goes back to the converging
effect which is not why you're doing the
inclin press and
also when you rotate the humoris the
upper chest fibers become more
horizontal so this is a non-issue
I mean you have a choice and I would say
this is more applicable to the dumbbell
version but with a barbell it doesn't
[ __ ] matter so with dumbbells you can
do at 45 and then converge upwards but
again you still want to press back but
with a barbell where the bottom portion
matters most well since you're taking
away stretch by bringing it low down you
want to raise it higher up and again
you're not going to be completely
internally rotated like this either so
the alignment is really not much of an
issue I'm not saying this doesn't matter
but it more so applies to Cable
exercises or machines that need to be
designed a certain way and again whether
you're pressing high or low it doesn't
mean the upper arm angle must
accommodate that perfectly you can still
have that cork screw effect going on and
it'll still be in the same spot you guys
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description now my third and final tip
is to actually change the way you flat
bench to get more pess
involvement which you might think is
doing the guillotine style but no I'm
not going to recommend that for today
instead do the opposite the reverse grip
bench press now before you click off
because you FAL believe it's dangerous
no no no it's logically safer than a
regular bench press and I can prove it
to you with pure facts with the reverse
grip you are forced into external
rotation you can not flare your elbows
out even if you wanted to you're locked
in and it's very easy to get tight
similar to a Yates row you know when
you're rowing low down and you feel the
lats it's the same thing here you're
bringing the bar inwards with the
perfect elbow tuck and then either
pressing straight out or slightly back
the bar will never come directly towards
your face actually you can't do that
because your mouth is aligned with the
bar during the unrack that's how you get
it out of the rack so that's another lie
exposed people saying that it's
impossible to take out no you're just
not laying down correctly then the other
thing is if you use the talon grip rib
so I'm not suggesting that you have to
do a full underhand no if you just stick
it in between these two fingers like
this and then you grab okay you're going
to be at a very slight angle semi
supinated which solves the wrist issue
and makes the unrack just as easy as a
flat bench or comparable enough and it's
very secure it is not falling out of
your hands and even if it did fall out
of your hands which it won't I've done
365 on this
exercise if your bench with the safeties
and the stations do have this now you
don't even have to go to Power rack
anymore it lands on your chest you
deflate come out clean no worries so
that's my little rant about safety if
you made it this far I'm just tired of
guys being soft for an exercise that is
objectively safer physiologically
speaking it's so much easier on the
shoulders to the point where guys who
had rotator cuff injuries who can no
longer bench heavy the normal way can
still press heavy in Reverse we've seen
this time in and time again I'm not
going to repeat myself please watch this
full guide on the Ben press that I made
a couple months ago all this to say from
a muscular biasing standpoint according
to EMG data there's 30% more chest
activation and yes this logic can be
applied to any press doesn't just have
to be with a barbell you can do it with
dumbbells provide your not in the way
and you can do it with rings actually
RTO dips are one of the few dips that
allow you to get upper chest think about
this dips are known to build the lower
PEC yet the RTO will also build the
upper insanity but the point is you get
a much better contraction in your pess
which is what the EMG data is actually
showing because in the lengthen position
that's not where it's going to be more
active right so it's more so to the
midpoint where you feel it kicking in
and this is exactly what happens when we
do a similar exercise in an isolation
sense known as the low to high cable
crossover if I told you to squeeze your
upper chest or to isolate what would you
do you would have your hand low down
here and you would Flex it up right you
feel that contraction I'm not doing an
incline press I I don't have to be up
here right I don't I don't have to be
pressing High just being leveled with
the upper chest is enough to feel that
contraction so that's another way to hit
the area without having to do inclines
and it's especially useful for home gym
guys who only have a flat bench or maybe
you've done a lot of inclines already
you don't want to hit that angle again
because maybe it's too much front Del at
this point you're fatigued
but you still crave that biasing effect
well let's say you did incline dumbbell
bench then incline barbell press right
your third exercise can be a reverse
grid bench you're still going to build a
ton of mass everywhere it's equally as
good as a normal flat bench but he gets
slightly more upper chest seems like a
good deal to me plus it corrects torso
dominance because by having the arms
that locked
in it also biases the triceps so what
you have is an upper chest and triceps
Builder
actually for me I feel it even more my
tries than my upper chest but I still
believe it's a good Mass builder for the
Shelf that's a good alternative to the
incline closer bench press I would say
that's the most comparable variation we
have but you know just to blend up your
system to avoid redundancy this is
another great variation and again it
lowers overuse of the shoulder joints
that cannot be stressed enough so for
that reason alone it's worth changing up
the way you bench press with that that
said I'm done for it today there's
obviously a lot more upper chest tips I
can share I made all the mistakes over
the years and if you want a part two let
me know but in the meantime these cues
got you
set
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