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Bench

Substitute exercises for incline and decline?

Jakemeades
Jakemeades g Jake Meades
2 Post(s)
2 Post(s) Gender: Male Goal: Bodybuilding Date Joined: October 10, 2014
Posted

I only have a flat bench and feel like my upper and lower chest isn't being worked enough, are there any good exercises that dont require an incline or decline bench that i could do to work these areas? At the moment my chest workout is flat dumbell press, flat flys, press ups and flat bench.

jmboiardi
jmboiardi p John M Boiardi
2.6K Post(s)
2.6K Post(s) Gender: Male Goal: Bodybuilding Date Joined: October 10, 2013
Posted
Posted By: Jakemeades

I only have a flat bench and feel like my upper and lower chest isn't being worked enough, are there any good exercises that dont require an incline or decline bench that i could do to work these areas? At the moment my chest workout is flat dumbell press, flat flys, press ups and flat bench.

Jake,

 

There is a way to train upper chest with just a flat bench but you need to be EXTREMELY careful when doing it. What you do is you set yourself up on the bench as if you were doing a standard bench press but instead of bringing the bar down across your chest you bring it down across your throat. Your arms will be at full 90 degree angles to your body and shoulders will be stretched to the max. This is why this exercise is dangerous. You need to go more for lighter weight and really control the motion and squeeze at the top. If you try to push the amount of weight too high or you don't do these in a slow controlled manner, you risk a pec tear, shoulder tear, strained elbows, or a throat injury if you drop the weight.

 

Another option is to do push ups but instead of putting your hands next to your body you put them out past your head. You still press like a push up but you do it more like a dive bomber push up.

 

The lower portion of your pecs is easier and can be hit with dips. Scott has a video that shows you how to do a dip to focus more on the chest than the triceps. Dips can be done between two chairs if needed.

 

John

34 years of lifting and nutritional experience and resident "old man" :-) MS Athlete and past Super Hermanite since 2013.
JoeHurricane
JoeHurricane p Jordan Matthews
1.5K Post(s)
1.5K Post(s) Gender: Male Goal: Gain Muscle Date Joined: December 12, 2013
Posted
Posted By: Jakemeades

I only have a flat bench and feel like my upper and lower chest isn't being worked enough, are there any good exercises that dont require an incline or decline bench that i could do to work these areas? At the moment my chest workout is flat dumbell press, flat flys, press ups and flat bench.

You could also do push ups with your feet elevated on your bench to target your upper chest.

SHF Athlete MS Athlete Partial Fitness YouTuber
Adawg38
Adawg38 g Aaron Henry
563 Post(s)
563 Post(s) Gender: Male Goal: Gain Muscle Date Joined: December 12, 2013
Posted
Posted By: Jakemeades

I only have a flat bench and feel like my upper and lower chest isn't being worked enough, are there any good exercises that dont require an incline or decline bench that i could do to work these areas? At the moment my chest workout is flat dumbell press, flat flys, press ups and flat bench.

You can do a reverse grip bench as well that will activate the upper pecs more. Bring the bb down to your chest, hold and 1 hand at a time reverse your grip so that your palms face you. It is usually recc to have a spotter with this bench especially if you use a thumbless grip but you can wrap your thumb around like most. Keep your elbows about 45 degrees closer to your body as well.

I have been training coming up on 6 years and have made some great gainz. I've done a lot of trial and error on myself as well as learned from others and through research online. I've come along way in strength and size since I've started. I will continue to learn and make myself better each day. MS Athlete/Super Hermanite BEING CHALLENGED IN LIFE IS INEVITABLE, BEING DEFEATED IS OPTIONAL.
Whisper
Whisper p+ Kostas Kroustaloudis
687 Post(s)
687 Post(s) Gender: Male Goal: Train for a sport Date Joined: September 9, 2011
Posted
Posted By: Jakemeades

I only have a flat bench and feel like my upper and lower chest isn't being worked enough, are there any good exercises that dont require an incline or decline bench that i could do to work these areas? At the moment my chest workout is flat dumbell press, flat flys, press ups and flat bench.

Lower chest will be covered by the bench press. As for the upper chest, you have the alternatives the guys above offered you plus one I m gonna give you.

- Decline pushups. Good alternative but not the best for overloading the muscle.
- Guillotine press. Excellent upper chest builder, but extremely tough on the AC joint.
- Reverse bench press. Excellent upper chest builder, but can be unsafe without a spotter.

- Barbell Overhead Standing Press. This is known as a shoulder exercise but it actually heavily recruits the upper chest if you use a full range of motion.

Kostas

Muscular Strength Athlete and Content Manager 6 Years Lifting Experience Bachelors in Molecular Chemistry/Biochemistry, Working towards Masters Lifting Style & Philosophy : Aikido, Energy, Balance, Flexibility, Posture
Jakemeades
Jakemeades g Jake Meades
2 Post(s)
2 Post(s) Gender: Male Goal: Bodybuilding Date Joined: October 10, 2014
Posted

Thanks for all the replys, gonna use these in my workout!

muscular strength
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