Want to really get attention? This is the chest and tri workout to let everyone know you’re jacked and that you know what you’re doing with your gym workouts.
Results and the envy of your fellow trainers are guaranteed.
Two of the most popular muscles that make a man stand out are the chest and tri. These two regions of your body work together simultaneously while performing pressing exercises intended for your pecs, and you can include your shoulders being involved in there significantly as well.
To make them stand out among the crowd, you have to give them the right attention during your training. That means a real chest and tri workout regimen.
Normal flat bench pressing and a couple of triceps exercises just do not cut it. Adding in less common exercises is the way to go. Don’t worry.
You won’t have to look for info on the best chest and tri workout because this article is going to cover everything you need from training to rest.
Targeting Chest Muscles Properly Is Key
Believe it or not, your chest region actually has an upper and lower portion. However, most chest pressing exercises target only the lower region.
That is why a lot of men do not have a full chest. The reason for this is because the incline bench press is considered the top exercise in a training day that hits the upper chest.
This may be a great exercise, but sadly it only targets the upper pectoral region about 5% more than the regular bench press. That is not really a big difference in terms of muscle recruitment.
The normal bench press is great and all, but it activates a lot of shoulder muscle recruitment. This is how to gain muscle…
Do you really want to get a killer chest workout?
If so, then try the reverse wide grip bench press.
Why?
It activates your upper pectoral region about 30% more than the regular flat bench press. That is a pretty big jump in muscle contractions. This exercise, incorporated into a well-balanced chest workout, will ensure that your chest muscles are growing fully and simultaneously.
Try Using Different Equipment For Your Killer Chest Workout
Another thing to consider is that different types of equipment provide you with a better chance at pectoral isolation. Barbells and dumbbells are effective, but using only free weights is going to put you behind in chest training.
Adding in resistance from the cable pulley machine should be on your list of things to do. With chest and tricep workouts you want avoid the no equipment workout.
Cable machines allow you to use lesser weight settings to receive nice muscle contractions through proper control of the resistance. These are very versatile as well.
You can move an adjustable bench to go between two pulley machines and use them for your chest workout.
But, don’t just use cable machines. They’re not meant as compound movement replacements. Instead, add in the use of this equipment to make your workouts more effective during isolation. Exercise machines such as the ones used for the chest flye come in handy as well.
The only bad part about them is that they are intended for a specific exercise. That means you have to use another machine for the next exercise instead of just adjusting the cables.
Targeting Your Triceps Properly Is Key
Your triceps are composed of three muscle heads, thus the reason the word “tri” is in triceps.
The longhead is the largest one that runs along the back of your upper arm, and is the main one that most see. But, this does not mean you should neglect the other two. You should be doing many triceps exercises if you wish to make your upper big arms appear fuller.
Your biceps are important for this as well.
Your triceps react to the different angles your body is placed in. The further down during an extension the better. That is why decline triceps extensions are very good for growth and strength boosts. The incline position is not so bad either.
But, remember, this is placing your body angle higher and closer to your triceps, so the flat bench would be the next best option.
Studies show that the flat bench and decline bench press work much better for your triceps workout in terms of lying down movements so do not be afraid to try them out and see what you like.
Most movements may make you feel uncomfortable, but sometimes this is a good thing because it shows that muscles not normally targeted are being recruited for contraction.
What’s a Great Chest and Tri Workout Without Contractions?
As with your chest exercises, you want to use a variety of different equipment to provide your triceps with resistance. Cable machines are great for your arms workout because it means you are using equipment with capabilities that free weights don’t have.
This includes using the rope. Some people use the rope with just a single arm, but most use it with both hands. The rope is good because when you do two hand movements, your hands are able to swing outwards.
That allows far better triceps contractions to take place.
Putting The Two Muscle Regions Together
A chest and tri workout is one of the most common combos to put together. But, to make your chest and tri workout schedule effective, you have to give mutual muscle recruitment for both of them.
Many fail to understand this.
The only reason you would only do a couple of triceps isolation exercises is because you have an arm specific training day, or you just do not care to add on much to your triceps. With that said, if you’re reading this, chances are you’re here to boost both your chest and tricep workout.
Starting off with a heavy compound movement intended for your triceps is not the answer. Later on, we’ll give you a chest and tri workout with all the exercises, sets and reps that should help you grow.
Don’t Forget About Rest And Recovery
Okay, so you most likely know about the whole 24-hour minimum rest time. In case you didn’t know before, you do now. But the thing about this is that a lot of people perform shoulder workouts following their chest workout.
This really does not make any sense if you want recovery to take place. Your shoulders, chest and triceps are used greatly during a killer chest workout, which is why some even knock out their shoulder workout on the same day.
Make no mistake about it: You need to take a 24-hour rest period. This means you should either choose a leg-training day to go in place after chest training, or just take a full day of rest.
This will ensure that you have the time to recover and prevent any serious injuries from possibly occurring. You can also count on not having to deal with extremely sore muscles either.
The reason behind this timeframe is because this is how long it takes for protein to reach your muscle fibers through your bloodstream and allow protein synthesis process to occur.
What is protein synthesis?
This is when protein is being removed or repaired within your muscle fibers.
Want to know how to get stronger?
The end result is that the cells are denser and stronger.
After training you have to consume enough nutritious calories to support muscle building. This means that you eat more calories than you are using for daily energy expenditure.
Of course, this is the complete opposite of what you would do if your goal were to lose weight. Basically the phrase “eat big to get big” is based off of this concept.
Stand Out After A Month Of Using This Chest And Tri Workout
You can use this workout for your chest and tri workout however long you like, but it is better to switch out exercises every other month or so to keep your body from adapting and forming a habit.
Why?
This could prevent you from gaining muscle and strength. What follows is how your workout should look.
The loads used for these exercises depend on what you are able to lift. Everybody is different so it is impossible to narrow down what everyone should be using for resistance.
However, we can state heavy, moderate or light to give you an idea. For this chest and tri workout, all exercises that have a rep count of x5-6 will be heavy loads and x8-10 are moderate loads. Anything over x10 reps is light weights. Take a 90-second break after each set.
Exercise Sets Reps
Dumbbell Flat Chest Press x5 x5-6
Close Grip Flat Bench Press x5 x5-6
Reverse Wide Grip Chest Press x5 x5-6
Decline Ez-Bar Skullcrusher x4 x8-10
Double Cable Incline Chest Flye x3 x8-10
Dumbbell Pullover x3 x8-10
Cable Rope Triceps Pulldown x1 as many as you can
You can see from the exercises that both your chest and triceps are receiving nearly the same amount of attention.
Maybe the triceps muscles are not getting quite as much attention, but that’s because they get a nice workout through chest pressing exercises as well. Remember to take enough rest between each set to allow your body enough time to exert energy for the next lift.
If 90 seconds is not enough, then add another 30 seconds making it two minutes of rest.
You can also consider adding in other exercises such as the single arm dumbbell chest press. This is an exercise that focuses on your pecs, triceps and also the core of your body.
Why is it so good?
Simple, because you are struggling to remain balanced. Use moderate to heavy loads and insert it for the third chest exercise you perform.
Other exercises to switch around are dumbbell overhead extensions, decline dumbbell extensions, reverse close grip bench press, incline cable flyes and you could even use the seated chest flye machine. But, use only one arm for each set to make things interesting.
The final exercise is called a burnout. This is when you use the rest of your remaining energy to finish out your workout for the day.
This is used to create extra intensity and will surely make your triceps feel worn out.
Note that a burnout can be using the same light weight to perform as many sets as possible, or you can make it more challenging by decreasing the load every time you fail until you can go no longer.
Do Not Forget To Stretch Before And After
Stretching is also a major part to all of this. Dynamic stretching for as much as five minutes prior to training is great because it loosens up your joints and increases blood flow to your muscles prior to heavy lifts at the start of your workout.
Dynamic means you are moving joints around instead of holding a stretch.
Static stretches are good for as much as five minutes following a workout. This encourages better recovery and should be performed one more time at another point during the day to lessen the soreness. Static stretching is when you place a joint at its maximum range of motion and hold that position for at least 30 seconds.
Conclusion
There you have it. You now have all the info you need to have an amazing chest and tri workout.
Sure you focus on the common muscle groups, but the use of decline triceps extensions and reverse grip bench press takes it to an all-new level of muscle training specific to an ideal chest and tri workout.
The ideal physique is right around the corner. All you need to do is put in the effort.
– By Brian Pankau, CPT
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