The chest is among the major muscle groups that bodybuilders really want to build. After all, it feels really good to puff out your chest knowing that you’ve worked hard to get it fully-developed.

The chest muscles are also known as the pectorals or simply pecs, and chest exercises are known as pec workouts.

That is because it is actually made up of two muscles called the pectoralis major and the pectoralis minor.

By its name alone, you would have gathered that the pectoralis major is the bigger muscle. In fact, it covers almost your entire chest.

Its primary functions are turning your arms inward, pulling them down, and pushing them forward. The smaller muscle (pectoralis minor) is located right under your pectoralis major and is attached to three of your ribs as well as the front part of your shoulder blades.

Its primary function is to pull your shoulder blades down, as when you’re doing push-ups.

The good news is that no matter what your body type is – whether you’re naturally muscular or skinny – you can still get good results from pec workouts.

A few weeks of doing an effective workout routine should make you feel more confident wearing tight-fitting shirts or even going shirtless, especially at the beach. Of course, you’ll have to make sure that you perform your pec workouts properly.

Avoid muscle injury by always taking the time to warm up before you get into the workout routine. Here are some of the best exercises that you may want to incorporate into your pec workouts.

Push-ups go right to the top of the list of chest exercises. This is a compound exercise that works not only the chest muscles, but also the shoulders and triceps. Its primary focus, however, is in working the chest, which is why it is considered as one of the best chest exercises you can do. Perhaps the best thing about push-ups is its versatility. You can do it on the floor either with your legs straight or your knees bent. You can also do it against the wall or inclined using a chair to support your arms. Plus, you don’t need any equipment to perform this exercise.

The second exercise on our list is the chest press. This is a mass-building exercise that helps you get a perfectly firm chest. You can do chest presses either on the floor or on a bench, and when doing it on a bench you can choose to do it lying flat on the bench or in an inclined or declined position.

Another excellent exercise to include in your pec workouts is the Pec Dec, which is a great way to tighten the inner muscles of your chest. One important thing to note in performing this exercise: If you feel some soreness in your shoulders then you are probably not using proper form or perhaps you are using too much weight.

These are just three of the most effective exercises to build your chest muscles.

Bear in mind that most exercises that comprise pec workouts target the triceps and shoulders as well. In order to prevent soreness and injury of these muscles, you will have to include proper warm-up and post-workout stretching sets in your routine. And as always, consistency is the key to making these exercises work.

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