Whenever anyone starts lifting weights, they usually want to build their chest up to look like one of the greats such as Arnold Schwarzenegger. They will most likely end up training their chest almost every day thinking that their pecs will grow more if they do it this way. Eventually, they will learn that they should only workout their chest twice per week at most without overtraining. Once they figure that part out, they try to figure out what the best chest exercises are to make their chest grow. Read the rest of this entry »

About this time last year I was taking a good look at my chest workout and was analyzing what I needed to work on. My back was coming around nicely, my arms looked great, my legs were lagging behind, but what struck me the most was my chest muscle, not that it wasn’t big, it was, but at the lack of shape in my chest. Read the rest of this entry »

Four Mr. Universe titles, seven Mr. Olympia titles, Conan, Terminator, Governor…does he really need an introduction? Arnold Schwarzenegger is the most famous bodybuilder of all time, an honor he’ll no doubt still hold a century from now. Partly this is because during his Olympia reign his two best bodyparts were biceps and pecs, and these are the two tank top showboats, the muscles that everyone associates with a bodybuilder’s physique. Read the rest of this entry »

Note: This article is a copy of a Q&A session with Layne Norton.

On leg training:

I just have such a hard time getting my self to work my legs. I keep on talking my self out of it. Any advice?

Legs days are what separates the men from the boys. Read the rest of this entry »

The upper chest is an area that many lifters tend to ignore in their quest for a bigger, thicker set of pecs. The flat bench, admittedly, is incredibly effective at bringing up your overall chest mass because you can handle more weight. But if you’re looking for a complete, polished look, then dedicated upper pectoral work has to be a part of your program. Read the rest of this entry »

Everyone wants a huge chest, plain and simple. The chest has always been regarded as one of the most powerful muscle groups in the body. A man with a well-developed chest is usually characterized as strong and virile. Just imagine for a moment if King Kong had flexed his biceps to display his supremacy rather than pound his massive chest. No doubt it would still be impressive, but not nearly as daunting. Read the rest of this entry »

This is a sample Tuesday morning upper-body lifting workout from Athletes’ Performance Institute’s Combine training program that helped offensive lineman Jake Long — the No. 1 overall pick in the 2008 Draft — perform 37 reps with 225 pounds on the bench press at February’s NFL Combine. Lifting sessions are followed by a one-hour “movement” workout, which entails Combine-specific agility drills, speed work and/or position-specific practice. Tuesday morning is typically a heavy training session. Read the rest of this entry »

You’ve got a dilemma: you wouldn’t dream of missing that coveted chest routine this week, but you just don’t have time to fit it in. If you’re as pec-obsessed as most guys, this has catastrophe written all over it—or so you think. No worries. If you’ve got 15 minutes and a cable station at your disposal, you’ll be walking in and out of the gym in no time with a pair of pumped up pecs.

The following routine consists of four exercises, nine sets total—12 if you count the supersets as two—that can be readily achieved in 15 minutes. But to do this, rest periods can’t exceed 45 seconds, so keep your eye on the clock. Read the rest of this entry »