The respected strength coach broke down his science-backed chest workout from top-to-bottom, hitting all areas of the key muscle.
For many gymgoers who place a heavy emphasis on weight lifting in their workout routine, a frustrating muscle to grow can be the chest. While it varies by individual, anyone who is having a tough time seeing consistent muscle growth in their chest or feels as though they’ve plateaued, there is some good news. Thanks to certified strength coach and founder of ATHLEAN-X, a leading science-based fitness brand, Jeff Cavaliere, the fix may be easier than anticipated.
Cavaliere offered detailed instructions on how to fill in “gaps” in chest workouts, along with a science-backed breakdown of the best approach to your weight-lifting routine. He explains what the “perfect” chest workout should consist of, but why the baseline concept of hitting all areas (upper, middle and lower) will still leave out a few keys to optimizing your gym session.
Best Chest Workouts: Why Fitness Expert Says Many Approaches Lead to Plateaus
Many gymgoers who focus on a specific muscle group or two during each gym session likely change up the exercises they do. Regardless, the main focus for chest workouts should be (and likely is, for some), to ensure you’re working out your upper chest, mid-chest and lower chest.
Although this will feel like common knowledge to some, the key is to ensure you’re taking advantage of the opportunities to remove the “gaps” Cavaliere mentions during the breakdown below the video.
“Now, the perfect chest workout should consist of exercises for your upper chest muscles, middle chest muscles, and lower chest muscles,” Cavaliere writes. “But, even that doesn’t guarantee chest gains … you need to fill in the gaps of what is lacking on those popular chest exercise.”
So, how do you fill in those gaps? And most importantly, what else can you do to push past the plateau and see true muscle growth? Cavaliere walks through the science aspect that fuels three key areas: frequency of chest workouts and number of sets, along with the specific exercises to integrate.
Science-Backed Approach to Frequency and Sets for Chest Workouts
As Cavaliere highlights, his research into the science of chest workout frequency and set count shows that focusing on that muscle twice in a given week is recommended.
“When it comes to the perfect science-based workout, the first thing you really have to ask yourself is, ‘What’s the frequency with which I’m training?’” Cavaliere says. “One thing we do know with pretty good confidence these days is that two times a week for a muscle group is actually better than may just one time a week. [However,] the third extra workout in the week doesn’t really provide much extra benefit, but the two will.”
To go one step further, he specifically explains the science that highlights the benefits of focusing on a number of sets to do each week.
“If we want to grow our chest, there’s got to be some target point for the number of sets we have to perform,” he explains. “Well, the good news is science actually gives us the answer there too…somewhere between 12 and 24 sets is the target set volume that you want to have for your chest if you want to grow it.”
The primary reason noted is that there’s overlap between some chest exercises. Cavaliere ultimately points to targeting 10, 11 or 12 sets per workout, leaving you in the 20-24 range.
Full Daily Breakdown of Chest Exercises to Fill the ‘Gaps’ and Build Muscle
The video does an excellent job of showing how both days of chest workouts will look, with a focus on hitting all key areas of your chest. Throughout the clip (just above), Cavaliere walks through every workout to show how it should look, and we’ll list out each day’s workouts just below.
Day 1 chest exercises:
- Primer: Banded external rotator (10-15)
- Incline dumbbell bench press (3 sets of 5-8 form failure)
- Crossovers (3 sets of 10-12 reps)
- Dumbbell floor flys (2-3 sets of 8-10 reps)
- Deficit 1.5 rep push ladder (1 set to failure)
- Bodyweight dips (1 set to failure)
Day 2 chest exercises:
- Primer: Band pull-aparts (1-2 sets of 10-15 reps sub max)
- Dumbell bench press (3 sets of 5-8 form failure)
- High-to-low crossovers (3 sets of 10-12)
- Incline cable press (2-3 sets of 8-10 form failure)
- 1.5 rep dip ladder (1 set to failure)
- Prison yard pushups (1 set to failure)
It’s an impressive and well-rounded two-day workout plan that effectively pushes your chest to the max and is poised to set you up for success.
