Hey, what's going on Nation? In this week's episode of the VS. Series
We're going to see which
Exercise will help you build a bigger
upper chest the incline Barbell bench press or the reverse grip barbell bench press if you missed the last
Episode where we compared the front squat versus the back squat
[I'll] post a link to [that] down the info section below so make sure you guys [check] it out now
We already talked a great deal about the pectoralis major in the pectoralis minor
And how they function in the barbell bench press versus a dumbbell bench press video
so if you guys want to learn more about
origins and insertions
And how these muscles work I'll post a link to that video to info section below as well
Because today we're just going to focus on one specific area of the pectoralis major and that is the clavicular
head or the upper chest
remember guys the clavicular head originates on the anterior surface of the medial half of the clavicle and
Inserts on the lateral lip, I'm sorry the lateral lip I was pointing to the wrong place of the bicipital Groove
of the humerus and anterior lip of the deltoid Tuberosity and for most of us
This is an area
We definitely want to target to help give the chest a fuller and rounder look but which exercise is best for targeting this area well
Let's find out starting with the barbell incline bench press
The Barbell incline bench press is an exercise used by most gym goers
Specifically to Target the upper chest area we are still working the entire pectoralis major
But more emphasis will be placed on the clavicular head, so right through here
throughout the Movement You will also be activating your triceps Brachii and your anterior deltoids as
Synergistic muscle groups in the short head of your bicep will assist as a
Stabilizer throughout the movement as well to perform [the] barbell incline bench press the first thing you want to do is set up your bench
So it's at a 30 to 45 degree incline and it's going to be up to you to
Basically mess around with the incline to see what feels more comfortable to you, and then once this is set up
I actually would rather you guys get into position, and then make sure that it feels right with the bar with no weight
So get into your position that you use for your incline barbell bench press
and then make sure you can unrack and you can bench properly and
Re-rack the bar because a lot of times what happens if you set it up
And you push the bench too far back once you start benching
You can hit the barbell on the [j-hooks] and ruin your entire set once that's all done
Then toss on your weights
Now another thing I want you guys to keep in mind when doing this exercise now with any benchpress movement
You're supposed to retract your shoulder blades okay this puts you in the correct
posture to be able to get the full descent and then get a full extension with every single repetition if
You do this exercise
And I see this happen a lot when guys do an incline barbell bench press
Is that if your shoulder blades are
Retracted and then at the top of the movement [you] push too far and you flatten out your back that changes the entire
Range of motion of the Barbell and what can actually do is without you even realizing it caused you to bring the bar down?
More over your shoulders
Which is also going to increase your elbow flare and this can put a lot of pressure in your shoulders as well
So keep it retracted
Go to the top be careful
You don't flatten out
and then come [back] [down] and then end up hurting yourself and putting a lot of pressure through the shoulder area, so
Now that's out of the way to perform the movement what you're going to do is lay back
Keep your glutes planted on the bench whenever you do any bench press movement
You glutes stay on the bench keep your knees pointed out feet flat out
You back retract your shoulder blades
Keep your core nice and tight and what you're going to do is grab the bar
Just outside of shoulder width. [I'll] put my pinky fingers on the line right here
once in place
unrack the weight
Taking a breath keep your core nice and tight
and
Then press back up
and that's when you let the air out and the reason why you're taking in a breath and keeping your core tight is because that's
Going to allow you to keep your body
Basically from your torso down [as] one solid piece to give you as much pushing power as possible through the bar now
You're also going to notice that as I perform the movement as I bring it down my elbow us aren't flaring backwards
They're actually staying in position underneath my wrists
And they're kind of turned in a bit towards my torso and then from [here]
I push back up, and I'm keeping them pushed forward one thing
You don't want to do because this can happen to you even if you have your shoulder blades
Retracted is you don't want to have too much elbow
Flare because with too much elbow flare guys can already see the entire range of motion of the barbell
Changing and when you have elbow flare you're actually pushing more through your shoulders
And this can cause a lot [of] shoulder pain because what's actually
Happening as you flail your elbows is the humerus so your upper arm bone is
Squeezing the rotator cuff tendons against the Ac joint and when that happens you're basically
irritating your shoulders on every single repetition
So if this exercise bothers your shoulders, [it's] not because the exercise is bad for you
[it's] because [you] have too much elbow flare
But there is something to [be] said to have a bit of elbow flare on the way up and what I mean by [that] is
This is more of an advanced Powerlifting move
And as you guys get stronger and better with the exercise you can do it as well
[is] that as you come down keep those elbows forward and as you're pushing up
It's okay to flare elbows out a little on the way up to get a bit more power into the movement
But like I said that's a bit more of an advanced technique, so if you've never done it before
I [suggest] try it first with light weight and getting used to it before implementing it into your [regular] working sets
Now another thing you want to keep in mind during this movement is your hand position if you grab the barbell too wide
[you'll] be engaging more of the muscles in the surrounding areas of your chest
and you'll greatly reduce the ability to shorten the muscle at the top of the movement to
[ensure] Maximum Pec activation you have to find a grip that's closer to
Shoulder-width or just outside of shoulder width apart to use when you bench
This would ensure that you get the full stretch at the bottom of the movement in the full contraction at the top
Next up is the reverse grip barbell bench press during this movement. We will also be [working] the entire
Pectoralis major
But we'll be placing more emphasis on the clavicular head as well out
Because of the hand position you will still be activating a triceps Brachii and the anterior deltoids as synergistic muscle groups
But you will feel yeah
You will feel more tricep activation when compared to the Standard Overhand grip also
the short head of your biceps Brachii will be assisting as a
Stabilizer throughout the movement as well to perform the reverse grip barbell bench press
[you're] going to set [yourself] up the same exact way you would if you were doing the standard barbell bench press
So you can have your feet flat [in] the ground
You're gonna push your knees out keep your glutes on the bench [at] your back and retract your shoulder
Blades the main difference here is that you're going to have your palms facing forward as opposed to a palms facing away
And you're also going to have outside shoulder width grip on the [bottom] if you guys grab too close
You're going to activate your triceps more throughout the movement
So you want to make [sure] that your grip is outside of shoulder width so to [unrack] the barbell first get in place
and it's easier to do this movement to get the bar off [the] rack if you position your head directly underneath the
barbell itself
Then put your hands on here. I like to put my
pretty much my middle finger on the line on the [baths] to get myself into position
once in place
remove the bottle from the [J-hooks] and then while keeping your wrist straight and your elbows kind of pointed out and
Keeping your upper arms parallel to each other the entire time you're going to bring the weight down and then push back up
Straight over your chest you guys don't want it to fall into the habit of coming down like this and then pushing up
Over your face, okay?
That's not the movement the movement is to activate your chest so come down over your chest
Push up over your chest [and] if you guys need help
Keeping the barbell in the same position throughout the movement before you start bringing it down
Hold it in the air and then pick a point on the ceiling to line the bar up with once you do
Bring it down
And then push up and bring it back to that same spot every single repetition
And this will help you guys keep the barbell in line
Now if you are properly setting up for the exercise you should be able to rack and unrack the barbell on your own
But if you are having a hard time I do have some alternative methods you can try especially once you start lifting heavier weight
The easiest solution would be to have a spotter help you
But if you don't have a spotter you can try unracking the weight using the standard [benchpress]
Position and then turn your hands around while letting the barbell almost rest on your chest the bottom of the movement
Another solution would be to use [a] power rack and this is the safest solution if benching heavy with no spotter
First what you're going to do is set up the rack so that the barbell rests across your chest
With enough room for you to get out from underneath the barbell when your back is flat
This [is] because when you perform the movement you will have an arch in your back
Which will raise the height of your chest during the movement a few inches, so if you fail
You can simply lay flat [and] be safe
So once the racks are set up you're good to go now for the conclusion guys
Which exercise targets the clavicular head or the upper portion of the chest more well the answer is the reverse grip bench press
Believe it or not studies have shown that when compared to the standard [benchpress] with an overhand grip
that the reverse grip bench press muscle activity the clavicular head increased by 30%
That is a huge jump in engagement just from turning your hands around now don't get me wrong guys
The standard benchpress is still a great exercise and does have its place
it's just that now you know that it targets more of the sternal costal head of the Pec major and if you're trying to build
Your upper chest [it] is not the right exercise to be using as for the incline barbell bench press
Studies showed [that] when compared to the standard benchpress
muscle activity in the clavicular head only increased by [five] percent
However there was a huge jump in activity and in the anterior deltoids by about 85%
Which if your goal is [to] build an upper chest doesn't really help you out
so in simple terms
This means that if you [are] trying to build a bigger upper chest the reverse grip barbell bench press is six times more
Effective than the barbell in fine benchpress that means the clear winner here is the reverse grip barbell bench press
Now my suggestion to you would be on your next chest workout
Replace the incline bench press with the reverse grip barbell bench press and perform four sets of [ten] to twelve repetitions
with only a sixty to ninety second rest period In between
Each set now a few things I want to add here real quick if you guys do research online
Especially with the incline barbell bench press in this video
I tell you to have a grip that's just outside of shoulder width to
Maximize the shortening of the muscle at the top and the stretch at the bottom you will see
Articles online where they tell you to grab as wide as possible
To lift as much weight as possible
And that's where the key difference is if you're a power lifter and trying to improve your overall strength on this lift
Yes
You want to grab as wide as [possible] to shorten the distance the bar has to travel however if you're trying to build muscle
you can see there's a clear difference in the
[you're] stretching the muscle out pretty much the same at the bottom
But when you come to the top you're not shortening, the muscles, you're not getting as much muscle
Engagement now if you were to grab closer and go down and go up, you can see my boobs
Moving forward a lot okay more muscle engagement
Just wanted to toss that out there for you in case you guys do some research on your own
I hope you guys learned a lot today, and if you have friends that need some upper Pec work you better
Send them my way
Now be sure to hit that like [and] subscribe button if you want to see more great content
and if you missed any of the previous
Episodes in the VS series
I'll put a link to the entire playlist down in the info section below and for those of you who are looking for a
12-week Program to build a muscle and strength
Check out my transformation challenge full Routines complete with PDF downloads photos and videos
no cookie cutter cookie cutter Routines here guys just
Workouts designed to get you in and out of the gym efficiently with great results
I will toss a link to that info section below for you as well
Hope you guys have a great weekend and as always more good stuff coming soon. See you guys