Masthead - Image
Home   •   Departments   •   Citizens   •   Business   •   Leisure   •   Online Payments   •   Downtown Wireless
Parks and Recreation Department
Biceps
Chest
Shoulders
Legs
Workouts

LeftNav - Right Corner Image Main   >   ParkRec   >   ParkRec Recreation   >   ParkRec Fitness

Chest

Generally when training my chest, which is a lagging body part to me, I usually alternate between dumbbells and barbells to save my rotator cuff. These chest routines center around various bench press routines all targeting different muscles of the chest. Good rule of thumb to remember: Inclines for upper chest, flat bench presses for middle chest, and decline for the lower chest. Personally, I like using dumbbells versus barbells because I tend to get forearm splints from gripping the bar too tight. Dumbbells give me a better range of motion since I am a smaller framed person. I am a guru for high reps/high repetition due to the fact that I am not a “monster bencher!”
I laid out the two basic bench patterns for you to use. The first is the one that I follow, constantly mixing up the order of the exercises but generally keeping the repetitions and sets at the same number. The second is for the big boys who can throw the big weight around- hats off to you, you are definitely a breed apart!

My Chest Work Out
Dumbbell Bench Press 4x12
Incline Dumbbell Press 4x10
Pec Dec (Butterfly Press) 4x12
Dumbbell Flye 3x12
Push-Ups 3x12-20

Second (Monster’s) Chest Work Out
Flat Barbell Bench Press 3x8
Barbell Incline Press 3x6-8
Barbell Decline Press 3x6
Dumbbell Pullovers 3x10
Dips (Weighted Optional) 3 sets till all out failure

5 exercises may seem too much- but it’s just a mere suggestion! Three exercises would be okay- I put in 5 so you could go “the extra mile!”
This is a basic, no frills work out that is good for thickening up the muscles and overall bench strength. If this work out isn’t working for you, improvise- it is merely a blue print. Keep the rest between sets short, no longer than 60 seconds.

Outline of 3 Different Areas of Chest

Upper
Incline Barbell Bench Press 3 sets x 12,10,8 reps
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press 2 sets x 10,8 reps

Middle
Flat Barbell Bench Press 3 sets x 10,8,8 reps
Dumbbell Flyes 2 sets x 12, 12 reps

Lower
Decline Barbell Bench Press 2 sets x 10, 8 reps
Decline Dumbbell Flyes 2 sets x 12,12 reps