Akuma,
I started reading bits and pieces of your body part threads. Good stuff. I’ll try to read all in the next week or two but just curious what your split is like?
Sorry if you have posted this and I missed it…
[quote]add1cted wrote:
when doing cable flies (bringing the hands together at chin height) i usually notice too much stress in my front deltas - any advice on how to avoid this?
i mean, i still feel the contraction really well in my upper chest, but i’m also pretty sure i shouldn’t feel it that much in my shoulder…[/quote]
Tilt your hands. Turn your hands outward as you Fly, so that at the apex of the movement, your pinkys touch. Give it a shot.
[quote]jimg21 wrote:
Akuma,
I started reading bits and pieces of your body part threads. Good stuff. I’ll try to read all in the next week or two but just curious what your split is like?
Sorry if you have posted this and I missed it…[/quote]
Chest
Shoulders/back
Arms
Legs
I throw in abs and offdays where i see fit.
[quote]Akuma01 wrote:
[quote]add1cted wrote:
when doing cable flies (bringing the hands together at chin height) i usually notice too much stress in my front deltas - any advice on how to avoid this?
i mean, i still feel the contraction really well in my upper chest, but i’m also pretty sure i shouldn’t feel it that much in my shoulder…[/quote]
Tilt your hands. Turn your hands outward as you Fly, so that at the apex of the movement, your pinkys touch. Give it a shot.[/quote]
kk will try this 
Anyone ever done paused flat DB presses? They rip my chest apart like nothing else.
[quote]plateau wrote:
Anyone ever done paused flat DB presses? They rip my chest apart like nothing else.[/quote]
Well i normally slow the movement down and explode at the bottom, but define paused flat db presses lol.
[quote]Akuma01 wrote:
[quote]plateau wrote:
Anyone ever done paused flat DB presses? They rip my chest apart like nothing else.[/quote]
Well i normally slow the movement down and explode at the bottom, but define paused flat db presses lol.[/quote]
Paused press = at the bottom stop, bench as one would in a PL meet.
ah, then yea, thats the only way i do my DB presses =p
[quote]plateau wrote:
Anyone ever done paused flat DB presses? They rip my chest apart like nothing else.[/quote]
On incline DB presses I always pause for a second or two at the bottom before pressing back up, seems to make my chest work harder with less stress on the shoulders.
The pullover involves the chest, but doesn’t necessarily do a great job of training it directly.
If I do chinups or pullovers before benching, I notice my strength slightly diminished on the bench, though.
Dips do a suprising good job at training the chest.
Hey Akuma, I find doing incline flyes hits my upper chest good, have you any done these?
[quote]Marzouk wrote:
Hey Akuma, I find doing incline flyes hits my upper chest good, have you any done these?[/quote]
I have, but personally i also feel it in my delts and my Glenohumeral joint moreso when i do em incline. So i prefer to keep my Flys to Flat bench. In terms of an Incline bench, personally i’ve started ONLY doing DB presses. Incline BB Bench kinda has the same effect as the flys do, in that when i start getting heavy (315+) i feel a lot of activity in my joint, and we dont want that.
Good point about activating the delts
[quote]Akuma01 wrote:
ah, then yea, thats the only way i do my DB presses =p[/quote]
Sorry useless detailed post my me… anyway a 2 sec pause while as low as possible - leaves my chest sore like it used to get from extreme stretching.
I like them but the reduction in load (45kgs rather than 55kgs) does hurt my ego… So don’t do them week in week out.
Your post about incline flys is exactly how I felt.
I can’t let a great thread like this die. Anyways I heard from a few bodybuilders that close grip pressing exercises work the inner chest or cleavage of the chest whether upper, middle or lower. This got me thinking about pectoral and related anatomy and practical application.
If inner chest can be emphasized by peak contraction, maximal contraction of the pecs happens when your serratus anterior is allowed to protract and upward rotate your scapula. Of course this would be stupid to allow your scapula or shoulders to move in exercises where your back is against a surface but it may be a smart thing to do in cable flies/crossover or push up variations where your back isn’t against a surface?
Anyone have any experience on letting your shoulder blades protract for chest exercises when your back isn’t against a surface?
Also the pecs are innervated by two nerves the lateral pectoral nerve(upper chest) and the medial pectoral nerve(rest of the chest). I read somewhere on pub med that this upper chest nerve can also work the front delt so if ones shoulders are dominating on chest exercises one can modify the chest exercise to reduce front delt work since the upper and lower chest have different functions(i.e. db flies with pinkies facing each other instead of thumbs).
However hitting the upper chest will usually involve the front delts to some extent so for people who delts dominate it will take some trial and error.
[quote]JoabSonOfZeruiah wrote:
I can’t let a great thread like this die. Anyways I heard from a few bodybuilders that close grip pressing exercises work the inner chest or cleavage of the chest whether upper, middle or lower. This got me thinking about pectoral and related anatomy and practical application.
If inner chest can be emphasized by peak contraction, maximal contraction of the pecs happens when your serratus anterior is allowed to protract and upward rotate your scapula. Of course this would be stupid to allow your scapula or shoulders to move in exercises where your back is against a surface but it may be a smart thing to do in cable flies/crossover or push up variations where your back isn’t against a surface?
Anyone have any experience on letting your shoulder blades protract for chest exercises when your back isn’t against a surface?
Also the pecs are innervated by two nerves the lateral pectoral nerve(upper chest) and the medial pectoral nerve(rest of the chest). I read somewhere on pub med that this upper chest nerve can also work the front delt so if ones shoulders are dominating on chest exercises one can modify the chest exercise to reduce front delt work since the upper and lower chest have different functions(i.e. db flies with pinkies facing each other instead of thumbs).
However hitting the upper chest will usually involve the front delts to some extent so for people who delts dominate it will take some trial and error.[/quote]
cant say that i keep my shoulder blades retracted when doing cable motions, my entire focus is on my pecs. In response to the close grip barbell, yea it will target more inner chest, but it will also toss in more triceps, and thats not what we want (Unless of course, you do Tricep and chest on the same day. In that case, go nuts).
Try that Palms facing in, Dumbbell touching press i mentioned in my log. You can do them incline/flat/decline. Just flare your elbows out, and continuously press in as you press up and it will be a nice Inner pec movement. Also, in movements like cable flies, you can Cross arms.
The main purpose of the Pec is to bring the arm ACROSS The body right? Well, then work it in its entirety. Hell if you’d like to turn it into a middle focused movement, reduce the Rom. Start with cables in front of you, basically shoulder width, and just cross your arms as much as possible without bending at the elbow. Bam, a isolation Inner movement.
I don’t think of the clavicular area as upper chest…I think most bodybuilders refer to that as the pec/delt tie in…when i’m thinking about upper chest, i’m really thinking about the upper mid chest area…
The best exercise i found for that upper mid chest area is easilly the hammer strength incline bench…
hammer strength also has a machine for the pec delt tie in though…its called the super incline or something like that…it’s basically a high incline press…
Thanks ill try that dumbbell touching press.
Unfortunately for me weighted dips are now out of the question, It was a great exercise for my pecs but unfortunatelty Im experience way too much pain in em to do them anymore, even though, I attempt to try them again and pay for it after.
Im surprised how many people dont use decline work, I find it the best angle to hit my pecs directly as Inclines and Flat incorporate my shoulders more than I would like.