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Chest Workout Tips for Size (HARDGAINER EDITION)

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Rating: 4.0; Vote: 1

A chest workout for hardgainers must do more than just advise you to train heavy. Heavy lifting is important for hardgainers to begin to build muscle mass and size, however it isn-t the only key element of shoulder training. In this video, I-m going to show you how important it is to learn how to lift lighter on certain exercises and how to lift heavier on the right chest exercises, if you want to start adding serious size fast to your chest or pecs. Before even getting started however, one of the most effective chest workout tips I could give anyone (not just a skinny guy looking to add muscle) is to train shirtless. Now of course, this advice is best followed if you are training in the comfort of your own home gym! That said, many hardgainers find themselves in this exact situation because they feel self conscious about going to the gym and training in front of the much larger and more muscular guys. When you train without a shirt, you not only face your insecurities but you allow yourself a chance to watch your muscles as they work and use the visual feedback to more accurately focus your effort on the muscles you are actually trying to build. Let-s face it, if you are a beginner lifter or are not carrying large amounts of muscle you are likely not mastering the mind muscle connection with the muscles you are trying to develop. You don-t have the -feel- of what the muscle is supposed to feel like that you are training. Training shirtless allows you to watch the muscle contract and therefore tweak your form to enable a stronger contraction in the target muscles. When you do this, you will be surprised just how much quicker you can get that muscle to respond. Next, you will want to start with a few chest exercise activation tips to help you build a bigger chest. The most important thing you can learn how to do is to press with your chest and not your front delts or shoulders. This is easier said than done. You can learn how to activate the often dormant scapular muscles that increase your awareness of how this should feel by starting with a few sets of scapular hanging pulls. From here, do some standing barless chest presses to ensure that your shoulders are staying back and that the press is coming from the chest muscles. You will then head to the bench press where you will face your typical hardgainer insecurity of the amount of weight that is on the bar that you are pressing. The big mistake is to think that it is not macho to be benching lighter weights. This doesn-t matter since trying to push weights you can-t handle will do nothing to help your chest grow. Start with a weight you can control and learn to press it correctly with your chest instead of your shoulders. That said, heavy weight lifting is important for overloading the muscles of a hardgainer to build more muscle size and strength. We can do that with the use of touch up sets. These allow you to feel the heavier weights (generally 20 percent heavier than what you will use in your working sets of 6-8 reps. Just unrack the weights a few times and rack them again to feel what it is like. From here, perform one touch up set with the pins set high to allow you to get as many reps and then safely let the bar rest on the pins. You have neurologically awakened your muscles to the heavier weight and allowed your body to become more confident in the weight you will use for your working sets. The tips shown here are just a few of the best ways to build a bigger chest with your chest workouts. The complete ATHLEAN-X Training System available at is a step by step 90 day program that will transform your entire body by training you like an athlete
Date: 2022-04-22

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Comments and reviews: 10

sulezraz
0: 43 Activation - There is a muscle awareness issue. You-ve got to be able to press with the chest and not the shoulders. -
1: 20 Hanging Scap Pulls (6-8 reps) - Do this on chest day. -
1: 19 Pressing Problem - Don-t let arms lead the way when pressing but you want to let your chest lead the way. The arms and shoulders have to stay back, and this can be done by having an awareness of those muscles used in the Hanging Scap Pulls. -
2: 33 Standing Weightless Press (5-6 reps)-
4: 44 Heavy Weight Hold on Bench - Bench press only a weight you can control, but for this exercise pick a heavier weight, unrack and push to extend arms, hold and then put down. This helps you become more comfortable with the weight. Can then do 1-2 reps which makes going to working weight feel easier. -
7: 09 Train -Through- Failure - e. g. using bands after going to failure on a Dip or going down weight on a dumbell.
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Thomas
I just started watching your videos. I have been in the Navy for 12 years and I am definitely a hard gainer. I am 6-3 and 145 lbs and have been for about 15 years now. Your videos motivated me to try the gym again. The biggest issue I have is when I do any chest or arm workout my left elbow won-t push the weight I have after working out for about 2 sets, after a few reps I can-t get it to go straight all the way. I have never injured my elbow before so I-m not sure what to do about this. My right arm will push through just fine but then I end up with a tilted bar. Or a fully extended dumbbell and one that I can-t. I-m not sure if you will see this but any help is appreciated!
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Pentzzz
Is it ok to do bench press excises if I have a posture issue, namely kyphosys and hyperlordotic lumbar spine (aka anterior pelvic tilt)? I'm mainly concerned about the lumbar because we know we tend to arch it while pressing and right now I'm trying to pull it back, not arch it. So, what do you think? And as I side note, when I did try bench press (and other exercises as well actually, I always get sore shoulders; I always assumed it's because of the bad posture, but now you confirmed it.
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Oscar
Jeff. one of the biggest mistakes when gym lifting, you can correct me if I-m wrong, but it is ego lifting. People wanna impress and the add weight a that they can-t control. At the end of the day people will end up laughing at you. And on top of it, you are not building any mistake. I heard this from the Dwane Johnson, the ROCK. He learn this from his dad. I saw a video of him talking about his main gym lesson when he went to lift with his father.
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Andrew
Do have anymore other hard gainer suggestions. I-m 42 and have always been physically fit somewhat. over the last 2 years I gained weight. I-ve lost all that weight and am slimming well working all body for a full athletic look rather than than bulky at the top only. My chest is chiseled but it doesn-t fit my big shoulders so I need to define it the n cut. I think-
Love your show plz help. Thanks. Andrew
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Smartie
Another great vid Jeff, love the assisted dip's. Would love to see you describe at what point we should stop the dip, coming back up as locking out the elbow to get the triceps squeeze defeats the lower chest focus? (yes, it's a question) Also, big up Jessie for cracking your head on the bar in bench press, we've all done it lad. Just not on camera. You styled it out really well though. LMAO
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Jyrki
Interesting it is, Jeff. Keeping this all simple may be just working out every day, eating nutritionally best food, and not worrying about overtraining. After 20-30 years of such gym training, your body will tell you, what is needed. You will be able to ignore all the naysayers' warnings of not-to-do's after your 40th or 50tb birthday. They just are not valid anymore.
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SystemFreaKk13
May be worth mentioning that the -hardgainer- concept finds its roots in the -Somatotype- taxonomy (ectomorph, mesomorph, endomorph) which is predominantly regarded as pseudoscience. Unsurprisingly its a bit more complicated than -I'm a frail and bony ectomorph, must mean I'm low testosterone and gaining muscle will take me twice as long. -
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dilligaf
Never worry about the weight your using as long as the exercise is being done right with strict range of motion. I disagree with using heavyweight to control his confidence he should be using his mind when building his weight, then he can avoid straining a muscle, -This is just my opinion. Love the videos.
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Sekki
I'm about to give up working out. I've been doing chest exercises for 2 months and I've never felt any pain or have been sore from them. I just can't activate my chest no matter what I do it seems like. Maybe my genes are just shit.
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