Inner Chest Workout for Your Desired Chest Look

Every person who works out and who is seeking to have an exceptional and strong chest knows that a chest demands full attention when working out. Each of the bodybuilders you see at the gym has their own way of building their upper and lower chest. If they carry out their exercises on the flat and the incline benches, that would give them an upper inner chest workout. If they shift to the decline benches, they will be working on their lower pec chest. So what are you supposed to do when you need the best inner chest workout? Which are some of the strategies to use to build your inner chest? In this post, you will learn how to carry out an inner chest workout at your gym and have a solid inner chest. But before we get into it, let us have a look at the anatomy of the chest so that we understand the various muscles which are involved in the workout.

Anatomy of the Chest

The chest does most of the pushing functions during your workout. If you are looking out on ways of developing your chest, begin by emphasizing on lifting weights in the right ways to avoid injury. There are also various muscles found in the chest.

Pectoralis Major

Just as the name suggests, this fun-shaped muscle makes the majority of your chest muscle mass. The pectoralis major originates from the ribs and the sternum and it inserts itself into the upper part of the humerus muscles.

The pectoralis also makes your shoulder joint to be more flexible and moves the arm towards and across your chest. Therefore, when training the pectorals, the shoulders and the triceps will also be training.

Pectoralis Minor

This muscle is located under the pectoralis major. It is thin and triangular in shape and it attaches itself to the 3^rd, 4^th and 5^th rib in your body. The pectoralis minor also reaches the shoulder blade. It works with the pectoralis major and pushes the shoulder up and down.

Serratus Anterior

This part is not regarded to be fully part of the chest anatomy but in most cases, it is grouped as part of the chest muscles since it attaches itself to the pectorals. It is found at the sides of the chest and it moves the scapula forward and upward during the workout.

Here is a list of inner chest workouts you need to practice in your regular training routine.

Inner Chest Workout 1: Pressing Dumbbells

Using the dumbbells is one of the best ways through which you can build the lower and upper pectoral muscles in your body. It can also be carried out on a flat bench or a decline or incline bench. Inner chest workout with dumbbells is very effective.

Instructions

Step 1:

Lie down on the bench and hold the dumbbells with both hands. Always make sure that the arms are away from your body.

Step 2:

Lift both dumbbells using both hands. When lifting the weights in this way, to have a perfect inner chest workout, the arms should be at 90 degrees with the body. Carry out many reps as you wish but make sure you do not overwork your muscles as this can cause injury.

Step 3:

If you feel fatigued, hold them for a moment and gradually return them to their original position. It should be done gradually and not momentously. If you do it suddenly, you will cause an injury to the rotator cuff.

Inner Chest Workout 2: Dumbbell Fly

The dumbbell fly has a greater emphasis on the pectoral muscles in your body and it targets mostly targets the lower pectorals.

Instructions

Step 1:

Place your head and back on a flat bench and let your feet remain flat on the floor. Hold the dumbbells with both hands and make sure the arms are extended and the weights are positioned directly above the center of your chest. The arms should be at 90 degrees.

Step 2:

Lower dumbbells to the sides of the body and make sure they make an arc with the arms. Make sure your elbows are bent when lowering the weights to avoid stressing the biceps muscles.

Step 3:

To complete the rep, exhale and bring the dumbbells closer to the together over the chest. You can perform the exercise according to the recommended reps.

When carrying out the exercise, one of the greatest mistakes which people make is overloading the dumbbells and focusing on achieving a higher rep count. It can cause injury to the chest muscles. Also, make sure you do not drop the dumbbells as it can also cause a rotator cuff injury.

Inner Chest Workout 3: Crush Press

Crush press exercise lays emphasis on the inner pecs only. When practicing the exercise, make sure you select the weights which you are comfortable with. Selecting heavyweights which will strain you is not recommended.

Instructions

Step 1:

Set your bench at 45 degrees and lift the dumbbells. Lean back on the bench with the dumbbells.

Step 2:

Press the shoulder blades together and at the same time make sure you hold the elbows back.

Step 3:

Crush the weights together and hold them for a while with your arms. Ensure the tension falls on the inner pecs. Avoid relaxing at the top and maintain the tension as you lower the dumbbells to the chin level.

When you are pressing the dumbbells, make sure you crush the dumbbells together so that you can achieve a positive contraction which will make the inner pecs remain stimulated.

The crushing of weights will also make stronger through the process called muscle irradiation. The stability of your shoulders will be improved and the inner pecs will also be strengthened.

Inner Chest Workout 4: Pec Deck Fly

It is an exclusive inner chest workout exercise which targets the major and minor pectoral muscles. The machine used acts as a stabilizers ad it makes the exercise effective for the beginners and the regular trainers.

Instructions

Step 1:

Sit on the machine and keep your back straight. The back should be pushed towards the support pad to ensure you are stable and the back is well supported to avoid injury to the spine.

Step 2:

Spread your palms outwards and hold the handles of the machine. The upper arms should be parallel to the floor when you are carrying out the exercise.

Step 3:

While squeezing your chest, push both handles until they are in front of your body.

Step 4:

Make sure you hold the contraction for a moment before bringing back your body or hands to the initial position. Holding the contraction will play a great role in strengthening your major and minor pectoral muscles.

Carry out the exercise according to the recommended number of repetitions. When you are carrying out the exercise, make sure you have paid attention to the way in which you relax the arms since using the wrong form to relax your arms would lead to an injury.

Inner Chest Workout 5: Dumbbell Crossover Shrug

Do you have one dumbbell and you have no bench to use and you need to work on your inner chest? Well, you are also sorted out with the dumbbell crossover shrug workout. Athlete physician and strength coach Jeff Cavaliere says that you can build your inner pectoral muscles with this exercise called the dumbbell crossover shrug.  The simple exercise involves the contraction and rotation of the shoulders.

Instructions

Step 1:

With a slide bend of the elbow, hold the dumbbell on one of your sides.

Step 2:

While making sure your back is straight and the feet are shoulder apart, rotate the shoulder and the wrist towards the inner pectoral muscles so that the horizontal dumbbell remains horizontal on your thighs.

Step 3:

Bring the shoulder up with a shrugging speed and let the biceps to be across the pectoral muscles so that the barbell remains at the middle of the body.

Step 4:

Go back to the original position and begin the exercise.

When you are using the single dumbbell, it is always good to make sure you have given equal attention to both sides of your body. It can be achieved by always making sure you have performed an equal number of reps for both. This is important to make sure there is no pectoral muscle which has been left out. The detailed dumbbell crossover shrug is available on Cavaliere’s website, Athleanx.

Inner Chest Workout 6: Wide Grip Push Up

If you are in your house and you do not feel like going to the gym, you can easily workout on your inner chest using the wide grip push up. However, one thing you need to know is that the exercise is a bit challenging and it is a variation of the regular pushups which targets the shoulder and the chest. The exercise can be performed by anyone whether you are a beginner or a heavy bodybuilder.

Instructions

Step 1:

Place yourself in a plank position and make sure the hands are wider than the regular push up exercise. The arms should be straight and there no movement of the torso.

Step 2:

Lower the body towards the ground while making sure your elbows have been bent.

Step 3:

Make sure you hold the posture for a moment before getting back to the original position.

Carry out the exercise according to the recommended number of repetitions. To make sure you are having a maximum efficiency when carrying out the exercise, make sure you have tightened the core. You can also use a weighted vest when you are carrying out the push-ups to improve resistance.

Inner Chest Workout 7: Decline Dumbbell Fly

If you are looking to have a greater emphasis on your lower pectoral muscles, using the decline dumbbell fly would be the best exercise option for you. The exercise also builds the other pectoral muscles found in the chest. The exercise can also build the deltoids which are located on the shoulders as well as some muscles in your back and the arms.

Instructions

Step 1:

Take a decline bench and position yourself on the bench while holding the weights. Make sure you place the dumbbells in front of the chest with your arms fully extended. As always make sure the arms are at 90 degrees to the body.

Step 2:

Lower the dumbbells gradually to the sides of the body to form a wider arc when they are in line with your body. Make sure the elbows are bent to avoid causing straining on the bicep muscles.

Step 3:

Hold the dumbbells for a moment before returning to the original position. Raise the dumbbells and follow the same path used to raise them so that you lower them.

You can carry out the exercise according to the recommended number of reps. As always, avoid overloading the weights and do not focus on achieving a higher rep count.

The development of the inner pectoral muscles of the chest is one of the challenging things. In most cases, when you are carrying out chest training, the outer fibers of the pectoral muscles will take up most of the resistance when exercising. The inner chest muscles will lack proper stimulation leading to poor growth. This is the reason why you should avoid placing an emphasis on the heavyweights when working on your pectoral muscles since it can give you bulging pectoral muscles. The above inner chest work-out variations will play a great role in building your inner chest. It is not necessary to carry out all the exercises but you can work on each of them and see the one which fits you most. The steps above should also be followed to avoid causing injury to your muscles.