If you are looking to develop your chest muscles a little more than look no further, we can show you how to train the inner chest. There are so many exercises available out there that can help you to develop the inner chest muscles; it’s just a matter of finding ones that target that inner chest. More often than you would think, many people end up with uneven development in their inner chest because they resort to only doing chest presses. Don’t get me wrong; the chest press is an essential part of training your chest, but if it’s all you’re doing then that could be a mistake. Variety is the key to building your inner chest.
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It’s a mistake only to focus on using a chest press; sure it’s an effective workout, but you need to be mixing things up a bit in order to avoid uneven muscle growth in the chest. Dumbbell presses aren’t enough to stimulate the fibres closest to your breastbone. You need more than that.
If you are looking to build muscle mass, then doing multi-joint exercises is the best option for building the inner chest. There is more than one muscle group handling the load in these exercises which allows you to lift more, therefore your muscle mass increases.
How To Train The Inner Chest
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In order to work the inner chest muscles, you need to focus on more exercises that don’t depend on your arms sticking straight out in front of you. There are tons of exercises that you can engage in that will do more for you than a basic bench press will do. It’s time to start thinking outside of the box and spark up a new workout.
The Best Exercises For The Inner Chest
The goal here is, how to train the inner chest, so we are going to show you some different exercises that will help build up your chest muscles without depending fully on the chest press. Again, we are not discounting the chest press, as it is an excellent workout, but we can’t just depend on it any longer. We need to add more to your inner chest workout in order to build up some serious muscle mass.
1. Flies
Most people already now what a fly is, it’s one of those exercises that have been around for a long time. It may be an old exercise, but it’s very effective when it comes to working the inner chest. This exercise can be done on a bench using free weights, or you can use the universal fly machine, whichever one you are most comfortable with.
This exercise is insanely good for targeting the pecs. The best possible way to engage those inner pecs is also to engage the mind in your exercise. Just as you’re are completing the motion, you also need to remember to squeeze your pecs.
When we say squeeze, we really mean flex them just at the moment when the arms are being brought together. By engaging your pecs in this way you are working them a lot harder. This is an exercise that is all about control and needs to be done slowly. If you go too fast, you can risk hurting yourself.
Do a few sets to see how you feel and get a chance to see the weight that you can lift. Always keep track of your weight goals so that you are always moving up.
Here is an example of the proper technique for a fly:
2. Diamond Push-ups
Bodyweight exercises are a great way of really pushing yourself. Push-ups are very difficult exercises especially since they can constantly be altered to be harder every time you do them. If you are looking to fire up your inner chest muscles, then the Diamond Push-ups is the perfect exercise to do that. If you are looking how to train the inner chest effectively, then give these a try.
This particular exercise has actually been used in a lot of the Army training camps. Put yourself in the push-up position, placing your hands in the shape of a diamond. Lower yourself to the ground and push yourself back up. Not only will you be getting a killer inner chest workout but your abs will be engaged as well.
Check out the video below to see what a diamond push-up looks like:
3. Cable Cross-Overs
The cable cross-over is a great exercise that isolates the inner chest and makes it burn. This is the exercise that is best known for etching those deep striations into your pec muscles. Why is that? It’s best there is a lot of stress place on the entire pectoral muscles at one time. The inner chest gets the most strain which is why you get that wonderful burn.
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Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and grasp the handles of the cable cross-overs. Your palms should be facing outwards, and your arms should be just slightly bent. Place your arms diagonally upward and extended. It’s best always to have your torso bent a bit forward in order to maximize your pectoral stress; this will engage the muscles, even more, giving you a better workout. Hold that position for the entire exercise.
In regards to breathing, you should be exhaling as you force your hands down and together. The movement should be as if you are trying to hug a tree. Only use your chest muscles to bring the hands together in front of your hips. This is an exercise that should be done slowly with a lot of control. The movements are strict and in a semicircular arc.
When you are at the finishing position, hold it there for five seconds flexing your pecs as much as you can. It may look like you are posing but you are really giving your pecs an intense workout. At that point, you can slowly lower the cables back to the starting position. Try a few sets of that to test the weight to see what you are comfortable with.
Here is axample a cable cross-over:
4. Close-Grip Bench Press
Now if you are going to do any bench press exercises for the chest, then this is the one to focus on in order to build those inner chest muscles. You may be thinking that this is more of a triceps exercise, but I’m about to prove you wrong. There’s no doubt it will work out your triceps in some ways, but this is really a great chest exercise. It’s all about using strict and slow movements in order to give your pecs an intense squeeze.
If you concentrate on the movement, you will immediately notice how it really targets the pec area. Your arms should be as relaxed as possible during this exercise; you want your pecs doing all the work. The weight you lift should be lower than what you would normally do on the bench so that your form is on key. Once you have built up your inner chest muscles, you can start increasing the weight.
Here’s an example of a close-grip bench press:
How to Grip the Bar
How you grip the bar is an important part of the exercise. Your hands should be shoulder-width apart at all times. Bring the weight down slowly on the chest as if you are doing a three count. It can be easy to forget to breathe so make sure you are inhaling on the way down and exhaling your breath on the way up. Your pecs should be doing all the work for this exercise. When it’s all the way up, hold it there for a two count and then bring it back down. It should all be one fluid motion.
Make sure your form is key before you start adding a lot of weight. Once you have your form established, choose a weight that you can do for 6-10 reps. You want to be able to lift heavy to build muscle mass, so if you can only do six reps, that’s fine.
Conclusion
If you are looking how to train the inner chest, then these are the best exercises available to you. They will target the inner chest muscles in a way that will make the exercise harder and more intense for you. It’s very important to concentrate on your form and technique at all times. The best way to get an injury is by using a sloppy technique or using weights that are too heavy for you. Built up your weight gradually and never overdo it. If you are lifting weights on a bench, especially for a chest press, make sure you have someone spotting you at all times.
You will find that as your inner chest muscles increase in size that you will gradually be going up in weight and your reps will change. If you find yourself going above eight reps regularly then increase your weight and go back down to six. This way you are constantly growing without allowing your body to plateau.
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