Thread: how many sets is good for chest?

What have you had the best results with? For me personally, I keep it between 5-8 sets.

Depends entirely on intensity, volume, etc.

heres what works for me,with the presses,i keep it heavy going heavier each set with less reps till failure each set.
5 sets BB benchpress
4 sets incline BB press
4 sets cable crossovers from the bottom
4 sets cable crossovers from the top

Do dips count as chest? Right now, I'm doing 3 sets Incline barbell, 3 sets flat barbell, and then 3 sets of dips. I find that even when I don't lean forward dips still hit my chest pretty hard.

Originally Posted by cshea2

Do dips count as chest? Right now, I'm doing 3 sets Incline barbell, 3 sets flat barbell, and then 3 sets of dips. I find that even when I don't lean forward dips still hit my chest pretty hard.

yeah dips hit the chest indirectly, specially if your elbows arent pinned to your sides.

iam just curious on how many sets works for people, just to get the maximum growth, i should of explained myself a little better.

Originally Posted by gtbmed

Depends entirely on intensity, volume, etc.

This.

For instance, when I was doing full-body (actual full-body, all 6 planes of motion in one session) I might have done say 9 sets for chest-dominant in one week. With that amount my chest was never overworked because the sets were split up into 3 sets 3 times a week.

Now, I'm using very high-volume program I put together, 4 day split, in which I use 12 chest-dominant sets a week. That's not really a drastic increase, especially considering its volume. However, it's all in one session. On the other hand, the 3 day full-body split involved more training close to failure (e.g. 3 x 10 @ 11-12RM), whereas my current volume program is designed in such a way that I max out only on the first lifts for each plane of motion (5 x 5 @ 5-6 RM). After that, the sets and reps are very high, but the intensities are laid out so I (ideally -- sometimes fatigue from volume is inevitable, even if the weights are lighter) don't hit failure. It's sort of a way of CNS-safe form of intentional overtraining. Then there's tempo, rest intervals, and thanks to Gaz's recent post we now all know about tonneage!

There are far too many training variables to generalize target number of sets.

I'm usually in the 12-15 set range. I train heavy with low-medium reps during bulking, usually flat bench, incline and a stretching movement to finish, like d-bell flyes or cable crossovers. I know this is more sets than most, but it's what seems to give me the most size and strength. Of course all this varies when I'm not training for max size and strength. Lots of people have great success with a smaller number of sets.

Originally Posted by MDR

I'm usually in the 12-15 set range. I train heavy with low-medium reps during bulking, usually flat bench, incline and a stretching movement to finish, like d-bell flyes or cable crossovers. I know this is more sets than most, but it's what seems to give me the most size and strength. Of course all this varies when I'm not training for max size and strength. Lots of people have great success with a smaller number of sets.

How often do you train chest-dominant lifts?

ok, what ever worked for each individual person, what they did to get the best growth they got out of training chest, in past or now. high intensity, keeping the session under 1 hr. what ever volume u used and all its variables, the best that you think worked for you to get good growth, and number of sets, reps and time frame while on a cycle.

I do a 2 day split each week, for example-

Wed:
Work up to a single RM (where I try to set a new PB), & then 4x1 @ 90% of that single RM. " BB flat bench"

Sat:
9x3 @ 60-70% of single RM. "This is where I rotate BB incline & decline bench"


So I average about 18-19 sets each week.

Few sets of some type of bench usually works for me. Usually five reps, but thats just me. May not be enough volume for you if you're conditioned to more volume/bodybuilding type training.

I do think a less is more approach to training chest is the best route to take for basically anybody though.

^^yeah iam getting everybodys data on sets ect, and trying to apply some sort of training to my chest iam at a sticking point and iam just very interested in wat others do. thnx gaz

Originally Posted by unclem

^^yeah iam getting everybodys data on sets ect, and trying to apply some sort of training to my chest iam at a sticking point and iam just very interested in wat others do. thnx gaz

Maybe you don't need to assess your volume. Maybe choice of lifts is an option. There are the lesser-known plateau buster chest lifts. I've been using Dead Press as my primary chest-dominant lift for about 2 months and my chest strength and development has finally taken off after about a year of little progress.

Gaz wrote a great article on getting over bench plateaus on his site - getlifting.info.

Originally Posted by cshea2

Do dips count as chest? Right now, I'm doing 3 sets Incline barbell, 3 sets flat barbell, and then 3 sets of dips. I find that even when I don't lean forward dips still hit my chest pretty hard.

iam glad u mentioned dips as i havent done those in ages. thnx.

Originally Posted by BigBadWolf

heres what works for me,with the presses,i keep it heavy going heavier each set with less reps till failure each set.
5 sets BB benchpress
4 sets incline BB press
4 sets cable crossovers from the bottom
4 sets cable crossovers from the top

your very well thick in the chest big so thats the sets i see alot. good post.

Originally Posted by cshea2

Do dips count as chest? Right now, I'm doing 3 sets Incline barbell, 3 sets flat barbell, and then 3 sets of dips. I find that even when I don't lean forward dips still hit my chest pretty hard.

Bar Dips are chest-dominant, yes.

Bench Dips are in a gray area, though. I'd say they're tricep dominant, with little if any chest involvement because the origin of exertion is behind the body, so I can't imagine how the chest could do the pushing (like how hack squat mimics a deadlift, yet is quad dominant).

^^^ i love bench dips for tris, only thing is you need to plate load your quads. its a good point though.

Originally Posted by unclem

your very well thick in the chest big so thats the sets i see alot. good post.

thanks bro,i dont think theres any one type of training that works for everyone,ive seen guys get fking huge from weights id warm up with,and ive seen guys get huge from 3 or 4 sets of heavy stuff,i think the key to growth is finding out which works for any certain person.What workout you doing now for chest?I also switch my routine after 6 to 8 weeks.

Originally Posted by unclem

^^^ i love bench dips for tris, only thing is you need to plate load your quads. its a good point though.

Take caution though -- this is a potentially dangerous lift for your rotator cuffs. I never had problems, but I've heard many people complaining about shoulder pain after bench dips.

It's a shame, though, because they're great for tricep development. This was the lift that gave me my first boost of confidence from arm size when I first started BB'ing. Within 6 months I was repping 3 plates in my lap.

Originally Posted by Phineas

Take caution though -- this is a potentially dangerous lift for your rotator cuffs. I never had problems, but I've heard many people complaining about shoulder pain after bench dips.

It's a shame, though, because they're great for tricep development. This was the lift that gave me my first boost of confidence from arm size when I first started BB'ing. Within 6 months I was repping 3 plates in my lap.

very true but wat a pump, holly toledo. i love them. i use the hammerstrength version but i like bench dips better. sometimes just doing higher reps.

Originally Posted by unclem

very true but wat a pump, holly toledo. i love them. i use the hammerstrength version but i like bench dips better. sometimes just doing higher reps.

Oh man I forgot about the pumps from bench dips! I couldn't wait for it when I was about to do them.

Originally Posted by Phineas

How often do you train chest-dominant lifts?

Once a week during a strength/power phase. A lot of people go for the less is more idea these days, but I'm 43, so I guess I'm a bit prone to higher volume lifting. Nothing wrong with less sets and exercises if it works for you.

Originally Posted by MDR

Once a week during a strength/power phase. A lot of people go for the less is more idea these days, but I'm 43, so I guess I'm a bit prone to higher volume lifting. Nothing wrong with less sets and exercises if it works for you.

I think it's wise to play around with both. I've used both extremely low volume and (currently) extremely high volume. All methods have worked well, though I'm thinking by my results on this program so far I'm more inclined to volume. I've never gained like this.

Originally Posted by Gazhole

Few sets of some type of bench usually works for me. Usually five reps, but thats just me. May not be enough volume for you if you're conditioned to more volume/bodybuilding type training.

I do think a less is more approach to training chest is the best route to take for basically anybody though.

The bold is definitely true for me. My chest respones great to 5x5. Of course just because this works well for my chest doesn't mean that it works as well for my other muscles.

Originally Posted by Phineas

I think it's wise to play around with both. I've used both extremely low volume and (currently) extremely high volume. All methods have worked well, though I'm thinking by my results on this program so far I'm more inclined to volume. I've never gained like this.

Could not agree more. I think everyone should experiment and find out what works for you personally. Funny thing is-as soon as I feel like I've figured out the perfect way to train, I need to make changes because my body starts adapting, and I need to do something different to keep things fresh. Seems like the only constant long-term is change. Gotta love this sport! I do lean towards the higher volume end of things as well.

Originally Posted by MDR

Once a week during a strength/power phase. A lot of people go for the less is more idea these days, but I'm 43, so I guess I'm a bit prone to higher volume lifting. Nothing wrong with less sets and exercises if it works for you.

mdr, iam thinking along those lines as well i think to get out of this sticking point, use different gear and due higher reps ive been doing 10-12 but 16-20 1 x a week might break through this bs. but i want to get a median through all the guys that posted up here. iam studying this thread very intensly. wrote down all sets so far from everybody then going to devide.

Originally Posted by PushAndPull

The bold is definitely true for me. My chest respones great to 5x5. Of course just because this works well for my chest doesn't mean that it works as well for my other muscles.

Usually people overtrain their chests so much that cutting back a little bit makes growth explode. I don't know why people equate chest and back as equal, the back is absolutely massive compared to the pecs.

Volume-wise, i think this is the order of things:

Legs
Back
Chest
Shoulders
Arms

Yet most programs are:

Chest
Arms
Shoulders
Back
Legs

Almost completely in reverse! Its no wonder so many people have trouble growing. They're trying to do le mans on a scooter and taking the ferrari down the shops. Use the big muscles for the most work, and the smaller ones for less work!

Sorry, rant over, lol :P

But yes, my chest also responds really well to 3-5 sets of 5. And generally i only do bench. Maybe 3x8 on DB Bench sometimes - INSTEAD of 5x5 on BB.