god hand

I just cant get my chest to grow doing bench exercises. I want a bigger upper chest. Do u think push ups will help me pack on more chest muscle

musclepump

Compared to the alternatives, no. Hit the dumbbells, inclines and declines. I'd stay away from the cables for awhile. What was your routine like that you were using when you "just couldn't" grow? How long have you been on it?

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Machher

the reason being the overload presented to the chest during the workout never changes. You are applying the same force to your tris and chest during every pushup. so no adaptation will take place (thus no hypertrophy).

ihateschoolmt

I bet you're overtraining. What is your routine?

god hand

Yes thats what everybody told me. I use to bench press 6 times a week! And then cut it to once a week. I tried the Max OT program for awhile ( basically 4-6 reps if u want to see growth they stay) I did that for a month and my bench went up damn near 25 pounds. 160-185. But I was still the same size thinking it only effected my triceps and shoulders. I currently dont have a rountine, I dont know what the fuck to do.

MillerMan

try some DB flyes also they isolate the chest and u can get a good judgment of your chest strength because your tri's aren't doing any work for you.

Mudge

Do you really think a pushup is that significantly different from a bench press? The weight will certainly be FAR less. Paul Demayo was criticized for having a weak chest, some people just have weak points, like calves which are common.

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Doublebase

There could be other variables controlling this. What does your diet look like? Are you maxing out every week? You are probably overtraining. Throw some DB's in there somewhere. Weighted dips.

Mudge

If he feels other things are growing though then its probably not dietary (only half way eluded to above).

If you are benching very high on the chest it hits my arms hard, I dont bench anywhere near the nipple on a flat bench. I only bench high on an incline.

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Flex

guarenteed you don't know how to contract your chest muscles when doing any kind of chest exericise, be it benching or pushups. You hafta literally SQUEEZE your pecs to raise yourself, not just push (that puts most of the strain on your shoulders)

first learn how to contract your pecs, then they'll grow.
so yes, they can grow by doing pushups.

You're a funny guy, Sully, I like you. Dat's why I'm going to kill you lahst.


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Mags

Bodyweight simply will not be enough to stress the chest enough to make it bigger. Like the others have mentioned, look at your diet and make sure your getting the right amount of calories/protein etc and your not burning up too many. Chop and change your routine, do power movements one week then higher rep ranges etc the next, always use different training techniques so the chest (and this applies to all muscle groups) can never fully adapt to the workload placed on it so it has no choice but to keep growing (until you reach ones genetic limit -this'll change depending on age, metabolism etc). Check out Gopros training routine thread somewhere on here, that pretty well accomodates all of the above. My chest never grew till I started swapping bench for dumbells, decline for weighted dips etc. It'll work mate, just be accurate with cals and training. Good luck

BUILD IT, AND THEY WILL COME.
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god hand

I know diet isnt a problem because my other muscles or growing. The problem is I just cant get a pump in my chest only my triceps and shoulders (which is starting to take its toll) I've tried neck presses, but they hurt my shoulders even more. This weekand at the gym I'm going to try a wider grip. I am confused about were I should bring the bar down to (nipple, collarbone, or inbetween?) They say it works your upper chest more if u bring it down to your collarbone, but I still feel nothing. Do you really have to contract your pecs during bench? I've never done it before because I throught it did it by itself. I'll try that two. The only growth I've seen in my chest was from push ups which stopped after like 4 months. When I first started benching I did 95lb. Now I do 185 and My chest is 100% the same as which I started and thats y I dont think if I keep moving up itll have to grow, when my triceps and shoulders could just keep getting stronger. I'm about to kill myself trying to find something that works!
Age 18
Height 5'10
Weight 155

Doublebase

Did you try dumbbells? A wider grip will hit your shoulders even more.

lpz213

get the hint foo, use dumbells in your routine, 6x a week benchpressing is alot dogg.

Mudge

Well, at 155 pounds I do hope you are growing. Do you keep measurements with a cloth or soft plastic tape? How light were you beforehand?

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Tha Don

Incline press

Yanick

i have trouble believing you put 90lbs on your bench and saw no improvement in chest. have you any before/after pics? newbies usually tend to not be able to see differences in their bodies, hell i worked out for a year and almost quit before i saw a picture of me before lifting and noticed a huge difference. it takes a while to learn how to see slight changes in your body (day to day even hour to hour).

post up your whole routine, that way we can critique it and give you advice based on the whole thing not one day.

"...we have to remember that training is a complicated dance of stimuli and response. Our goal is to understand how to manipulate the stimuli in order to evoke the responses we desire." -Nathan J. Polenchek

god hand

I know what my body looked like before and after! Only thing thats gotten bigger is my shoulders.

Flex

that's because you are pushing with your SHOULDERS. learn how to flex your chest muscles, then they'll grow.

anyone who says you can't get a decent chest (notice i didn't say huge, but definitely decent) is wrong. When i was 15, before i started working out, I used to do pushups every single day, and my chest got big as hell.

You're a funny guy, Sully, I like you. Dat's why I'm going to kill you lahst.


* Got juice?*Need Motivation?*How to Train*
*Arnold vs. Ronnie vs. Haney vs. Sergio*
*YEAH BUDDY...LIGHT WEIGHT!*Ahhnold*

Mudge

Sorry man, but I doubt it. When I see someone who can hit 280@8% doing just pushups, I'm going to buy you some free whey protein. Ronald McDonald and Mickey Mouse, for the record, are not "big as hell."

Kinesiology Vote @ Top 25 Deads Comp Bench
Motivation Bench form MaxCalc Charles Poliquin
When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be. Lao-Tzu
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MillerMan

it can increase your muscular endurance but you won't get "big as hell" unless you are just genetically bigger.

Mr. Diesel

What has worked for me and others in my high school weightroom is have a wider grip on the bench. Move your hands out at least 5-10 inches. Whatever you can handle the most will do you better. Try to get at least 20 grams of protein within 3 hours of your workout also. Exceed 20 for better results also. Trust me it will work.

Mudge

20 grams of protein EVERY 3 hours is good if you are 100 pounds.

Kinesiology Vote @ Top 25 Deads Comp Bench
Motivation Bench form MaxCalc Charles Poliquin
When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be. Lao-Tzu
I don't know any sources so don't ask - thanks

god hand

Your body can only take in so much protein at one time.

Flex

PLEASE read what i said.

I didn't say for someone who is 280@8%. That example is pro-esque. I didn't say pros can do it. I said when i was 15, before i started working out, pushups definitely made my chest decently big........dick

You're a funny guy, Sully, I like you. Dat's why I'm going to kill you lahst.


* Got juice?*Need Motivation?*How to Train*
*Arnold vs. Ronnie vs. Haney vs. Sergio*
*YEAH BUDDY...LIGHT WEIGHT!*Ahhnold*

Mudge

Sorry Flex, I thought I saw in there "big as hell" something something.

Kinesiology Vote @ Top 25 Deads Comp Bench
Motivation Bench form MaxCalc Charles Poliquin
When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be. Lao-Tzu
I don't know any sources so don't ask - thanks