Bodybuilding is all about balance. When I say bodybuilding, I actually mean everyone from a bikini competitor to a super heavyweight guy. This even includes people that have no intention of competing, but simply want to look better. If you change your shape by building lean muscle, it’ s still bodybuilding!
Many females are told they shouldn’ t train certain body parts( including chest), and that they should just concentrate on glutes, delts and back. This is complete nonsense. Bodybuilding is all about symmetry, proportions and balance. If you neglect body parts then you could be setting yourself up for joint problems, due to the imbalance this will create.
You should always train agonist
and antagonist muscles, this will give your joints integrity and help support a good posture. We all want longevity, and to be able to function in life no matter what it throws at us.
In this day and age, it’ s not unusual for women to have breast augmentation, which can be either over or under the muscle. If you have had such a procedure you MUST be mindful of certain movements / exercises during the recovery process. BUT, once full recovery has taken place … get on with it!!
You can and must train chest for all the reasons outlined above. I’ m not saying that jumping right into heavy bench pressing is a sensible move. Work every muscle group, so that you maintain both skeletal and aesthetic balance.
Before we get into the specifics of how to train chest, let’ s go through some basic points that should always be kept in mind. The actual structure of the chest is the same for both women and men with an obvious addition lying over the muscle in females. What does this mean? The mechanics of the muscle are the same, and therefore the exercises and the manner in which they are performed are also the same.
What does the pectoral muscle do? In basic terms- it brings the arm across the body( like a clapping movement, or flyes). In any chest exercise, think of getting your biceps as close to your chest as you can. Literally, try to squeeze them into your pecs. When performing any barbell exercise( incline, decline or flat) without actually moving your hands, grip the bar firmly, and imagine pushing your hands together to activate the chest throughout the movement.
Another question to ask yourself is, how far down do you bring the bar or dumbbells( or machine for that matter)? A lot of people talk
70 FLEX | APRIL 2018