If you aim to build strong chest muscles, you cannot ignore the chest press workout. In fact, when you are beginning your fitness journey, most gym professionals recommend adding this to your chest workout because it is one of the core exercises.
When performing the chest press exercise, it is essential to maintain the correct form. If not, you may end up applying pressure on different parts of your body’s muscles. In this blog, we have ensured that you are provided with various chest press exercises with the right technique. Continue reading to learn the chess press exercise benefits, and you will be ready to practise the chest press exercise at home.
Muscles Worked
While you perform chest exercises, your body engages different muscles that are listed here:
- Pectorals
- Deltoids
- Triceps
- Serratus Anterior
- Biceps
Chest Press Exercise Benefits
Here is a list of chest press exercise benefits that you get by practising the exercise regularly:
- Improves Posture: The pecs are one of the most important muscle groups in our body responsible for maintaining a good body posture. Chest press exercise efficiently targets the pecs and improves body posture. If you do a desk job and sit for long hours on a chair, trying this exercise can help you achieve a good body posture.
- Aids Deep Breathing: As we know that while breathing chest muscles are involved. If your chest muscles are strong, you can breathe deeply and breathe in more oxygen. A chest press strengthens your pecs, which also makes your rib cage wide, facilitating deep breathing.
- Supports Your Breasts: Some believe that chest press exercises for ladies can cause shrinking in the size of breasts. The truth is that chest press builds muscles around the breast tissue that supports the breast.
- Helps in Daily Tasks: We use our pecs in daily tasks like squeezing, holding, lifting, etc. Building pecs with bench press exercises can help you do these tasks more efficiently.
- Aids Maintain Muscular Balance: People can lose their muscle symmetry due to medical conditions or improper form when performing strength training exercises in a gym. If you want to improve the symmetry and muscle balance, chest press exercise can be useful.
Chest Press Exercise with Dumbbells – A Step-by-Step Guide
Since you now know the many benefits of chest press exercises, let’s dive straight into how to correctly do a chest press with dumbbells.
Step 1: Start by lying down with a straight back on the floor or bench and hold the dumbbells in both hands.
Step 2: Remember to keep your arms at a 45-degree angle to your body, and the dumbbells should be positioned at the shoulders.
Step 3: Keep your palms facing each other and your thumbs wrapped around the hand of the dumbbells. Also, keep your elbows forward to your shoulder line.
Step 4: Contract your abdominal muscles and move your chin towards your chest.
Step 5: Breathe out, push the dumbbells upwards, and make sure you do not lock out your elbows too quickly. When you push them upwards, the dumbbells should move in a shallow arc and meet over your chest.
Step 6: Straighten your arms while pushing the dumbbells up. Do it smoothly. Maintain your head and shoulder touching the floor while lifting the dumbbells.
Step 7: Now, breathe in, contract your muscles, and lower the dumbbells back to the position where you started this exercise.
As a beginner, three sets of 10 reps of the horizontal chest press exercise are good. Choose weights according to your muscle strength.
Tips for Beginners
- Do not arch your lower back; keep the spine flat while performing the chest press.
- During chest press exercise, press your head, buttocks, and shoulder against the support of a bench or floor.
- Keep your feet pressed against the ground.
- Draw your elbows close to your sides to target your triceps and chest muscles.
- Keep the wrists in a neutral position to get better results and to prevent yourself from putting strain on wrist muscles.
- Move your elbows away from your body instead of drawing them close.
- Lifting the dumbbells slowly while doing this exercise is advised. Lifting the dumbbells in a flow instead of taking complete control of the swing increases the chances of injury and reduces the exercise’s effectiveness.
Variations of Chest Press
If you are bored of doing the same chest press exercise, you can try the best chest press variations, which are listed below. They provide the same benefits but will also add extra fun to your workout:
- Incline Chest Press Exercise
- Cable Chest Press Exercise
- Seated Chest Press Exercise
- Standing Chest Press Exercise
- Plate Loaded Chest Press Exercise
Conclusion
Gym enthusiasts adore the chest press workout because of its plethora of advantages. Exercises involving the chest press engage and strengthen various main muscle groups in your body, including the deltoids, pectorals, biceps, and triceps. So, if you wish to build a strong and broad upper body, consider the chest press exercise at home and add it to your fitness routine.
