The Dumbbell Pec Workout That Will Also Fire Up Your Abs
The key? It’s heavy on
single-arm work.
Every
well-balanced strength training
program should include some sort of pec
workout. The pecs, which are more commonly known as the chest muscles, include the large pectoralis major and a smaller one
underneath called the pectoralis minor. This dumbbell workout targets both of
those muscles, giving the front of your upper body the attention it needs.
But wait,
there’s more! Not only does this pec workout focus heavily on strengthening
your chest muscles, but it also works the supporting muscles like your deltoids
(shoulders), triceps (the large muscle on the back of the upper arm), and yes,
your core.
Three Major
Benefits of This Dumbbell Pec Workout
Builds functional strength
Building
strength in the “pushing” muscles—chest, shoulders, and triceps—helps you
perform everyday actions like pushing an object back on a high shelf,
ACE-certified personal trainer Sivan
Fagan, founder of Strong
With Sivan in Baltimore, tells SELF. It’ll also
help you reduce your risk of injury since it builds the strength you need
to stabilize your shoulder joints and shoulder blades.
Helps pinpoint and fix muscle imbalances
Another standout
feature of Fagan’s pec workout? It relies heavily on single-arm dumbbell moves,
which help make sure you’re working each side of your body equally. That’s
important since it helps alleviate the muscle imbalances most of us
have, Fagan says.
“When you push
both dumbbells at the same time, your body just wants to get them from point A
to point B. Your stronger side might take it through the full range of motion,
but the other side might take it on a shortcut,” she says. “It’s really hard
for you to notice it on your own until you isolate your sides, and then you’re
like, ‘Hold on, I can’t do it on this side.’”
Works your core
Single-arm work
also comes with a happy bonus: It really challenges your core stability,
which turns these upper-body exercises into ab exercises too. As you
push each dumbbell, your core muscles have to fire to keep your body from
rotating in the opposite direction, Fagan says.
“You’re
combining the ‘push’ muscles with core stability and core strength in the
workout,” she says.
The Workout
The dumbbell pec
workout starts with alternating-arm versions of the most challenging compound moves—the
chest press and shoulder press—in a superset. You’ll keep the rep range lower
here than throughout the rest of the workout, so don’t be afraid to challenge
yourself with heavier weight (as long as you maintain proper form).
Then you’ll
finish with a triset. You’ll hit your chest and triceps with a close-grip chest
press, go right into shoulder taps—which work your chest with an isometric contraction while you hold yourself up in a high plank—and end
with overhead triceps extension, which isolates the muscles in the back of your
arms that also fire in all pressing movements.
Ready to get
started? Here’s what you need for an amazing at-home dumbbell pec workout.
What
you’ll need: Two sets of dumbbells, one
heavier and one lighter. You can challenge yourself with heavier weight for the
first superset. You’ll go lighter with the triset. If you don’t have dumbbells,
you can use equipment from around your house, like water jugs, water bottles,
soup cans, boxes of cat litter, or laundry detergent bottles.
Exercises
Superset:
- Chest press (alternating arms)
- Shoulder press (alternating arms)
Triset:
- Close-grip chest press
- Plank tap
- Overhead triceps extension
Directions
- For the superset, perform 8–12 reps per
arm of each exercise. Try to complete the superset without resting in
between the exercises. Complete 3–4 rounds.
- For the triset, perform 12–15 reps of the
chest press and triceps extension, and as many reps of the plank shoulder
taps as you can complete with good form. Try to complete the triset
without resting in between the exercises. Complete 3–4 rounds.
- If you notice a big discrepancy between
your strength on one side versus the other, you may want to complete all
of your reps on each side rather than alternating, Fagan says. Start on
your weaker side, and complete as many reps as you can there. Then do the
same number on your stronger side. You’ll have more gas left in the tank
on your stronger side, but that’ll help close up your strength imbalance.
1
- Lie faceup with your knees bent and feet
flat on the floor. Hold a dumbbell in each hand with your palms facing
your legs and your elbows on the floor bent at about 90 degrees so that
the weights are in the air. This is the starting position.
- Press the dumbbell in your right hand
toward the ceiling, straightening your elbow completely and keeping your
palm facing your leg. Pause here for a second.
- Slowly bend your elbow and lower it back
down to the floor. This is one rep. Repeat with your left hand, and
continue alternating.
- Complete 8–12 reps on each side.
The chest press
targets the pectorals, deltoids, and triceps. To a lesser extent, it also works
the biceps and serratus anterior, a fan-shaped muscle that lies deep beneath
the pecs.
2
- Stand with your feet about hip-width
apart. Hold a dumbbell in each hand and rest them at shoulder height, with
your palms facing each other and your elbows bent. This is the starting
position.
- Press one dumbbell overhead, straightening
your elbow completely. Make sure to keep your core engaged and hips tucked
under to avoid arching your lower back as you lift your arm.
- Slowly bend your elbow to lower the weight
back down to the starting position. This is one rep. Repeat on the other
side.
- Complete 8–12 reps on each side.
The shoulder
press targets the deltoids, triceps, pectorals, and trapezius, which runs
across the tops of the shoulders and down the middle of the upper back.
3
- Lie faceup with your knees bent and feet
flat on the floor. Hold a weight in each hand with your palms facing each
other, arms on the ground by your sides, and elbows touching the ground
and bent, so that your forearms and the dumbbells are in the air. This is
the starting position.
- Press the weights toward the ceiling,
straightening your elbows completely and keeping your palms facing each
other. Pause here for a second.
- Slowly bend your elbows and lower them
back down to the floor. This is one rep.
- Complete 12–15 reps.
The close-grip
chest press targets the triceps more than the traditional chest press. It also
works the pectorals and front of the shoulders, and to a lesser extent, the
biceps and serratus anterior.
4
- Start in a high plank position with your
palms flat on the floor, hands shoulder-width apart, shoulders stacked
directly above your wrists, legs extended behind you, and your core and
glutes engaged.
- Tap your right hand to your left shoulder
while engaging your core and glutes to keep your hips as still as
possible. Try not to rock at your hips.
- Do the same thing with your left hand to
right shoulder.
- Continue alternating sides. Complete as
many reps as possible while maintaining proper form.
The plank tap
works the shoulder muscles (deltoids), upper back muscles, triceps, core
muscles, and even the small muscles in the wrists. Focus on engaging your
abdominals and glutes to keep your hips from rocking. Separating your feet a
bit further apart can also help create a more stable base.
5
- Stand with your feet about hip-width
apart. Hold a dumbbell in each hand behind your neck, elbows bent and
pointing toward the ceiling. Press the weights together so they are
touching, and pull your elbows in as close to your head as you can. This
is the starting position.
- Without moving your upper arms, straighten
your elbows and extend the weights directly overhead. Keep your shoulders
down, your core tight, and your arms as close to your head as possible.
- Pause for a second, and then slowly lower
the weights back down behind your head. This is one rep.
- Complete 12–15 reps.
The overhead
triceps extension is an isolation exercise that targets the triceps.
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