There actually exists two types of official bar – the Powerlifting bar used for squats, deadlifts, and bench presses, and the Olympic bar used for weightlifting – which this article will focus on. So read on, and you’ll be well on your way to becoming an Olympic bar guru.

Dimensions of an Olympic bar

How long is an Olympic bar? The length is officially 2.2 m or 7′ 2 inches from end to end. The bar is made up of a steel shaft with rotating “sleeves” at each end. Each sleeve is connected to the shaft via a “bushing” or “bearing” section – and it is this which enables the sleeves to spin.

The length of the shaft – where you place your hands – is 131 cm (a little over 51 inches). The shaft diameter is 28mm – which is the official thickness for Olympic weightlifting – plus it’s also the narrowest. A narrower bar can rotate quicker, since smaller diameter bars will rotate at higher angular velocities – this is ideal for weightlifting.

For unofficial bars, it’s common for the diameter to vary beyond the 28mm standard. You’ll find 28.5 mm, 29mm, 30mm and even 32mm diameter bars in many gyms. There are two reasons why thicker bars are available: it provides a choice to users with different grip preferences, but it’s also a way of increasing the strength of the bar.

Some manufacturers can use the extra thickness as a sort of cheat – to compensate for using weaker grades of steel in the manufacturing process. This can be a negative for some lifters, who buy a cheap “Olympic bar” and realize that the bar is too thick for their liking, and that their grip is affected, plus a thicker bar won’t rotate as fast, meaning poorer performance during the execution of fast lifts like cleans.

How much does an Olympic bar weigh?

The official weight is 20kg or 44lb. Unofficial bars – including many generic strength training bars found in gyms – can weigh less, even though their manufacturers may describe them as 20kg Olympic bars.

You will also hear the term “competition bars” – which are calibrated for weight and issued with a certificate as proof of accuracy – which bumps up the price. Bars that are not checked for their weight, cannot be used in formal competitions, and are referred to as “training bars” – but they are essentially the same thing.

The collars that keep the weight plates in position, each weigh 2.5 kg (5.5 lb) – so the total weight of the bar plus its collars will weigh 25kg (55lb).

Knurling

The knurling (or knurl) is a key feature of any bar – it is the diamond-shaped criss-cross pattern machined onto the raw steel. It’s function is to improve your grip.

There are 3 areas with knurling. A narrow, 12 cm-wide center knurl in the middle of the bar (useful for stabilizing the bar on your back when doing squats) plus two wide-grip-sections (each with a width of 44.5 cm) that extend to the end of the shaft. These provide grip for lifters who perform the snatch – it’s a very wide grip and many standard bars won’t have this knurl extend all the way to the ends.

Within these knurled sections are 5mm-wide smoothed grip marks or rings – one on each side of the lifter. Each mark is located 45.5 cm from the center of the bar and the distance between the rings is 91cm (36 inches).

Knurls can be soft or coarse – and in extreme cases can feel like cheese graters for your hands – but the quality Olympic bars will have a softer, comfortable knurl. The sharper knurls are usually a feature of power bars – where extra grip is necessary for lifting heavier weight during slower lifts.

The only smooth areas of the shaft are located either side of the center knurl – these measure 15cm in width it is here where you can place your shins during lifts. As the bar is lifted upwards – the shins won’t get grazed if contact is made with the legs.

The knurl of an Olympic bar extends all the way to the sleeves. The grip marks are smooth, 5mm wide and lie 19.5cm from the inner part of each sleeve.

Finish/Coating

Even though an Olympic bar is made of steel, its surface is often covered with a protective layer or coating. Coatings are applied to prevent rusting and to make the bar look good. Bright zinc, black zinc and chrome plating are common coatings, with chrome being the official coating for competition Olympic bars. It’s shiny appearance makes for a nice-looking finish, but it can make a bar feel more ‘slippery’ in the hands.

An uncoated bar is referred to as a bare steel bar or stainless steel bar (if it has been manufactured out of of a steel/chromium alloy). An uncoated bar will need to be cleaned and oiled regularly to prevent a build up of oxide layers.

Sleeves

The sleeves are where you place the weight plates, and are the moving parts of an Olympic bar. They are 41.5 cm in length and have a diameter of 5 cm. Weight plates will a center hole of just over 50mm fit onto the sleeves. The sleeves can be smooth or finished with fine grooves, so the plates ‘stick’ more and don’t slide around as much.

The ease of spin of these sleeves will determine how good a bar is for performing fast, dynamic Olympic lifts. How can you tell if a bar is going to strain your wrists or not? Well, a simple test is to give the sleeves a quick spin. If they spin freely with relatively little noise – you potentially have a great bar for doing cleans.

When you lift a bar from the floor and perform a clean, you bring your wrists and elbows underneath it – at the same time the bar will rotate rapidly about 180^o. The plates at the end of the bar must stay still, so that any torque exerted on the wrists is kept to an absolute minimum. This is where the sleeves do their job – the quicker and smoother they can spin, the better for the lifter.

The sleeves of an Olympic bar, need to rotate quickly and smoothly – this is accomplished by the bearings or bushings inside them.

So what allows the sleeves to rotate? – The bushings or bearings inside them…

Bushings and Bearings

What’s a bushing? A bushing is a hollow cylindrical shaped lining that can be fitted inside the sleeves of a bar – it’s reduces the friction between the sleeve and the rotating shaft within it. They are commonly made of brass and are a less expensive option when compared to needle bearings. So if you hear the term ‘bushing bar’ – you’ll know it refers to bushings inside the sleeves.

Bushings need to be well lubricated with a bit a oil, now and again, to keep them working effectively and to maintain them in good condition. When not in use, Olympic bars should be stored horizontally, rather than vertically – otherwise lubricating oil in the sleeves can leak out.

Needle bearings allow for the smoothest rotation. The precision engineering that goes into them makes them the more expensive option – they are found in the higher quality ‘bearing’ bars and are almost always used in top of the range bars for weightlifting competitions.

But what is a needle bearing? A needle bearing consists of a cylindrical ‘cage’ that has long thin cylinders or rollers sitting around its circumference. The rollers or ‘needles’ reduce the friction between two rotating surfaces i.e. the shaft of the bar and the sleeves, in which it sits.

Some manufacturers are now making needle bearings that have a lubricating ‘gel’  – and because it’s a gel – it won’t leak out of the sleeves.

Now that you know a lot more about Olympic bars than your average gym user – you’ll be able to cast an analytical eye over a bar – whether it’s in your local gym, a shop or a spec that you see online. If you’re looking to buy your own bar, then check out the article Which Olympic Bar Should You Buy For Your Home Gym?

If you’re not sure which is the best bar to go for, then arm yourself with some info before making a hasty decision – you need to get this right. The quality of your training experience will depend on the kind of bar you buy.

There are a whole range of bars in the market place: cheap ones claiming to be Olympic bars, power bars (aka powerlifting bars) and Olympic weightlifting bars.

On top of that, they come in different configurations – bare steel, stainless steel, coated, different thicknesses, soft knurls, aggressive knurls, sleeves with bushings or bearings, plus variations in stiffness.

The only thing that they appear to have in common is that they are 7.2 feet (2.2m) in length.

• This article will identify the necessary features of an Olympic bar, that will enable you to perform the exercises that you intend to do in your workouts. Match the features of the bar with the kind of use (and abuse) it will be put under – and you can make a purchasing decision with confidence.
• To read about the basic characteristics of an official Olympic bar see the post Olympic Bar Dimensions – Anatomy of an Olympic Bar.

An Olympic bar can prove to be an investment – especially if you shell out a lot of money for a high-quality one. In those cases it should last a lifetime. However, there’s little point buying a quality Olympic weightlifting barbell (with a higher price tag), if you’re only going to use it for bench presses and squats.

Think carefully about the kinds of exercises you are going to use it for. With that in mind, let’s go through some various training scenarios, and delve into the corresponding features that the bar should have.

Bench Pressing

Usage type:Restricted/Casual Use

If your primary goal is to build a bigger chest and you want a bar strictly for a bench press set-up – then you could get away with buying a cheap bar.

The way you use the bar will be restricted though. You will have to train accordingly to avoid bending or breaking it. If you’re a beginner or you don’t press too much weight – then this won’t be an issue.

Sure you could use it for deadlifts and squats, but only with relatively light weights. A cheap bar is never designed to withstand heavy loads nor is to be used for Olympic lifts.

If you go this route, then for your own safety – don’t overload the bar. With the bar loaded, you will need to take care that you don’t drop it on the rack/ throw it to the floor, or it will bend or worse – break.

This is the main problem with buying cheap bars – if it bends – how long can you put up training with a bent barbell? If you’re serious about your training – then not long.

The cost of replacing a cheap bar will cancel out the initial saving you made when you bought it. Opting to buy better quality from the start, can save money in the long run.

Features

In terms of the bar configuration, there’s not many options when it comes to buying cheap Olympic barbells.

Most of them are chrome plated along the whole length – which makes them look nice and shiny, but the plating can eventually chip or flake off – which isn’t so good. Because the chrome plating covers the steel, the knurl depth on the bar is reduced, which can make the grip feel more slick/slippery.

The sleeves are the moving parts at each end of the bar, and at the cheaper end of the market, their quality of engineering isn’t great. This typically means they’ll exhibit poor rotation due to the quality of the bushings (if they even have bushings) – making them unsuitable for dynamic Olympic lifts.

For bench pressing though, this isn’t an issue – you don’t want rotation of the sleeves to occur as it affects the stability of the bar. So don’t go buying an Olympic weightlifting barbell for bench presses!

The ends of the sleeves may be secured with an allen bolt, which can work itself loose – meaning regular re-tightening on your part. Also a ‘noisy’ bar may rattle a lot when in use.

Because the steel in cheaper bars is not as strong, the diameter is increased to compensate somewhat, so it’s common to see these bars with thicker diameters – typically between 30-32mm. Compare that with high-quality bars which are in the range of 28-29mm in diameter.

Another issue with cheap bars is the actual weight of the thing. Some economy bars claim to be 20kg (44lbs) but can be considerably less. If you have your own weighing scales and you’re buying a bar from a shop – bring the scales and check the actual weight yourself.

Also be aware of the product’s description. If it’s advertised as an Olympic 7′ barbell (with no mention of the weight) – the reason could be that the manufacturer is hiding the fact that it weighs less than 20kg (44lb).

Price

Typical prices for cheap Olympic barbells range between $70 to $150.

If you’re interested in buying an economy bar, Amazon are currently selling the Body Solid 7 ft Olympic Power Bar in black and chrome versions. The bars weigh in at 19.96 kg, with the chromed version costing just a few dollars extra. On the page – make sure you select the 7′ option (black or chrome), as there are 5′ and 6′ bars also on sale there.

Summary

Pros:

• Cheap. Good for beginners or for “casual workouts” at home – while you perform your proper lifts at your gym.

Cons:

• You get what you pay for. Limited range of use – i.e not for olympic lifting/powerlifting.
• Cannot be loaded with heavy weights. The bar will limit your progress if you aspire to train with heavier weights or perform more intense squats and deadlifts in your workouts.
• Bending will occur over time – definitely not a piece of equipment you can “use and abuse” without the need for a replacement.

PowerLifting – Bench Press/Squats/Deadlifts

Usage Type: Flexible/Heavy-Duty/Strength Training/Bodybuilding

If you’re thinking that the term “Powerlifting” doesn’t apply to you – and it’s only for “strongmen” who lift ridiculous amounts of weight – think again.

The term simply refers to the three exercises: the bench press, the squat and the deadlift – three classic exercises that are part of many a workout – regardless of level.

If you perform these exercises regularly, then yes – you are in the market for a powerlifting bar.

The powerlifting exercises are “slow lifts” that are in contrast to the “fast, dynamic” Olympic lifts like the clean and jerk and the snatch. With a dedicated powerlifting (or ‘power bar’), you will be able to perform your bench presses, squats and dead-lifts more effectively.

So, if the powerlifts will dominate your training, then look to get a power bar. (Keep in mind though – they are not the ideal bars for Olympic lifts).

Features

The most important feature for a good power bar, is the strength of the steel.

The stronger the steel, the more stress it can be put under, and the less chance there is for the bar to bend. In practical terms, the bar will be able to withstand more abuse – like dropping a loaded bar to the floor.

So if you think you’re going to be throwing your bar around a bit – you better get one with stronger steel. It’s never a good idea though, to drop a loaded bar onto a rack or bench, where the bar hits first (see Olympic bar section – later on).

The “tensile strength” and the “yield strength” ratings are used to measure the strength of an Olympic bar and are measured in pounds per square inch (PSI).

The “tensile strength” is the amount of force needed to break the bar apart, while the “yield strength” is the amount of force needed for it to develop a “permanent bend” (i.e. not break – but be left bent).

For you, the end-user, it’s a key indicator of quality as you read through the list of specs of a bar. Ideally, these two figures should be close to each other. Manufacturers commonly quote the tensile strength, but are a lot less forthcoming with the yield strength figure.

Knowing both values will help you truly rate a bar.

You will also see “pound test” figures for bars, but these are considered to be more of a marketing gimmick – always go with the tensile strength.

The best Olympic bars will have high tensile strength and yield strength ratings – measured in PSI

So what PSI figure is good?

Average bars will rate between 130-150,000 psi. Better quality bars rate between 160,000-180,000 psi. The strongest bars (we’re talking competition and commercial-gym quality) will have a PSI rating of 190,000-220,000.

The shaft diameter of a power bar is officially 29mm – slightly thicker than the 28mm of an Olympic bar. However, power bars can come in 28mm, 28.5mm, 29mm and 30mm diameters – so you have a choice when it comes to your personal grip preference. The thinner shafts will be made of better steel and are usually more expensive.

The knurling on power bars is generally more aggressive. This is to enhance the grip when lifting heavy weight. Too much of an agressive knurl can cut up the hands, so if that bothers you, look for a bar with a better quality or softer knurl, that feels just right. This can mean a higher price for superior machining of the knurl.

Most power bars will have a center knurl – this is for squat purposes – and it prevents the bar from sliding down the back- making it feel more stable for the lifter.

Another desirable characteristic of a good power bar is its stiffness. During bench press/squats/deadlifts – the bar shouldn’t oscillate or have much “whip” to it – this is a characteristic of weightlifting bars.

So if you strictly do powerlifting/strength training/bodybuilding workouts – you don’t need an Olympic weightlifting bar.

Finish

Apart from impacting on the look of a bar, the finish also affects the feel of the knurl and how much maintenance will be needed to keep the bar from oxidising. Uncoated bars will need to be looked after more to prevent rust. If you want a “low-maintenance” bar or plan to use/store it outdoors or in a garage – consider getting a coated bar.

• Bare steel – some guys like the feel of a bare steel bar. Without any coating, the raw knurling machined onto the steel will be in direct contact with your skin. It will rust over time and develop a “patina effect” along the shaft – although this can be managed with cleaning.
• Stainless steel – a bar made of steel mixed with chromium has anti-corrosive properties, and so doesn’t need a coating. It will be more expensive however, but it looks great and the knurl should feel really good. Will need a little cleaning now and again to maintain it’s pristine look.
• Bright zinc – provides a high quality finish and looks nice and shiny. It provides good anti-rust protection – but it can scratch.
• Black zinc – provides good anti-rust protection and is the preferred choice for those who like the look of a black bar. The steel is first coated with bright zinc, and then the black zinc layer is put on top. Over time, scratching can occur as the underlying bright zinc layer is exposed.
• Black oxide – a cheaper method of coating a bar. It only offers mild corrosive protection , so if you plan to use the bar in damp or humid area – it will be more prone to rust.

Price

The price range for these bars can vary widely between $250 – $600, but you can get excellent quality bars in the $300-$400 range. The more expensive power bars will have the highest PSI ratings, typically with a stainless steel finish, excellent quality knurling and tested to the highest standards for defects.

Summary

Pros:

• Designed for heavier loads. Wide range of bars available for different budgets. Variety of coatings and knurl depths available.

Cons:

• Not the best option if you want to perform dynamic/Olympic lifts. Large choice of bars can be overwhelming – which means more “research” needed before making a purchase.

Olympic Lifts – Clean and Jerk/Snatch/CrossFit

Usage Type: Specific/Fast Dynamic Lifts/Heavy-Duty

Dynamic lifts, like the clean and jerk and snatch, are the Olympic lifts. If you intend to include a significant amount of these exercises in your workouts, then you need to use an Olympic barbell.

Here are some reasons why a dedicated weightlifting bar is a sensible choice:

Life of the bar

Quality Olympic barbells are thoroughly tested. They’re put under incredible stress to ensure that they can withstand a lot of abuse without deforming permanently. Static tests involve bending the bar in the middle and at the ends to see if the bar returns straight and true, within a certain allowed tolerance.

Dynamic tests involve dropping a loaded bar to the floor from a height, to simulate real use in a gym or competition. Top of the range barbells are also tested for microscopic defects in the structure of the steel. These bars usually come with some sort of warranty, guaranteeing the life of the bar, which means that you should never have to replace it.

Despite the impressive strength of the steel and its ability to re-straighten, this doesn’t mean you can recklessly drop a loaded bar onto a rack or narrow bench. If the shaft hits the rack first, this can throw the PSI rating of your bar out of the window – as there is a big difference in the amount of stress exerted on the steel.

The dynamic tests are done with the weight plates hitting the floor first. Keep this in mind and your bar won’t be left with a permanent bend.

Reduces the chance of injury

Top of the range weightlifting bars have quality engineered bushings or needle bearings in the sleeves. This allows for a nice, smooth and even rotation of the sleeves and reduces the torque on your wrists.

This is very important from an injury-prevention point of view. When doing cleans – your wrists need to rotate rapidly and get under the bar, and bearings absorb a lot of the high radial load.

Bearings are always going to be the more expensive option, but good quality brass bushings perform a similar function, and are an excellent choice.

Olympic barbells with quality bearings allow for smooth rotation during lifts.

Technique

The steel in Olympic weightlifting bars is manufactured to be more elastic. They have “whip“, which a strong and skilled lifter can use to his advantage, especially with heavy weight. This extra flexibility also helps to minimize stress on the joints and body, during demanding lifts.

The housing that contains the bearings at either end (between the shaft and the sleeve) is narrower. This allows for the weight plates to be placed closer in to the lifter, meaning you can maximize your center of gravity as you lift the bar from the floor.

Comfort

The knurl is usually machined in a way so that it is softer on the hands. Also a chrome or zinc coating will reduce the coarseness of the knurled steel underneath.

Center Knurl – Yes or No?

Competition Olympic bars all have center knurls, so does that mean you should you buy a bar with a center knurl? Not necessarily…

There are “hybrid” bars which cater for users who do a mix of powerlifts and Olympic lifts. The purpose of the center knurl is to create friction between the bar and your back when doing squats.

Without it – the bar feels less stable and tends to slide downwards, and more so with a sweaty t-shirt on. If you perform a lot of squats, then you’ll want a center knurl on your bar. The drawback of having a center knurl is when you come to do cleans/power-cleans.

As the middle of the bar rests against your neck/sternal notch – the knurling grazes on your skin. For occasional cleans and low reps – this may not be a problem. With lots of clean and jerks or “crossfit” training – things might start getting painful very quickly.

“Tearing up your neck” is the common phrase associated with center knurls.

Some bars like the hybrid ones, are made without a center knurl, and they can be a good choice if you predominately do Olympic lifts or CrossFit training.

Finish

Many bars are chrome plated (see Eleiko’s range) but there are alternative coatings such as bright zinc/black zinc.

Price

There is a wide range of prices. Good quality bushing bars come in around the $300-$400 mark, while the pricier bearing bars are in typically $500-$600. Top of the range bars made by Eleiko, Ivanko can easily cost around $1000.

Although you may pay an initial hefty price for the bar, over the years the cost of owning a quality piece of equipment, built to last, and engineered to the highest standards, can work out cheaper.

Summary

Pros:

• Designed specifically for fast, dynamic lifts and to withstand a lot of abuse.
• Reduces the torque on your wrists, minimizes stresses on the body and aids technique.

Cons:

• Not ideal for bench pressing, serious squatting and deadlifting – although “hybrid” bars are available as a compromise.
• Best bearing bars will be pricey.

Conclusion

Think long-term when choosing your Olympic bar – ideally, it should be a one-off purchase. Do your research. Go for the best quality you can afford – since you will be using it every time you train.

Hybrid bars can be a good solution if you mix up your training with slower powerlifts and fast Olympic lifts. Alternatively, you could get two bars – one dedicated powerlifting bar and one for Olympic weightlifting.

But what is creatine used for, once it’s in your body?

By gaining a little knowledge and understanding of it’s function – you will be able to make your own informed decision on whether creatine is the right supplement to help you achieve your muscle-building and aesthetic goals.

Let’s focus first on how creatine is used naturally in the body, and then move on to how creatine supplements can work for you.

What Is Creatine?

Creatine is an organic acid – a naturally occurring compound in your body – that is used
in the process to supply energy to your muscles. It is not a steroid nor a drug, and
because it’s classified as a dietary supplement, it’s use, isn’t banned by any professional sports governing body.

Natural sources of creatine can be found in the meat of animals such as beef and fish. The human body also creates its own creatine supply. It uses three amino acids: glycine, arginine and methionine – to produce creatine. Most of it is made in the liver – but also in the kidneys and pancreas.

Almost all of this creatine is transported to your muscles, via the bloodstream, while the rest contributes to your brain and heart functions. “Fast-twitch” muscle fibers are high-energy-demanding tissue, and it is within these fibers that creatine is stored and used so effectively and efficiently, when required.

Muscles contract … thanks to ATP

For muscles to contract and do work, they need a supply of energy from somewhere.
We know that carbohydrates and fat are sources of energy in the body, but when muscles suddenly begin to contract over short periods – say during a sprint or the lifting of weights-
the energy used doesn’t come from carbs or fat.

Instead, muscles use an instantly-available energy that comes from something called ATP.

ATP is short for Adenosine Tri-Phosphate – it is a compound of molecules that exist in all your cells. They contain a lot of stored energy, and this energy is released during biochemical reactions in the body. ATP molecules contain three, high-energy “phosphate” groups – and these play a key role in muscle contractions.

For your muscles to contract rapidly – ATP in your muscle tissue reacts like this:

• One of the three phosphate groups in each ATP molecule, breaks off, creating energy and leaving behind ADP – Adenosine Di-Phosphate.
• The energy created by this breakdown of ATP is used by the muscle to contract.
• Once ATP breaks down to ADP – it’s spent. Its job is done…for the moment.

ATP breaks down to ADP to create energy needed for rapid muscle contractions.

Creatine Regenerates ATP In The Muscles

So what is creatine’s contribution in generating energy for these muscle contractions?

Creatine – made in the liver, combines with phosphates to form Creatine Phosphate (also called Phosphocreatine). Once in this form, it moves to your muscles via the bloodstream – and is ready for use.

As your muscles begin to work, they receive energy from ATP breaking down to ADP.
The Creatine Phosphate that’s present in your muscles, then “donates” its phosphate group to ADP – so converting it back into ATP again for use by the muscles (see picture below).

As intense exercise continues, the available creatine phosphate is rapidly used up to fuel continuous ATP production.

This is known as the Phosphagen System, and it can provide energy at very high rates for a few seconds only – as limited stores of creatine phosphate become depleted.

What Is Creatine Monohydrate?

Creatine monohydrate is the most used form of creatine supplement around. No doubt
you will have seen it on the shelves of most sports nutrition/health food stores.

It is one molecule of creatine that is bound to one molecule of water (‘mono’ – one, and ‘hydrate’ – with water). It’s manufactured this way to make it more stable, and comes in powder form. In terms of weight, creatine monohydrate is 88% creatine and 12% water. This means that in a 500 gram tub of the stuff – 440 grams will be creatine.

What Can Creatine Supplements Do For You?

Now that you know what creatine is used for, the million dollar question is … will you benefit by supplementation?

When you take creatine as a supplement, what you are doing is increasing the stores of creatine phosphate in your muscles. The more creatine phosphate molecules available within your muscle fibers – the more ATP can be re-synthesized from ADP during short, intense bouts of exercise (see the picture above).

In practice, this means:

• your muscles will be able to contract intensely for longer, before they get fatigued.
• you will able to complete more reps, and push more weight during the demanding sets of your workouts.
• you will need less time to recover between sets.

The potential increase in muscle mass and power, with the ability to perform explosive movements – this is effectively what you are paying for, when you buy creatine supplements.

This is why it benefits powerlifters, sprinters and other sportsmen whose muscles need to apply force over short periods of time – i.e. bursts of muscle power. It isn’t beneficial for those who do endurance-type sports.

To reap the benefits of the extra creatine in your system, you must put in the effort and push yourself harder in training. If you’re a novice, or someone who is just getting back into some sort of shape in the gym – you should probably hold off the creatine supplements for a while.

Creatine is going to be more effective if you’ve been training a couple of times a week – for several months at least – and you want to step up the level of intensity of your workouts. Your muscles will have already adapted to training, and you should have made some gains in muscle.

Creatine will help you perform that extra 10-15%, and these are good margins to have, in order to improve and build more muscle.

Let’s take a look at the benefits of having a hair-free chest, with some suggestions for why should men shave their chest or not.

You Got Pecs?

First, ask yourself whether you have some pectoral muscle mass to show off underneath that layer of hair. If your pecs are not yet up to scratch in the muscle department, then it might be a good idea to leave that chest hair where it is, for now.

What really distinguishes a man’s upper body from that of a boy’s, are broader shoulders, chest muscle mass and chest hair. With no real pecs AND NO chest hair, your upper torso could end up looking more boyish. With chest hair, you can retain some of that manly, upper body look.

However, if you’re a hairy chested guy with some muscle built on your pecs, you should definitely consider shaving your chest. Depending on the amount of hair you have, your pecs may not look the way you want them to.

The less hair covering your pecs, the more defined and chiselled they will appear.

Shaving off all the hair, really helps to emphasize the muscularity and detailed contours of the pectorals. Look at bodybuilders – they always remove chest hair before a competition,
so to enhance the muscle definition of their upper bodies.

Removing all the hair from the chest, really can transform the look of your pectoral muscles.

Embarrassing Chest Hair

Perhaps you’re conscious, embarrassed even, of the sight of your chest hair when you’re at the beach or swimming pool.

Say you have a really thick layer of chest hair -  like forest proportions – yet you’d prefer it less hairy. Try trimming it down with a body hair trimmer. That way, you can feel more comfortable and avoid the attention that comes your way, due to extreme hair growth.

Another good reason to shave your chest, is when the color of your chest hair is not aesthetically pleasing. Body hair can be of a different color to what is on your head. If you don’t like the fact that it looks slightly ginger, or blond, or whatever color – then get rid of it.

Some guys in their thirties, may start seeing white hairs appearing on their chest. If this sounds familiar – definitely shave your chest! Let’s face it- a bunch of white hairs on your pecs … does not look good.

Tight-Fit T-Shirts

As your chest gets bigger – you fill out your t-shirts better. Some tighter-fitting t-shirts can look better on you without chest hair. How come?

Wearing t-shirts made of synthetic materials like polyester, lycra or elastane, emphasize the contours of your upper body, but a significant amount of chest hair underneath these materials, can sometimes create a weird, bumpy look to your pec region.

Summertime – Time To Get Your Shirt Off

The time of year, when potentially, your pecs will be on show the most – and so it’s the time you want to see them at their best. Enjoying the hot sun, vacations, hitting the beach, and tanning are high on the agenda.

If your skin tans well, then definitely consider shaving your chest at the onset of hot weather. Chest hairs, to some extent, cover up your pecs from the sun’s rays, whereas a clean chest will allow the skin to tan quicker.

During the summer months, a big benefit of a shaved chest, is it allows the easy application of sun tan lotions. The presence of chest hair makes it more difficult for the skin to absorb sun creams and tanning oils.

With no chest hair, you’ll be able to quickly and easily apply even layers of sun tan lotion. It’s less messy, and you don’t end up with ‘matted’ chest hair. Instead, you’ll be on your way to getting that bronzed, ripped look that you often see on the covers of muscle/fitness
magazines.

More Reasons To Shave Your Chest

• You just don’t like having a hairy chest.
• Curiosity. What do your pecs look like underneath that hair? Having worked out for years, maybe you would like to see the resulting muscle definition that is being partially hidden.
• Personal hygiene. Body hair acts as an insulator, and during hot summer months, a hairy chest will sweat more and retain moisture. You can have the best of both worlds – keep the chest hair during the winter months – but shave it off in summer.
• You’re going to get a chest plate tattoo. If you don’t shave your chest beforehand, the tattooist will.

Whatever your reasons for shaving your chest, make sure you have the right tools for the job – check out the post on How To Shave Your Chest And Stomach Properly With Minimal Irritation.

Reasons For Not Shaving Your Chest

• Skin issues. If your chest area is very prone to irritation and spots, then close-shaving your chest may not be a good idea. You could still try trimming it though.
• You like having a hairy chest. Simple.
• You can’t be bothered. If shaving your chest every few days sounds like too much effort, then it’s probably not going to be your thing.
• You don’t yet have a body hair shaver or you don’t intend to get one. Without a body shaver, shaving your chest is just going to be too much of a hassle. Razor-shaving a hairy chest is usually messy and a lot of work. Chances are you will get fed up with the whole thing and not bother.

Finally…

It’s a personal grooming decision, whether you should shave your chest or not. The most important thing is to feel comfortable – whether that means shaving your chest, trimming off some of the hair, or leaving it as it is.

Trimming and Shaving

Trimming, will retain a layer of hair; resulting in a tidier-looking upper body, whereas shaving gives you the completely smooth look. One advantage that trimming has over shaving, is that you won’t get any post-irritation whatsoever, since the cutting blades never come into contact with your skin.

Shaving your chest should be done in a way that will minimize irritation and give you that smooth finish you so often see in men’s fitness magazines.

Make It Easier For Yourself  - Use A Body Hair Shaver

If your regular grooming habits are to include removing hair from your chest, then it’s imperative to invest in a body shaver or groomer.No doubt the best way to shave chest hair, is by using one of these fellas. They are quick and convenient, and can give very satisfactory results.

Body hair trimmers come with removable cutting guards/attachment combs for varying lengths of cut, so you always have the option to leave some hair on your chest if you so desire.You definitely want to avoid using a scissors, as they will only create patches on your pecs.

Shaving your chest becomes a breeze when you use a body shaver like this.

I Want To Shave My Chest – Can’t I Just Use A Razor?

If you’re thinking - ‘Hang on – couldn’t I just use a razor to shave, and not buy a trimmer?’

Sure – if all you have is a small tuft of chest hair – or a few hairs, here and there – then a razor is probably all you need. With proper hairy chests, however – using a razor as your only tool – is going to make the job more laborious, messy and time-consuming.

Long hairs will quickly get jammed between the blades – reducing the effectiveness of each stroke of your razor. Having cleaned the blades, you’ll need to repeatedly shave across the same areas of your chest to achieve the desired smooth finish.

The more strokes you perform on your chest area, the greater the chance of razor burn, along with the formation of little pimples/spots on your skin.

Such an unsatisfactory shaving experience will probably make you want to avoid shaving your chest for several weeks – and you think shaving your face is boring? If you’re thinking about investing in a body hair shaver, then take a look at Amazon’s site. Here is a good selection of popular body hair trimmers for men, that are currently on sale at their website.

How To Shave Your Chest Without Razor Burn

Essential Items:

Body Hair Shaver
Razor – at least twin blade
Shaving Gel
Moisturizer

Attach a comb/guard to the body shaver when you need to trim longer chest hair.

Here is the best way to shave your chest and minimize irritation to the skin:

• Soften your chest hairs by taking a shower first. Lather up your chest, and rinse off with hot water. Pat down with towel.
• Fit a cutting guard/attachment comb onto your body hair trimmer and trim away the top layer of hair, leaving a more manageable layer of short hairs. Use slow and controlled movements – so you don’t jar the shaving head/foil. After every few strokes, remove the cut hairs from the attachable guard.
• With the hair down to a more acceptable length, remove the guide from the trimmer, and shave off the remaining hairs, moving the shaver carefully along the contours of your chest.
• Rinse the cutting head/shaving foil under the tap, to dislodge the stubble. Be careful near the nipple areas – shave around and underneath them – going as close as you can.
• Apply your shaving gel over your chest. It’s usually better to use a gel, as many of them have a moisturizer in them to aid lubrication between the skin and razor. The use of clear gels will help you to avoid shaving over spots etc.
• With a new clean razor – shave across your chest with long smooth strokes, and follow the general direction in which the hair grows.  i.e. don’t shave against ‘the grain.’ Shaving against the grain, will give you a slightly smoother finish for sure, but you may get razor burn on your pecs.
• Finish with a shower, or splash warm water over your chest and pat dry.
• Apply moisturizing cream to the whole chest area – this will help to stop the skin drying out and minimize any redness or itchiness.

Shave Your Stomach And See Those ABS POP

With your chest done, now you have to deal with any hair on your stomach/abdominal/obliques.

You really need to remove that hair, otherwise you’ll create a “two-tone look” to your upper body; the upper part – your chest – lighter in color, with the lower half looking like it’s in some sort of permanent shade.

• For your stomach area – only use a body hair trimmer. If you’ve smooth-shaved your chest, then shave close to the skin by shaving without the cutting guard. Don’t use a bare razor on your stomach.
• Make sure you shave up to where your ribcage and pectorals meet – otherwise you’ll leave a darker looking border of hairs, outlining the lower edge of your chest. This can enhance the look of “separation” between your lower pecs and abs, but in all honesty, it looks a little weird.

Lastly … Some Tips For Shaving Chest Hair

If you look after your body shaver (especially the shaving foil) – you will prolong the working life of the shaving head, and you’ll rarely need to replace it. Always clean the shaving head thoroughly after use, and keep the unit well charged - that way you will always get an efficient cut.

Some body shavers are designed for shower use  (check the instructions that come with your shaver) – however, they don’t usually cut wet body hair as well as dry hair.

From a practical standpoint, it’s unlikely that you will perform the full close-shave on your chest each time. Why? Time issues. It’s going to take you longer to do the full – shower/body shaver/shaving gel and razor routine.

Instead, what you can do are “maintenance shaves” – where you let your body hair trimmer do most of the work i.e. quick and easy chest shaves – once or twice during the week – before you hop into the shower. Then you can leave the full, close-shave treatment for the weekends, or for whenever you have a little more time.

The more you shave your chest, the more familiar you will be in how your chest hairs grow, and the better you will get in shaving the area. Also, as your skin becomes more accustomed to chest shaving, you will experience less irritation.

During your gym training sessions, you don’t want external limiting factors coming into play like inadequate equipment. If the gym isn’t well-equipped enough for your training needs – then it will limit your progress.

You may have all the will in the world, but what good will it do, if the gym you go to, doesn’t even have a proper bench press? You are not going to get the results you want with a gym that doesn’t have the essential chest workout equipment.

Machines or Free Weights?

As you get stronger, you will need to use heavier dumbbells. A small selection of weights like this, will limit your progress when training the pectoral muscles.

A good gym will have both – but free-weights are essential. If possible, avoid joining gyms that are ‘machine-biased’ with only a small free-weight area – typically this will be a token dumbbell rack with a modest selection of dumbbells and maybe the odd barbell and EZ-bar.

These aren’t ‘proper’ gyms. They are generally ok for maintaining fitness and strength levels – but you need to push beyond that – and getting great pecs isn’t going to happen without access to proper bench presses and free weights.

Bench Issues

A gym with a lack of benches creates hassle for you – the gym user – especially if you train during peak hours.

Naturally, there will be more competition for the available benches, especially the bench press – which means more waiting if others are using it. If people are hogging the bench – you might not even get on it. When you do get on it, you’ll get others asking to share it with you, which can be fine for some, but not for others – it depends on your character and gym etiquette.

During your sets, you may feel you can’t move away from the bench – even for a few seconds – because the likelihood of someone else jumping on. These sorts of distractions are almost unavoidable in gyms, but will be a lot less in a spacious well-equipped gym.

No bench hopping: With a lack of benches, your training dynamics will be reduced. Say you want to do the following superset: a set of flat-bench presses and then jump straight onto an incline bench for a set of dumbbell presses. Are you going to be able to do that easily, in a small, modestly equipped gym? You could, but it’s likely you’ll end up ‘hogging’ the limited equipment available, and possibly annoying other gym users as well.

Few benches, probably means moving the available bench or two around, which may be impractical (depending on the set-up of the gym). It can also be hard work. You can expend a lot of energy moving adjustable benches around a gym – you really want to conserve this energy and just hop on a bench and start your sets.

Must-Have Gym Equipment for Effective Chest Training

When you check out a gym, look out for the important pieces of equipment. To train your chest to its maximum – you will need access to the following equipment, listed below:

Flat Bench Press (Racked With Olympic Barbell)

A proper gym will have a bench press or two. It’s a must-have piece of equipment.

The bench press – a fundamental piece of equipment for training the chest. Ideally, there should be more than one of them in your chosen gym. Everyone wants to get on the bench press; and with an extra one there’ll be less waiting around. Also make sure there are plenty of weight plates for the Olympic bar.

Incline Bench Press (Racked With Olympic Barbell)

Crucial for upper chest development. This should be a separate piece of equipment and not part of an adjustable flat/incline bench press set-up – or there will be too much messing around with the rack, in order to adjust the bar height, and the relative position of the bench to the bar.

Dumbbell Rack With Large Range Of Dumbbells

The dumbbells in your chosen gym, must go up to a high enough weight, so that you will always be able to progress. As you get stronger, you will eventually need heavier dumbbells to move to the next level in your training and maintain gains in muscle.

Stand-Alone Flat Benches For Dumbbell Work

A narrow bench, allows your rear delts and elbows to descend farther and really stretch the pecs.

Away from the flat bench press, you will use stand-alone benches a lot for your dumbbell presses and flys.

Benches come in different widths, but a narrow bench will always allow your elbows and upper arms to come down below the horizontal and really stretch the chest muscles on each rep.

If your shoulders are not that broad, a wider bench can slightly restrict the range of motion of your rear deltoids when performing dumbbell presses and flys.

If this applies to you, then you’ll feel the benefit of using a bench that tapers to a narrower width – like the one shown here.

Adjustable Incline/Decline Bench For Dumbbell Work

Essential for working the upper chest at different angles. The bench should have an adjustable seat, that can be raised upwards at an angle for incline sets – this is to keep your pelvis stable. The decline position is useful for targeting the lower pecs. If the bench has no decline position, then you’ll have to improvise – by placing a box under one end of the bench and creating the desired angle.

If you’re looking to buy an adjustable bench for your home gym – then take a look at the Bowflex SelectTech Adjustable Bench Series 5.1 at Amazon. The bench has 6 positions: one decline, flat, three incline, and vertical. So that’s five different angles for training your chest – with the upright position for shoulder presses.

You’ll see in the table of the product description – how this bench compares to the cheaper Series 3.1 bench – which only has 4 positions: one decline, flat, one incline (45 degrees) and upright.

Additional Gym Equipment for Training Chest

Ideally, the gym should have some of the following equipment, in addition to the above. These are loosely listed in order of importance from a chest-training-perspective:

Fixed-Weight Barbells

These are great for just grabbing and blasting out some reps without the hassle of loading the bar with plates. Especially good for warm-up sets, barbell pull-overs, and drop sets – you can quickly drop the weight by switching to another bar, without having to remove the collars and plates.

Cable Crossover Machine

Another common piece of gym equipment. Use it towards the end of your chest workouts, as a finishing exercise, to really pump the chest and work the pecs at different angles. The flexibility of the cables allows you to target the upper, middle, lower, and inner area of the chest.

Pec-Deck Machine

Almost a standard piece of gym equipment. Although this machine doesn’t build mass on the chest, it does give you a great pump. You can really contract the pecs intensely and get an excellent stretch in the muscles. Perfect for the end of your chest workout.

Smith Machine

This is mainly used for chest exercises, and squats for legs, but with the added security of a guided bar. Great for targeting the inner pecs by using a narrow hand-grip.

One negative: It can be tricky and time-consuming, getting the bench aligned in the correct position, relative to the bar. Each time you change the angle of the incline, you need to move the bench accordingly, so that the bar comes down to a comfortable position over your chest – it’s trial and error until you nail it.

Chest Press Machine

Not an absolute-must, but can be useful for warm-up exercises, or as an alternative to the bench press if it’s already in use. This machine comes in two variations: sitting upright and lying down.

Decline Bench Press (Racked With Olympic Barbell)

Use this for lower-pec development. However, many gyms won’t have these as a stand-alone piece of equipment – but it’s nice if it’s there.

Parallel Bars

Normally used for working the triceps, but you can also use them to work your lower chest, by angling your body forwards as you perform the dips. If you’re strong, use a weight belt to hang a plate between your legs to increase the intensity of the exercise.

Pseudogynecomastia is the type of gynecomastia that is associated with obesity, and the term is used to distinguish it between, so-called ‘true gynecomastia’, which is a hormone-related condition and is not caused by being overweight.

The theory is that if you have man-breasts because of weight issues i.e. psuedogynecomastia; it is pure fat tissue that is the problem. With true gynecomastia – then it is pure gland tissue (due to hormonal imbalances) that is giving you grief.

In reality, things are not so clear-cut. Both pseudo and gyno male-breasts can be made up of gland, fat, and a combination of both, mixed in together. In fact, even a normal male chest will usually have  a combination of fat and gland tissue (although in very small amounts) as well as muscle.

Both fat and gland tissue can be soft or hard, so it can be misleading to rely on the ‘firmness’ or ‘rubbery’ feel of your chest, as an indication of the genuine condition.

So what’s the difference then?

From a physical point of view, what really distinguishes between the two, are the proportions of the tissue present.

With pseudogynecomastia, most of the tissue accumulated in the chest, is fat. The good thing about that is that a significant amount of it can be burned off, over time,  with a combination of exercise and a sensible diet. Although it’s impossible to spot-reduce fat in specific areas of the human body, losing weight overall will help to reduce chest fat.

With gynecomastia – the key characteristic of the condition is the presence of a significant amount of glandular tissue underneath the nipple areas of the chest. Being overweight, or relatively lean, will dictate the level of fat tissue attached to the gland tissue, but there will be gland tissue there – and this cannot be burned off with diet and exercise.

Increasing muscle mass in the chest area won’t affect glandular tissue either, and can highlight the problem by pushing fat and gland towards the surface.

The areola (nipple area) can also become enlarged as growth of connective tissues can occur beneath it and this is another physical characteristic that can identify gynecomastia.

Commonly known as man-boobs, the actual medical term – gynecomastia (or gynaecomastia) comes from the Greek words ‘gyne’, meaning woman, and ‘mastos’ meaning breast.

The condition is mainly due to hormonal issues in the body. Although it’s most common in teenage boys and older men, it can occur at any age and also in lean men – so it doesn’t have anything to do with being overweight.

How To Tell If You Have Gynecomastia

Firstly, you should be aware of the term Pseudogynecomastia, which literally means ‘false’ gynecomastia.

The term is used to try to distinguish between the genuine condition, and the condition due to being obese; i.e. where you have an accumulation of fatty tissue (not glandular tissue) covering your pectoral muscles.

Making sensible changes to your diet and exercising more often will help you to lose weight and address the problem. However, If you’re concerned that you suffer with gynecomastia, then a physical examination by a medical practitioner, will usually be required for a diagnosis. Doctors can usually tell whether someone has it, but in some cases blood tests may be taken to monitor kidney, liver and thyroid functions.

The visible signs can be very obvious; you may have dome-shaped breasts on the chest. In some cases the symptoms can be less pronounced with more subtle contour deformations. Puffy nipples are a common form of it, where small amounts of excess tissue forms just under the areola – this can sometimes be sensitive or in some cases, painful.

If you’re lean, with relatively little body fat, yet suffer from these symptoms, then you may have the condition – so consult with a doctor.

What Causes Gynecomastia?

Lets first talk about hormones. It may sound surprising, but both male and female hormones are present in the bodies of men and women.

Male hormones are called androgens – testosterone being the main one and the one we all know. They are responsible for the control and development of male physical characteristics such as muscle mass.

Female hormones are called estrogens – which are responsible for the development of female physical characteristics.

Gynecomastia is the effect, caused by an imbalance in the levels of these two hormones in a man’s body. Usually, in fully grown men, the level of testosterone is far in excess of that of estrogen, hence no presence of breasts.

So what can cause this hormonal imbalance?

There are several possibilities:

• Pubertal gynecomastia that hasn’t resolved by itself after adolescence.
• Excessive alcohol consumption, can over time, reduce testosterone levels and the ratio of testosterone to estrogen decreases.
• Increasing age – from around 40 years of age, testosterone levels gradually begin to fall. If you don’t exercise regularly, usually body-fat levels will rise, resulting in higher production of estrogen.
• Use of Illegal drugs and anabolic steroids.
• Certain prescribed medications for existing medical conditions such as high blood pressure, heart conditions, certain cancers, hypertension, anti-ulcer drugs.

There are various medical conditions that can directly affect the hormone levels in the body. Some examples include:

• Cirrhosis of the liver – can cause hormonal fluctuations.
• Kidney disorders
• Testicular cancers
• Prostate cancer
• Hyperthyroidism – an overactive thyroid that produces too much of the hormone thyroxine.
• Genetic disorders like Klinefelter’s syndrome.

As you can see, the causes of gynecomastia can be quite varied and can be due to a
combination of ailments. There are treatments for gynecomastia ranging from medication – to address hormonal imbalances – to surgery to remove excess tissue from the chest.

It’s considered by some in the bodybuilding world, to be an ‘old-school’ exercise; like anything, things go in and out of fashion. However, there aren’t that many core chest exercises out there, and yet the pullover seems to get relegated to the bottom of the pile or even omitted completely.

You will be able to achieve good expansion of the rib cage if you work through a full range of motion, and over a period of training will help to improve the overall physique of your chest and upper torso.

The pullover can be done in two ways, either with a single dumbbell or a barbell – the difference being that, with the bent arm dumbbell pullover, you can get a slightly better stretch in the chest, whereas the barbell pullover tends to place a little more emphasis on the lats.

So where in your routine should you include pullover exercises?

It’s preferable to perform them after you have finished your bench and dumbbell presses – as these should always be your bread and butter chest exercises.

Dumbbell Pullover Exercise

There are two ways you can lie on the bench to perform this exercise: 1) along the bench or 2) across it (perpendicular to it).  When you perform the cross-bench dumbbell pullover, you can achieve better expansion of the rib cage – by keeping your pelvis lower than the shoulders.

Use a Safe Grip:

Grab a fat dumbbell at one end, with the palms of your hands against the plates and your thumbs underneath the handle.

Your grip is important here, because it’s not a conventional way of holding a dumbbell and it’s probably the only exercise where the weight will pass directly over your face.

With the correct grip, it is a safe exercise to perform, as your palms and thumbs form a triangle under the plates. Just make sure that the weight plates of the dumbbell are secured to the handle and/or spin-locks are tightly fastened.

Never hold the dumbbell from the plates themselves – it’s not the correct grip – sweaty hands could cause them to slip and cause you injury

Technique:

• Position yourself across a flat bench (at a 90 degree angle) with your shoulder girdle resting on the bench and the back of your head half-way over the edge.
• With your feet flat on the ground, knees bent at 90 degrees, keep your pelvis as low as you can – let it sink down and you should feel a stretch in the abs.
• Holding the dumbbell with both hands, extend your arms vertically so the weight is directly over your face. Keep your elbows slightly bent. This is the starting position.
• Inhale and lower the dumbbell behind your head, until your upper arms are in line with your torso. Keep your arms bent at the elbow. Return to the start position, while exhaling.
• Repeat for as many reps as you can do.

Barbell Pullover Exercise

Grab a small barbell and load it with relatively light weight- say 2.5 – 5 kg on each end of the bar. Start off with light weight, as a warm up, and gently increase the weight so you can gauge how much heavier you will be able to go after each set.

It’s important to do this with proper form, so don’t sacrifice this for heavier weight. This exercise isn’t suitable for you to put really heavy weights on the bar.

Technique:

• Using an overhand grip, your hand spacing should be shoulder-width but not too wide as it makes this exercise more difficult and places more strain on your shoulders.
• Lie high up on the bench, with your head sitting right on the edge – your shoulders will be rotating during this exercise so your arms will need some room to manoeuvre; if you lie farther down the bench, your arms will hit it as you lower the bar.
• Extend your arms vertically and from this starting position, lower the bar gently behind your head until horizontal.
• Allow your chest to expand as much as it can – you will feel a good stretch in your chest, triceps and your rib cage will open up.
• Keep your stomach tight by contracting your abs – this will help to keep your hips down on the bench.
• Bring the bar back up to the vertical position until it is directly over your chest.

Including pullovers in your chest workouts, will make your upper body look and feel stronger and improve your posture and flexibility. Perform them towards the end of your routine and see and feel the benefits after a few weeks of consistent training.

If you consistently put most of your efforts into flat-bench exercises, you may end up with what looks like an overdeveloped middle and lower chest – in other words, firm breasts. You want to avoid this.

You might be thinking ‘I go to the gym regularly, and do my chest workouts – I can’t possibly have man-boobs‘. Well, maybe you don’t have the excess fat around your pecs, but what about their shape?

Look carefully in the mirror and take a proper side-on look at your chest. If necessary, put on a tight-fitting t-shirt, so you can see the contours of your pecs. If your upper pecs are lacking, you will see a very flat, diagonal contour running from the clavicle (base of neck) to the mid-part of your chest. Firm lower pecs, will protrude outwards.

Be objective in your judgement; imagine you’re looking at someone else’s chest and try and see where improvements can be made. With a more developed upper chest, there will be a convex curve shape in the upper region. This is what you want, so let’s take a look at some great upper chest exercises for men who want achieve a fully developed chest.

Best Exercises For Upper Chest

The best exercises for upper chest development are those performed with free weights while your upper body is angled upwards.The pectoral muscles spread out like a fan and therefore they respond well when worked from various angles.

The typical range, when working the upper chest is around 20-45 degrees using an incline bench. It’s also a good idea to occasionally set the bench-angle to outside of these ranges i.e. 10-20 degrees and 50-60 degrees.

To fill out the whole of your chest, you will need to work it from all angles.

The higher angles will work the upper chest muscles near the clavicle – the bony area near the base of your neck. This can be a hard part of the body to develop well, but when it is, you’ll be able to see it even with your shirt or t-shirt slightly unbuttoned at the top – impressive!

With incline pressing exercises, and the bench placed in front of a mirror, you have the option of observing what you are doing – unlike flat bench chest exercises. This visual benefit allows you to make any necessary adjustments to your form, during the set.

Incline Barbell Bench Press

This is where you will do the heavier pressing, especially at the lower angle range of 15-20 degrees.With the bench inclined at greater angles – it’s harder to push heavier weights.

As the incline increases, the deltoid muscles in the shoulders will come more into play and less emphasis will be placed on the chest – it’s just a physiological trade-off and a feature of incline pressing that you should be aware of.

The shoulder muscles aren’t as strong as the chest, so when pressing with bench-angles between 30-45 degrees, factor this into your reps and sets.

• With the barbell racked, sit on a bench inclined between 30-45 degrees, grab the bar with your hand-spacing at around shoulder-width with an overhand grip.
• Pull your shoulder-blades in and push your chest out.
• Push the bar off the rack and extend your arms upwards, inhale and lower it to your chest.
• As soon as the bar reaches your chest, press it back up semi-explosively while exhaling. (Don’t bounce the bar off your chest and always time your breathing according to the speed at which you do the reps).
• Extend your arms, but maintain a slight bend in your elbows – do not lock out your arms – as you will take the stress off the chest muscles. The aim is to keep the work on your pecs at all time; do quality reps and forget about how much weight is on the bar.
• With the bar at its top position, and your elbows bent, immediately lower the bar back down to the chest and repeat as before.

It is important to keep the bar moving. Stopping, at either the bottom, or the top of the range of motion, allows your chest to rest ever so slightly on EACH rep. You might do less reps with this technique, but it is good form and your chest muscles will be worked to their maximum.

Smith Machine Incline Press

This exercise can be done on a Smith Machine, however the barbell press is a superior exercise for building mass on the pecs.

The Smith Machine is good for when you are performing high-rep sets and pumping the chest. Also, by employing a narrow grip, you can use it very effectively for an upper inner- chest workout. Since the bar is guided on a single plane of motion, this eliminates any balancing issues you may have with a barbell – while using a very narrow grip.

To target the upper inner-pecs, you can go really narrow with your hand placement on the bar with the added option of being able to keep your hands loose, pushing with your palms and chest muscles.

Incline Dumbbell Press

One of the great exercises for upper chest, and some of you may prefer this to the barbell press. You can really pile on the weight if you want to stimulate your muscle growth to another level.

How heavy you press, will depend on your current arm and chest strength, and whether you will be able to lift very heavy dumbbells from the floor, up into your starting position.

TIP: A good trick is to sit on the bench with the weights on the floor; lift them (keeping your back straight) and stand the dumbbells up, with the flat ends sitting on each of your thighs. Then in one movement, thrust your thighs upwards towards your chest, guiding the dumbbells with your hands upwards and out towards each side of your shoulders.

If you use your legs in this way, you will minimize the energy wasted in moving demanding weights into the starting position.

• Sit on a bench inclined between 30-45 degrees.
• Hold the dumbbells steady, with your palms facing away from you and elbows bent at 90 degrees.
• Pull your shoulder-blades back into the bench and push your chest out. If you have good lower back strength – this position can be even more pronounced by slightly arching your lower back. Otherwise just keep it flush against the bench.
• Now you’re in the ideal starting position.
• Inhale and begin to push your arms upwards, exhaling during the movement.
• At the top of the motion, you can bring the dumbbells together while squeezing your pecs. With heavy weights, this can help you balance the dumbbells during each rep.
• Alternatively, you can keep the dumbbells apart, i.e. don’t allow them to to touch. This reduces the time taken for each repetition -  because you begin the next rep earlier- your pecs will work harder with less rest in between.
• Lower the weights back down to either side of your chest and repeat.

Another great thing about this exercise, is that you can vary the position of the dumbbells, relative to your chest.

You can start with them out nice and wide, or bring them in a lot closer to your torso – thereby executing an effective upper inner chest exercise. In addition, pressing the dumbbells on a higher plane of motion, will work the muscles high on your chest near the clavicle.

Incline Dumbbell Flys

This is a fantastic exercise – if done properly. What you don’t want to do is just ‘go through the motions’ with this one. This is best done slowly and under control.

The trick is to intentionally create a sort of ‘sticking point‘ where your chest muscles have to work hard to overcome the resistance; you can do this by allowing a deep stretch in the pecs when lowering the weights and holding a static position for a couple of seconds until it feels slightly uncomfortable.

This is an ‘isometric contraction‘ – your pecs contract without any visible movement in the arm joints. As you begin to move the weights upwards again – you will find it will require a lot more effort – even with relatively light weights. If you do this slow enough, the exercise becomes even more demanding on your chest.

Dumbbell flys are an isolation exercise, meaning that only the chest muscles are targeted – the triceps and shoulder muscles will not contribute to the movement – unlike your pressing exercises.

Mix these into your workouts alongside your compound exercises. You can do opt to do several sets to pre-fatigue the pecs before doing presses, or do one set of flys followed immediately by one set of bench presses (or dumbbell presses) i.e. a superset.

Technique:

• It’s preferable to set the incline bench at various angles to fully work the upper chest. As an example, say you’re going for 5 sets, then you could do 1 set at 30 degrees, two at 45 degrees and two at 60 degrees. As the bench angle increases, so does the difficulty.
• With the dumbbells in each hand, extend the arms vertically and keep your elbows slightly bent. If you have a strong lower back, then you can arch it slightly off the bench and stick your chest out more.
• Inhale and begin to lower the weights to the horizontal position. Keep your hands loose during this descent phase; as you lower the dumbbells – loosen your grip, allowing them to rest in your palms, using your fingers to prevent them from slipping from your hands.
• Hold the stretch. You should feel it burn – then really slowly, bring the weights back up, increasing your grip only as they get towards the vertical position. Make the pecs do the work, don’t push with your hands. After 2-3 reps you will begin to feel your pectoral muscles ‘tremble‘ with the stress, each time you move the weights from the horizontal.
• You may be able to do only a few of these using this technique- but they will be quality reps.

If you feel that your upper chest development is lacking, then one way of solving this is to perform upper chest exercises most of the time during your chest workout routine.

For a period of a few weeks, reduce the number of sets of flat bench exercises (or avoid them completely), and focus on upper chest instead. Such a plan will help to stimulate and grow the upper region of your chest, while achieving a more balanced look.