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Pectoral training: one of the most popular workouts, both by bodybuilders — who seek not only strength but also the increase in volume — and by gym-goers who want to tone their muscles for purposes not so competitive, as aesthetic and/or healthy.

Before getting to the heart of the matter, a very brief review of the anatomy of these muscles, which, together with the backbones and deltoids, are among the most important of the trunk, is appropriate.

The pectoral muscles are extrinsic muscles of the chest; the large breastplate and the small breastplate are distinguished; the first muscle is located in the anterior area of ​​the thorax, below the breast; the second, on the other hand, is a muscle hidden by the large breastplate and which contributes to forming the armpit cord. The primo tabs 25mg (50 pills) are innervated by the brachial plexus (one of the six nerve plexuses that belong to the peripheral nervous system).

The importance of the large breastplate is due to the fact that the various parts that make it up are capable not only of carrying out the movements of the arms but also of fixing and immobilizing the trunk in all suspension and support movements to prevent the chest go down.

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Given the above, the pectoral muscles are very important in different sports, for example in throws, pole vaulting, tennis, swimming, martial arts, artistic gymnastics and in any case in all those sports activities that constantly engage arms.

The pectoral muscles can also help in inspiration, widening the ribcage. This is the reason why a tired athlete brings his hands to his hips: by fixing his arms, he can use his chest straps to widen the rib cage more and breathe in more deeply.

From a health point of view, unless you practice sports in which these muscles are particularly involved (such as the throwing of the javelin, to name one, or swimming), the pectoral training, as well as the back and deltoid ones, unlike in bodybuilders, should only seek general toning. For those who do not use these muscles, such as a runner, the increase in volume induced by high loads can even be counterproductive.

Pectoral training: the exercises

There are many ways of exercising for pectoral training; below we provide some examples for a workout of these muscles.

Cable Crosses  — This exercise is performed standing with your legs spread and your knees slightly flexed. Grasp the high cables with the palms of your hands facing forward; keeping your arms straight, bring your hands together until they come together and then return to the initial position. During the approach of the arms, one must exhale, while when moving away one must inhale.

This type of exercise activates the entire muscular district but particularly stimulates the lower bundles of the chest. When we are in the eccentric phase, care must be taken that the wrists never go beyond shoulder height. The exercise can also be performed by keeping the torso flexed forward, being careful not to go beyond 45 degrees.

A variant of this exercise can be performed using low cables; in this case, the arms must be brought up to the head.

A typical training, to be calibrated based on personal preparation, could consist of a series of warm-ups followed by four sets of 12 repetitions.

Chest training: it is one of the most popular, both by bodybuilders and by gym-goers who want to tone their muscles for not so competitive, aesthetic and/or health-related purposes 

Flat bench crosses — Lie on a flat bench making sure that your shoulders and buttocks are perfectly in contact with the surface of the bench. Expand your chest by pulling your shoulders back towards each other. Then extend your arms over your shoulders bringing the dumbbells up and keeping your arms well parallel. Inhale, start a slow downward movement, making sure that the shoulders are snug against the bench surface. The movement, to be carried out in a wide arch, must continue until the moment when the hands reach the height of the shoulders. After the descent, the arms must be positioned in such a way as to form an angle of about 80 degrees with the hips. Arm and forearm instead form an angle greater than 90 degrees; the knuckles of the hands are turned towards the floor.

In the ascent phase, the pectoral muscles must be contracted; it is at this stage that you breathe out. Always keeping a trajectory forming a wide arch, the dumbbells are made to rise. As soon as the vertical of the elbows reach the shoulders, an internal rotation of the latter must be carried out until the dumbbells are facing each other. Once the movement is finished, keep the contraction for two or three seconds and then go downhill.

Take care, throughout the exercise, to keep your elbows slightly bent; this will avoid excessive stress on the biceps tendons.

A typical workout, to be calibrated based on personal preparation, could consist of three sets of 10 repetitions.

Incline bench presses  — Lie on your back on the inclined bench (recommended inclination 50 degrees) taking care to keep your back firmly against the surface. At this point, grab the bar with your palms facing forward. The distance between one hand and the other must be greater than the distance between the shoulder and the shoulder. At this point, stretches are carried out which bring the balance upwards, making it return in proximity, during the passive phase, near the upper middle of the sternum.

During the relaxation phase, one must exhale; instead, you must breathe in when we are in the downward phase of the barbell.

This type of exercise serves to develop the upper part of the chest as it stimulates the clavicular bundles of the pectoralis major muscle.

A variant of this exercise are the stretches on the inclined bench with the dumbbells.

A typical chest training, to be calibrated based on personal preparation, could consist of a series of warm-ups and 4 sets of 10 repetitions.

Pectoral machine  — Sit at the machine keeping your back snug, put your arms in the supports, grasp the handles and bring your elbows close in front of you. The seat height must be adjusted so that the virtual line passing through the elbows is at the height of the pectoral muscles and parallel to the floor. You exhale during the concentric phase (the elbows approach) and you breathe in during the eccentric phase (abduction of the arms).

The use of the pectoral machine allows a job in which the resistance is practically constant throughout the adduction phase of the arms. The muscle most affected by the work done with the pectoral machine is the pectoralis major.

A recommended typical session may include 10 repetitions with maximum load or 20 repetitions with a lower weight, always taking into consideration the initial condition of the subject.

The pushups — The pushups are very effective exercises for pectoral training (but also in that of the triceps and various shoulder muscles); these are exercises that must be carried out with some caution, especially by those who have functional shoulder deficits related to trauma or previous injuries. For more information on this topic, refer to the specific article: Folds on the arms.