Movements That Help Grow Your Chest

9 Apr 2025 · 1 min

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1:06

In this short instructional segment, fitness coach Eric Roberts addresses a common problem: trainees often feel their chest muscles disengaged during pressing or fly movements despite using proper form. He offers three concrete technique adjustments to improve chest activation. First, he advises keeping the arms more straight on the concentric phase and pushing the weight away, rather than keeping the elbows bent, to reduce biceps and shoulder involvement. Second, he recommends bending the elbows during the eccentric (lowering) phase to prevent the shoulders and biceps from dominating. Third, he stresses depressing the shoulders (avoiding shrugging) and puffing the chest outward to further engage the pectorals. The overall message is to apply these cues to feel the chest working more effectively.

Chapters

If you are doing this exercise and no matter what, even if you feel like you have perfect form, you still never end up feeling your chest working, try these 3 things out. They just might help. Number 1, as you bring the handles together, you do not want to keep your arms bent. This is going to end up working more of your bicep and your shoulder. Instead, you want to think about pushing the weight away from you and keeping your arm more straight. But number 2, on the way down, you do actually want to bend your arms on the way down because if you keep your arms straight, you're going to end up feeling your bicep and your shoulder more. So instead, bend your elbows on the way down. And number 3, try not to shrug your shoulders up towards your ears. Instead, you want to pull your shoulders down towards your butt and puff your chest out out a little bit more. This will make you feel your chest when you're doing the movement. Try these things out, and I hope it helped.