Chest Exercises With Free Weights

Fitness Goal

• Your fitness goal will determine how you do your chest exercises. If you are looking to add bulk you will want to do stable exercises lying on a bench with your free weights. You will also want to do fewer repetitions with heavier weights. A range of 6 to 10 reps is good for increasing hypertrophy, muscle size and maximal strength. Three to four sets is fine.
  Increasing the strength of your smaller stabilizer muscles, tendons and ligaments as well as your muscular endurance will require a higher number of repetitions with smaller weights. Two sets of 12 to 20 reps is good. You should also do the exercises in an unstable environment such as on a stability ball instead of a bench or by alternating sides.
  Three days a week of lifting will get your closer to your goal. Two days a week will help you maintain the progress you've made.

Chest Presses

• Chest presses are one of the two basic categories of chest exercises along with chest flyes. Chest presses target your pectoral muscles and your tricep muscles of your arm. You can do a chest press lying on an exercise bench with dumbbells or a barbell to increase muscle size or lying on a stability ball with dumbbells for muscular endurance and stabilization training.
  To do chest presses lying on a bench, get two dumbbells of the same weight or a barbell and lie on a bench. You should get someone to spot you, especially if you are using a barbell. A barbell should be held with your hands shoulder width apart. Hold the barbell above your chest or hold two dumbbells with your arms straight and your palms facing toward your feet. Bend your elbows and lower the barbell to your sternum or the dumbbells to the same height. Your elbows should be in line with your sternum. Exhale and press your arms up straight to their starting position to complete one repetition. Keep your abdominals tight and your lower back flat on the bench. Do not arch your back to lift the weight. Drop down to a lower weight if you cannot complete the set without "cheating" or breaking form.
  Chest presses can also be done lying on a stability ball. Position your neck and shoulders on the ball with your knees bent and your feet on the floor. Your ankles will be below your knees and your hips should be lifted so that your body is flat like a bridge. Hold your dumbbells in the same position as you would on the bench. Use lighter weights as you will be doing more reps and they will be harder to do while balancing on the ball. You probably will not need a spotter but if you have one use them. Bend your arms and lower your arms in the same motion. Exhale and press your arms up. You can also press one arm at a time to alternate the presses. This will be more challenging to your core muscles because the weight on your body will not be even on both sides. Maintain your lifted hips the entire time and squeeze your abs and glutes.

Chest Flyes

• Chest flyes target the pectoral muscles of the chest without using much arm strength. Because your body gains strength only in the way it is used, called the Principle of Specificity, it is important to do both flyes and presses for a complete chest training program.
  Lie face up on a bench with a pair of dumbbells held over your chest. Turn your palms inwards and touch them together. Bend your elbows like you are hugging a tree. Inhale and lower your arms out to your sides until they are parallel to the floor with your palms facing the ceiling. Exhale and raise your arms back to the starting position above your chest. You cannot do a flye with a barbell. Follow the same guidelines above regarding choosing the correct weight and not cheating.
  Flyes can also be done on a stability ball for endurance training. Lie in the same position as with the presses. Your neck and shoulders should relax completely on the ball and your hips should be lifted. Bring your arms over your chest in the same flye position as on the bench. Inhale and lower your arms to your sides without allowing the ball to move. Exhale and lift them back up. Use a lower weight than with bench flyes and keep your abs and glutes squeezed throughout your set.