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The Best 5 Exercises to Activate Your Pectorals

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The pectorals are a muscle group that receives a lot of attention and certainly has great hypertrophy potential , and growing them is relatively easy if you program your training well.

In addition to taking into account variables such as rest, frequency, intensity, or training volume, you should also try to choose the best exercises to make your training as efficient as possible.

The Best 5 Exercises to Activate Your Pectorals.

These five exercises will help you significantly activate your pectorals.

1. Decline Dumbbell Press.

This exercise was the one that generated the most activation in the pectoral muscles, and therefore it may be advisable that you include it frequently in your chest training .

It allows you to achieve a great range of travel since it is executed with dumbbells and in a declined manner. Try to keep your elbows diagonal, so that your arms form a 45-degree angle to your torso, to reduce your chances of injury.

2. Incline Dumbbell Press.

The incline dumbbell press can also provide great activation of the pectoral muscles, and in fact its involvement is very similar to what we would obtain in a horizontal press .

It is true that in this case there is also a little more impact on the anterior deltoid , and therefore it is advisable that we try to retract the scapulae well by bringing the shoulders back and down.

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This gesture is very simple to carry out and we should automate it as soon as possible, since it will greatly reduce the risk of us hurting ourselves in these pushing exercises .

3. Barbell Decline Press.

This exercise may be more effective than its counterpart with dumbbells in order to gain strength , although it achieved a somewhat lower activation of the pectoral and stabilizers.

You will have to feel the activation in the lower pectoral area and not in the armpit area (if that is not the case, you may be doing it wrong). It will be essential that you maintain the natural curvature of the spine throughout the entire journey.

4. Conventional push-ups.

Conventional push -ups can also be a very effective exercise to activate the chest and this is certainly very good news since it is not necessary to use any material to carry them out.

If you want to do them well you have to prevent your hips from sinking, you have to activate your abdomen, and you have to make sure your elbows do not point to the sides , but diagonally.

5. Incline Barbell Press.

The inclined barbell press involves a little less of the pectoral but involves a lot of the anterior deltoid , so it is advisable that you avoid working on it on the same day that you do exercises such as the military press.

To do it well, always surround the bar with your thumb and do not lift your glute off the bench to reduce the movement. Try to lower the bar to the level of your nipples and always make contact with your chest.

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Evidence Based

This content is based on scientific research and written by experts.

Our team of licensed nutritionists and fitness experts endeavor to be unbiased, objective, honest and to present each sides of the argument.

This article contains scientific references. The numbers in the parentheses (1,2,3) are clickable links to peer-reviewed scientific researches.

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