Once your chest muscles are strong, you are ready to focus on lower chest workouts. By focusing on your lower chest muscles, you will improve the mass, strength, and shape of your chest.
We made a guide that covers the best lower chest workouts that will help you sculpt a refined chest.
For many of these exercises, you will require a bench and a set of dumbbells. But for those of you who don’t have access to a bench, we’ve also included some that you only need a set of dumbbells for.
Start by positioning yourself on a declining bench, with the dumbbells held close to your body. You can also have a friend hand dumbbells to you when you are in position.
When you have settled yourself on the bench, press the weights straight up to the centre of your lower chest. It will be a vertical movement. Ensure that your palms are facing toward your lower body.
You will then bend your arms to lower the dumbbells. Keep your wrists positioned over your elbows while doing this motion. As you lower the dumbbells, they will move down and out. It will look like the dumbbells are outlining a triangle’s edges.
When doing this exercise, you will feel a burn in both your pecs and triceps.
To complete the repetition, press the weights up.
Thisdumbbell chest workout builds strength to the pecs and effectively targets the lower chest muscles.
The movement of your elbows flaring out during this exercise allows for a more intense stretch of your entire chest.
If shoulder pain is a problem for you, then the decline bench press is an option for you. The decline bench press places less stress on the shoulder.
In addition, the decline angle lessens strain on your lower back.
If you have the appropriate racking equipment, then you can also decline presses with a barbell.
You can also try this with hex rubber dumbbells.
You start by lying face-up on the declining bench, with your feet fully secured to prevent yourself from sliding off the bench. Your eyes should be underneath the barbell and your grip should be wider than shoulder-width.
Set your shoulder blades together.
Bend the shoulder and elbow joints when you lower the barbell into the bottom of the press. Your elbows should be underneath the barbell.
When you are in the bottom position, push the barbell back up to a lockout position.
This is one repetition.
This exercise will increase your upper body strength, improve endurance and prepare your upper body to do certain movements such as push-ups.
With a declining dumbbell fly, you should use lighter dumbbells than you would use with a dumbbell press.
Grip the weights close to your body and position your body on the bench.
Press the dumbbells straight up to the centre of your lower chest. Make sure that your palms face toward each other and keep your arms slightly bent. This will be a lockout position.
You will maintain bent elbows throughout this workout. Your elbows will point slightly outwards.
Spread your arms apart laterally in a controlled movement, maintaining the slight bend at your elbows. When the weights are at the level of your chest, activate your chest muscles and bring the dumbbells to the starting position.
When spreading your arms, only go as wide as your body allows. You do not want to place too much strain on your shoulders. You need to also make sure that your elbows do not go lower than chest level.
This is one repetition.
The declining dumbbell fly will isolate the lower chest muscles and build strength in the lower pecs.
This dumbbell exercise targets your core, anterior delts, and triceps.
But, what if you do not have a bench in your home gym? Thankfully, there are somedumbbell chest exercises without a bench that you can do. You only need your lower body and dumbbells.
You just need to position yourself into a half-bridge on the ground to perform these workouts.
This is a greatchest workout with dumbbells for women.
Start by lying on a mat with a dumbbell in each hand and your knees bent. Your feet should be hip-width apart.
Get your thighs and torso in line by pushing your hips up. Your elbows should face outwards and your forearms are angled to the right of the floor.
Then press the weights up, moving them towards each other.
To finish the repetition, lower the dumbbells back slowly without touching the floor.
Similar to the incline floor press, the starting position is the half-bridge.
Bend your elbows and bring the dumbbells upwards in a slow movement. Visualise yourself hugging a large tree.
When the dumbbells are at the top, take a pause and squeeze your chest.
Keep your arms bent, and slowly lower the weights back to the starting position without touching the ground. This is one repetition.
For this dumbbell exercise without a bench, you will only require 2 dumbbells.
Start in a standing position, with your feet as wide as your shoulders, and grip a set of dumbbells. You will have 1 dumbbell in each hand.
Your arms will be resting fully straight at your sides and your palms will face your hips.
Squeeze your lower chest muscles, and extend your arms upward until they are above chest level. Your palms should face upward.
Take a pause and then lower the dumbbells, bringing them back to the centre, to complete the repetition.
If you want to work those lower chest muscles with dumbbells, but do not have a bench, then this is a great workout for you. The standing upward fly will strengthen and tone your pecs.
A dumbbell chest fly is a great way to open the chest. Chest openers can reduce upper body tightness, and aid with upper back pain. If you want to do dumbbell chest flies to open your chest muscles, you may want to consider lighter weights.
Lighter weights allow you to get a full range of motion.
Chest flies will also assist in improving your posture and building strength in your shoulders.
You can do this exercise on a flat bench.
You start by lying face-up on the bench. Grip a dumbbell in one hand on one side.
You will now create a “cage”. Adjust your grip on the weight by holding it at one end, and your thumbs and fingers overlapping each other. The handle will meet the end that you are holding. If you cannot manage that, then you can wrap both hands around the dumbbell’s handle.
Push the dumbbell straight up at chest level. Keep your elbows slightly bent.
Activate your abdominal muscles to stabilise your core as you flex your shoulders to swing the dumbbell over and behind your head. This motion should be controlled and limited to a range of motion that is comfortable to you.
Stop extending your arms if your elbows get to your face’s level.
You will then reverse the arc, by drawing the dumbbell back up and over your chest to the original position.
This will be one repetition.
The dumbbell pullover is effective because you work both your pecs and lats.
It is also great for strength training and can assist in improving your posture.
Your chest plays a big role in aiding good posture as its strength dominates your shoulder’s position. Your pecs also assist in stabilising your shoulder joint.
When you strengthen and lengthen your chest muscles, you expand and contract the ribcage. This, in turn, supports deeper breathing.
When your pecs become stronger, you will find yourself becoming better in sports. For example, you will be able to hit a tennis ball harder and throw a ball faster.
First of all, if you want to develop your lower chest muscles, you need to focus on a range of exercises that will strengthen your pectoral muscles. Pectoral muscles, which are also called pecs, define the overall shape of the chest.
You will notice that many of the lower chest exercises are performed in a declined position. And there is a good reason for it.
Research suggests that one’s lower chest muscles get the greatest activation when it is doing chest exercises on a decline.
By being on a decline, you shift the emphasis to the lower portion of your chest.
For that reason, to work your lower chest, you need to do motions that go downwards and against your chest.
If you do not like the idea of exercising on a decline, then you can work out on a flat bench.
You can also learn more abouthow you can get bigger pecs with dumbbells.
It is not easy to strengthen your lower pecs. It will take some discipline, consistency, and time.
By doing these lower chest dumbbell exercises, you will be able to improve the appearance of your overall chest and feel physically stronger.
You can also check out aninner chest workout with dumbbells.
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