Building a ripped chest! What’s the typical question you are asked as a weightlifter?  “How much can you bench?” It’s no wonder so many bodybuilders have a fascination with building their chest. Even with this fascination, many bodybuilders struggle to properly build their pecs. They are left puzzled as to why they develop an odd-looking, bunchy chest.

The truth is that you can build your pecs extremely fast. There’s no reason why you should fall into the other category. You know, those that can’t properly work their chest. In fact, you can build a big, ripped chest in just 20 minutes a week! Here is how to accomplish this feat and why you can build your chest so fast.

Building a Ripped Chest – Why You Can Get A Big Chest Quickly

One thing before launching into the workouts that will get you a big, ripped chest. It’s important to look at why building a huge chest is possible. To begin with, the pecs are made up of type II muscle fibers. Type II fibers have a high capacity for anaerobic exercise. They also contract very quickly. Basically this means you can develop pecs pretty quickly.

They have the ability to contract quickly and take more strain during anaerobic exercise. The pecs also grow fast because they are rarely used throughout the day. Once you start putting them through a full workout, your chest will get big pretty quickly. So putting size on your chest isn’t really the problem. That is, as long as you’re working out. Making your chest look good is the bigger picture.

Building A Ripped Chest – Improper Training

A properly trained chest will give off a slab-like appearance. The chest will look wide and high. With this being the case, the obvious question is: why do so many people have bulging chests? Or – even worse – sagging chests that hang? The answer to this question is that people aren’t correctly training their pecs.

Is your goal to have a good-looking, square chest? Then you need to be working every part of your pecs. Hopping on the bench press every time you want to work the chest? That isn’t going to accomplish this well-rounded look. Now, this isn’t to say that bench pressing is not an important exercise in developing the chest. It just shouldn’t be looked at as the only exercise.

Only using the bench press as a means for building your chest will cause the pecs to look narrow and low. To counteract this, you need to throw different isolation exercises into your routine too. Here’s a look at some of the exercises you need to do to build a ripped, square chest. This is also the routine you can complete with just 20 minutes of your time during the week. I’m not saying you should only do this once. Plan on at least two chest workouts a week.

Building A Ripped  Chest – 20 Minute Workout

This routine can be complete in just 20 minutes a week. It will leave your pecs screaming for mercy at the end of the session. With this being the case, one of these chest workouts a week will be good enough for massive pec development. As noted, you could squeeze in two of these workouts during the week if you’re an advanced bodybuilder. Now onto the workout!

1. Bar Dips

Bar dips are extremely effective at developing the chest. This is because your body recruits lots of muscle fibers into the equation when you’re performing this exercise. Of course, you need to make sure that you are putting the emphasis on the pecs when doing dips. This is best done by leaning forward with your chin in your chest. Also make sure to hold your legs directly under your head. This will keep everything balanced. Go as low as you comfortably can while performing these dips. Do 10 reps. Rest for a minute in between sets.  Do a total of 3 sets. As your conditioning improves, only rest for 30 seconds.

2. Dumbbell Flys

When you’re done with dips, start doing dumbbell flys. This exercise is a great isolation movement. They are a lighter exercise before heading to the bench press. Also, you’re pre-exhausting your pecs. To do dumbbell flys, lay on a bench with two dumbbells in your hand. They should be light enough for 10-12 reps. Perform 2 sets of dumbbell flys before getting ready for some barbell work.

3. Building A Ripped Chest With The Bench Press

As mentioned before, you can’t rely on the bench press to give you a well-balanced chest. However, you do need to incorporate it into your routine. It’s the big boy exercise. Use a weight that causes failure around 6-8 reps. Do 3 sets of bench presses before moving on to incline dumbbells.

4. Incline Dumbbells

When doing incline dumbbells, never put the incline at 45 degrees or above. This will put too much strain on the shoulders. Once you know this, you’ll be able to work your pecs a lot more with incline dumbbells. Ready to do the actual exercise? Make sure that you keep the weights vertical to the floor so you perform the movement correctly.

5. Cable Crossovers

Finally….the last part of the workout! And cable crossovers are the easiest part too. They’re mainly used as a defining movement. The best way to do cable crossovers is by leaning forward slightly. Allow the chest to pull the arms forward. When your hands reach each other, continue moving them across each other. Get that extra squeeze. Since this exercise is relatively easy, you should be able to do 15-20 reps. Try to do two sets. Finally, end your workout with some chest poses.

Building A Ripped Chest is fast but it’s definitely not easy! Are you ready to work?

By Jeremy Olson