The Best 7 Chest Exercises at Home
Chest is one of the most popular muscles to train, with compound movements such as the bench press being a staple in all of our workouts.
However, many people that workout at home don’t have access to such facilities. This article will provide you with a complete chest workout that can be performed from the comfort of your win home with little-to-no equipment.
Dumbbell Workout
Many of us have a pair of dumbbells lying around the house somewhere, unused and untouched.
Go and pick them off, dust them off and prepare for the ultimate home dumbbell chest workout!
You will need to use some sort of bench for these exercises. You can experiment with other pieces of equipment but anything that you can lie on which is narrow enough that you can move your arms either side will suffice.
Dumbbell Bench Press
A standard exercise which most of us include in our chest workouts. With a pair of dumbbells and a bench, lie flat and raise your arms with the dumbbells above your torso. Lower the dumbbells down towards your chest with a pronated grip. Press them back up and repeat, ensuring you don’t totally lock out your elbows.
Dumbbell Flyes
Get into the same starting position as with the dumbbell bench press, however this time you want to hold them dumbbells with a neutral grip so that your palms are facing each other. With a slight bend in your elbows, lower the weights towards the ground slowly stretching out your chest, then bring them back up to the starting position ensuring you don’t bang them together. Don’t lower them too far at first to prevent injury.
Dumbbell Pullovers
This time you want to lie across the bench, with your upper back resting on it and feet firmly planted on the floor. Keep your neck off the bench to prevent injury. Pick up one dumbbell raising it above your head with a slight bend in your elbows and lower the weight behind your head. Hold the stretch for a second and then press it back up to the starting position and repeat.
SETS AND REPS
You should perform 8-12 reps for each of these exercises in a circuit with minimal rest. Repeat the circuit 3-4 times.
PUSH UPS:
Clapping Push Ups
Lower yourself into a usual press up starting position, with your arms shoulder width apart and your back straight. Lower yourself to the floor performing the first part of a push up movement.
When you push back up, do so explosively, raising your arms and upper body off the ground and performing a clap as you do so. As you lower back to the ground, go straight back into another clapping push up, using the momentum to help complete the repetitions.
Incline Push Ups
Using an elevated platform of your choice (around 1 foot off the floor, but it’s up to you), get into a regular push up position with your arms elevated and your feet on the floor. Ensure that your arms are shoulder width apart.
Perform the repetitions as you would with a normal push up, contracting your chest as you do the movement. If you do not have a suitable platform, this can be performed using stairs to elevate your arms.
Decline Push Ups
Using an elevated platform of your choice, as with the prior exercise, get into a regular push up position only with your feet elevated this time.
Perform a regular push up in a controlled motion contracting your chest. If you don’t have a suitable platform, you could use stairs, a chair or your couch.
SETS AND REPS
You should perform each exercise for 10-15 repetitions, starting at the lower end if you are a beginner and working your way up. Try and perform each one with minimal rest, working your way towards having no rest. Once you have performed all 4, take a short 30 second break (again, over time try to reduce this) and then repeat the circuit. You should perform this circuit 3-4 times.
