Chest is very important as it is the second most shown off muscle group after the bicep.

For this reason, whether you are a weight lifter or an athlete, a workout routine that trains the chest is going to become a priority at some point.

Increasing chest improves the overall performance of several other muscle groups, mostly in the arms. 

If you are having trouble with other areas try switching to the chest exercise and trouble areas begin to show improvement again.

Top 5 exercises to increase chest muscles

Once you grab the concept of how the muscles work together, you can alter the workouts to accommodate whatever machines you may desire to use that fit your target workout style.

1. Barbell Bench Press

The undisputed king of chest expansion for hundreds of years. It is possible to perform the bench press in a few variations.

How to do this exercise?

• Lie flat on your back on a standard Olympic weight bench 

• With your feet flat on the floor and your glutes tight to the bench, back and head on the bench at all times, unrack the bar from the bench 

• Pressing your feet into the floor while maintaining a flat position on the bench use both arms to drive the bar straight up

2. Dumbbell Bench Press 

It is easier to maintain an even level of strength with the dumbbell bench press because the free weights that you are holding aren’t connected in any way.

How to do this exercise? 

• Lie flat on your back on a bench

• While lying in a position that keeps your feet flat on the floor

• With a dumbbell in each hand rest the weight gently on your shoulders and then force them up and away from the body 

3. Push-ups

The standard bench will press only get a person so far when trying to attain more muscle mass in the chest.

To supplement normal weightlifting, it is important to incorporate more rapid motions into any chest program.

How to do this exercise?

• Get down on your hands and knees

• Extend your feet back and hold your position with your toes

• Place both hands approximately shoulder width apart, and begin by flexing your arms so that your chest lowers to the floor 

• With as much power as you can muster, push against the floor hard enough to pop your hands off of the ground

4. Incline bench press

The incline of the bench press, places a great deal more of the workload onto the upper chest.

How to do this exercise? 

• Use a press bench that can be raised to an incline position

• Unrack the weight and lower the barbell until it touches your upper chest 

• Press weight back up into the starting position with arms in to maintain a 45-degree angle to your flanks

• If you allow your arms/elbows to deviate outward you’ll be placing excessive strain on your shoulder joints

5. Decline Bench Press

The Decline bench press is very similar to the standard bench press. The decline of the bench press puts a great deal of emphasis on the lower chest muscles.

How to do this exercise? 

• Use a press bench that is adjustable and move the sent into a decline 

• Unrack the weight and lower the barbell until it touches your lower chest, upper abdominal region

• You will need to keep your elbows turned in to your body 

• Your arms are act a 45-degree angle to your flanks 

The important thing is to integrate these exercises into your daily routine among other programs. Combine individual workouts with your other muscle group routines to get the optimal increase in mass for your chest. Increasing the size of your chest takes significant effort and lot of time.