Back growing WAY faster than Chest

[Hellawulf]

I've been dedicated to my diet and workout plan this summer and have been seeing overall VERY good results, but my only complaint is that my back is growing WAY faster than my Chest and arms. Don't get me wrong, I love it, it makes my shoulders look broader and my shirts fit tighter, but I'd like to switch that around if that's possible.

My back workouts have always consisted of Deadlifts (my favorite workout), pull-ups (which actually I've been doing a lot of lately, which is something I haven't been doing before), and bent over rows, and that's pretty much it.

My chest workouts were just flat bench and push ups (during my 5x5 routine), now (starting two weeks ago) I've cut flat bench for incline bench (trying to develop more upper pec muscle), and I've included some flat bench dumbell presses and flys. I've been stuck right at a 230-250 bench max for a while now.

Any ideas?

Thank you!

 

[JDid23]

i think you keep benching, and focus on your weak point of your bench press as assistance work. If you're having trouble locking out the weight, do board presses.... also, in 5x5 i don't think there is too much tricep work. Maybe adding some direct tricep work would help your bench. Maybe dips would help if your shoulders are healthy enough.

 

[Hellawulf]

Well for triceps during 5x5 I had bench (of course) but I also did Dips on Fridays. My triceps have actually developed fairly nicely as well, my weakest point isn't the lockout as much as the initial push, I'll get stuck as soon as I'm pushing it off my chest but with a little bump I've got it for the rest of the rep. So it's definately my chest that needs to be strengthened, by arms, I meant mostly my biceps.

 

[C.K.]

chest workout sucks cut out the pushups do guys in the army have huge chests? no! and they do pushups all day!

flat bench, incline bench & weighted dips! 3 best mass builders for chest

 

[Hellawulf]

Push-ups were used during HIIT for supersets. During 5x5 the only chest work was Bench Press and Dips.

Yesterday - Push Day
Incline Bench, Seated Shoulder Dumbell Press, Wide Grip Bench Press, Shoulder Flys, Dips

Yesterday was the first day I've done Wide Grip Bench Press in probably at least two years, it gave me a good pump, and if I understand correctly wide grip bench is supposed to be a good builder for that initial push off the chest in regular grip bench, which is what I need to develop, isolating chest.

 

[the_alcatraz]

chest workout sucks cut out the pushups do guys in the army have huge chests? no! and they do pushups all day!

flat bench, incline bench & weighted dips! 3 best mass builders for chest

the army also runs all day, and your chest get pretty lean when you run a lot.

 

[C.K.]

push ups are for girls if you wanna do body weight exercises do ones that actually use your whole body weight (dead hang chins, full dips)

 

[SPEKTOR-AAA]

I have to completely disagree with the pushups comment. Pushups are excellent exercise to implement into a routine. Its especially great if you incorporate a medicine ball into your pushups. Its great for balance, joint strength, ligament/tendon strength. If they are incorporated as a filler or extra they compliment the flat bench, incline dumbell press, dumbell flys, and pec dec. This will make for a super sore chest.

 

[the_alcatraz]

push ups are for girls if you wanna do body weight exercises do ones that actually use your whole body weight (dead hang chins, full dips)

Maybe if you're doing under 50 pushups, but when you end your chest workout with 100 pushups (non stop) then they are a great supplementary exercise.

 

[C.K.]

fair enough but not for a mass builder like op needs

 

[ExtraMile]

How many big bodybuilders attribute their size to pushups?

Maybe for athletics, fitness, circuit Training etc but I wouldn't call pushups a mass builder...

 

[PlatinumFitnessIPTS]

A while back I didn't have access to a bench so all I did was pushups for about 4 months. My chest didn't get significantly bigger but it did get significantly more defined, which made it look way bigger. The program I used consisted of the classical pushup as well as 9 other variations of it. My shoulders and arms also filled out quite nicely while on this program. I definitely think there is a place for the pushup in a well designed bodybuilding program. People need to rediscover it.

PlatinumFitnessIPTS.com Improving Performance Through Science

 

[stevesmi]

A while back I didn't have access to a bench so all I did was pushups for about 4 months. My chest didn't get significantly bigger but it did get significantly more defined, which made it look way bigger. The program I used consisted of the classical pushup as well as 9 other variations of it. My shoulders and arms also filled out quite nicely while on this program. I definitely think there is a place for the pushup in a well designed bodybuilding program. People need to rediscover it.

PlatinumFitnessIPTS.com Improving Performance Through Science

need you to stop advertising your website in every one of your posts, and I need you to edit all your posts that have that website.

or I will ban you.

if you are interested in advertising then you need to contact an administrator and pay a fee.. you do not get to advertise for free on here.

this is your final warning.

 

[the.gladiator1987]

good lookin out steve, I missed this one!

 

[treadlite]

Well for triceps during 5x5 I had bench (of course) but I also did Dips on Fridays. My triceps have actually developed fairly nicely as well, my weakest point isn't the lockout as much as the initial push, I'll get stuck as soon as I'm pushing it off my chest but with a little bump I've got it for the rest of the rep. So it's definately my chest that needs to be strengthened, by arms, I meant mostly my biceps.

I am in the same boat. Back has gone up 30% in the past 3 months, but chest is pretty stagnent. Once I can get the bar off the chest, I have no problem getting to lockout, it is the initial push that is just killing me.

Anyone have any advice on this, it would be greatly appreciated.

 

[SPEKTOR-AAA]

advice.... lower the weight and gradually work you way up in a pyramid type fashion. Build that bottom strength. Make sure you form is spot on as well. Add variety of chest exercises.

 

[FlexManning]

i think you keep benching, and focus on your weak point of your bench press as assistance work. If you're having trouble locking out the weight, do board presses.... also, in 5x5 i don't think there is too much tricep work. Maybe adding some direct tricep work would help your bench. Maybe dips would help if your shoulders are healthy enough.

I agree with this, and would caution you not to tilt your workout heavily in favor of pushing/pressing exercises and away from pulling exercises. That's the quickest route to screwing your shoulders up.

There's also a million different tricks people have used to isolate the pecs more, you have techniques like pre-exhaust and you have alterations in form that some people claim keep the stress on the pecs better, I know Jay Cutler doesn't bring the dumbbells all the way together at the top of db bench presses because he feels it shifts stress to the shoulders.

If anything about Arnold's chest was due to training tricks and not genetics and hard work I'd have to say it was the extremely pronounced stretch he used on db flyes. Unfortunately that can be a shoulder killer for most of us. But if you're able to do it, finishing off pecs with flyes with a deep stretch can be very effective at building overall pec mass, not just outer pec mass as some would claim.