for those who preach incline use for chest, what are your reasons why?

[110%]

im not arguing incline is good for chest development, as i myself believe it works best. what i am wondering is what are some of the reasons why, if someone asked me to give reasons of my opinion i cant think of much. All i can think of as a benefit is increased range of motion, but other than that i think of more emphasis ont he delts which isnt good. what are your reasons for supporting incline use for chest.

 

[Bullit]

Good question!
I mean, if you are benching to develop the chest, then why would an excersize that puts more emphasis on the delts be better than one that puts the emphasis on the pecs?
(this, of course, assumes you are only doing 1 pressing movement)

 

[louden_swain]

For me, inclines work better. Over the years I have had tremendous gains in pectoral development and major increases in strength from using incline movements. When I perform inclines, I make sure my butt is firmly planted in the seat (Arch deluxe by Jay Cutler). Next, I will push out my chest, as my upper back is firmly planted onto the bench. I typically work with a 30 degree angle, but sometimes I will perform high incline presses at 50 degrees. I lower the bar in a controlled motion about 1 inch below my collar bones, then I explode towards the top position. I can achieve a tremendous pump by perfoming one set. This exercise DOES NOT over-emphasize my delts. It is amazing how many guys neglect inclines as they continue to use sloppy form on the flat bench. The funny thing is that none of these guys have pectoral development. Overall, I am very satisfied with incline movements. I also like to combine inclines with heavy parallel dips, dumbbell flyes, and pull-overs. After 9 sets of chest work, I am fried.

 

[BigRedCat]

I hate flat bench, I dont even do it anymore. I have just been doing DB inclines. Only prob is the weight is getting to be a bitch to get in place and I only work with 80 pounders! I guess I will build more strength as time goes on. I wish my gym had a DB rack, does that even exist?

 

[Calypso]

Good question!
I mean, if you are benching to develop the chest, then why would an excersize that puts more emphasis on the delts be better than one that puts the emphasis on the pecs?
(this, of course, assumes you are only doing 1 pressing movement)

Agreed 100%...from a physiological (sp?) standpoint, to work the pecs totally, flat bench work is by far the most efficient. Declines
and Inclines are working it at a suboptimum level. Declines don't
make sense at all, and Inclines are putting way too much emphasis on the delts and the tiny upper pecs, which can be fully hit by flats anyhow.

 

[louden_swain]

Agreed 100%...from a physiological (sp?) standpoint, to work the pecs totally, flat bench work is by far the most efficient. Declines
and Inclines are working it at a suboptimum level. Declines don't
make sense at all, and Inclines are putting way too much emphasis on the delts and the tiny upper pecs, which can be fully hit by flats anyhow.

Lets see you prove it!!

 

[The Shadow]

Agreed 100%...from a physiological (sp?) standpoint, to work the pecs totally, flat bench work is by far the most efficient. Declines
and Inclines are working it at a suboptimum level. Declines don't
make sense at all, and Inclines are putting way too much emphasis on the delts and the tiny upper pecs, which can be fully hit by flats anyhow.

30 degree incline db's are the best exercise for chest.

 

[Calypso]

Lets see you prove it!!

There's nothing to prove, it's basic anatomy and physiology.

 

[The Shadow]

There's nothing to prove, it's basic anatomy and physiology.

...you should read up on MRI research.....

 

[Calypso]

30 degree incline db's are the best exercise for chest.

There may perhaps be some benefit to doing some light incline type movement to finish up, perhaps for someone that is somewhat asymetrical. But in actuality the upper pec is just a small horizontal strip and can be fully trained simply by doing flat presses, which works the whole pec, which is the objective.