Written by IFBB Pro Josh Wade
08 March 2021

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Relentless Pursuit

Presented by Allmax Nutrition

 

How to Build a Bigger Chest

Training Tips for Massive Pecs

 

By IFBB Pro Josh Wade

 

 

 

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Q: I’m having a hard time building my chest. I try to focus on feeling my chest but all I feel are my delts burning. Are there any pointers you can give me?

           

A: This is probably the most asked question I get when people want to improve their physique. The first thing I do when I assess a client is have them run through a few poses, usually just front and back double biceps and side chest as you can see the physique from all angles in those three poses. Right away when they do a front double biceps pose, I can tell how they do their chest presses, whether it’s right or wrong. When they hit that pose, if their anterior delts really show prominence and stand up high, almost to their traps, I can tell they do most of their pressing with their delts and not their chest. That almost always means they aren’t creating enough arch in their back when trying to activate their chest. Also, there’s a fine line between extending and reaching on chest presses. You always want to keep your head rolled back with eyes up, shoulders rolled underneath your body and when you press, extend to squeeze the chest but don’t reach to where your shoulders come off of the pad and your anterior delts are above your chest. At that point, the load on contraction is being transferred to your delts.

           

It does take a good mind-muscle connection to make sure you are targeting the chest, and as I talk about all the time, slowing down the negative is the best way to make sure you are feeling the muscle you are trying to activate. When you slow down the negatives to three seconds, you keep tension on the muscle and don’t let any blood out, so you initiate a burn in the muscle. It will most definitely help with the mind-muscle connection in that area. I always say, “If it’s burning it’s working!”

           

If you still are having a hard time feeling the chest while training, and this could pertain to any other muscle group as well, you might need to lighten the weight and focus on making sure you have the connection with the muscle. Do this by forcing the contraction with an explosive change of direction, holding the squeeze for a split second and then slowly controlling the negative (resistance). When doing every rep that way in the eight to 12 rep range, toward the end of the set the pump, connection and burn should intensify on every rep. Then you can increase the weight and know what it should feel like. If you can’t feel it where you are supposed to then it’s likely you aren’t doing it right! One last thing that works for building that mind-muscle connection on any muscle group is pre-exhausting to get a good pump so you feel the muscle on the rest of the exercises.

 

Here’s an example I have a lot of people start their chest workout with:

 

Machine Flye - 5 x 12

Superset with

Incline Dumbbell Press - 5 x 12

 

On the machine flye, squeeze the chest hard on each rep. This is done best by relaxing your grip on the handles and thinking about squeezing your palms together so you’re not flexing your biceps to help finish the contraction. Then go right into incline dumbbell presses using the three-second negative like I mentioned above. Once you feel the burn in the upper chest, you’ll know you are in the groove. Remember to aim those dumbbells toward your shoulder and not your nipples, as the lower toward the bottom of the chest you bring them, the more likely you are to roll your shoulders forward and engage the front delts. If you were using a barbell it would hit your neck, and that should put you in the proper position for most people. I know it was a long explanation, but I hope it was clear and helps you out!

 

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Building Muscle at 40

 

Q: I started getting into weight training recently and fell in love with it, but being almost 40 years old now I’m not sure what’s the best way to build muscle.

 

A: I do think training styles change as you get older, but more important than age is how long you’ve been training and how much or if you’ve beaten your body up with different sports. First off, I’m 41 now so 40 years old is not old, just saying! At any age, form and technique, meaning control of the weights, is the most important aspect for preventing injuries and keeping the muscle under constant tension for the most stimulation possible. When you are younger you can throw around weights and build muscle and if you do get an injury, you will heal faster. At 41 if I get an injury, it forces me to take an extended period of time off the gym. I don’t feel I’ll improve and will lose time because of it, so I train smarter now. No, I’m not building muscle very fast anymore after training for over 20 years, but I am still improving year to year.

 

As for you, I do believe you can get some amazing gains no matter your age due to the fact that you haven’t been training with weights for very long. Therefore, your body should respond to the stimulus and grow fairly easily. Not to mention weight training gives you a sense of pride, which builds confidence. From what I’ve seen, confidence makes a difference in most aspects of your life. So follow your passion, stay in love with the feeling of pushing weights and don’t forget to enjoy the process, as the journey is more valuable than the outcome!

 

Strengthening the Immune System

 

With the COVID-19 situation, I’ve been getting a lot of inquiries as to which supplements can strengthen the immune system and help prevent infection. These are the supplements that I take every day year-round for immune system function and antioxidants, but they are even more beneficial at times of stress or sickness.

 

Allmax Immune-Boosting stack

Glutamine: 10g 3x day, upon rising, post-workout and before bed.

R+ALA: 2 caps (300mg) with first and last meal.

CytoGreens: 1 scoop upon rising. 

Vitastack: 1 multipack with first meal.

Omega 3: 2g with first and last meal.

 

Please send questions for this column to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Website: www.teamwadefitness.com

 

Instagram:

@ifbbprojoshwade

@teamallmax

@allmaxtraining

 

For more information, visit allmaxnutrition.com

 

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