To build a perfect chest as a beginner you need a perfect chest workout that you can follow. In this video, I’m laying out the best chest workout for beginners that can be done from home and with minimal equipment and space required. All you need to do is bring the effort and motivation to work hard and the workout will take care of the rest.

Let’s break down what is involved in this perfect chest workout first and then we can start to run through the exercises.

This home chest workout for beginners incorporates 5 exercises - 4 that target the chest muscles and one corrective exercise that hits the rotator cuff muscles and is protective of your shoulder joint. Many people forget to do exercises that compliment their chest exercises which leads to imbalances at best and injuries to their shoulders at worst. As a physical therapist, I want to lay down a foundation without cracks especially when constructing a chest workout for beginners.

All five of the exercises in this chest workout are going to be performed in order, with the sequence of upper chest exericse, middle chest exercise and lower chest exercise being the preferred order you do them. Rest time should be kept to a minimum when moving from one beginner chest exercise to the next.

When given a rep range, you want to try and fail within that range. If it is on one of the banded chest exercises then you will adjust the resistance accordingly to match your ability to fail within the stated range. If it is on one of the pushup variations, then slow the tempo down and focus on a strong chest contraction on every rep to increase the effectiveness and decrease the reps to get you within range.

Repeat the entire chest workout for beginners 2-3 times per workout.

Here is what it looks like:

1. PROWLER PUSHUPS x F (OPTIONAL - BANDED INCLINE SPLIT x 10-20 F Each Side)
2. HAND RELEASE PUSHUPS x F
3. PSEUDO PLANCHE PUSHUPS x F
4. BANDED SAWS x F each side (8-15 RM Tension)
5. BANDED EXTERNAL ROTATION x 12-15 each arm

It starts with our pushup that targets the upper chest called the prowler pushup. The key here is that you are pushhing your arms up and away from your body, in line with the direction of the upper chest fibers .Take your set to failure within the 10-20 rep range. If you want to do an alternative upper chest exercise you can do the banded chest exercise shown in the video.

The second exercise targets the sternal head of the pectoralis major. This is different than a standard pushup however as it incorporates the all important hand release before every rep. This forces good form on the pushups since it avoids the common pushup mistakes of poor body posture that are common for beginners. This also teaches you to incorporate your back muscles prior to pressing which is essential to learn for later when you perform a barbell bench press.

The third exercise is going to target the abdominal head of the pecs or lower chest. This pseudo planche pushup simulates a dip in the downward direction the arms will move during the pushup. The shoulders and triceps will be included in the exercise much like they are on a dip, but that is good and something that you will need at this point in the chest workout circuit.

Next is the adduction function of a complete chest contraction.

We can do this with an exercise called the banded saw. Think not about doing a crossover but instead running the arm paralell to the floor, straight across your chest. Hold each contraction for 1-2 seconds at the top to develop a good mind muscle connection with your pecs that will serve you now and for the rest of your training life.

Finally, the corrective exercise mentioned earlier is critical for protecting your shoulder from the imbalances that can often occur with chest workouts. This one targets the external rotation function of the shoulder with the use of a simple band. Perform 12-15 reps of high quality focused contractions.

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For a complete chest workout as well as total body programs and meal plans be sure to head to athleanx.com and use our program selector tool to find the program that best matches your goals.

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Jeff Cavaliere MSPT, CSCS served as both the head physical therapist and assistant strength coach for the New York Mets. Jeff earned his Masters of Physical Therapy and Bachelor’s of Physioneurobiology from the College of Health Sciences University of Connecticut Storrs. He is a certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist by the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA).