Press your chest muscles: a quick exercise switch to make your workout more effective

HERE'S WHY

Crossovers are great for getting a pump and bringing out your badass grimace, but they're pretty useless for building muscle. And if you think they add definition to your "inner pecs," you might as well wait up for Santa Claus next Christmas (you must like wasting time). The fly-press allows you to lift heavier by putting you in a mechanically stronger position--on a bench, combining both fly and press movements--rather than being crucified by two cable pulleys. As a result, you put more tension on your muscles and stimulate more growth.

HOW TO DO IT

Lie on a bench holding two dumbbells over your chest at arm's length with palms facing each other [1]. Slowly move your upper arms away from your body and down until they're parallel to the floor [2]. Rotate the weights in your hands so that your palms face your feet and bring your forearms closer to your body (as in a normal bench press) [3]. Press the weight back up.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

COPYRIGHT 2006 Weider Publications
COPYRIGHT 2008 Gale, Cengage Learning