The chest is one of the most important muscle groups on the upper body. A big, strong chest commands respect in the gym!
Unfortunately, most people do not know how to train the chest for size and strength.
So what do the best chest hypertrophy workouts look like?
The best chest hypertrophy workouts use 3-5 exercises, including a healthy mix of compound and isolation exercises. The chest is a complex muscle group and must be trained from many different angles for optimal development!
Most bodybuilders like to use at least 2 compound exercises and 2 isolation exercises per workout. For example, Many bodybuilders will do the bench press, incline dumbbell press, dumbbell flyes, and cable flyes.
These high-volume workouts can be difficult to recover from. However, most bodybuilders agree that they are ideal for increasing the muscular hypertrophy of your chest.
Now let’s take a closer look at the best chest hypertrophy workouts!
Ronnie Coleman Chest Workouts
Ronnie Coleman is one of the greatest bodybuilders of all time.
He won the Mr. Olympia competition 8 times in a row from 1998 – 2005, beating out many legendary bodybuilders like Jay Cutler and Flex Wheeler.
Ronnie Coleman also had one of the greatest chests of all time! So how did Ronnie design his chest hypertrophy workouts?
The truth is, Ronnie trained his chest twice per week.
He had a barbell workout, where he focused on the bench press and incline bench press, and a dumbbell workout, where he focused on the dumbbell press and incline dumbbell press.
Here is what Ronnie’s barbell chest workout looked like. Check it out:
Ronnie Coleman’s Barbell Chest Workout
- Exercise #1: Flat BB bench press, 3-5 sets of 5-15 reps
- Exercise #2: Incline BB bench press, 3-5 sets of 8-20 reps
- Exercise #3: Decline BB bench press, 3-5 sets of 8-20 reps
CLICK RIGHT HERE for the training video of this workout.
Talk about an intense workout!
Ronnie Coleman keeps this chest hypertrophy workout short and sweet. He performs 3 barbell exercises for his chest to hit the muscle from as many angles as possible!
Now let’s look at Ronnie’s dumbbell chest workout. Check it out:
Ronnie Coleman’s Dumbbell Chest Workout
- Exercise #1: Flat DB press, 3-5 sets of 5-15 reps
- Exercise #2: Incline DB press, 3-5 sets of 5-15 reps
- Exercise #3: Flat DB fly, 3-5 sets of 8-20 reps
CLICK RIGHT HERE for the training video of this workout.
Talk about an intense workout!
Ronnie Coleman works up to the 200 pound dumbbells for the flat and incline dumbbell press.
Ronnie believes that lifting heavy is the best way to build the chest, and it shows in these videos:
Dorian Yates Chest Workouts
Dorian Yates is another incredible bodybuilder.
He won the Mr. Olympia competition 6 times in a row in the 1990’s, and was known as the first true “mass monster” in bodybuilding.
So how did Dorian train his chest?
The truth is, Dorian Yates trained his chest 1 day per week using 4 different exercises.
He liked to perform 1 set to failure per exercise to really stimulate as much muscle growth as possible. Check it out:
Dorian Yates’ Chest / Biceps Routine
- Exercise #1: 30 degree incline bench press, 1 working set of 6-8 reps to failure
- Exercise #2: Flat machine press, 1 working set of 6-8 reps to failure**
- Exercise #3: 30 degree incline DB fly, 1 working set of 6-8 reps to failure**
- Exercise #4: Standing cable crossover, 1 working set of 6-8 reps to failure**
CLICK RIGHT HERE for the training video of this workout.
Talk about an intense workout!
Dorian Yates performs a total of 4 exercises for his chest hypertrophy workout, including the incline bench press, flat machine press, incline dumbbell fly, and cable crossover.
For each exercise, Dorian performs several warm up sets, followed by 1 working set to failure.
They don’t call Dorian “Mr. High Intensity” for nothing!
Arnold Schwarzenegger Chest Workouts
Arnold Schwarzenegger has the best chest in bodybuilding history. His chest is so thick and wide that it doesn’t even make sense!
So how does Arnold train his chest for size and strength?
The truth is, Arnold uses at least 5 different exercises for his chest workouts.
He believes that high-volume workouts are absolutely essential for achieving complete chest development. Check it out:
Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Chest Routine
- Exercise #1: Bench press, 3-6 sets of 5-20 reps
- Exercise #2: Incline bench press, 3-6 sets of 5-20 reps
- Exercise #3: V-bar dips, 3-6 sets of 5-20 reps
- Exercise #4: Flat DB flyes, 3-6 sets of 8-20 reps
- Exercise #5: Cable crossover, 3-6 sets of 8-20 reps
CLICK RIGHT HERE for the training video of this workout.
Talk about a high-volume workout!
Arnold performs almost every chest exercise you can think of, including the bench press, incline bench press, dips, and various isolation exercises.
If you respond well to high-volume chest hypertrophy workouts, then you have to give Arnold’s routine a shot!
Jay Cutler Chest Workouts
Jay Cutler is another legendary bodybuilder. He won the Mr. Olympia contest an unbelievable 4 times.
He even beat Ronnie Coleman in his prime!
So how does Jay Cutler train his chest for size and strength?
The truth is, Jay Cutler like to perform ultra high-volume chest workouts.
He performs up to 6-8 different exercises to achieve the biggest pump humanly possible! Check it out:
Jay Cutler Chest Workout
- Exercise #1: 30 degree incline bench press, 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps
- Exercise #2: 30 degree incline dumbbell press, 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps
- Exercise #3: Machine pec dec, 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps
- Exercise #4: Flat DB fly, 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps
- Exercise #5: Flat bench press, 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps
- Exercise #6: Cable crossover, 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps
- Exercise #7: Lying dumbbell pullover, 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps
CLICK RIGHT HERE for the training video of this workout.
Talk about an intense workout!
Jay Cutler believes these high-volume workouts are the way to go for building the chest.
He says people who waste their time with low-volume routines will never achieve his level of chest hypertrophy!
Phil Heath Chest Workouts
Phil Heath is a fan-favorite in the world of bodybuilding.
His chest used to be one of his weaker body parts. However, in recent years Phil has been able to turn it into one of his stronger muscle groups!
So how does Phil Heath design his chest hypertrophy workouts?
The truth is, Phil trains his chest 1 day per week using traditional high-volume bodybuilding style workouts.
He performs about 4 exercises for his chest, including a healthy mix of compound and isolation exercises. Check it out:
The Phil Heath Chest Workout
- Exercise #1: Hammer strength incline press, 3-4 sets of 8-20 reps
- Exercise #2: 30 degree incline dumbbell fly, 3-4 sets of 8-20 reps
- Exercise #3: Flat dumbbell press, 3-4 sets of 8-20 reps
- Exercise #4: Cable crossover, 3-4 sets of 8-20 reps
CLICK RIGHT HERE for the training video of this workout.
Talk about a high-volume workout!
Phil Heath performs a total of 4 exercises in this workout, including different dumbbell and isolation exercises.
He almost never performs the flat bench press in his training, as he feels it is too risky.
He doesn’t want to tear a pec by mistake!
John Meadows Chest Workouts
John Meadows is one of the most famous bodybuilders in the world.
He is famous for inventing the Mountain Dog Training program – a new training system that he believes is perfect for building maximum muscle mass.
Here is one of John’s Mountain Dog chest workouts that you can try. Check it out:
John Meadows Chest Workout
- Exercise #1: 30 degree incline DB press, 4 sets of 8 reps
- Exercise #2: 30 degree incline bench press, 4 sets of 6 reps
- Exercise #3: Flat machine press, 4 sets of 6-10 reps**
- Exercise #4: Pullover machine****, 4 sets of 15-20 reps
CLICK RIGHT HERE for the training video of this workout.
Talk about an intense workout!
John likes to start his chest workouts with dumbbell or machine presses, followed by heavy incline bench presses.
Finally, John likes to finish his chest hypertrophy workouts with different isolation exercises to really stretch out his chest.
This is an interesting way to design a chest hypertrophy workout!
Chris Bumstead Chest Workouts
Chris Bumstead’s Chest Workout #1
- Exercise A1: 30 degree incline DB press, 3 sets of 8-10 reps, 2 minutes rest
- Exercise B1: Hammer strength flat press, 3 sets of 8-10 reps, 2 minutes rest
- Exercise C1: 30 degree incline DB fly, 3 sets of 8-10 reps, 2 minutes rest
- Exercise D1: Flat supine machine press, 3 sets of 10-12 reps**, no rest
- Exercise D2: Incline squeezing push ups, 3 sets of 10-12 reps**, 2 minutes rest
**Perform 8-10 reps to failure, then perform as many partial reps as you can in a row to failure.
CLICK RIGHT HERE for the training video of this workout.
Talk about an intense workout!
Most trainees would have a very hard time recovering from this type of workout.
However, for Chris Bumstead, it is exactly what he needs to take his chest hypertrophy to the next level!
Verdict | The Best Chest Hypertrophy Workouts!
“If you want to turn a vision into reality, you have to give 100% and never stop believing in your dream.
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