So why would a guy want to concentrate on building square pecs instead of rounded pecs? Well…the more rounded a guy’s chest muscles look, the more they look like breasts. That probably isn’t the look most men are shooting for.
There are several chest exercises to focus on to make this happen & some chest exercises you will probably want to avoid as well. Here is a photo of Brad Pitt, which shows what to shoot for.
So you will notice that he has the same thickness of his pecs all the way up to his collar bone. This is what causes that well defined line down the middle of his chest.
The big mistake beginners make is that they concentrate too much on the basic flat bench press. The problem with the flat bench press is that although it is a great mass builder, it develops the lower chest quicker than the upper chest.
The key to develop square pecs is to focus on building the upper chest. There are several basic chest exercises to choose from.
1) Incline Barbell Press
2) Incline Dumbbell Press
3) Incline Machine Press
4) All variations of Incline Flyes
Do you notice any similarities between these exercises? Obviously it is all the incline lifts that will build up your upper chest.
Almost every guy you see in the gym starts their workout with the flat bench press. The reason why is that you can lift the most weight on that exercise while you are fresh.
I would recommend the opposite approach…prioritize your chest workouts so that you do a few incline lifts before you ever hit the flat bench…or drop the flat bench from your workout until your upper chest development catches up with your lower chest.
Here is a tip that I rarely here anyone in the personal training world talk about…If you are having a tough time feeling your upper chest contract in incline exercises, you need to increase the mind-to-muscle link in your upper chest. The best way to do this is through a high volume of lifting for that lift. You are going to want to lift a lighter weight and higher reps to really feel a burn in that muscle. Over time you will be able to contract that muscle hard and then lift with heavier weights in a more traditional manner.