Expand your chest with push ups

[TooManyOnes]

Hey! I've got a really flat chest because I have pectus excavatum, and i've noticed that a lot of your push ups work the chest. I'd like to do that, but for bulking out the chest the most, what would you say is the best exercise?

[jlvi13]

@TooManyOnes That depends on what YOU think is the best exercise. Try out wide grip dips (search for the video on my channel), bench presses, push ups (different variations for the chest) and the dumbbell fly. Those are some of the better exercises for your chest, although I don't think it will solve your excavatum problem.

[TooManyOnes]

@jlvi13 Thanks for the help. I was also dubious about if I could ever get it to go away, but I don't think I can without surgery. Cheers anyway!

[raulishnikov]

i don't have a bench, but i do have a barbell, it's of any gain to do press right on the floor? I need to gain strenght ASAP SPECIALLY IN shoulders triceps and biceps. Thanks, your videos are awesome

[jlvi13]

@raulishnikov Asap does not exist in working out. You need to take your time, because it's a slow progress. You can perform 'bench presses' on the floor, but with a barbell it might be annoying to do. I think I could make a video about that some day soon.

[10beez]

if I swim 5-6 times 1-2 hours / week and do this 3 times a week is it overtraining?

[jlvi13]

@10beez Not really no. If you take plenty of rest in between, eat healthy and sleep well you should be fine. I have worked out about 25 hours a week about 1 year ago and I wasn't always overtrained. 15 hours is something that you could handle if you are fit and are working out more seriously. Although big chest muscles probably aren't recommendable for swimmers in my opinion.

[10beez]

@jlvi13 I train my chest with high reps so I guess it's ok

[IA10105]

hi @jlvi13 if i do it everyday without a restday what will happen to me?

[jlvi13]

@IA10105 You will stay the same as you are now. You won't get stronger, only get tired and won't grow in muscle mass. So it's your choice, but I obviously strongly recommend you not to do that and follow my adviced in the video.

[bannanaization]

The first pushups you do at the start of the video with your elbows going behind you and not to the side work triceps don't they?

[jlvi13]

@bannanaization The close push up you probably mean? If that's the case, then yes. Regular grip push ups work on chest and triceps.

[samoevil911]

thanks

this exercices make you wider shoulder also?

[jlvi13]

@samoevil911 They work out your shoulders, yes.

[TheJoel109]

make a tut on how to do a proper push up

[wombo369]

if i did this mon wed fri and then the fore arm tue thurs sat would that work or do i need actual rest days?

[jlvi13]

@wombo369 Forearm workouts are not really streneous workouts, so it's definitely OK. Do work out the rest of your body as well, only doing push ups will not work out your entire body, only your chest, triceps and shoulders as well as some secondary effects on other muscle groups. It's good to work out your whole body.

[aslacuentayya]

I have a question, whats the function of the chest muscles?

[jlvi13]

@aslacuentayya It enables you to put your hands together. Put your left hand on your right chest part and move your other arm in front of you and then to the side and back to the front. You should be able to feel some tention in your chest with your left hand. Without chest muscles you wouldn't be able to move your arm. Every muscle in your body has an important function.

[rjravaz]

how many reps and sets do u do?

[jlvi13]

@rjravaz Isn't that in the video? I believe it is. I can't remember, it's more then 1 year ago. Watch my Beginner Bodybuilding Basics video series and you'll get to know more about reps and sets! You can find that on my channel in my featured videos.

[argentinasoldier]

You look very fit

[jlvi13]

@argentinasoldier Watch my newer videos, this is a very old one.

[jlvi13]

@vleon1012 I eat roughtly 2200 calories, but I can eat more if I want. I don't do a lot of cardio anymore. I gained a lot of weight last year since I stopped doing cardio, but my Bodyfat is still only 6% or so. Cardio isn't always that neccessary to get lean, although it's a faster way. High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) or sprinting is all I do for cardio!

[OoRYD]

great, my chest is becoming huge !!! thnx for the vid :D

[JoshWilsonization]

you could just do normal dips on dip rack thing at a gym or in between to bars! lot more rewarding than dipping with chairs?!?!

[jlvi13]

@JoshWilsonization Chairdips or dips between two benches is a triceps exercise more then a chest exercise. So yeah, dip rack dips will give some more effect on the chest. These are very effective as well though!

[yosuanizardon]

damm do all of them? one after another? but that will be it for the day right? am a begginer. i weight 140 am 6 feet tall

[jlvi13]

@yosuanizardon Start doing some push ups with different hand positions if you're a beginner. Just do what you can and don't do what others do. You'll get there when you're a little bit more experienced!

[Mahonri92]

Ok ill really do these....so i have a barbell and a swiss ball you think is the same thing as doing a press on a bench? 

[jlvi13]

@Mahonri92 It's not as safe as using a bench. If the ball rolls underneath you while you're holding a heavy barbell, well, I think you can imagine what could happen next. It's pretty dangerous to do it that way, so don't do bench presses on a ball. You can also simply do them on the floor. Just lie down on the floor and grab the barbell. That's way safer and also protect your shoulders from going down too far.

[rahul0076655]

Hey nice video!!, please help me, I have just started doing push ups from the past 1 week. I am doing it properly however, I am having little pain in my lower back. Is it ok or is that something serious?? 

[jlvi13]

@rahul0076655 You are probably not trained enough which causes the pain, but there might be different reasons. If you ever had problems with your lower back then first see a doctor or other specialist before continuing. You might also think you're doing the exercise properly, but still manage to hollow or curve your back some way. If the pain is to much, then have a rest of about a week or so, if it will continue to hurt while working out then definitely see a doctor or specialist.

[RakshaKha]

wide grip push-ups are more efficient for the chest than the normal ones?

....(i'm trying to increase the chest area, i've done karate for 12 years so i've worked legs and arms muscle pretty well for competition, and I cant complain much about abs ....but I've recently noticed that my chest is really flat, and i wanted to change that .... (wierd I usually dont care much with appearence :X)

[jlvi13]

@RakshaKha Times are changing xD It's more important how you look these days I guess.

Wide push ups will put some more focus on your chest yeah. When you do them correctly and add some pressure by trying to push your hands together you will get the best results. Normal push ups and the elevated knuckle push ups will also be great for your chest. I prefer to do bench presses though, watch my newer videos about bench pressing as well if you like!

[RakshaKha]

hum i've been wrong all my life about push ups with the hands close to each other, i thought they exercited the chest OO......jeez this embarassing :X ty dude

[jlvi13]

@RakshaKha Well, they work for your chest just a little bit, just like the wide grip push ups will work a little bit for your triceps. Normal push ups works out both more equally!

[joshdahusky]

1 dislike = 1 lazy ass.... xD

[jlvi13]

@joshdahusky xD Thanks!

[Benbanme]

I've been into fitness for a year, and recently I've been doing the ladder push-ups, diamond variation. Basically u do 1 rep 1st time, 2 reps 2nd time, 3 reps and gradually go up to 10 reps the 10th and go down the ladder so u can get something like 110 push-ups. Is that effective? or should I just do 30-40 reps something in a row for 3 times?

[jlvi13]

@Benbanme Well, I don't know about you, but most people won't get any results from doing only 10 push ups in a row, let alone only 2. I would recommend to do the 30-40, but make sure you do them with good form!

[Benbanme]

@jlvi13 haha u don't get me. the point of the ladder is get lots of reps w/ little breaks in between. so u do 1 rep, lil' break, 2 rep, lil' break and all the way to 10 reps and down. but haha thanks.

[jlvi13]

@Benbanme Ah, that's what you meant. You didn't say anything about the little break. That's more effective, but it depends on what you prefer. Just give it a try and see what way works better for you.

[karateslaginnek]

nicely done!;-)

[tropsmoo]

oh snap, just saw the other vids on your channel, much better quality! good stuff

[tropsmoo]

Just a recommendation, although body weight exercises and push-ups are probably the best exercises, using the title of expanding your chest is a little misleading. These exercises are actually the perfect ones (coupled with healthy eating and a balance of back, biceps, legs etc) exercises to get a lean body that is usually the ones you see on magazines. (not menshealth, normal magazines) the video quality is meh, but the information is good, keep it up

[jlvi13]

@tropsmoo Titles are often misleading, since they need to attract viewers. The thing is that you in fact can get a big chest with bodyweight exercises only. It asks a certain amount of intensity and of course nutrition takes part of it as well.

Yeah, the quality of my other videos is way better, but I think the information is more important. Thanks for the comment.

[vvvREQUIEMvvv]

at first saw some of your videos and thought would gay.started watching and pretty nice. keep it up man

[plushoe]

hi.. i wanna ask if im skinny can help as well ? i mean come with the shape.. thz

[jlvi13]

@plushoe If you eat more you can, yes. Send me a personal message if you're interested in more info and nutrition tips!

[saskeuchia12]

yo dude my cousin wants to workout and he is only 12 is it okay for him to use weights and bench press?

[jlvi13]

@saskeuchia12 It depends on how much he is planning to bench. I personally never believed that working out young can stun your growth and a lot of specialists will agree with me. My advice is to first ask a doctor to see if the body is healthy. I would first start to get some basic strenght with doing bodyweight exercises, but it's not neccessary. So as long as your cousin take it easy and perhaps work out in a gym with supervision, it shouldn't be a problem!

[saskeuchia12]

@jlvi13 ight thanks dude

[AlexanderHellberg94]

@saskeuchia12 i think he needs to train whit out weights! i think he need to train with out weights, and just use hes own body weight in the beginning

[jlvi13]

@AlexanderHellberg94 Basicly what I said, but I think you can do some light weight exercises as well. Of course I won't recommend to do 200 pounds squats or anything like that.

Bodyweight is the best, but still, it's not dangerous to do weight exercises if you don't use to heavy weights.

[TheYashu200]

i am a beginner , just wanted to know is that enough? . i mean i just wanted to have a decent body not big muscular body . so my point is doing just proper dips is enough to get a good shape or should i need to go to pick up some weight though ...plz reply

[jlvi13]

@TheYashu200 I think it's enough to do bodyweight training only if you aren't looking for a big muscular body. This workout will definitly get you into a better shape and give you more solid muscles which will improve your looks! If you will stuff yourself with bad nutrition you won't get good results anyways, so if you have to much bodyfat, send me a personal message and I'll help you out on that as well.

[KoStKiRo]

@jlvi13 Is what BSpires1980 the truth? Because I have large leg muscles from years of soccer and climbing, but I have next to no chest muscle.

[jlvi13]

@KoStKiRo Yes, if you have no chest muscles and can't do push ups you can try that. Though, if you can do regular push ups I would recommend you to do regular push ups instead. Doing them on knees is easier and is more a way to learn the normal one.

[BCTHXIII]

Might I recommend for better results putting barbell weights on for the dips? Like mine for example, when I go to the gym I put 2 or 3 45lb barbell weights on then dips while I have a spotter on standby.

[saskeuchia12]

y at own risk

[jlvi13]

@saskeuchia12 Doing exercising can always cause injuries. I don't want people to take me responsible for an injury, because they do them wrong, forget to warm up or any other reason. If you start to exercise you always should be aware that you can get injured with the easiest exercise if you are having bad luck.

[jlvi13]

@StrengthMuscle Heey man, That video is on my channel today, just made it!

[alienwarelaptop100]

Awesome man..

[bebIessed]

jwing how u stay (not skinny) but not fat like u are, you know what i mean. like do u have a diet plan or just low metabolism. just wondering.

[jlvi13]

Diet, I'm a little bit more skinny now then I was on that video, think only got like 7% bodyfat or maybe even less.

[JVB45]

i just started a good army routine from my dad and i went from 15 push ups to 50 in three months

[0NoEscape0]

@JVB45 what was your routine?

[LethalJizzle]

Great video, before now i only did press ups with my hands at shoulder width, so i'll give some of these a try. Also, its good there's someone showing how to do these with chairs, as lots of others use gym equipment that not many people have.

[PXLTDwnsday]

thanks man great advice

[PXLTDwnsday]

I'm fairly small about 5'5 weigh 110 pounds very low bodyfat. My legs are in good condition but my chest and arms are a bit lacking. Its hard to do pushups because i am a tennis player so my right side is considerably stronger than my left. Any suggestions on how i can improve both sides?

[jlvi13]

Just keep doing the same for both. Try to lean more on your waker arm and if you build enough strenght try to do onehanded push ups. You can improve your weaker arm more with them. I think it's hard to get the same strenght in both arms since you're a tennis player. Federer and Nadal have the same problem, actually every tennis player has this. Just try to train your arms equally.

[BSpires1980]

Do push-ups on your knees if you cant do them regular. Try doing 5 sets of 10-15 reps, every other day. You will be able to do regular pushups in no time at all. Your muscles need time to build motor memory...thats all. If you want to increase your weaker arm get a five or ten pound dumbell and do some biceps curls. 3 sets of ten is good, every other day. You'll notice a big difference if you cant stick to it for 30 days.

[uuukkjj]

How low is your body fat? as in %

[jlvi13]

last time it was measured I had 11%, but I lost quite some fat and think it's down 7-8% now.

[mykespark]

Thanks for looking up at audience

[FifteenthPeak]

how much do you weigh? you look really small, no offense.

[jlvi13]

I don't take that as an offense xD

I'm only 5 feet 7 and weight about 129 pounds. I got low bodyfat as well, so.

[FifteenthPeak]

That's good, man. Like I said, didn't mean to offend you, just meant that you're in tip top shape. Good job =)

[alx177]

awesomely fit. congrats. have you got one hand chinup yet

[jlvi13]

Not yet xD But I made a new PR on pushing up. 80 times in a row!

[uuukkjj]

both. the whole back. but i would like to know lower back exercises since everyone says that whare alot of injuries take place from lifting heave and wrong.

[uuukkjj]

you should make aback training video. alot of people neglect there back when working out.

[jlvi13]

Do you mean the upper back (lats) or the lower back?

[uuukkjj]

you do a harder way of the the push up instead of bending to the side you bend inward. and what shoulder exercises do you do you got nice deltiods.

[jlvi13]

For my delts I do push ups, lateral raises, upright row, shoulder press and bent over lateral raises. I do them with dumbells of 22 pounds each.

[mykespark]

Wow, really excellent again! and inspires others to do better.

[seamouse007]

How many sets of each do you do?

[jlvi13]

Depends how much you can do. But if you did all the exercises 8-12 times I think you have done quite enough. If you are advanced you can just do more reps each exercise, you don't have to do more sets.

[xxxPizdaxxx]

nice now i can do it right.

[chris96kalonji]

sup bro ive started going to my school gym and my dad taught me some stuff

bodybuilding-building mass muscle

musclebuilding-building muscle

taking a small weight and having many continus reps

powerbuilding-building strentght

(this is what bruce lee did)

[LilSwiftOne]

if u want to bulk up lift heavier weights lower reps and if you want to be leaner or ripped do medium lighter weights and more reps

[RafaelloCraiova]

great vid,thanks for posting!