It’s safe to say the bench press is where the average guy begins his journey to a more muscular build. Initially, it served every need of a growing boy – not only did you want to have the biggest bench on your football team in high school, but you also wanted a barrel chest to fill out your extra large t-shirt and look good at the beach. And as time goes on, the traditional bench press, incline press, and cable crossovers make up the majority of physique athletes’ chest training. They ditch body-weight exercises and uni-lateral presses in favor of the heavier counterparts. There is a good reason for this. Heavy weights build muscle and strength. 

But lifting heavy for years and years can also beat up your shoulder area, leaving you in pain and maybe even on the sidelines. So, to keep you injury-free and building tons of muscle, try mixing it up a bit.

Below, I have provided five new exercises that you should be implementing in your current chest-training routine. These exercises are great for shoulder health, they increase time under tension to build more muscle, and help prevent muscular imbalances. But don’t get lulled into a false sense of comfort – just because you won’t be loading a bar full of iron doesn’t mean these moves won’t be challenging.

For more training info from Justin Grinnell, CSCS, you can visit his gym’s website, his Facebook page, or check him out on Twitter. 

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The 8 Best Exercises for Beginner Lifters

Start mastering these fundamental moves and techniques today for a better physique tomorrow.

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