Best and Worst Chest Exercises to Build Muscle

What are the best and worst chest exercises to build muscle? Check out this list ranking some exercises you’re probably doing.

The chest is an area that most people would spend months trying to develop. Perhaps the problem is not that you don’t push yourself, but that you choose the wrong movement to build muscle in your upper body. This is what Jeff Nippard has to say about it.

Jeff Nippard is a natural professional bodybuilder who shares tips and training programs on his Youtube channel. In the video below, Nippard discussed the best and worst chest exercises for building muscle.

Before we look at the list, Nippard clarifies that he thinks all of the exercises below are good, but “some have a slight advantage over others, and of course this is very individual.” At the end, Nippard then exemplifies 3 exercises that he thinks everyone should avoid if they’re looking to build chest muscle.

However, Jeff Nippard can be considered a voice of reason and knowledge within the fitness industry and you should take his advice to heart. So check out his list of the best and worst chest exercises for building muscle.

The best and worst chest exercises to build muscle

Each exercise has been classified from 0 to 5 stars according to:

Personal enjoyment: is it fun to exercise?
Tension potential: Does the exercise apply tension to the target muscle?
Progressive Overload Potential: Can You Keep Driving Progress Easily?
Convenience – Do most gyms have the equipment to do the exercise and can you do it without spending a ridiculous amount of time setting it up?

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Better

10. AMRAP push-ups – 3/5

Push-ups for as many reps as possible, or to failure. The problem with this exercise, for Jeff, is that he requires a large volume of movement before he begins to feel his chest being challenged.

9. Iso-Hold Dumbbell Stretch – 3/5

In this exercise, you’ll hold a pair of dumbbells and hold them in the bottom position for 60 seconds. It is recommended to choose a weight around 50% of your 5 rep max.

This may be slightly less effective because the muscle does not go through a full range of motion.

8. Pec Flye Machine – 3.5/5

Nippard believes this exercise is not rated higher due to the difficulty of progressively overloading it. Yes, you can keep adding weight, but it can be more difficult to keep feeling your pecs engage or keep your technique correct.

7. Cable Crossing Ladder – 3.5/5

This exercise allows you to individually target the upper, middle, and lower pectorals of your chest with just one piece of equipment.

6. The Dip – 4/5

The only reason this exercise isn’t rated higher for Nippard is that he doesn’t enjoy it very much. He overloads it using a belt attached to a weight plate and that, in his words, can be annoying.

5. Deficit Push-Up + Resistance Bands – 4/5

The losing part of the exercise puts additional tension on the lower part and the use of a resistance band creates additional tension on the upper part of the movement.

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4. Incline Dumbbell Press – 4/5

The reason this exercise isn’t rated higher is to attach a heavy pair of dumbbells before starting the exercise, which can lead to some fatigue before you even start counting reps.

3. Press around the cable: 4.5/5

This looks like a single arm cable crossover, but the setup gives more range of motion in the fully contracted position.

2. Machine chest press – 4.5/5

“In my experience, a good press machine creates a better mind-muscle connection with the pecs than almost any other movement because you don’t have to worry about stabilizing so you can focus all your attention on activating the pecs.”

Bench press – 5/5

Of course, it had to be the bench press. This exercise checks all the boxes according to Nippard. As long as you include another chest exercise, your pecs will get the best of the bench press with its high overload.

Best and worst chest exercises to build muscle

The worst

Foot Plate Press – 1/5

This is more of a deltoid exercise rather than a chest exercise due to gravity.

One Arm Dumbbell Alternate Press – 1.5/5

Giving your chest a little rest between each rep isn’t detrimental as long as you do the reps to failure, but Nippard isn’t confident this is optimal.