Does the Bench Press Work the Pecs More than the Triceps? A New Study Confirms So
If you want to capitalise on your chest gains, we all know that benching is the fastest track to a set of pumped up pecs. In fact, the bench press is the most popular exercise for men according to data from Strength Log, perhaps explaining why the queue for the bench surpasses any other kit.
Luckily, new research sheds light on the muscles used when benching, and explores whether we'll be increasing chest hypertrophy more than the triceps when including our chest day favourite move.
The Study
The study published in the Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies explores the effects of a 10-week bench press resistance training programme on muscle hypertrophy in the muscles involved in the exercise. The muscles studied were the pectoralis major, anterior deltoid (front delts), medial deltoid (middle delts), triceps brachii, and pectoralis minor.
The Methods
The methods of the study included:
24 healthy men divided into two groups: 13 in the resistance training group and 11 in the control group (no training).
The resistance training group trained three times a week for 10 weeks.
Each session consisted of 3-4 sets of 12 reps at 50-55% of their one rep max, with 36 seconds of time under tension per set and 3 minutes of rest between sets.
Muscle cross sectional area (muscle size) was assessed using MRI.
The Results
Unsurprisingly, the resistance training group experienced significantly more hypertrophy in all studied muscles compared to the control group. Within the resistance training group:
The pectoralis major showed the largest increase in muscle size (by 20%) compared to the triceps and pectoralis minor (by 12%).
The anterior deltoid (front delt) also showed significant hypertrophy (by 15%).
The medial deltoid showed less hypertrophy compared to the primary movers (pectoralis major, front delts and triceps).
The Conclusion
The researchers concluded that the resistance training group displayed hypertrophy increases compared to the control group in all muscles, but more specifically, 'The bench press exercise promoted a greater hypertrophic response of the pectoralis major compared to the triceps brachii and pectoralis minor, but not different from the anterior deltoid.'
What Does This Mean for Us?
If you have goals of increasing muscular hypertrophy of the pecs (the pectoralis major in particular), the bench press is where it's at. However, the bench press will hit the triceps indirectly, but will result in less muscle growth. So if you have goals of growing your triceps, you should include additional intentional tricep work in your push day programme, working close to failure. Some other tricep moves you could include alongside your bench press could be:
Skull crushers
Cable pushdown
Overhead tricep extensions
You can also check out our guide to the best dumbbell tricep exercises, here.
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