Steve Cook is a spokesmodel for Bodybuilding.com, a 2010 Fitbody winner and a man with many other claims to fame. In his ‘Big Man on Campus’ series he shared the secrets to his success with a number of workouts and routines, and here we’re going to look at the chest and triceps routine he believes brought him so much success.
The chest and triceps are a great combo to train in a single session as they’re both crucial in pushing movements.
Watch the video below for an awesome Chest ad Tricep routine:
1 Incline Press
The incline press is a bench press performed on an incline bench. This changes the focus of the movement in order to better target the top of the pecs as well as the shoulders in the movement. Start with a warm-up set and then start upping the weight.
2 Incline Flye
Still in that incline position, you’re now going to start flying instead. This means taking two dumbbells and letting them fall out to either side, before bringing them back up into the middle. This will target the upper portion of the outer side of the pecs very specifically.
3 Dumbbell Press
Dumbbell presses are bench presses performed with dumbbells. What makes them great is that they let you bring the weights right back down by your sides to train a greater range of motion (and engage those triceps early). At the same time, because they are bilateral (meaning you use both arms separately) it’s impossible for one arm to help the other which makes them great for improving muscle symmetry.
4 Superset: Modified Dip + Modified Push up
This modified dip involves leaning forward and looking down at the floor. This will involve the pecs more than the triceps, and meanwhile you’re going to be making sure to go all the way down in order to get a stretch on the outer pecs similar to a flye.
Next you’re going to get into ‘pike’ position (with your buttocks high and face pointing at the floor) and then you’re going to rock forward and back. These are performed back-to-back as a superset for a real burn in the chest.
5 Superset: Skull Crushers + Close-Grip Bench Press
Skull crushers involve holding a barbell over you and then gradually lowering it towards your forehead by pivoting at the elbows. This will then be performed back to back with close-grip bench press, where your hands are touching each other on the bar thus forcing you to use your triceps much more throughout the movement.
6 Rope Extension
The rope extension involves standing with your back to a cable and then pulling the rope forward from behind your head. The movement should feel similar to the skull crusher in terms of the way your body is moving as well as the area it is targeting.
7 Overhead Dumbbell Extension
To end with you’ll be standing with a dumbbell behind your head, and will then extend your arm to lift it straight up while pivoting at the elbow. A classic tricep exercise to finish a great chest and triceps session.
