The Ultimate Chest and Shoulders Workout

Not many things in life are more satisfying than a well-defined chest and boulder shoulders that show you mean serious gym business. Common weight-lifting regimens often group the chest and shoulders with the entire upper body muscle or split the two apart, pairing the chest and tris, and the shoulders with back and bis.

But if you have yet to create a split that groups the duo, it’s time to revamp your routine, and combine the two, stat. Trust us, your muscles will thank you. And happy muscles usually lead to larger ones.

In this post, you’ll learn:

• Benefits of combining chest and shoulder workouts
• Chest and shoulder anatomy
• Best exercises for a chest and shoulder workout
• The best chest and shoulders workout routine for building major muscle mass

WHY ARE CHEST AND SHOULDER WORKOUTS GOOD?

In a workout regimen, the chest and shoulder muscles go together like peanut butter and jelly. Separate, they’re still good, but when put together, they complement each other perfectly. Think about it: They’re both pushing muscles, meaning you can do very few chest exercises without also activating the shoulder muscles. The bench press, chest fly, and incline bench are a few of our favorite chest exercises, and none can be done without the shoulders pulling their weight. When pairing muscles together and determining the best split, a good strategy is pairing one large muscle group with 1 to 2 smaller muscle groups.

Putting multiple major muscle groups on the same day can be extremely taxing on your body, and you may not be able to lift as heavy for both. So, putting chest and back together may cause one of those muscle groups to get the weak end of the workout stick when paired together, and when you're dealing with two major muscle groups, that's the last thing you want.

Instead, give the chest, back, and legs separate gym days, pairing them with your remaining smaller muscle groups. Following that logic, a great workout split option is chest and shoulders on one day, back, biceps, and triceps on another, followed by legs and core on a separate day.

ANATOMY OF THE CHEST AND SHOULDERS

Once you understand the muscles that make up the chest and shoulders, pairing the two together will make perfect sense. Many chest movements require moving the arms. And as you’ll quickly find out, many arm movements require rotation, abduction, or flexion of the shoulder joint, which then activates at least one of the shoulder heads - see how it's all connected?

Chest Muscles:

Pectoralis Major: The largest and most superficial of the chest muscles, the pectoralis major is shaped like a fan and located underneath the breast tissue. It has two heads, the clavicular and sternocostal, named after their origin points. The clavicular head attaches to the collarbone, while the sternocostal head attaches to the sternum, or collarbone, and the rib's costal cartilage. They insert into the upper arm bone, called the humerus.

The clavicular head is responsible for adducting your arm, internally rotating the upper arm bone, and raising your arm in a forward motion. When thinking of how to best target this portion of the pectoralis major in your chest workouts, focus on upper chest exercises, such as the incline bench press. On the other hand, the sternocostal is responsible for arm adduction and internal rotation of the humerus. Lower chest exercises, including decline moves and the standard bench press, target it.

Pectoralis Minor: Thinner and triangle-shaped, the pectoralis minor lies underneath the pectoralis major. Its origin is on the surface of ribs three through five and inserts into the shoulder blade’s coracoid process, a bony structure that provides stability to the shoulder joint. Its primary functions include stabilizing and protracting the shoulder blades and assisting with scapular protraction and internal rotation. In addition, it depresses, or pulls down, the shoulder blades, making more room for your lungs during inhalation. Chest exercises such as diamond push-ups, the bench press, and cable crossovers all hit the pec minor. Focus on keeping the shoulder blades pulled down during exercises to activate them further.

Serratus Anterior: We know when you think of the chest, the pec major and minor are what come to mind. And while we won’t spend a lot of time discussing this muscle or the subclavius’ (more on this in a second) roles in each chest and shoulder exercise, please note they’re working in most of them. Without the serratus anterior, pushing actions, like the bench press, aren’t possible, as it’s responsible for shoulder blade protraction or pulling your shoulder blades forward. It also enables your arms to raise past the 90-degree mark. Other duties of this muscle include scapula flexion and stabilizing the shoulders. For serratus anterior exercises, think push-ups, bench presses, and boxing. This muscle originates on the sides of the ribs and inserts into the scapula's top, side, and bottom.

Subclavius: Short and triangularly shaped, the subclavius is another muscle that may not technically be a chest muscle but is crucial for most chest movements. It runs underneath the collarbone with its origin on the first rib and its insertion on the collarbone. Its main job is to keep the collarbone stabilized during shoulder girdle movement.

Shoulder Muscles:

The shoulders, formally known as the deltoids, consist of three shoulder heads: the anterior (front) deltoid, the lateral (side) deltoid, and the posterior (rear) deltoid. The three heads work together to enable the arm to move in almost all major movements, including pushing, pulling, circular motions and lifting.

Anterior Deltoid: The anterior deltoid connects to your collarbone and is the front of the shoulder. Responsible for forward flexion or moving your arm in front of the body, they also help with horizontal adduction, a necessary movement for the bench press. Anterior deltoid exercises include the overhead press, push press, and Arnold press.

Lateral Deltoid: Abducting, or moving your arms out to the side, as well as shoulder flexion, moving them up and down, are all thanks to the lateral delts, which are found on the side of your arm and connect to a bony knob on the shoulder blade. This portion of the deltoid is integral in achieving the full, rounded shoulder look we all know and love, and the muscle is so popular it even has its own exercise: the lateral raise. Standing T raise, arm circles, and band face pulls are just a few more examples of lateral deltoid exercises.

Posterior Deltoid: Connecting to the shoulder blade, the posterior delts at the back of the arm allow you to move your arms backward. Bent over dumbbell raises, inclined reverse dumbbell fly, and the reverse machine fly are effective rear delt exercises.

BEST EXERCISES FOR A CHEST AND SHOULDER WORKOUT

As you can see, the chest and shoulders are a perfect muscle match. The exercises we’re about to discuss are in one of two chest and shoulder workouts we've created for you. Work both routines into your weekly gym regimen, and your muscle tanks will look better than ever.

8 Best Chest Exercises

1. Barbell Bench Press:

Both your pectoralis major and minor are activated in the barbell bench press, making it a must for chest and shoulder days. It also activates the anterior deltoids, enabling you to target one of the shoulder heads - no additional exercise required.

Keep in mind: Whenever you use a flat bench for chest exercises, it targets the lower pectoralis muscles more so than the upper.  For a well-rounded strengthening program, targeting the upper head (more on this in a few exercises!) is also important.

How to do the barbell bench press:

• Lying flat on a bench, grasp the barbell with an overhand grip. Your hands should be slightly wider than shoulder-width. Keep your arms straight, and your shoulder blades retracted.
• Bending your elbows, slowly lower the bar to your chest until your hands are above your elbows.
• Push the barbell upward in a straight line by straightening your arms.

2. Single-Arm Dumbbell Bench Press:

The pectoralis major and minor, and to some extent, the anterior deltoid, are all activated in the single-arm dumbbell bench press. And as a unilateral movement, it checks some additional workout boxes, including improving your shoulder stability, identifying and correcting chest or shoulder imbalances on either side of your body, and providing you with a greater range of motion than the barbell bench press. 

How to do a single-arm dumbbell bench press:

• Lying down on a bench, grasp your dumbbells with a neutral grip, keeping your arms extended and the dumbbells in line with your shoulders.
• Retracting your shoulder blades, keep your left dumbbell raised overhead while slowly bending your right elbow, lowering your right dumbbell down to your shoulder.
• Straightening your arm, slowly push your dumbbell overhead until your arm is straight.
• Lower back down on the same side; don’t switch to your left until your reps are complete on your right side.

3. Incline Bench Press:

The upper head of the pectoralis major puts in most of the work on an incline bench, which you should set to 30 degrees. If you have an incline much higher than this, you will take the work out of your chest and put it on your front shoulders instead¹.

Don’t worry: Even with the incline bench at 30 degrees, your anterior deltoids are still working.

How to the incline bench press:

• Lying back on an inclined bench, grasp the bar with your hands slightly wider than shoulder-width with your palms upward.
• Lifting the bar off the rack, fully extend your arms until the bar is overhead and your hands are above your shoulders.
• Bending your elbows, slowly lower the bar to your chest.
• Straighten your arms to press the barbell back up.

4. Dumbbell Chest Fly:

Arguably one of the best exercises for creating a well-defined chest, the dumbbell chest fly primarily targets the pectoralis major and the anterior deltoids. And similar to the bench press, switching to an incline tweaks the muscles working.

When you perform this move on a flat bench, the lower head works hardest, while an incline bench targets the upper head. In addition, while dumbbells are great for increasing your range of motion and forcing your muscles to work harder to stabilize, you can also use the chest fly machine instead. Since it provides more stability, you can use a higher weight. Both variations have their benefits.

How to do a chest fly:

• Lying with your back on a bench and your feet flat on the floor, start with your arms extended out to each side with your palms grasping dumbbells and facing upward.
• With your elbows slightly bent, extend your arms and dumbbells above your head in an arc motion. Have your palms and dumbbells face each other, meeting above your chest with your arms fully extended above you.
• Lower your dumbbells to your sides in an arc. Stop your descent when the dumbbells are in a straight line with your chest, extended to each side. 
• Begin pressing the dumbbells upward again.

5. Chest dips:

Ideally, use a dip station at your gym for to perform dips. It targets both heads of the pectoralis major, but more so the lower portion, the pectoralis minor, and your anterior deltoids. Lean forward when performing this movement to target your chest. Keeping your body upright causes your triceps to do more work - not what we want on chest and shoulder day!

How to do a chest dip:

• At your dip station, position your hands on the parallel bars with a neutral grip.
• Bending your elbows, lean forward and slowly lower your body until your forearms are parallel to the ground and your shoulders are below your elbows.
• Straighten your elbows, pushing through your palms, to drive your body upward to the starting position.

6. Bent-Forward Cable Crossovers:

Another exercise for targeting the pectoralis major and minor, bent-forward cable crossovers is an isolation move that creates an ultra-defined chest. Pro tip: Slightly crossing your hands in front of you will further engage your chest muscles. In addition, you can switch up the angle of your upper body to specifically target the upper, middle, or lower chest.

How to do bent-forward cable crossovers:

• Set your pulleys on the cable machine to slightly higher than your chest. Grab the handles of each pulley with your palms down, and step two feet in front of the pulleys.
• Bend forward. Retract your shoulder blades to push your chest out, and stagger your feet one in front of the other. Keep your back straight. 
• Pull the pulley handles down, with your elbows and shoulders in line.
• With a slight elbow bend, pull down on the pulley handles, across your body. Your hands should be extended downward in front of you, crossing over each other.
• Reverse the movement to return to start.

7. Clap Push-Up:

The standard push-up does an excellent job of hitting the entire chest, and in the beginning stages of your fitness journey, you may want to start with a classic push-up and work your way up to this move. The clap push-up also does a great job of hitting the pectoralis major and minor (and of course, those front deltoids), but it takes it up another notch by adding a plyometric element into the mix.

The plyo targets your fast-twitch muscle fibers, which are larger and more powerful. When you force your fast-twitch muscle fibers to contract, more muscle fibers become engaged in the movement, resulting in more power in your chest. There are endless push-up variations that target the chest, so don't be afraid to mix it up with other options as well.

How to do the clap push-up:

• Start in a plank position with your hands shoulder-width apart. Your feet should be slightly closer than shoulder width. 
• Slowly lower to the ground by bending your elbows, keeping your elbows tucked in by your sides.
• When you’re just above the ground, push off from your hands explosively. Push powerfully enough to lift them off the ground, and quickly clap your hands together before landing.
• Land back in the starting plank position, bending your arms slightly when landing.

8. Close-grip Push-Up:

When it comes to the close-grip, or diamond, push-up, your first thought may be triceps. But this variation also does an excellent job of targeting the pectoralis minor, a feat many exercises cannot achieve.

If that's not enough to convince you, this may: Research shows that the close-grip push-up activates your pectoralis major more than standard or wide-grip push-ups ². That’s reason enough to include it in your chest and shoulder day!

How to do the close-grip push-up:

• Form a diamond shape with your hands by placing your index fingers and thumbs so they touch.
• Assume the plank position, and lower down to the ground.
• Straighten your elbows to raise your body upward, back to the starting position.

6 Best Shoulder Exercises

1. Arnold Press:

You’ll be hard-pressed (no pun intended) to find a shoulder move as effective as this one. The Arnold press hits all three shoulder heads, ensuring no part of the shoulder is left behind.

How to do the Arnold press:

• Grab your dumbbells, and begin with your elbows bent with your palms facing your shoulders.
• Straighten your elbows to drive your dumbbells upward while simultaneously rotating your arms to face your palms away from you. 
• With your arms fully straightened and palms outward, bend your elbows, rotating your palms back to face you as you lower your dumbbells back to shoulder height.

2. Barbell Overhead Press:

Another excellent shoulder exercise for strengthening the anterior, lateral, and posterior shoulder heads, the efficiency of this move prevents you from including too many shoulder exercises into your weight-lifting routine. The only thing we love more than an efficient gym regimen is massive shoulders. 

If you are in the beginning stages of your workout journey or are unfamiliar with the overhead press, we recommend beginning with the seated dumbbell shoulder press. The seated position and the dumbbells create more stability and control as you familiarize yourself with them. You can then progress to the barbell.

How to do the barbell overhead press:

• Stand and hold the barbell on your upper chest with your hands slightly wider than your shoulders, and your palms upward.
• Straighten your arms to press the bar above your head, keeping your trunk and hips still throughout the movement.
• Slowly lower the barbell back down to your upper chest.

3. Dumbbell Rear Delt Fly:

As you can see from our chest exercises above, the front deltoids unintentionally get a lot of love. Unfortunately, the rear delts aren’t as lucky, so targeting them is crucial for achieving a rounded and defined shoulder. A good strategy for isolating your posterior deltoids is avoiding overly heavy weights. Too much weight forces other muscles to step in to help, defeating this exercise's intended purpose.

How to do the dumbbell rear delt fly:

• Standing with a dumbbell in each hand, place your feet shoulder-width apart.
• With your knees slightly bent, push your hips back and lean your torso forward.
• Start with your weights hanging down toward the floor, palms facing each other, with a slight elbow bend.
• Lift your dumbbells to your sides until they line up with your shoulders. Make sure to avoid raising your shoulders.
• Slowly lower your dumbbells back to the starting position.

4. Rear Delt Fly Machine:

We like a mix of dumbbells and machines in our workouts as they both have advantages. Compared to the dumbbell version, the fly machine provides more stability, enabling you to use more weight than the dumbbell variation.

The machine version also requires less control than dumbbells, meaning you can still do them just as effectively toward the end of your workout when you’re tired. Pay attention to your hand position as it can make or break your rear delt activation. Research shows that using a neutral grip with your palms facing each other increases your posterior shoulder activation compared to a pronated grip ³.

How to do the rear delt fly machine:

• Sit facing the rear delt machine. Place your chest against the chest pad, and keep your back straight. Grab the handles in a neutral position with your palms facing each other; keep a slight bend in your elbows.
• Bring the handles backward until they line up with your shoulders.
• Contract your rear delt before slowly returning to the start position.

5. Lateral Shoulder Raises:

The lateral should raise does a great job of working one specific portion of the deltoid. Any guesses as to which one? If you guessed the lateral deltoids, you are correct! Lateral shoulder raises play an incremental role in achieving large deltoids and is beneficial for improving shoulder mobility - something everyone benefits from.

How to do a lateral shoulder raise: 

• Stand with dumbbells in each hand, hanging by your sides. 
• Begin lifting the weights to your sides, stopping when your arms are parallel to the floor with a slight bend in the elbows. Don't raise your shoulders during the movement.
• Slowly lower the dumbbells back to your sides.

6. Upright Barbell Row:

The upright row targets the anterior, lateral, and posterior deltoids, making it an effective and efficient exercise for shoulder days. We selected the barbell variation as it allows you to use higher weights, but you can also dumbbells for this exercise. Just be prepared to move down in weights with dumbbells so you can perform this move safely, as a lot of people experience shoulder pain with upright rows.

How to do an upright barbell row:

• Standing with your feet shoulder-width apart, keep your back straight, chest high, and an overhand grip to grasp your barbell.
• Slowly bend your elbows to raise the bar toward your chin. Stop once your upper arms are parallel to the floor.
• Straighten the elbows, lowering the bar back to its starting position.

Important Training Variables/Info for the Workout

A well-rounded routine should include a mix of training for muscle hypertrophy and strength. To fatigue your muscles, 8 to 12 reps are the sweet spot, while between 5 and 8 allow you to lift heavier and improve your strength. Two workouts are included here, and we suggest using both each week. Perform one earlier in the week, give your chest and shoulders at least 48 hours to rest, and then use the second routine.

Optimal muscle gains occur with 10 to 20 sets per muscle group per week. Beginner lifters should aim closer to 10, whereas experienced lifters can aim for 16 to 20. These routines place the heaviest lifts at the beginning when you have the most energy. From there, rotate between chest and shoulder moves, so one body part gets extra rest while the other puts in work.

For muscle hypertrophy, progressive overload is the name of the game, and there are multiple ways you can continue progressing with this workout. Increase your sets (no more than five per exercise), your reps (stick with your suggested rep range), or your weight. For example, if in week one you can perform four sets of 5 reps of the barbell bench press, an easy way to progress the following week is to try to complete six reps instead.

Once you reach your max sets and reps for an exercise, increase the weight. So, if you’re benching 200 pounds and able to complete five sets of 8 reps each, increase your weight, keeping in mind not to increase it so much that you can't finish at least four sets of 5 reps.

THE BEST CHEST AND SHOULDER WORKOUT ROUTINE

We’ve included two workouts here for your weight-lifting pleasure. For best results, complete them both each week (spreading the sessions out so your muscles can repair). The variety of moves in both workouts ensures you hit the recommended weekly sets for your chest and shoulder muscles.

Workout A:

Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
Barbell Bench Press	4-5	5-8	3 minutes
Barbell Overhead Press	3-4	6-8	3 minutes
Incline Bench Press	3-4	8-12	2 minutes
Dumbbell Rear Delt Fly	3-4	8-12	2 minutes
Chest Dips	3-4	8-12	2 minutes
Lateral Shoulder Raise	3-4	10-12	2 minutes
Close Grip Push-Up	3-4	8-12	2 minutes

Workout B:

Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
Single-Arm Dumbbell Bench Press	4-5	5-8	3 minutes
Clap Push-Up	3-4	5-8	3 minutes
Arnold Press	3-4	6-8	3 minutes
Dumbbell Chest Fly	3-4	10-12	2 minutes
Upright Barbell Row	3-4	8-10	2 minutes
Bent-Over Cable Crossovers	3-4	8-12	2 minutes
Rear Delt Machine Fly	3-4	10-12	2 minutes

You’ve Got This!

You now have a solid understanding of the chest and shoulder muscles, and more importantly, two muscle-building workouts designed for serious gains. It’s now up to you to get to the gym and give every exercise, set, and rep nothing but your best. One parting thought: Don’t let your dietary habits sabotage your gym progress. Effort in the kitchen is just as crucial as the work you put in at the gym. Hit your protein goals to build muscle, practice mindful eating, and educate yourself on the best supplements and nutritional guidelines to optimize your gym efforts.

Check out some of our other ULTIMATE workouts:

• The Ultimate Leg Workout
• The Ultimate Chest & Triceps Workout
• The Ultimate Back & Biceps Workout
• The Ultimate Arm Workout

References:

1. Rodríguez-Ridao D, Antequera-Vique JA, Martín-Fuentes I, Muyor JM. Effect of Five Bench Inclinations on the Electromyographic Activity of the Pectoralis Major, Anterior Deltoid, and Triceps Brachii during the Bench Press Exercise. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2020;17(19):7339. doi:10.3390/ijerph17197339
2. Cogley RM, Archambault TA, Fibeger JF, Koverman MM, Youdas JW, Hollman JH. Comparison of Muscle Activation Using Various Hand Positions During the Push-Up Exercise. The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 2005;19(3):628. doi:10.1519/15094.1
3. Schoenfeld B, Sonmez RGT, Kolber MJ, Contreras B, Harris R, Ozen S. Effect of Hand Position on EMG Activity of the Posterior Shoulder Musculature During a Horizontal Abduction Exercise. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 2013;27(10):2644-2649. doi:10.1519/jsc.0b013e318281e1e9