Welcome to Week 1 Day 6 of our 4 Week Workout Program.

This is the sixth day of our training routine, and it’s time for us to hit chest, triceps and abs again.

Strengthening our chest is great for us for for a few reasons, but let me give you at least three. Reason number one: it helps keep our upper-body muscles in balance, which can in turn improve our posture. Reason number two: it helps us do the things you need to do every day; pectoral muscles add power to our shoulders and arms, and believe it or not, it takes more than biceps to push a heavy box, to move a sofa or to carry heavy grocery store bags. Reason number three: (this is my favorite one) it helps us add a little bulk to our boobies; doing chest exercises help build our pectoral muscles and therefore crate more volume to our chest.

We’re also targeting triceps today and these babies look real good when toned and defined. Having strong triceps will help you push through those chaturangas at your next yoga class and help you lift yourself up like a champion next time you’re laying face down on the floor.

Aren’t muscles great?

Today we’re going to be doing:

• Barbell Bench Press – Medium Grip
• Incline Dumbbell Press
• Decline Smith Machine
• (Tricep) Dips
• Close Grip Barbell Bench Press
• Air Bike
• Bent Knee Hip Raise
• Optional: Tabata (aka HIIT cardio)

Below you can find the number of sets and each exercise’s description.

BARBELL BENCH PRESS – MEDIUM GRIP

2 warm-up sets, 3 sets of 15 reps
30 seconds of active rest in between sets

1. Lie back on a flat bench. Using a medium width grip (a grip that creates a 90-degree angle in the middle of the movement between the forearms and the upper arms), lift the bar from the rack and hold it straight over you with your arms locked. This will be your starting position.
2. From the starting position, breathe in and begin coming down slowly until the bar touches your middle chest.
3. After a brief pause, push the bar back to the starting position as you breathe out. Focus on pushing the bar using your chest muscles. Lock your arms and squeeze your chest in the contracted position at the top of the motion, hold for a second and then start coming down slowly again. Tip: Ideally, lowering the weight should take about twice as long as raising it.
4. Repeat the movement for the prescribed amount of repetitions.
5. When you are done, place the bar back in the rack.

DECLINE SMITH MACHINE

3 sets of 15 reps
30 seconds of active rest in between sets

1. Place a decline bench underneath the Smith machine. Now place the barbell at a height that you can reach when lying down and your arms are almost fully extended. Using a pronated grip that is wider than shoulder width, unlock the bar from the rack and hold it straight over you with your arms extended. This will be your starting position.
2. As you inhale, lower the bar under control by allowing the elbows to flex, lightly contacting the torso.
3. After a brief pause, bring the bar back to the starting position by extending the elbows, exhaling as you do so.
4. Repeat the movement for the prescribed amount of repetitions.
5. When the set is complete, lock the bar back in the rack.

INCLINE DUMBBELL PRESS

3 sets of 15 reps
30 seconds of active rest in between sets

1. Lie back on an incline bench with a dumbbell in each hand atop your thighs. The palms of your hands will be facing each other.
2. Then, using your thighs to help push the dumbbells up, lift the dumbbells one at a time so that you can hold them at shoulder width.
3. Once you have the dumbbells raised to shoulder width, rotate your wrists forward so that the palms of your hands are facing away from you. This will be your starting position.
4. Be sure to keep full control of the dumbbells at all times. Then breathe out and push the dumbbells up with your chest.
5. Lock your arms at the top, hold for a second, and then start slowly lowering the weight. Tip: Ideally, lowering the weights should take about twice as long as raising them.
6. Repeat the movement for the prescribed amount of repetitions.
7. When you are done, place the dumbbells back on your thighs and then on the floor. This is the safest manner to release the dumbbells.

(TRICEP) DIPS

4 sets of 15 reps
30 seconds of active rest in between sets

1. To get into the starting position, hold your body at arm’s length with your arms nearly locked above the bars.
2. Now, inhale and slowly lower yourself downward. Your torso should remain upright and your elbows should stay close to your body. This helps to better focus on tricep involvement. Lower yourself until there is a 90 degree angle formed between the upper arm and forearm.
3. Then, exhale and push your torso back up using your triceps to bring your body back to the starting position.
4. Repeat the movement for the prescribed amount of repetitions.

NOTE: If you are new at this exercise and do not have the strength to perform it, use a dip assist machine if available. These machines use weight to help you push your bodyweight.

CLOSE GRIP BARBELL BENCH PRESS

4 sets of 15 reps
30 seconds of active rest in between sets

1. Lie back on a flat bench. Using a close grip (around shoulder width), lift the bar from the rack and hold it straight over you with your arms locked. This will be your starting position.
2. As you breathe in, come down slowly until you feel the bar on your middle chest. Tip: Make sure that – as opposed to a regular bench press – you keep the elbows close to the torso at all times in order to maximize triceps involvement.
3. After a second pause, bring the bar back to the starting position as you breathe out and push the bar using your triceps muscles. Lock your arms in the contracted position, hold for a second and then start coming down slowly again. Tip: It should take at least twice as long to go down than to come up.
4. Repeat the movement for the prescribed amount of repetitions.
5. When you are done, place the bar back in the rack.

AIR BIKE

3 sets of 30 reps
30 seconds of active rest in between sets

1. Lie flat on the floor with your lower back pressed to the ground. For this exercise, you will need to put your hands beside your head. Be careful however to not strain with the neck as you perform it. Now lift your shoulders into the crunch position.
2. Bring knees up to where they are perpendicular to the floor, with your lower legs parallel to the floor. This will be your starting position.
3. Now simultaneously, slowly go through a cycle pedal motion kicking forward with the right leg and bringing in the knee of the left leg. Bring your right elbow close to your left knee by crunching to the side, as you breathe out.
4. Go back to the initial position as you breathe in.
5. Crunch to the opposite side as you cycle your legs and bring closer your left elbow to your right knee and exhale.
6. Continue alternating in this manner until all of the recommended repetitions for each side have been completed.

BENT KNEE HIP RAISE

3 sets of 15 reps
30 seconds of active rest in between sets

1. Lay flat on the floor with your arms next to your sides.
2. Now bend your knees at around a 75 degree angle and lift your feet off the floor by around 2 inches.
3. Using your lower abs, bring your knees in towards you as you maintain the 75 degree angle bend in your legs. Continue this movement until you raise your hips off of the floor by rolling your pelvis backward. Breathe out as you perform this portion of the movement. Tip: At the end of the movement your knees will be over your chest.
4. Squeeze your abs at the top of the movement for a second and then return to the starting position slowly as you breathe in. Tip: Maintain a controlled motion at all times.
5. Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.

OPTIONAL (but recommended)

4 minutes of Tabata to finish it off strong.

 

IMPORTANT: You’ll notice that I recommend doing a quick 30 second active rest in between each of the sets. This is to keep your heart rate up at all times. I recommend switch up your active rest movements with every exercise you do, just to keep it from getting monotonous and to allow for different muscles to be worked. Some of my favorite active rest movements include: kettle bell swings, air squats, lunges, jumps and running in place. Get creative, but try to not use the muscle groups you are actually using on your lifting exercises, so that those are ready to go when the 30 seconds are up.

 

PIN ME

Other Workouts You’ll Love:

• 4 Week Workout Program
• Tabata Training
• 7 Exercises to Get Killer Abs That Will Make You Proud

Disclaimer: I am a certified personal trainer, however, since I won’t be there with you physically to check on proper form and weight selection, do these workouts at your own risk. You should consult your physician or other health care professional before starting this or any other fitness program to determine if it is right for your needs.