Few pointers many already know

[Goldenrod]

I always like to do a squeeze exercise after pressing exercises for chest and the pec dec is my favourite because you can use it for an amazing/safe stretch after. Very easy to do drop sets or super set it with the incline fly machine beside it I like.
I used to sort of round my arms as I could move more weight with the pec dec, but all I was doing was recruiting more non chest muscle fibres. Instead of trying to touch your hand together, I try to press my elbows together. Of course they can't touch but it puts way more stress / pump on the chest albeit I had to drop the weight, but better growth. I know many know this but I see so many ego lifters pushing forward off the pad and rounding their arms to incorporate other muscle groups to move more weight. No judgment, but I am training for hypertrophy and not for how much weight I can lift.

Preacher curl - so many people let their elbows flare out and incorporate their shoulders into the exercise. I caught myself doing it as I was doing some rest/pause last few reps. Now I keep my arms/elbows down straight from my shoulders and no flaring. Better pump / can see the muscle working more and making some gains. I can't lift as much, so be it.

There are tons of guys who know more than I do here, and feel free to add tips / correct my comments as I appreciate other opinions and new ideas.
Just a few comments that may help guys / gals who don't know this. For many this is common knowledge.

Please add any tricks / movements you have learned to work the muscles more even if it means less weight.

thanks,
GR

 

[gondar1]

To add to the pec dec thing, shoulder issues being rampant one tip I've seen settle shit down is to move away from pressing for a while for the reason of changing the areas of the shoulder joint that get stress put on them while training chest. So folks might consider dropping the pressing for a wile or maybe for good and focusing on bring the resistance to centerline with the pecs.
Be mindful that not all pecdecs/fly machines are designed appropriately for this purpose but with a dual wide cable setup you can always manipulate your body placement to suit.
And good point about "I had to drop the weight, but better growth" ur muscles have no idea how much weight you are using, they only are responding to mechanical tension. Pulling to centerline provides all of that you'll ever need without grinding your shoulders to pulp.

 

[storman]

For preachers, i have to do 1 arm at a time otherwise my elbows will automatically flare out. 1 arm at a time saves me a lot of grief

 

[Goldenrod]

Another one I see (and happen to love the exercise) is close grip bench press for triceps. I keep my arms/elbows right by my side to keep as much stress on my triceps as possible and avoid injuries.
There are some accomplished lifters who refer to flaring your elbows to hit the outer head I believe, but also puts you in an awkward position and more apt to get injured. Maybe someone knows a special hack for this. For now I stick to the lower weight and elbows by my side and the bar down below my chest when I lower it.

Same with the dip tricep machines that puts you in a slight forward position, has a belt so you can push heavy weight if you aren't a heavy person, and if you keep your elbows in and back pressed hard against the vertical pad, I love it for triceps. Weighted dips are great too, but the machine is so much quicker, no set up with plates hooked on a belt before you climb up.
I see people pushing more weight with their elbows flared out vs. kept by your side as much as possible. When I catch myself doing this, I have too much stress on my shoulders and when I bring them back in, I can feel my triceps more. Curious if anyone does it with elbows flared and why.

 

[Trenbolone&Cheese]

Another one I see (and happen to love the exercise) is close grip bench press for triceps. I keep my arms/elbows right by my side to keep as much stress on my triceps as possible and avoid injuries.
There are some accomplished lifters who refer to flaring your elbows to hit the outer head I believe, but also puts you in an awkward position and more apt to get injured. Maybe someone knows a special hack for this. For now I stick to the lower weight and elbows by my side and the bar down below my chest when I lower it.

Same with the dip tricep machines that puts you in a slight forward position, has a belt so you can push heavy weight if you aren't a heavy person, and if you keep your elbows in and back pressed hard against the vertical pad, I love it for triceps. Weighted dips are great too, but the machine is so much quicker, no set up with plates hooked on a belt before you climb up.
I see people pushing more weight with their elbows flared out vs. kept by your side as much as possible. When I catch myself doing this, I have too much stress on my shoulders and when I bring them back in, I can feel my triceps more. Curious if anyone does it with elbows flared and why.

i find i get too much chest activation for my liking if i don’t flare my elbows. i personally flare them, dont come all the way down to my chest (prob 3-4 inches above my chest,) to keep tension on the triceps, and squeeze as hard as possible at the top. i find if i come down to my chest, there becomes a point where it’s no longer a bend at the elbows, rather my shoulders are moving to get the bar lower causing them to take over the bottom part of the movement. definitely not the best movement for lengthened tension, great for progressive overload and mass though imo. do them every week.

 

[gondar1]

Another one I see (and happen to love the exercise) is close grip bench press for triceps. I keep my arms/elbows right by my side to keep as much stress on my triceps as possible and avoid injuries.
There are some accomplished lifters who refer to flaring your elbows to hit the outer head I believe, but also puts you in an awkward position and more apt to get injured. Maybe someone knows a special hack for this. For now I stick to the lower weight and elbows by my side and the bar down below my chest when I lower it.

Same with the dip tricep machines that puts you in a slight forward position, has a belt so you can push heavy weight if you aren't a heavy person, and if you keep your elbows in and back pressed hard against the vertical pad, I love it for triceps. Weighted dips are great too, but the machine is so much quicker, no set up with plates hooked on a belt before you climb up.
I see people pushing more weight with their elbows flared out vs. kept by your side as much as possible. When I catch myself doing this, I have too much stress on my shoulders and when I bring them back in, I can feel my triceps more. Curious if anyone does it with elbows flared and why.

I've found using an ezcurl bar rather than a straight bar seems to take the uncomfortableness out of close grip BP for me. Unfortunately ezcurl bars are generally a pain in the ass to get into position with a lot of weight loaded. Rare are the long ones that will rest on a standard bench so most of my experience with it has been with 2 guys handing it to me.

 

[gondar1]

i find i get too much chest activation for my liking if i don’t flare my elbows. i personally flare them, dont come all the way down to my chest (prob 3-4 inches above my chest,) to keep tension on the triceps, and squeeze as hard as possible at the top. i find if i come down to my chest, there becomes a point where it’s no longer a bend at the elbows, rather my shoulders are moving to get the bar lower causing them to take over the bottom part of the movement. definitely not the best movement for lengthened tension, great for progressive overload and mass though imo. do them every week.

Me too. EZ curl bar or maybe a modified version more like what people call the "JM Press" these days? I'm not one to talk but I think sometimes we get too focused on doing things with "proper form" instead of adapting to a form that hits the muscle for us personally.