Clearly, chest training is not fun at all...I don't know anybody who likes it...(yeah right ;).

Well, if you DO like chest training, this technique is going to pump your chest up to the point where it hurts...in a good way.

This method is a variation of an intensity technique called "burns." The goal of this technique is to push your muscles beyond conventional failure by shortening the range of motion substantially and just pumping out partial reps at the end of a set.

You may have seen this done on calf raises where somebody does a full set then burns out in the bottom few inches with short, fast reps.

It's an excellent method that floods your working muscle with lactic acid (i.e. lactate) and other byproducts of muscle contraction. These "waste products" are actually a very potent stimulator of fat loss and muscle growth in your body.

Now we're going to step it up and do HEAVY burns...

This is all about maximizing lactate production and loading on the target muscles while giving you an excellent "occlusion" effect in the target muscles (I'll explain more on that below).

You'll start with a moderate-weight set of relatively high reps (20-30) on the flat dumbbell bench press then immediately switch to relatively heavier partial training for somewhat fewer reps (10-20) on the barbell bench press (either in the rack or with a good spotter who is actually paying attention to you!).

I'm using a pair of 65 lb dumbbells in the demo for the first part.

Use a fairly fast pace, without focusing on the negative portion of the movement. The concentric/positive phase of muscle contraction is what generates the lactate and other waste products. Aim for at least 20 reps.

Push yourself HARD on this set...go until the acidity basically shuts down muscle contraction and you can't move the weight (I like to call this chemical failure). Your chest and arms should get to the point where you feel like you're almost going to drop the weights on yourself.

You should already have the partials set up and ready to go either in the rack or on a normal bench press station with a spotter standing by.

Get the bench into position in the rack and press the bar off the rails. I'm using 275 lbs in this demo (in looking back, I should have used a bit less weight with the aim of getting more reps...maybe 225-245 lbs...it's always a bit of a learning process with new techniques).

DO NOT rest the bar back down on the rails between reps. Keep the tension on and only lower the bar a few inches. Focus on contracting the pecs HARD at the top on each rep.

This creates an "occlusion" effect in the pecs that stifles blood flow into and out of the muscles and traps the waste products you've already generated with the first part of the set in the pecs.

This constant contraction gives you a similar effect that you see with Occlusion Training done by wrapping bands around the arms or legs to achieve that same "trapping" effect, only this allows you do it on muscles that can't be wrapped.

This second "heavy burn" part should always be done near the peak contracted position of the exercise in order to maximize this occlusion effect.

Push yourself to the point where can't get another rep. This is where it's most useful to be in the rack and CRITICAL to have a spotter if you're not in the rack (let them know you're about to fail as you get close).

At this point, your muscles will relax and the blood will come roaring into your pecs. The pump is intense, as is the effect on the muscle fibers.

I recommend 3-4 total Heavy Burn supersets with this technique with 2 minutes rest between sets.

You can also perform this technique with an isolation exercise to start (e.g. flyes) instead of presses in order to leave some strength in the shoulders and triceps to allow you to push the chest a bit harder on the partials.

I actually wouldn't recommend going to another isolation exercise for partials simply because it'll limit the amount of weight you can use. Using a heavily loaded bar on this second phase maximize muscle fiber activation and puts intense mechanical pressure on the muscles, which contributes to the occlusion effect.

The overall concept is the same...go for high reps on the first set, then hit the partials immediately after (I reduced the weight to 45 lb dumbbells for flyes and 225 lbs for the partial bench press).

Again, focus on maintaining and hitting that peak contraction at the top of each rep and only coming down a few inches.

This isolation/heavy compound combination is a great way to finish off this Heavy Burn workout for your chest (just 1 or 2 sets of this version is enough).

I've got the video of this technique posted here...

Enjoy!

One More Quick Thing...

This workout (with versions of it for other muscle groups as well) will be going in a big update I've got coming for my Metabolic Monsters book in the near future.

If you bought that book before, it'll be a FREE update for you. If you haven't gotten it yet, get it here now and you'll be eligible for the free update as well!

Nick Nilsson
The "Mad Scientist of Muscle"