Chest Exercises
The chest is one muscle doing two jobs: bringing your arm across your body, and pressing it away from you. That is why pressing alone leaves it half-trained — a bench press covers the pressing, and nothing covers the adduction that a fly or a crossover does.
Most people benefit from pressing at two angles rather than three sets of the same one. Flat work builds the bulk of it; incline work is what fills the upper chest that a flat press mostly misses. 10–20 hard sets a week, split across two sessions, is the usual range.
43 chest exercises in Gym Journal
31 compound and 12 isolation, each with a default rep range and rest interval already set. Everything here is in the free app.
| Exercise | Equipment | Type | Reps |
|---|---|---|---|
| Band Chest Pressalso Shoulders, Triceps | Other | compound | 12–20 |
| Barbell Floor Pressalso Triceps, Shoulders | Barbell | compound | 5–8 |
| Barbell Incline Bench Press - Medium Gripalso Triceps, Shoulders | Barbell | compound | 8–12 |
| Bench Pressalso Triceps, Shoulders | Barbell | compound | 8–12 |
| Board Pressalso Triceps, Shoulders | Barbell | compound | 3–5 |
| Cable Chest Pressalso Triceps, Shoulders | Cable | compound | 8–12 |
| Cable Crossovers | Cable | isolation | 10–15 |
| Cable Iron Cross | Cable | isolation | 10–15 |
| Close Grip Bench Pressalso Triceps, Shoulders | Barbell | compound | 8–12 |
| DB Floor Pressalso Triceps, Shoulders | Dumbbell | compound | 8–12 |
| Decline Barbell Bench Pressalso Triceps, Shoulders | Barbell | compound | 8–12 |
| Decline Dumbbell Bench Pressalso Triceps, Shoulders | Dumbbell | compound | 8–12 |
| Decline Dumbbell Flyes | Dumbbell | isolation | 10–15 |
| Decline Machine Chest Pressalso Triceps, Shoulders | Machine | compound | 8–12 |
| Decline Push-Upalso Triceps, Shoulders | Bodyweight | compound | 8–12 |
| Decline Smith Pressalso Triceps, Shoulders | Smith machine | compound | 8–12 |
| Dips - Chestalso Triceps, Shoulders | Bodyweight | compound | 8–12 |
| Dumbbell Bench Press with Neutral Gripalso Triceps, Shoulders | Dumbbell | compound | 8–12 |
| Dumbbell Flies | Dumbbell | isolation | 10–15 |
| Dumbbell Pressalso Triceps, Shoulders | Dumbbell | compound | 8–12 |
| Flat Bench Cable Fly | Cable | isolation | 10–15 |
| High-to-Low Cable Flyalso Shoulders | Cable | isolation | 10–15 |
| Incline Bench Pressalso Triceps, Shoulders | Barbell | compound | 8–12 |
| Incline Cable Flyalso Shoulders | Cable | isolation | 10–15 |
| Incline Dumbbell Fly | Dumbbell | isolation | 10–15 |
| Incline Dumbbell Pressalso Triceps, Shoulders | Dumbbell | compound | 8–12 |
| Incline Machine Chest Pressalso Shoulders, Triceps | Machine | compound | 8–12 |
| Incline Neutral Grip Dumbbell Pressalso Shoulders, Triceps | Dumbbell | compound | 8–12 |
| Incline Push-Upalso Triceps, Shoulders | Bodyweight | compound | 10–20 |
| Low-to-High Cable Flyalso Shoulders | Cable | isolation | 10–15 |
| Machine Chest Pressalso Triceps, Shoulders | Machine | compound | 8–12 |
| Machine Flies | Machine | isolation | 10–15 |
| Pause Bench Pressalso Triceps, Shoulders | Barbell | compound | 3–6 |
| Pec Deck | Machine | isolation | 10–15 |
| Pin Pressalso Triceps, Shoulders | Barbell | compound | 3–5 |
| Plate-Loaded Chest Pressalso Shoulders, Triceps | Plate-loaded machine | compound | 8–12 |
| Plate-Loaded Decline Pressalso Shoulders, Triceps | Plate-loaded machine | compound | 8–12 |
| Plate-Loaded Incline Pressalso Shoulders, Triceps | Plate-loaded machine | compound | 8–12 |
| Push-Upalso Triceps, Shoulders | Bodyweight | compound | 8–12 |
| Ring Dipsalso Triceps, Shoulders | Bodyweight | compound | 6–12 |
| Single Arm Cable Crossover | Cable | isolation | 10–15 |
| Smith Incline Bench Pressalso Triceps, Shoulders | Smith machine | compound | 8–12 |
| Smith Machine Bench Pressalso Triceps, Shoulders | Smith machine | compound | 6–12 |
Log them, and watch the numbers move
Every exercise here is in the free app, with form instructions, its own progression chart and PR tracking. No account needed to start.