Lower chest exercises using cables are a great way to work out your lower chest. They are also easy to do and they can be done without any extra equipment except the cable station. These exercises allow you to lift a weight that is heavier than you could ever lift with your body weight. This allows for an intense workout of the chest muscles because the muscle fibers are exposed to heavier overload from the weight being lifted.
The following guide gives you five great lower chest exercises that use cables as well as instructions on how to perform them properly.
1. Cable crossover
Cable crossover for lower chest and this workout targets the muscles that make up the pectoralis major. This muscle is a large fan-shaped muscle located in your chest region, which works along with other muscles to push and pull your shoulders, arms, and trunk of the body.
Here is how you do cable crossover:
- Adjust the pulleys of a cable crossover machine so that they are at shoulder height.
- Choose the weight you want to use for each side.
- Step forward so that your midsection is in between the two pulleys.
- Grasp the handles of the pulleys and extend your arms out to the side, keeping your elbows slightly bent.
- From this position, bring your arms together in front of your body, crossing them at the wrists.
- Return to the starting position and repeat.
The cable crossover is an excellent pectoral movement for beginners. As it hits your chest from a different angle, meaning you can use the same weight but target a new set of muscle fibers. This is a great workout to start with as it doesn’t put much stress on your joints and is easier on the tendons allowing you to get a little more volume in without worrying about getting injured.
2. Decline bench cable flyes
The decline bench cable flyes are a great exercise, but it is one of the least used. This exercise gives you a full range of motion throughout your pec muscles when compared to a regular flat or incline bench press. Decline bench cable flyes are a great way to target the lower chest. Though decline dumbbell flyes can target the lower portion of the chest, they take the exercise to another level by producing greater muscle tension during the eccentric phase or lowering portion of the rep.
To do decline bench press:
- Position yourself on a decline bench with your feet under the pads and your hips off the bench.
- Grasp the cable attachment with your palms facing each other and extend your arms straight out in front of you.
- Keeping your arms straight, lower the weight until your elbows are at about a 90-degree angle.
- Slowly return to the starting position, contracting your chest muscles as you do.
Decline bench flyes will work the upper and lower parts of your chest to complete development. You should also pay attention to the fact that all exercises should be completed in proper form with strict technique otherwise you will be risking possible injury, which is not what anybody wants.
3. Cable low to high flyes
Cable low to high flyes is an exercise that you can perform in the gym. This is an excellent chest exercise building mass, strength, and thickness. Understanding how to do the cable low to high flyes effectively will ensure you are training hard as possible and gaining as much muscle mass as possible. With any chest exercise, it is important to focus on the contraction that you get throughout the chest muscles during each rep of the set. Method of contraction is a simple but often under-utilized technique that enables you to build more muscle quicker.
Here is how you do this exercise:
- Using a cable machine, set the pulleys to the lowest setting.
- Select the appropriate weight and attach it to the pulleys.
- Grasp the cable handles with your palms facing each other.
- Step forward so that the cables are pulling the weight towards your chest.
- Keeping your elbows slightly bent, raise your arms out to the sides until they are in line with your shoulders.
- Return to the starting position and repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
If you want to increase your strength, endurance, and muscle mass, this exercise is a must in your workout. If you want to get the most out of the cable low to high flyes and gain that muscle mass, make sure you focus on the contraction in your chest when performing the exercise.
4. Incline bench cable flyes
Incline bench cable flyes are a great exercise for targeting the lower pectoral muscle (pec major). This is especially true when you start to angle the bench upwards. By angling the bench upwards, we increase the range of motion of this particular movement. This increases our stretch on the pec major insertion, thus allowing you to target that muscle more effectively.
Here is how you do incline bench cable flyes:
- Set an incline bench at around a 45-degree angle and adjust the pulleys of a cable machine so they are at the same height as the bench.
- Sit on the bench and grab the handles of the pulleys.
- Start the movement by bringing your hands together in front of your chest and then extending your arms out to the sides.
- Return to the starting position and repeat for the desired number of reps.
Incline bench cable flyes are a great exercise for strengthening the lower pectoral muscle. This makes them particularly effective at targeting the bottom of the pec muscle and all of the fibers that attach to it, allowing you to tone up those hard-to-target pec muscles that are often difficult to reach.
5. Cable flyes
The cable fly is a strength training exercise that targets the pectoral muscles. The middle fibers of the pectoralis major and minor muscles contract during this particular exercise. To maximize your pectoral development, you should choose a weight that allows you to perform 12–15 repetitions in an effective manner without compromising your proper form or range of motion.
To do cable flyes:
- Attach a single handle to each pulley of a cable machine, and adjust the weight to your desired level.
- Grasp the handles with your palms facing each other, and position yourself in between the pulleys.
- Step forward with one foot, and keep your feet shoulder-width apart.
- Bend your elbows and bring the handles toward your chest.
- Pause for a moment, and then slowly return to the starting position.
The cable fly is a safe exercise to perform if you possess a high level of physical fitness and experience, especially if you select the appropriate weight. If you are relatively new to strength training and unfamiliar with proper form, we recommend using a weight that allows you to perform at least 12 repetitions, using this weight will help ensure that you develop a strong muscular foundation before gradually increasing your intensity level.
Conclusion
When it comes to working out your chest muscles, you have many different exercises to choose from. If you are looking for an extreme workout of your chest muscles for guys that desire a more ripped look, then lower chest exercises with cables are definitely the best option. When searching for lower chest exercises with cables, look for a cable station or cable machine that has the ability to change resistance from light to extremely heavy. This is going to be the most beneficial type of machine to get so that you can work out with much heavier weights when compared to doing cable exercises on your own body strength.