🏋️‍♀️ 7 lower chest exercises for better pecs

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Here’s what we’ve got to start your week:

• A breakdown of the best exercises to build your lower chest

• What exactly is a keto diet?

• The hybrid athlete’s guide to running a faster 5k

Exercise

Pec Specs

Well-formed pecs are a staple of good physiques in both the shirt-on and shirt-off genres of movie. Mid-pecs and upper pecs see a lot of action in the weight room, but many people miss out on the complete chest fullness that direct lower pec work can add.

Targeting the lower head of the pectoralis can be as easy as changing the angle you use on your favorite pressing motion, no matter if you use a barbell, dumbbells, or your body weight. Without including these alterations, your chest will never gain that signature “full-bodied” look made famous by bodybuilders in the ‘70s.

The best part is that you don’t need an entire day dedicated solely to the lower chest. You can throw these exercises into your upper body day wherever you want, but make sure to heed the advice written here first.

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Nutrition

Keto for Dummies

If you’ve been around the health and fitness landscape for more than a week, you’ve probably heard the phrase keto enough to get annoyed with it and everyone who “does” it. Of course, you might not actually know what “it” is, or what “it” does to your body.

The basics? You cut out carbs and force your body to run off fat as a fuel source. The advanced metrics? This may result in such lofty health gains as elevated brain function, improved insulin resistance, and greater heart health. And maybe fat loss, if that’s what you’re after.

So, does that mean carbs are the devil? The devil does hath power to assume a pleasing form, and nothing is more pleasing than pizza and ice cream. Find out if it’s all hype, or if a ketogenic approach to eating can get you where you need to be in life.

Running

A Faster 5K

Ferguson Crawley has been defying expectations by daring to be both strong and good at running, proving that you don’t need to be completely immobile in order to deadlift, nor a muscle-less skeleton to run a marathon.

That’s not to say that hybrid athletes like Crawley have it easy. For this type of competitor, training has all the major problems of a theme park and a zoo. Portioning energy, tracking effort, and not taking on too much at one time can all be difficult parameters to follow. You can only prioritize so many distinct things when your goals are at opposite ends of the fitness spectrum.

If you’re a lifter, or even a non-lifter, who is looking to get faster at a 5k, follow Crawley’s advice here. Make sure you set your horizon far enough away so you’re not set up for failure before you even start.

Everything else

Rack Pulls and a Bikini G.O.A.T.

• Ashley Kaltwasser’s competitive years in the IFBB have been nothing less than sensational. Dive into the life of the most successful Bikini athlete with this career showcase. Discover the training secrets, mindset, and diet that have propelled her to three wins at the Olympia.

• Used by champion powerlifters, bodybuilders, and strongman competitors for years, the rack pull is a must-add addition to your back training arsenal. Here’s how you do it.

• The International Weightlifting Federation has added a new Open Gender division to its competitions. In what the IWF Executive Board called an “important decision,” the new division, along with an “Updated Gender Identity Policy,” clarifies the IWF’s policy on which divisions transgender athletes may compete in.

Sound Off!

Do You Keto?