If you only had one exercise that you could do for your chest, what would you choose? Would it be your standard barbell bench press? Or how about incline dumbbell bench presses? Unfortunately both these exercises on their own don’t do a great job working your complete chest. However there is in fact one exercise that has been proven to work your whole chest better than any other exercise out there. It is the best chest exercise and chances are you never heard of it.
Now its time for me to introduce you to the Gironda Neck Press otherwise known as the Guillotine Press. The Gironda Neck Press was created by Legendary Bodybuilder, Vince Gironda and if your looking to add muscle to your upper chest than this exercise is for you.
This exercise is similar to your standard bench press except that your going to bring the bar to your neck. Doing so drastically increases activation of the upper pectorals. In fact recent EMG tests show that this exercise is more effective than incline presses at working your upper pecs. Not to mention this exercise is the most effective at working the pectoralis major which makes up the middle and lower pectorals. Now you can see why this exercise earned the title of Best Chest Exercise.
The only downside with this exercise is that you are not going to be able to go very heavy. In fact with this exercise I recommend keeping the reps at 6 or more. Going any heavier will likely put a lot of stress on your shoulders. There is nothing to worry about because the guillotine press (neck press) with 225 lbs actually recruited more chest than a traditional barbell bench press with 275 lbs.
Notes:
Perform the exercise on a flat bench with legs crossed and bent at 90 degrees – this keeps the back flat on the bench increasing range of motion Take a wider than shoulder width hand placement and lower the weight slow and controlled until it makes contact with your collar bone or neck Push the weight up until your elbows are slightly bent – no need to lockout, doing so takes tension off of the chest If you want to go heavy than I recommend starting with regular bench press and finishing off with the Gironda Neck Press for 2-3 additional sets of 6-10 reps. This is a great way to get a good Chest Workout. In conclusion the Gironda Neck Press is a very effective chest exercise that should be a part of every series trainees arsenal. So if you want to build a perfect chest that looks like a suit of armor than DO this exercise.
