Chest and Back Bodybuilding Workout
In this workout, Enterprise Fitness founder Mark Ottobre pairs up with Master Coach Marshall Tan to train the chest, back and shoulders. Brace yourself as you get glimpses into their challenging workout and their #PTlife. They train with what Mark calls “cooperative competition”, where they aim to surpass each other but also help each other improve at the same time (so they can continue to beat each other, and repeat. It’s a never-ending cycle).
Here’s a full list of the exercises that Mark and Marshall go through in their workout:
- A1: Bench press
- A2: Chin up
- B1: Incline shoulder press with altered eccentrics (pause 3x for 3 sec)
- B2: Single-arm bent over row (8 reps, pause at top)
- C1: Side lateral raise
- C2: Rear delt raise
Here is the video below, complete with everything from warm up advice to technique tips from Mark.
Bonus – Here are tutorials for a full breakdown on some of the exercises in this workout:
Bench press
How do you turn a bro into a pro? Let’s start with warm ups. Instead of warming up the pecs and arms like most bros do, you want to activate your lats and upper back to prepare them for stabilising your shoulders during the bench press.
To perform the bench press with the correct form, glue your feet to the floor, then create an arch in your back as your lie down. Pull your scapulas and lats (large V-shaped back muscles) down to stabilise your shoulder. This helps you stabilise so you can press with more strength and power. Pull both your scapulas and lats, and your hips into your armpits to keep everything tight and tense.
Quick tip: If flexibility allows, place your feet closer to your hips and push your heels down to keep your body even more tight during the movement.
Chin up
There are 3 main chin up variations, which are: supinated, pronated and neutral grip chin up. You should be strongest during the neutral grip chin up. Start from a full hang position. Then, instead of pulling forward and using your biceps during the chin up, engage your scapulas by pulling the lats down to your armpits first before pulling yourself up.
Quick tip: Check out this quick video on 3 Worst Chin Up Mistakes to Avoid, and exactly how to fix them:
- Mistake 1: Not starting from a full hang
- Mistake 2: Rounding your shoulders at the top
- Mistake 3: Not engaging your lats at the bottom
Incline shoulder/barbell press
To start, sit up right against the seat with your hips glued to the bench and your feet pushing down on the ground (with a slight arch in the back, just like in the flat bench press). Unrack first, then lower. Pull your lats into your hips to stabilise your shoulder as you lower the bar on eccentric. A suggested tempo is 4 seconds on the way down, before pushing the bar up fast.
Quick tip: Get as tight as possible to lift heavier.
Rear delt raise
Adjust the bench to be inclined at a 15 or 30 degree angle. When lifting the dumbbells up with a pronated grip (facing down), make sure your elbows are in line with your ears and not too far back. This will ensure you are targeting the right muscles (your rear delts).
Quick tip: Hold the weights at the top (for 1 second) to further engage the rear delts.
