You want to have a trained chest , look stronger and shine with a great posture? Then you've probably asked yourself whether the chest press or butterfly is better for you.
In our overview, we show you what you should train with in which training phase and reveal which device offers which advantages.
Chest press or butterfly - everything for a strong chest
The chest press works similarly to the bench press or the push-up. By pressing the weight you activate the chest, triceps and shoulders. The exact part of the chest you target and how much you shift the weight to the triceps and shoulders depends on the grip and angle.
With the butterfly, on the other hand, you isolate the chest muscles much more, which means that you also see the results on your chest more quickly. In training theory, it is often said that with the chest press you build mass and strength and with the butterfly you provide the right definition . So ideally it's not called chest press or butterfly, but chest press and butterfly.
Now there are some things you should know before you start your chest workout. When training on the butterfly you will probably make rapid progress and this is intrinsically motivating, but the significance is negligible. The isolating movement at the butterfly does not correspond to any movement from sports or everyday life, the exercise is more cosmetic in nature. Especially since the risk of shoulder injury increases when you start with heavy weights as a beginner. However, to be fair, this applies to all equipment.
Tips for training with the chest press
First the chest press, then the pleasure
So the bottom line is that while you can train exclusively with the chest press, you can't train exclusively with the butterfly. The butterfly is a complementary piece of equipment to chest training on the bench, push-up, with slings or the chest press. The advantage of the butterfly is that you can define the chest very quickly through the exercises. Isolated, however, this results only in mass without strength - good for a dashing look in a tank top, but unfortunately not for much else.
The chest press, on the other hand, works multiple muscles in a much more natural movement and also organizes the interaction of the muscles.
If you use both machines in tandem , you combine the best of both worlds and create the necessary conditions on the chest press to then provide the necessary definition with the butterfly.
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Which is better, the chest press or the butterfly?
When comparing two pieces of fitness equipment, it is always difficult to make sweeping statements. Because it depends very much on the variant of the strength equipment and especially on your personal training goals. When training with the chest press, you activate the entire upper body, so you strengthen the chest, shoulders and triceps. Whereas the butterfly machine trains the pectoral muscles in isolation. For building strength and mass, the chest press is ideal. If you want uniquely defined pecs, the butterfly is the right choice. So which is better, chest press or butterfly? In this case, the answer is: both. Because with the combination of both training devices you achieve the best success.
Is butterfly good for the chest?
Absolutely. In fact, with the butterfly machine you train mainly the chest muscles. Since it is an isolation exercise, i.e. your chest muscles are trained in isolation with the Butterfly, you can achieve faster training results. So the butterfly gives you a well-defined chest.
Which is better: bench press or chest press?
First of all, both bench press and chest press are good to train the chest muscles. In bench press and free weight training in general, proper exercise is essential to prevent injuries. For beginners, it is certainly easier to use the guided training on the chest press. With more experience you can then switch to the bench press. This covers a wider range of motion and builds more muscle than the chest press.
What is the Butterfly good for?
The butterfly machine is ideal for training the chest and shoulder muscles. While the chest press helps build strength and mass, the butterfly can provide nice definition to the pectoral muscles.
Is bench press the same as the chest press?
In terms of the process, bench press works similarly to the chest press or pushups. In addition to the pectoral muscles, the shoulder muscles and triceps are also trained here.
How effective is the bench press?
In fact, the bench press with the barbell covers so many muscle areas that you train almost your entire body with the help of the basic exercises. In addition, the bench press leads to growth stimuli in the muscle, which can hardly be compared with other exercises. Fast training results are therefore guaranteed with proper execution.
Which machine for the lower chest?
Various training devices are suitable for strengthening the chest muscles. The classic chest press, the negative bench press with dumbbell or barbell or negative bench press on the multi-press.
How effective is butterfly?
Exercises on the Butterfly are very effective if you perform the work-out correctly and train regularly. The butterfly machine is the ideal training tool to strengthen the large pectoral muscle as well as triceps and shoulder muscles.
Which pectoral muscle does Butterfly train?
First and foremost, you train the large pectoral muscle, the pectoralis major muscle, with the butterfly machine. However, with exercises on the Butterfly you can also train the front part of the deltoid muscle, i.e. the deltoideus pars clavicularis muscle.
Is the chest press effective?
Training with the chest press is ideal to strengthen the pectoral muscles, but also to train shoulders and triceps. The chest press allows for a very effective workout, because during the exercise you can focus well on the muscle area that is being used. This allows for a good muscle-mind connection.
Editors fitnessmarkt.de (EA)
Photo Credit: #138850020 Prostock-studio / stock.adobe.com
Published on: 18 December 2019