8 Minute Chest Workout That Actually Builds Muscle

I am often hit up with requests for muscle building workouts that don't involve 90 to 120 minutes in the gym. While the demand for brief workouts exists, people also want to know if they will actually build muscle.

I've seen many brief workouts on the net, primarily YouTube. While some of these programs are OK, most are rather useless.

Related: 25 Muscle Building Laws You Must Read

The following program works. While it's not something I recommend that you use as a staple, it will definitely challenge you and stimulate muscle growth.

Try this chest workout when you're tired, or have limited time to hit the gym. Let me know what you think in the comments section below.

8 Minute Chest Workout

 

Power your chest growth with Ruckus pre-workout formula. Order now.

Here is the minute by minute break down:

• Minute 1 - Prep and warm-up set
• Minutes 2-4 - Block A
• Minute 5 - Rest and prep for next block
• Minutes 6-8 - Block B

Block A. You will be alternating between the dumbbell bench press and push-ups. Set a timer app on your phone for exactly 3 minutes. Perform eight dumbbell bench press, and without resting immediately knock out 10 push-ups. Alternate back and forth between exercises until your three-minute window is done.

Men - Use dumbbells that are about 25 to 50% of your weight, depending on your strength levels. if you are relatively weak, use 25%. If you are pretty strong, use 50%. For example, if you weigh 180 pounds and are relatively strong, choose 90-pound dumbbells.

Women - Use dumbbells that are about 12.5 to 25% of your weight, depending on your strength levels. if you are relatively weak, use 12.5%. If you are pretty strong, use 25%. For example, if you weigh 160 pounds and consider yourself weak, use 20-pound dumbbells.

Don't worry if you are unable to complete the goal reps for each exercise. If you come close to failure or reach failure, simply jump over to the next exercise.

Block B. Your chest and triceps will be noticeably fatigued by the time you hit this block. You'll again be using a three-minute window. Alternate back and forth between bench presses and dumbbell flyes.

Men - For the bench press, use a weight that you normally could press for around 15 reps. This will typically be around 60 to 65% of your one rep max. If you're not sure of what your max is, use this calculator to get a reasonable estimate. For flyes, use 20 to 30-pound dumbbells. Don't go too crazy heavy.

Women - This will be the same as for men. For bench press choose a weight no more than 65% of your max. For flyes, 10 to 15 pounds should do.