Wouldn’t it be great to command attention with admiration and respect every time you stepped out in your favorite t-shirt, tank top or tank top? To get this reaction, you need the bodybuilding “ABC’s” of firm, toned abs, big, muscular biceps, and a thick, chiseled chest. Here are some exercises and workout tips to help you start building the strong, top-busting upper body you deserve!
A. Abdominal training
To look great in a T-shirt, you don’t need to have “ripped abs” to the extent that this term means a super skinny or “ripped” midsection. If you want a “six pack,” go for it, but understand that getting a shredded core requires a lot of cardio work and disciplined eating to lower your overall body fat percentage. To do this, you’ll need to add cardio training and strength nutrition to the training tips provided in this article.
But just to make your abs look better in a T-shirt, the first thing you should do is contract and flatten your abdominal wall with the following basic exercises.
1. Abdominal curls or “Crunches”
Although this exercise gets a lot of negative press, I have used crunches effectively for years to tone and flatten my abdominal wall. The crunches are especially good for tightening the middle and upper abs, just below the pecs. Some people have trouble doing this exercise because of back or neck pain, especially those who already have lower back problems. To avoid lower back strain, do not move your hips as you contract your abs to lift your body off the floor. Also, if you have your hands behind your head, do not pull them forward as you raise your upper body to avoid any potential neck pain. Instead, have your abs do the work of pushing your sternum forward to complete the “crunch” movement. For a more advanced workout, perform the same movement with your knees raised 90 degrees to the ground, or add a twisting movement to work your obliques.
2. Incline leg raises
To balance your abs workout, bent leg raises are great for tightening the lower abdominal area, just below the belly button. Just lie on a slant board with your legs together and hold the handle over your head. Tighten your abs and slowly raise your legs as if you were going to touch your knees to your nose. Then slowly return to the starting position so that your abs continue to work during the negative part of this exercise.
If you don’t have access to an incline board, sit on the end of a flat bench with your legs together and your arms behind you at shoulder-width apart. Lean back about 45 degrees and extend your legs forward using your arms to support your body weight. Contract your abs and slowly pull your knees in toward your chest to work your lower abs. Be sure to maintain your form as you return to the starting position to work your abs during the negative part of this movement.
3. Pulley Crunches with Rope Handle
Rope handle pulley crunches are ideal for tightening the entire abdominal region. Just make sure you don’t use a lot of weight with this exercise. The goal here is to tighten and flatten your abs rather than make them bigger through weight training. To perform this exercise, hold the rope handles at shoulder height while kneeling upright with your back to the cable machine. Move your upper body forward to pull the rope handles and your chest toward your thighs. Contract your abs all the way so you can really feel them contract at the bottom of this movement. Slowly return to the starting position to gain negative resistance from this exercise.
B. Bicep Training
Your biceps are the first thing someone notices when you wear a t-shirt. Whether you’re carrying groceries or curling a barbell, your biceps are involved in all of your basic lifting movements. And no other muscle area symbolizes physical power like the bulging, beefy biceps. So if you want to look great in a T-shirt, you need big, muscular biceps. Try the exercises below to start building a serious set of WEAPONS.
1. Focus Curls
Sit comfortably on a flat exercise bench with your knees slightly wider than shoulder-width apart. Lean forward slightly and grasp a dumbbell in your right hand with your arm extended toward the floor and your elbow anchored against the inside of your right leg. Make sure your hand is fully supinated and that you remain stabilized on the bench during each rep. Do not jerk your upper body or the dumbbell to gain additional strength or momentum. Slowly curl the dumbbell by contracting your biceps and flexing your forearm toward your upper arm. You should bend the weight to a point just below the chin for a full bicep contraction. Return to the starting position and repeat.
2. Seated Alternating Dumbbell Curl
This exercise is one of the best bicep builders of all time, as long as you sit on a bench that has a backrest to prevent torso movement. Too many people do this exercise standing up or sitting on a bench with no back support. To ensure that your biceps are getting the most out of this move, you need to stabilize your torso to prevent any jerky movements. Also, remember to supinate your hands during each rep; do not begin or end this exercise with your hands in a neutral or pronated position.
3. Pull-ups
Pull-ups are an excellent bodyweight compound exercise for building strength and mass in the biceps. This exercise also thickens the latissimus dorsi (“lats”) and rhomboid muscles on the sides and upper middle back. Simply grab the Chin Up bar with an underhand grip and arms shoulder-width apart. Inhale as you pull your body up until your chin almost touches the bar. Exhale as you lower your body back to the starting position.
C. Chest training
Even if your abs are tight and your ARMS are smoking hot, you won’t look or feel your best without a solid, muscular chest. Try the chest exercises below to make sure your shirt doesn’t sag due to lack of chest development!
1. Weighted push-ups
Take a standard pushup position with your hands and arms extended and shoulder-width apart. Have a training partner gently place a 5- to 10-pound barbell plate on your back to force your chest to work more than it would with a standard pushup (you can increase the amount of weight as needed). Make sure to keep your back straight and head up to balance your weight and put maximum resistance on your chest. Slowly lower your chest until it almost touches the floor, and then come back up to the starting position.
2. Parallel Bar Dips
Parallel bar dips are great for adding mass and shape to the entire pectoral area. Simply take the handles of a parallel dip device and hold your body suspended between them. For a main training emphasis on your chest, lean forward as you perform this exercise. Inhale as you lower yourself down as low as you can comfortably go, then exhale as you push yourself back up to the starting position.
3. Dumbbell bench press
The dumbbell bench press is also great for increasing the size, strength, and shape of your chest. I recommend this exercise over the barbell bench press because it allows you to stretch your chest through a greater range of motion and stimulate more muscle fibers for better growth. So if you really want to pack your shirts with powerful pecs, this is the way to do it!
putting it all together
For fun and workout variety, I like to mix and match these exercises in what I call my “T-shirt muscle workouts.” That means that instead of just doing these exercises as part of an ab, arm, or chest workout, I mix these exercises into multiple workouts using supersets or trisets. For example, I sometimes do tri-sets of crunches, concentration pushups, and parallel bar dips. I also do dumbbell bench press supersets with incline leg raises or alternating dumbbell curls with rope handle pulley sit-ups. You should also experiment with different combinations of these exercises. I’m sure you’ll find them fun and rewarding when it comes to building a strong, t-shirt busting physique!