CBum discusses stem cell treatment to treat his autoimmune disorder.
Focusing on the chest is crucial for building upper body strength. A defined and sculpted chest enhances the body’s aesthetic appeal, safeguards the shoulders, and promotes good posture. Research indicates chest workouts protect the shoulders from injuries and fortify the joints (1).
| Full Name: Chris Bumstead | ||
| Weight | Height | Date of Birth |
| 215-220 lbs | 6’1″ | 2/2/1995 |
| Profession | Era | Nationality |
| Bodybuilder | 2010s, 2020s | Canadian |
Chris Bumstead, a distinguished figure in the bodybuilding world, significantly impacts the industry. As a five-time Classic Physique Olympia champion, he has led the field since 2019, overtaking the previous champion, Breon Ansley. Bumstead’s path to triumph has been remarkable, marked by his resilience in facing challenges. One of them is an autoimmune disease — a story that mirrors Robin Robinson’s, the focus of our new film. Discover more in the trailer below:
Chris Bumstead is concluding his off-season, yet he still found a moment to divulge his off-season chest workout routine to fans via his YouTube channel. This practical vigorous chest regimen blends free weight exercises with machine workouts. This article will take a closer look at Chris Bumstead’s chest workout.
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Chris Bumstead’s Off-Season Chest Workout
The five-time Classic Physique Olympia champ starts his chest workout with some warm-ups, stretching his body with a resistance band. This study shows that performing warm-ups before your major exercises can improve your exercise performance (2).
“WHAT IS UP?… BACK IN THE GYM, BACK ON THE GRIND, BACK AT GOOD TIMES.” Bumstead says.
Below is a list of Chris Bumstead’s chest day exercises.
| Exercises | Sets | Reps |
| Incline Dumbbell Bench Press | 3 | 3-8 |
| Machine Chest Press | 4 | 5-11 |
| Incline Pec Fly Machine | 2 | 3-8 |
| Pec Fly Machine | 4 | 4-8 |
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press
Chris Bumstead starts his chest exercises using a pair of dumbbells to perform some incline dumbbell presses. He sits on the bench to steady his dumbbells before lying down to do about three to eight reps of three sets of this exercise. The incline dumbbell press targets your upper pecs, triceps, and deltoids.
Bumstead applies slow eccentric and concentric movements during his reps and utilizes a full range of motion, effectively stretching and flexing his pecs. Performing routines slowly helps maximize your muscle’s time under tension, which is effective for muscle growth (3).
Machine Chest Press
CBum then gets on a machine to do some presses and does about four sets of five to eleven reps. The machine chest press works your chest, triceps, and shoulders.
While doing the machine chest press, Chris Bumstead applies eccentric movements, stretching the chest muscles as the machine keeps constant tension on the target muscles. He approaches failure before taking a break to prepare for more. Bumstead also talks about his stem cell treatment for his autoimmune disease.
“WENT BACK TO MEXICO, DID SOME MORE STEM CELLS WITH DR. KHAN, THREE WEEKS AGO,” SAID BUMSTEAD. “BUT YEAH, I’M JUST TAKING CARE OF MY HEALTH NOW, SO I’M TRYING TO CONSISTENTLY SEE HIM, GET SOME STEM CELLS DONE. LAST YEAR, I GOT THEM IN MY KNEES, IN MY SHOULDERS, AND MY JOINTS. THIS YEAR, I JUST GOT AN IV OF IT, MORE OF A REGENERATIVE HEALTH UPKEEP YOU COULD SAY RATHER THAN COMPLETELY HEAL EVERYTHING.”
Incline Pec Fly Machine
Next, Chris Bumstead gets on the pec fly machine to work his chest. He struggles with this exercise but powers through and does two sets with about three to eight reps. The incline pec fly machine primarily works the upper pecs, recruiting shoulders and triceps muscles.
Pec Fly Machine
Finally, Bumstead returns to the pec fly again to round up his exercise and work his chest muscles. However, he uses the seated pec fly machine this time without an incline to engage his mid-pecs. Bumstead does about four sets for about four to eight reps, using eccentric movements, and later switches to partial reps to complete his reps. Research shows partial reps are still effective for muscle growth (4).
Check out the Generation Iron documentary film starring Chris Bumstead, which is in the works:
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References
- Schütz, P., Zimmer, P., Zeidler, F., Plüss, M., Oberhofer, K., List, R., & Lorenzetti, S. R. (2022). Chest Exercises: Movement and Loading of Shoulder, Elbow and Wrist Joints. Sports (Basel, Switzerland), 10(2), 19. https://doi.org/10.3390/sports10020019
- Park, H. K., Jung, M. K., Park, E., Lee, C. Y., Jee, Y. S., Eun, D., Cha, J. Y., & Yoo, J. (2018). The effect of warm-ups with stretching on the isokinetic moments of collegiate men. Journal of exercise rehabilitation, 14(1), 78–82. https://doi.org/10.12965/jer.1835210.605
- Burd, N. A., Andrews, R. J., West, D. W., Little, J. P., Cochran, A. J., Hector, A. J., Cashaback, J. G., Gibala, M. J., Potvin, J. R., Baker, S. K., & Phillips, S. M. (2012). Muscle time under tension during resistance exercise stimulates differential muscle protein sub-fractional synthetic responses in men. The Journal of physiology, 590(2), 351–362. https://doi.org/10.1113/jphysiol.2011.221200
- Goto, M., Maeda, C., Hirayama, T., Terada, S., Nirengi, S., Kurosawa, Y., Nagano, A., & Hamaoka, T. (2019). Partial Range of Motion Exercise Is Effective for Facilitating Muscle Hypertrophy and Function Through Sustained Intramuscular Hypoxia in Young Trained Men. Journal of strength and conditioning research, 33(5), 1286–1294. https://doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0000000000002051
