Jeff Nippard Ranks Best And Worst Exercises For Chest Development

Jeff Nippard recently shared a detailed breakdown of what he considers to be the best and worst chest exercises.

Nippard is a Canadian bodybuilding expert, natural bodybuilder, powerlifter, and coach. He is one of the most prominent members of the science-based YouTube fitness community and enjoys a massive 4.3 million follower base on YouTube.

Nippard routinely shares well-researched and science-based bodybuilding content on his YouTube channel and digs deep to touch on important topics related to fitness and bodybuilding. In recent months, he has shifted his focus on sharing effective ways of building specific muscles like chest, back, quads, and lateral deltoids, to name a few.

In the latest video posted on his YouTube channel, Nippard listed the best and worst exercises for chest development. He divided the exercises into six tiers, with tier 1 being the most effective and tier 6 being the least effective for chest building.

Jeff Nippard ranks chest exercises according to their effectiveness

Nippard ranked these exercises on three criteria – stretch and tension, a smooth and painless resistance profile, and simple progression based on weight and rep range. So without further delay, let’s check out how Nippard arrived at the rankings in his list.

Tier 1

• Machine Chest Press
• Seated Cable Flyes

Tier 2

• Bench Press
• Incline Bench Press
• Flat Dumbbell Press
• Incline Dumbbell Press
• Chest Dips
• Deficit Push-Ups
• Dumbbell Guillotine Press
• Smith Machine Bench Press
• Cable Crossover
• Pec Deck Flyes
• Dumbbell Chest Flyes
• Cable Press Around

Tier 3

• Decline Bench Press
• Decline Dumbbell Press
• Banded Push-Ups

Tier 4

• Bodyweight Push-Ups
• Barbell Floor Press

Tier 5

• Dumbbell Pullover
• Plyometric Push-Ups

Tier 6

• Hex Press
• Plate Press
• Guillotine Press
• One Arm Dumbbell Bench Press
• Crossbody Standing Dumbbell Flyes

Exercises that don’t induce noticeable stretch in the chest muscles are the worst for chest

Nippard claimed that exercises like hex press and plate press are the worst choices for chest development. According to him, these exercises never create tension in the pectoral muscles as the arms don’t stretch out to the sides.

Additionally, movements like the guillotine press and one-arm dumbbell press might lead to instability and increased chances of injury without meaningful additional benefits, which ranks them in the lowest tier.

Nippard feels that even dumbbell pullovers, which theoretically engage the pectoral muscles, are best reserved for the lats than the chest.

Most pressing movements are effective for chest building with varying efficacy

It’s common knowledge that free weight and machine pressing movements are the best for building the chest muscles and upper body pushing strength. According to Nippard’s research, barbell bench press variations are rightfully the bread and butter of pectoral muscle development.

These include bench press, incline bench press, Smith machine bench press, and dumbbell variations of these exercises. Most people struggle with upper pec development and performing declined pressing movements can further tip the scales in favor of lower pecs. Therefore, the decline bench press and its variations rank slightly lower in the list of effective chest exercises.

Most people associate chest building with compound pushing movements. However, it is important to note that isolation exercises like pec deck flyes and cable flyes variations are equally beneficial.

Personally, Nippard feels that seated cable flye is the best isolation movement for working the pectoral muscles. He ranks it as one of the two best chest exercises, saying:

“Seated Pec Flye has all the same upsides as the cable crossover but by sitting down, you get rid of the balancing component and increase the stability of the exercise, which will make sure that all the tension from the cables is being applied directly to the pecs.”

The No.1 chest exercise according to Jeff Nippard

Jeff Nippard’s research and personal experience suggest that the machine chest press is hands down the best exercise for chest development. While the term ‘machine chest press’ is a broad category that includes different exercises, most of the well-designed pieces of equipment will check all the boxes – simple progression, stretch, and painless resistance profile.

“A good chest press machine will give a nice, deep stretch on the pecs and provide high tension throughout the range of motion. Unlike the dumbbells and barbells, you are more locked in, which should help increase the mind-muscle connection with your pecs and give them a massive pump.”

Loading the machines with heavier weights and pushing to failure using them is relatively easier and safer in comparison with free weights, which can be counted as a massive advantage.

Watch the full video below, courtesy of Jeff Nippard’s personal YouTube channel:

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