How to do it
- Set the seat so the handles sit at chest height with your back flat against the pad.
- Bring the pads together in front of your chest using only the pecs.
- Open back up slowly until you feel a stretch, keeping the shoulders down.
Cues that matter
- Press through the forearm or elbow pad rather than gripping hard with the hands.
- Hold the squeeze for a second before opening back up.
Common mistakes
- Letting the shoulders roll forward at the contraction.
- Slamming the pads together with momentum.
Muscles worked
Primary
- Chest
- Mid chest
Also works
- Front delts
Sets and reps
What to do with it depends on what you are training for. These are the ranges MuscleMap uses when it puts Pec Deck in a session, with 75 seconds between sets.
- Strength
- 6–8 reps
- Build muscle
- 10–15 reps
- Endurance
- 15–25 reps
Same muscle, different kit
Movements that train the same part of the chest with different equipment — for a day the machine is taken, or a gym that does not have one.