Many think that the incline push-up will hit the upper chest, but in reality, it's actually better for hitting the lower chest. The secret here is to go to complete failure, so this may mean a set longer than T30. Do what's needed to get those muscles screaming.
An incline gives your lower chest more focus. With all the variations of push-ups out there, one will help you better develop the lower portion of your chest more than others.
Decline Bench training is the effective workout it provides your lower pecs. Although a regular incline or flat bench press will also give you a substantial chest workout, the decline version specifically activates your lower pectoral muscles, allowing for a more targeted lift.
For lower chest, you can do incline push-ups or chest dips (lean forward, legs in front of you).
The short answer to the question is yes, but training your lower chest isn't as straightforward as targeting other muscles, like your biceps.
Triceps and biceps: The decline press-up works the triceps predominantly over the biceps, however both muscles work during the entirety of the rep. Back and core: To keep the body stable and rigid, the back and core muscles work to prevent arching of the spine or dipping of the hips.
Decline bench pressing targets the lower chest muscles by increasing the stretch on the pectoralis major muscle and reducing the range of motion. This allows you to lift heavier weights and stimulate muscle growth in the lower chest.
WIDE PUSH-UP
The wide push-up is excellent for targeting your chest muscles. Be sure to avoid taking your hands out too wide, and keep your elbows pointing back to protect your shoulders.
Like a flat bench, a decline bench press has the potential to build both upper body power and muscle, but it doesn't recruit key shoulder muscles and it may even cause shoulder strain.
For the middle chest, you want the arms to be oriented at a 90 degree angle to the chest, and the Classic Pushup is the perfect bodyweight exercise for this. For the lower chest, the arms should be at about a 45 degree angle to the chest, and the Incline Pushup places them in this position.
While regular flat or incline bench presses deliver a solid chest workout, the decline version uniquely targets the lower pectoral muscles. This leads to more pronounced muscle separation and a fuller, more balanced look.
The decline pushup (pretty much equivalent to an incline bench press is a great purely bodyweight progression on the conventional pushup. Due to the decline you're gonna be biasing more upper chest which in general is a less developed area of the chest compared to other portions.
Position a barbell on a rack at a low angle, and assume a push-up position with your hands on the bar and your lower body oriented at a downward angle toward the ground. Because of the angle of the arm, the incline pushup is going to hit the lower chest preferentially.
The Bottom Line
“Essentially, you can use the barbell bench press, pec deck or the cable crossovers interchangeably,” says John P. Porcari, Ph. D. “All three of those exercises are basically going to give you the same amount of muscle activation in the chest and are equally effective.”
The Decline Position Is Not Great for Your Shoulders
Sure, you may be setting useless PRs on the decline bench, but you're doing it from a position of internal rotation for your shoulders. That's not good for your overall well-being and training longevity.
That's a myth.
Instead, EVERY chest exercise will hit EVERY part of it. So yes, that means incline exercises still hit your lower chest, and decline exercises still hit your upper chest. Even if you only did one type of pressing exercise for the rest of you're life, you're still going to build your entire chest.
There are many variations of this move you can do to target different muscle groups. While decline push-ups target your upper chest muscles, a push-up on an incline hits your lower chest muscles.
Feet Elevated Push-Up
Instead of raising your hands off the ground to make a push-up easier, you raise your feet off the ground to make the push-up harder. If you're unaccustomed to this variation, then I would recommend with elevating your feet a few inches to start, then progress the height as you feel comfortable.
You don't need to do incline push ups every day - two to three times a week is enough to see progress. If you're a beginner, it's best to start with a number that feels manageable but challenging. This could be around 5 to 10 incline push ups, building up the number of reps and sets as you build strength.