Your chest muscles swell the same amount after a hard workout whether you use a machine, barbell, or dumbbells—so the muscle-building stress is about the same.

Scientific Claim

Resistance-trained men exhibit no significant difference in pectoralis major muscle thickness response to high-volume chest press exercises regardless of stability requirements, suggesting hypertrophic stress is similar across modalities.

Original Statement

“There were no differences in the time course of... muscle thickness values of the pectoralis major (p = 0.91) between groups.”

From study:Chest Press Exercises With Different Stability Requirements Result in Similar Muscle Damage Recovery in Resistance-Trained Men

Evidence Quality Assessment

Claim Status

appropriately stated

Study Design Support

Design supports claim

Appropriate Language Strength

definitive

Can make definitive causal claims

Assessment Explanation

The RCT design with objective, reliable measurements (ICC > 0.93) and non-significant p-values support definitive language. The claim is precise and data-aligned.

Evidence from Studies

Supporting (1)

Chest Press Exercises With Different Stability Requirements Result in Similar Muscle Damage Recovery in Resistance-Trained Men

Randomized Controlled Trial

Human

2017 Jan

Even though the three types of chest presses felt different (some used machines, others free weights), the muscles in the chest grew the same amount no matter which one the guys used.

Contradicting (0)

No contradicting evidence found

Source Study

Chest Press Exercises With Different Stability Requirements Result in Similar Muscle Damage Recovery in Resistance-Trained Men

Score: 47

DOI: 10.1519/jsc.0000000000001453

Similar Assertions

How much total weight you lift matters more for muscle damage than whether you use a barbell or dumbbells—even if one feels harder or heavier per rep.

81%

When trained men do different types of chest presses—using a machine, barbell, or dumbbells—their chest muscles and shoulder strength bounce back at about the same rate after a tough workout, no matter how stable the equipment is.

78%

Most of the research on how much to lift and how often was done on young men who already train—so we don’t know if the same rules apply to women, older people, or beginners.

71%