The anterior chain, which comprises the

antagonists An antagonist is a character in a story who is presented as the chief foe of the protagonist. Etymology The English word antagonist comes from the Greek ἀνταγωνιστής – ''antagonistēs'', "opponent, competitor, villain, enemy, ri ...

of the posterior chain, refers to the group of skeletal muscles that lies on the front of the human body. This includes the biceps, the pectoralis major and

pectoralis minor Pectoralis minor muscle () is a thin, triangular muscle, situated at the upper part of the chest, beneath the pectoralis major in the human body. Structure Attachments Pectoralis minor muscle arises from the upper margins and outer surfaces ...

(chest) muscles, the

abdominals The abdomen (colloquially called the belly, tummy, midriff, tucky or stomach) is the part of the body between the thorax (chest) and pelvis, in humans and in other vertebrates. The abdomen is the front part of the abdominal segment of the torso. ...

, the obliques, the

serratus anterior The serratus anterior is a muscle that originates on the surface of the 1st to 8th ribs at the side of the chest and inserts along the entire anterior length of the medial border of the scapula. The serratus anterior acts to pull the scapula fo ...

, and the

quadriceps The quadriceps femoris muscle (, also called the quadriceps extensor, quadriceps or quads) is a large muscle group that includes the four prevailing muscles on the front of the thigh. It is the sole extensor muscle of the knee, forming a large ...

. Beach muscles are muscles developed for the purpose of looking good and largely consist of the muscles of the anterior chain. This is because it is these muscles that are seen from the front (or in a mirror) and are thus the most noticeable to an observer.Bret Contreras, ''Bodyweight Strength Training Anatomy''
p. 87
Human Kinetics, 2013 . Often, these muscles are not emphasized by power lifters who aim exclusively to increase their maximal strength in the squat,

deadlift The deadlift is a weight training exercise in which a loaded barbell or bar is lifted off the ground to the level of the hips, torso perpendicular to the floor, before being placed back on the ground. It is one of the three powerlifting exercises ...

, and bench press, or by athletes who seek to increase physical performance. They are overall not as important for pure physical performance as the posterior chain. It is however, necessary to train both the anterior chain and the posterior chain.

References

{{reflist Muscular system