The biceps is one of the smallest muscles in the human body. Training it is not as much of a challenge as squats, bench presses or deadlifts. Even the most demanding arm workouts do not require the same energy, so we can end the “arm day” with a feeling of cheerful lightness, and with the arms swollen from the effort made.
And this is the key to training arms. Fun and variation. Of course, we can get to the gym and work out the biceps with the same 3 sets of 10 curls every week, but what’s the joke about that? If we’re going to take the day seriously, let’s make the most of it.
Try some of these variations to see your arm muscles grow.
How to perform Biceps Curl
- To perform this exercise, hold the bar with a supine grip.
- Keeping your elbows still and on your sides, contract your biceps and pull the bar towards your upper body.
- Strongly contracts the muscles at the top of the movement – maintaining tension – straightens the arms to lower the bar back to the starting position.
Alternative Exercises
1. Inclined Biceps Curl
How to run:
- Lie on your back on a bench at an angle of approximately 30 degrees.
- Hold a dumbbell in each hand and let your arms hang straight down.
- Keeping the upper arm perpendicular to the floor, contract the biceps to raise the dumbbells towards the lower chest.
- Forcefully contract the muscles and lower the dumbbells back to the starting position.
Recommended series and repetitions:
3 sets of 10 to start – you’ll find that the point of failure comes up very suddenly with curls inclined. “Feel” the movement to find the most natural path and opt for relatively light dumbbells.
2. Dumbbell Concentrated Curl
How to run:
- Sit on a bench, with your knees apart and your elbow resting on the inside of your thigh, with a dumbbell in your hand.
- Your thigh should prevent your upper arm from moving and help put all the tension on your biceps.
- Contract your biceps and lift the weight, contracting before lowering it back to the starting position.
- Maintains the focus on isolating the biceps throughout the movement.
- Repeat for the other arm.
Recommended series and repetitions:
3 sets of 8-12 to start – gradually increase the volume, but focus on the muscle-mind connection.
3. Zottman Curl
How to run:
- Hold a pair of dumbbells in your hands and lift them simultaneously with a supine grip.
- Contract your biceps at the top of the movement and rotate the dumbbells to hold them with a pronounced grip (palms down).
- Lower the dumbbells in an eccentric motion back to the starting position – maintaining tension throughout the movement – and rotate the dumbbells back to the supine grip, completing one repetition.
Recommended series and repetitions:
3 sets of 8-10
4. EZ Bicep Curl
How to run:
- Hold the EZ bar with your hands – the palms should be in the middle between the supine and neutral handles, almost facing each other.
- Keeping the elbows stable, contract the biceps to lift the weight towards the upper body. As always, it contracts hard, and puts the weight back to the starting position.
- Do not let the arm joints block after each repetition: maintain tension throughout the series.
Recommended series and repetitions:
2 sets of 10 to start; gradually increases the volume
5. Hammer Curls
How to run:
- Hold a pair of dumbbells together on the flanks with a neutral grip.
- Keep your elbow stable and lift your weight towards the opposite side of your chest – that is, if you are doing curl with your right arm, try to touch the left chest at the top of the movement.
- Contract hard and return to the starting position before repeating with the other side.
- Another variant of the curl hammer is to lift the weight straight up, not towards the chest. Experiment to see what works best for you.
Recommended series and repetitions:
4 sets of 8 – you can put a lot of weight on the curls hammer, so perform them relatively early in the arm training routine, and leave the lighter weight exercises to the end.
Final Message
The biceps may be the muscle that everyone loves to flex to show good shape, but its value goes beyond that. It is one of the most important secondary muscles, contributing to stability in many other exercises – so don’t neglect it!