7 Kick-ass Exercises which Need to be a Part of your Next Biceps Workout
Biceps are one of the most loved muscle group for people in the gyms throughout the world. Even though biceps are the favorite muscle for many people, you won’t see many people walking around with 20-inch arms.
Dumbbell and barbell curls are fine, but there is so much more to biceps training which people neglect. If you want to see supernatural results, you should be willing to do supernatural things in the gym.
21’s
21’s are arguably one of the nastiest biceps exercises and are sure to leave you with a muscle-ripping pump. The exercise is divided into three subsets of seven reps each. Hold a barbell at shoulder width.
In the first seven reps, bring the barbell from the bottom to the mid-half position of a complete barbell curl. Return to the starting position and complete seven reps. For the next seven reps start at the top of the movement and bring the barbell to your waist level.
Perform the complete biceps curls for the next seven reps. If it is one of the days when you’re feeling invincible, take this exercise up a notch and perform 30’s (10-10-10). Similarly, if 21’s are a little too much for you, you can dial down the number of reps.
T-Curls
T-Curls are an exercise made famous by the Superman from Compton, CT Fletcher. The T-Curls are an isolation exercise which focuses on the inner head of your biceps. Since this is an isolation exercise, use moderate weight and focus on contracting the muscles.
Lie down on an incline bench and extend your arms to your sides so your elbows are in a straight line. Bend your arms a little and lock your elbows at your sides. Perform hammer curls and maintain a full range of motion. Make sure you have your elbows locked in a place and you’re not using momentum to lift the weights.
Zottman Curls
Zottman curls are complete arm builders. In this exercise, you start with your arms fully extended and with a dumbbell in each hand and at your sides. Begin to curl the weight by rotating your wrists so they’re facing upwards.
Pause for a second at shoulder height and now rotate your wrists so your wrists are facing the floor. Lower the dumbbells to the starting position. The Zottman curls will set your biceps and forearms on fire.
Cable Hammer Curls
Only a very few people perform the cable hammer curls. Cable hammer curls are an isolation exercise and will help you build the outer head of your pythons. Grab a pulley machine cable in each hand while standing in the center of the cable pulley machine towers.
With your right hand, perform a hammer curl so your right hand is at the level of your left chest. Return to the starting position and repeat with the left arm. Hold and squeeze the life out of your guns at the top of the movement.
Spiderman Curls
Only a few other exercises come close to helping you build the peak in your mountains as the Spiderman curls. In this exercise, lie on an incline bench with your chest against the pad and hold a barbell in your hands.
Your arms should be extended so they’re perpendicular to the floor. Curl the weight so the bar is almost touching your forehead. Return to the starting position while making sure you don’t use momentum by swinging the barbell and taking the bar behind the perpendicular point.
Reverse Grip Cable Curls
You don’t want to be the guy with muscular biceps and skinny forearms. Small elbow joints and wrists and muscular forearms, bis and tris give the illusion of giant arms. Reverse grip cable curls are an incredibly effective exercise in targeting your biceps and forearms.
If you want to put extra tension on your forearms, grab the bar with a monkey grip. Not using the thumb grip makes you hold the bar tighter and in the process, you squeeze harder and recruit your forearms.
Smith Machine Drag Curls
Smith machine drag curls focus on your biceps primarily and eliminate any momentum you might use in performing the standard barbell curls. As the name suggests, in this exercise you’ll be dragging the weights up to your upper abs.
Begin lifting the weights by pulling your elbows back. As the bar rises, bend your elbows to curl the weights to your torso while keeping your elbows behind you the entire time. Hold and contract your guns at the top of the movement.
Which is your favorite biceps exercise? Let us know in the comments below. Also, be sure to follow Generation Iron on Facebook and Twitter.