These Are the Best Exercises for Biceps
Bicep curls are a classic gym exercise, and bicep curls are the most iconic way to literally warm up. But does it matter what kind of curls you do? And are there ways to get the weapon without twisting? Let’s break it all down.
What is biceps and what is it for?
When we talk about the “biceps” we usually mean that shoulder muscle that flexes the elbow . Technically it is a biceps brachii muscle , meaning the biceps muscle of the arm. (We also have the biceps femoris muscle , which is one of the hamstring muscles. Femoris refers to the thigh; brachii refers to the arm.) In this article, I will simply say “biceps”, understanding what I am talking about. those on the hand. And, technically, this single muscle is called the “biceps,” but every guy at the gym uses the singular word “biceps.”
The biceps is considered a biceps muscle because it originates from two separate attachment points on the shoulder. The short head originates on the coracoid process of the scapula, and the long head originates on the supraglenoid tubercle of the scapula. That’s right, both parts of the muscle begin on the shoulder blade. Strange, right?
The two parts meet somewhere along your arm. (In some people, a groove can be seen between the two heads; in most of us, it looks like a single lump of muscle.) This muscle has a single insertion point on the forearm: on the radius of one of the two forearms. bones.
This means that the biceps not only flexes the elbow, but also supinates the arm (helps turn the arm palm up), pulling on one of the forearm bones but not the other. It can also help us raise the arm at the shoulder, but we have other shoulder muscles that do this job better. It can be argued that the biceps is primarily a supinator of the forearm, secondarily a flexor of the elbow, and also helps stabilize the shoulder.
By the way, biceps-oriented exercises work not only the biceps. We also have a muscle called the brachialis , which lies under the biceps and also helps flex the elbow. This is actually our largest elbow flexor. But working the brachialis muscle still increases the size of the shoulder since both muscles are located on top of each other. This means you don’t actually need to keep track of the difference; just bend your elbow and you’ll get a bigger weapon.
Best Biceps Exercises to Start: Biceps Curls
Curls are classic for a reason. Regardless of the type of curl, you hold a kettlebell in your hand and bend your elbow, bringing your arm up to your shoulder. That’s it, it’s a curl.
But, of course, there is more than one curl in the world. You can perform curls with different types of weights or resistance (such as cables or bands), and you can set the curls in different positions. In this section I will cover the most basic types, but feel free to ask; Everyone has their own favorite curl.
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Dumbbell Curls : Hold a dumbbell in each hand with your palms facing forward. Bend your elbows and lift the dumbbells towards you. You can do this with one hand or both at the same time. You can hold a neutral grip (hammer curls), pull the weight across your body (over-the-shoulder curls), or even point your palms down (reverse-grip curls). But the most common would be supination or hammertoe flexion.
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Barbell Curls: Hold a barbell with both hands and curl it upward. This can put stress on your wrists, so play with narrow and wide hand placements to see what works best for you. If you can’t do that, that’s what EZ bars are for. These are the ones with movable handles.
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Cable Twisting: Use a cable machine with the pulley positioned low, close to the floor. You can use almost any attachment, but my favorite is a rope that doubles as a hammer grip of sorts. An EZ-bar attachment is also often available; this is another good choice.
The most “optimal” biceps exercise: Bayesian curls.
I’ve noted before that being optimal isn’t necessary : thinking carefully about the details of an exercise won’t necessarily lead to better results. But sometimes it’s interesting to figure out which exercise is best, at least in theory, and try it.
If you like this, I would recommend Bayesian curls. This is a type of cable curl that stretches the biceps brachii muscle. You position the cable machine behind you so that you feel a slight stretch in your shoulders at the bottom of the movement. Curl the cable handle up and to really get into the movement, lean your torso forward until you reach the top of the curl. Here is a video where Menno Henselmans explains this movement and shows some examples:
This setup allows the biceps to be trained at a greater length of the muscle (i.e. when it is stretched) and arguably puts the most tension on the muscle, giving it the greatest stimulus to grow. Will this make a big difference in the long run? Eh, maybe, maybe not. But it looks cool and gives you a new option beyond the same old dumbbell and barbell curls.
The best biceps exercise for people who don’t have time for biceps exercises: pull-ups.
The biceps are small muscles, so much of the targeted work we give them will be isolation. But they also engage in complex pulling movements. Most rowing and pulling movements engage the biceps at least a little, so you can get a lot done just by incorporating them into your routine.
If I had to pick one exercise for the biceps, it would be the pull-up. (There’s a lot of debate online about pull-ups versus pull-ups in all their variations; there’s really little difference.) But you’ll feel the pull-ups more intensely in your biceps, and that’s often exactly what we’re looking for so we can leave the gym feeling as if we had trained our hands well.
Pull-ups are an exercise in which you grab a bar with your hands toward you so you’re hanging from it and pull yourself up until your chin is over the bar. The grip should be shoulder-width apart or slightly narrower. If you can’t do pull-ups with your body weight, you can use a band or box to support some of your weight. And if pull-ups are easy, add some weight to them with a push-up belt! For bonus points, hold each rep for a few seconds at the top.