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When it comes to bicep exercises and training, biceps can make or break your physique. Good biceps can complement your back and chest while also filling out your clothes, while small biceps can leave you feeling small and weak, even if you aren't.
Most compound movements of the upper body, like deadlifts, bench press, shoulder press, etc., provide immense loads on the biceps. Deadlifts use arms as hooks to pull the weight, as do bench presses and shoulder presses. This engages your biceps greatly and leaves little room for improvement.
Most people perform these compound lifts before training their arms. However, the chances are that you could be overtraining.
These compound exercises already exceed the load you could place on your arms with any isolation exercise. But it doesn't end there. You can still place a good percentage of optimal load on your arm without overtraining.
To target your biceps and blow them up, here are the seven best bicep exercises to do so.
Best Bicep Exercises for Strength and Muscle Gain
1) Barbell Curls
Barbell curls are the most popular and performed bicep exercise for a good reason. Barbell curls offer the ability to place heavier loads on your biceps. The more you lift, the stronger you get. This enables you to build strength and muscle.
Barbell curls target the entire biceps brachii but primarily place the load on the long head of your biceps.
2) Dumbbell Curls
Dumbbell curls are similar to bicep curls, except they offer much more flexibility and flexion. This bicep exercise allows you to have a supinated (palms facing upwards) grip, and the unilateral motion helps target muscular imbalances and improve muscle symmetry. In terms of strength and hypertrophy, this exercise reigns supreme.
3) Incline Dumbbell Curls
Incline curls are to be performed on a bench at about 40° incline. It allows your elbows to be tucked behind your body, thereby making the movement stricter by placing the load on your biceps.
This bicep exercise does a great job of stabilizing your back and keeping it locked, preventing any possibility of cheat curls. It also supports your shoulders, protecting your rotator cuffs, and ensures that you aren't using your deltoids to aid your biceps in lifting the weight. It is an excellent exercise for muscular hypertrophy and strength gain.
4) Hammer Curls
Hammer curls are similar to dumbbell curls, except they require you to hold the dumbbells straight like a hammer. There is no supination in this exercise. This does not target the biceps brachii as much but instead places the load on your brachialis, making it work harder to lift the weight.
Since the brachialis is under the biceps brachii, it will help you grow the peak of your biceps. This can aid your arms as a bigger peak can give the illusion of massive biceps.
Hammer curls are the best at isolating your brachialis and are a much-needed exercise for balanced bicep training in both strength and hypertrophy.
5) Preacher Curls
Preacher curls are another bicep exercise for isolation that can be performed with a dumbbell or barbell. It requires you to place the bottom part of your arms on an elevated surface and your elbows in front of your body. You can either use a dedicated preacher curl station or a raised surface. Even a bench will suffice.
It instantly locks your elbows and shoulders, making the bicep bear the entire load. This makes the movement stricter and more efficient at isolating your biceps.
6) Concentration Curls
Concentration Curls, much like preacher curls, require you to use support to isolate your biceps fully. In this bicep exercise, the support comes from your thighs. For this exercise, you'll need to place your arm on your thighs, ensuring that your tricep pushes against your inner thigh. Then, grab a dumbbell and use only your bicep to pull the weight up.
As their name suggests, concentration curls concentrate the load onto your biceps, achieving maximum muscular contraction. They also contribute to the after-burn and can give you a tremendous post-workout pump. You can either superset them with preacher curls or use them as a finisher at the end of your workout; the choice is yours.
7) Reverse Curls
Reverse curls are a great, underrated exercise that can be done with a barbell as well as dumbbells. They not only engage your biceps but also employ your forearms to participate in the pulling motion. It essentially kills two birds with one stone, as it helps you build big biceps while also building massive forearms.
Biceps and forearms go together like toast and butter. Either one without the other looks odd and disproportionate. It is advisable to train both of them to have aesthetic, well-built arms.
Big biceps take time to build. Building massive arms takes months, if not years, of consistency. Consistent and regulated strength training with these bicep exercises is the key to building big biceps, much like any other muscle.
Remember to train each part in moderation to prevent overtraining. This will capitalize on your energy resources and build the best possible biceps in the most optimal time frame.
