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A biceps is a muscle group that has the potential to expand if you exercise. It can be tricky to hit all the right moves in order to get that growth, but with some proper planning and execution, you can achieve your fitness goals. So let’s dig into the best biceps exercises. By improving your understanding of how these muscles work, you can make sure that you’re hitting your arms hard enough for the best results.
To help you achieve the maximum bicep growth possible, here are six exercises for bigger arms. Some of these will hit your triceps too, but it’s important to understand that both muscles are made up of different fibers and groups. That’s one of the reasons why they look so different.
Barbell Curl and 5 Other Biceps Exercises to Help You Grow Bigger Arms
1) EZ-Bar Preacher Curl
Curling on a preacher bench lengthens the range of motion, which usually means more muscle growth. Turning the hands inward with an EZ bar makes the move more comfortable on the wrists and targets different muscle fibres in the biceps.
How to do it?
- Sit on a preacher bench with the back of your arm on the pad.
- Place your arms in the same position as when doing a standard barbell biceps curl (chest up, shoulders back, and elbows slightly forward).
- Wrap your hands around an EZ-bar handle on the inner angled pieces. This will make your hands slightly narrower than shoulder-width apart.
- Lock your body in place as you curl the weight up by flexing your biceps.
- Briefly pause at the top of the movement to flex your biceps before lowering it.
2) Hammer Curl
The hammer curl is a variation of the traditional biceps curl in which you hold the dumbbells with your palms facing each other. It allows you to lift more weight and hit your outer biceps and forearms, which gives you more arm thickness.
How to do it?
- Stand with your arms at your sides and hold a dumbbell in each hand.
- Curl your wrists inward so that they are facing each other and keep your arms tucked in at your sides as you flex your elbows to lift the weights toward your shoulders.
- Lower the weights back down again, but keep them close to your body.
3) Barbell Curl
The classic biceps-building barbell curl targets the muscle and can help add size when done correctly. Lift more weight than with other curl variations as you hold a singular implement in both hands. It’s also straightforward to do: load up a barbell, hold it in both hands, lift it towards your chin, then repeat.
How to do it?
- Grab a barbell with an underhand grip, slightly wider than shoulder-width.
- Bend your elbows and bring your upper arms in front of your body so that they form right angles with your upper arms. This should be the starting position.
- Curl the barbell up using the biceps, making sure not to let your torso lean forward or your elbows move back behind your body.
4) Cable Curl
Cable machines provide more tension on your muscles throughout the movement, so the muscle fibers are under strain for longer. You can also attach different handles to a cable machine‘s pulley to attack your arms from different angles.
How to do it?
- Attach a bar with a handle to the pulley of a cable machine.
- Grab the handle in both hands and take a few steps back so there’s constant tension on the cable (the weight stack should be elevated the entire time).
- Curl the weight up to your chest and then slowly lower it back down.
5) High Cable Curl
High cable curls are performed by curling the cables while the shoulders are flexed and the palms are facing up. The cables should be set at shoulder level when doing this exercise on a functional trainer or cable tower.
Some people think that this type of curl targets the short head of the biceps more, which causes it to peak more.
How to do it?
- Attach D-handles to cable pulleys, set the pulleys at about shoulder height and grab them with a supinated grip.
- With your elbows by your sides, raise your arms up and then back down.
- Maintaining tension in your upper back will help keep your shoulder position stable and increase the tension on your biceps.
6) TRX Suspension Curl
If you have access to suspension training gear, this curl variation is a great option for anyone who wants to build muscle or increase strength. This exercise also allows for time under tension and overload because you can easily adjust the difficulty level by adjusting your body position.
How to do it?
- With the TRX secured, grab the handles, step forward and back, then bend your knees as you curl your weight up and down.
- When you lean back more, you will be lifting more of your body weight; when you are upright, it will be easier.
Takeaway
To ensure that you're able to perform all the exercises and carry out daily activities—as well as exercise properly—it is crucial to continue training your biceps but also to strengthen other muscles that play a role in arm movement.
