The Weight Training Journal

Building Bulging Biceps

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No-one has a perfectly balanced body with each muscle group complementing the all the others. To earn such a title is evidence of a long and consistent journey through years of good nutrition and great training. Everyone has some dominant body-parts that respond well to training and grow easily while other muscle groups are stubborn requiring an intense and strategically implemented plan of attack to see even small results. We are all so different and today we are talking about Biceps. I have had clients who have never trained before and have walked into the gym with a decent set of guns. For this they can thank their parents. Then I have had other clients who have built magnificent physiques but have had to endure extra torture to bring up lagging Biceps. They can also thank (or curse) their parents for this. This happens with all muscle groups but there is always a way to beat it. Make a plan. Never ever give up…..

Plan of Attack

Know the functionality and main movement patterns of the Biceps:

1.    Angle of Greatest Stretch – this is the most important one and is often missed during a workout. Big mistake. Arnold knew about it and look what it did for him! The position is where you have your arm behind your body. This is achieved during an Incline DB Curl when you are seated at 45º or lower and perform strict bicep curls keeping the upper arm perpendicular to the floor. In this position the muscle fibers are pulled the maximum distance apart and the biceps is stimulated all the way along from origin to insertion causing maximum muscle fiber damage and therefore growth.

2.    Angle of Greatest Contraction – this one is also important but is too often the focus of bicep workouts. The position is when you have your arm in front of your body during an exercise such as a Preacher Curl. At this angle the muscle fibers aren’t fully stretched at the bottom of the movement…

3.    Neutral Grip to Pronated Grip (i.e. palm facing in twisting slowly to palm facing up) – the bicep doesn’t just cause elbow flexion (a normal curling action) but also rotates the thumb outwards where a full contraction is achieved. If you add this small, twisting motion during a bicep curl then you are utilizing the full action of the biceps creating maximum stimulation.

4.    Neutral Grip (Hammer Grip) – performing curls with the palm facing in emphasizes the brachialus (outside of upper arm), the brachioradialus (the long, thick part of the forearm running from the inner elbow to the base of the thumb) and the long head of the biceps. This will give your arms more thickness and make them more complete.

5.    Reverse Grip Back Exercises – bicep mass isn’t created performing concentration curls. It is a direct result of regularly and intensely pounding away at heavy, compound back exercises. Perform Reverse Grip Chin-ups, Reverse Grip Lat Pulldowns, Reverse Grip Barbell Rows and your arms will grow at a far greater rate than if you were to rely on specific bicep work alone. It allows your biceps with help from your back muscles to lift a mountain of weight safely.

6.    Shoulder Flexion – one of the first things that you are taught when training biceps is to keep your elbows locked against the side of your body. This is to minimize the involvement of the anterior and lateral deltoid (front and side of the shoulder) so that the biceps is fully isolated and fatigued. Most of the time this is a good idea but when you are performing a heavy mass building exercise such as Standing Barbell Curl or Standing Alternate Dumbbell Curl a little elbow movement backwards and forwards can be beneficial. A little known fact is that the bicep assists in shoulder flexion so raising the elbow during a curl not only allows you to deliver more power it also facilitates a more complete contraction.

The Rules

Creating a great Bicep workout plan:

•    Train arms only once per week – they are involved in all of your upper body and some of your lower body exercises and need time to rest and grow.

•    Perform repetitions of 6 to 15 – biceps (and triceps) respond well to a broad range of reps with high intensity and good technique.

•    Perform 2 super intense work sets per exercise – this will allow you to focus your intensity and achieve greater exercise variety hitting the biceps from all angles.

•    Choose 4 to 6 exercises – it sounds like a lot but remember that (after warming up) you are only performing 2 sets per exercise.

•    Superset biceps and triceps together set for set – this is the best way to train arms. While one is working and fatiguing the other is recovering. You can lift heavy for the entire workout and get extreme muscle pumps.

•    Use a mix of Dumbbells, Barbells and Cables.

•    Always employ safe, strict, controlled, intense technique.
The Workout

45º Incline DB Curl                1 x 20, 1 x 15, 2 x 10
+
45º Incline BB Extension            1 x 20, 1 x 15, 2 x 10

Standing EZ BB Curl                2 x 8
+
Close Grip Bench Press            2 x 8

Standing Alternate DB Curl            2 x 8 each side
+
Seated Overhead DB Extension        2 x 10

Cable Preacher Curl                2 x 15
+
Rope Pushdowns                2 x 15

Kneeling DB Hammer Curl            2 x 10
+
Weighted Bench Dips                2 x 15

You will not find a more effective or more complete Bicep workout than this. All bases are covered. To learn the proper technique for all these great exercises please visit the Video section of my online Weight Training and Bodybuilding website www.GlobalWeightTraining.com. Thank you for your time and attention. Train hard and watch your arms grow.

Regards,

Joey Sheather