Every guy wants bigger arms and bicep workouts can be great for building them, but some exercises will not get the results that you were hoping for. We look at upper arm exercises that should take care of that and build the bulging biceps that make a guy look big and powerful more than any other part of the musculature.
Sitting Biceps Curl
Due to the fact that you are sitting for this exercise, you have more leverage and will be able to lift more than you would in a standing curl. Try it at about one and a half times your usual barbell weight.
Sit on a bench with a barbell in your lap. Grip it from under with the hands shoulder-width apart, and curl it up toward the chin. You should be able to do 8 reps and then need a rest - if you cannot do that many or could have done more, adjust the starting weight next time.
After a rest of about a half minute, take a barbell that is 10% heavier and do a few more reps, however many you can.
Hammer Curl
This exercise technically does not work the biceps but the brachialis, which is underneath it in the musculature of the upper arm. Developing the brachialis will increase the overall size of the upper arms and push up the biceps so that they look bigger, even if you are at the point where you cannot develop them any further.
Take dumbbells and hold them with elbows by your sides and palms facing the thighs. Curl the dumbbells up toward the shoulders. Lower slowly and repeat.
Elbows must stay firmly by your sides so that the brachialis does all the work, not the shoulders. Note that the palms of the hands come up facing each other, not facing upward as in a regular curl.
For a variation on this exercise you can try curling the arms alternately, one at a time. This will increase your concentration on the single brachialis muscle that you are working at any one time. Concentration always tends to make a workout more effective.
Finally, do not over exercise your arms. Twice a week is enough. There is a point where more training will not increase anything in terms of size, even if your lift strength continues to develop.
If you have been working your arms too much and they have stopped developing, consider cutting back on your bicep training sessions to just once a week, and restrict those gym sessions to biceps only. Less is more in this respect and you should soon begin to see some growth again. When it comes to bicep workouts, size definitely matters!
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