Best Biceps Exercises For Greater Growth
These best biceps exercises for greater growth
Big biceps signal to the world that you’ve put in some serious sweat equity at the gym.
The biceps are small muscles, but to grow them takes time, knowledge, and intelligent programming.
Also, your biceps flex your elbow — which, when you think about it, is a pretty important job.
Otherwise, how would you curl that beer (ahem, protein shake) to your lips or pick your kid up?
The biceps don’t just look good; they serve a real function.
The good news for you is training the biceps is pretty simple — you curl, curl, and curl some more.
That said, certain exercises get the job done better than others.
To help you figure out which is best for you, we’ve culled 16 of the best biceps exercises onto one list, along with some more info on the muscle itself and how to incorporate biceps training into your routine.
Barbell Curl
You can curl more weight with the barbell curl than other curl variations as you’re lifting a singular implement with both hands.
It’s also straightforward to do.
Simply load up a barbell, hold it in both hands, and lift it towards your chin.
Rinse and repeat.
Benefits of barbell curl
It’s simple and effective.
The barbell curl offers a small learning curve, perfect for beginners, and more advanced lifters will still benefit from the basic mechanics.
You’ll build stronger biceps more quickly as you’re able to load your biceps with more weight.
Chin-up
The chin up is a bodyweight exercise that can induce serious muscle growth of the biceps (and back) with nothing but a pull-up bar.
If you have a door-mounted pull-up bar in your home gym, then that’s all you need to bang out sets of chin-ups.
Since the lifter pulls their own bodyweight, the biceps are usually exposed to loads heavier than one can lift with a barbell.
However, lifters may often perform these incorrectly, engaging their shoulder and grip muscles
Benefits of the Chin-Up
To do a chin-up, you only need access to a pull-up bar, making it one of the more accessible movements on this list.
The chin-up has you lift your entire bodyweight, taxing the biceps with more weight than one can usually curl.
Your grip and shoulders will also gain some strength.
How to do chin-up
Hang from a bar with palms facing you and the hands about shoulder-width apart, or slightly wider.
From a dead hang, squeeze your shoulder blades together and pull your body up, making sure not to let the body fold inwards (so many people do this) until your chin is at or above the bar.
EZ-Bar Preacher Curl
Curling on a preacher bench lengthens the exercise’s range of motion.
As a result, the biceps will be under tension for a longer period of time, which usually equates to more muscle growth.
Using an EZ-bar, which turns the hands inwards, makes the move more comfortable on the wrists and shifts the angle of the exercise to target different muscle fibers in the biceps.
Benefits of the EZ-Bar Preacher Curl
Using the preacher bench creates a longer range of motion and creates more muscular tension for more biceps growth.
Using an EZ-bar is more comfortable on the wrists.
How to Do the EZ-Bar Preacher Curl
Sit down on a preacher bench and rest the back of your triceps on the pad.
Set your body in the same position as the standard barbell biceps curl (chest up, shoulders back, and elbows slightly forward).
Grasp the EZ-bar handle on the inner angled pieces.
This will place your hands slightly narrower than shoulder-width and on a semi-supinated angle.
With the body locked in place, curl the bar upwards as you flex the biceps, briefly pausing at the top of the curl to flex the biceps.
Lower the weight under control.
Hammer Curl
The hammer curl has the lifter curl dumbbells with their palms facing each other.
This neutral wrist position is more comfortable and allows the lifter to hoist more weight, as we’re generally stronger with a palms-facing position.
This move also targets the biceps brachialis and brachioradialis (outer biceps and forearm) for more arm thickness.
Facing-Away Cable Curl
To perform the facing-away cable curl, the lifter needs to stand facing away between the two cables of a functional trainer or cable tower.
This setup allows you the same benefits of the incline dumbbell curl — a greater stretch due to a longer range of motion — coupled with the unique resistance of the cables, which keeps tension on the muscle throughout the entire movement.
Benefits of the Facing-Away Cable Curl
Barbells lock your arms in place.
Cables are mobile. Curling with cables lets the lifter line up the resistance with their preferred arm path — allowing for less discomfort throughout the movement.
Curling with the cables set behind you increases the movement’s range of motion while using cables creates more tension for a one-two punch of more overall muscle stimulus.
This movement is great for challenging the biceps and loading them in its lengthened range — a range that doesn’t get loaded enough.
How to Do the Facing-Away Cable Curl
Set the handles of the cable pulleys to the lowest setting and attach D-handles to each pulley.
Pick up a handle in each hand.
Tense your upper back and let your arms hang so they’re fully extended.
Without moving your shoulders, curl the weight up toward your shoulders.
Hold the top of the movement for about a second, and then slowly lower the handles with control.
Reverse-Grip Bent-Over Row
You’re right to think of this movement as a traditional back exercise.
It is. That said, similar to the chin-up, the supinated grip of this bent-over row variation involves the biceps to a great degree.
You can manage more weight on the barbell compared to other biceps exercises.
Also, you’ll build up your biceps in conjunction with your back muscles for more overall muscularity.
Benefits of the Reverse-Grip Bent-Over Row
The reverse-grip bent-over row targets your back muscles in addition to your biceps.
You can lift more weight compared to other biceps moves.
How to Do the Reverse-Grip Bent-Over Row
Grab a barbell with an underhand grip that is about shoulder-width apart.
Assume the proper bent-over row position, with the back flat and chest up.
Row the barbell to the stomach.
Pull with both the back and the arms, lowering the weight under control and repeating for reps.
Cable Curl
When you curl a dumbbell or barbell, the movement is hardest at the midpoint of the lift since the weight is furthest from the body.
However, cables keep tension on the muscle throughout the movement, as the weight stack you’re lifting is suspended throughout.
This adds more tension to the muscle for more growth.
You can also attach different handles to a cable machine‘s pulley to attack your biceps from different angles.
Benefits of the Cable Curl
Curling with a cable loads the biceps with constant tension throughout the movement.
You can target your biceps from different angles by using different handles on the cable machine.
Cable curl variations typically require less weight to be effective (since the tension is greater throughout the range of motion), so this exercise is a bit friendlier to your elbow joints.
How to Do the Cable Curl
Attach the desired handle to the pulley of a cable machine set to the lowest height.
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 bar up to your chest and then slowly lower it back down.
Concentration Curl
The concentration curl is all about feeling your biceps work.
You sit down on a bench, rest your elbow on the inside of your thigh, and curl a dumbbell from full extension to contraction.
Lifting with one arm at a time means you’re doing more overall work — so you’ll burn more calories and allow your weaker arm to play catch up.
Also, the isolated curling position really lets you hone in on your biceps as you curl a light dumbbell.
Benefits of the Concentration Curl
The ability to focus more intently on your biceps.
More calories are burned as you’re working one side of your body at a time, which effectively doubles the number of sets you’re doing.
By focusing on one arm at a time, your weaker side will get stronger.
How to Do the Concentration Curl
Sit on a bench with your feet set wide enough to allow your arm to hang in the middle, with your elbow resting on the inside of the thigh.
With a dumbbell in hand, slowly curl the dumbbell upward at a controlled tempo, concentrating on contracting the biceps to move the load.
At the top of the movement, flex as hard as possible, then slowly lower the load.
The key is not to lose tension on the biceps at any point in the range of motion.
Cable Concentration Curl
As you may have deduced by now, replacing any free weight with cables is a great way to level up an already effective movement.
Subbing cables for dumbbells for a set of concentration curls means more tension along with the same existing benefits of the movement — isolation, unilateral focus, and biceps that Arnold Schwarzenegger would be jealous of (not really, but it’s good to set the bar high).Best Biceps Exercises
Benefits of the Cable Concentration Curl
The ability to focus more intently on the short head of your biceps.
By focusing on one arm at a time, your weaker side will get stronger.
It also allows you to add variety to your exercise selection by using cables.
The use of cables over dumbbells alters the resistance profile, changing where the tension is greatest within the exercise.
How to Do the Cable Concentration Curl
Stand in front of a single cable on a functional trainer or cable tower.
With the cable set around chest height, grab the handle with a supinated grip (palm facing up), and slightly lean your torso forward.
Your working arm should be angled across the body while you curl the handle toward the opposite ear.
Keep tension on the biceps all the way to the top of the movement, then slowly lower the load.
High Cable Curl
This high cable curl variation has the lifter curling the cables while shoulders are flexed and palms are facing up (supinated).
The cables will be set just above shoulder level while performing this exercise on a functional trainer or cable tower.
Curling from a high, extended arms position is thought by many to target the shorter biceps head, which is what creates that coveted biceps peak. Best Biceps Exercises
Benefits of the High Cable Curl
The ability to focus and train both arms at once.
The use of cables over dumbbells allows for an altered arm path, creating new stress on the biceps — challenging them in their contracted, shortened position.
How to Do the High Cable
Set a cable pulley to about shoulder height and attach D-handles to each cable pulley. Grab the bar with a supinated grip (palm facing up).
Keep tension on the biceps all the way to the top of the movement, then slowly lower the load back to the starting position.
The key to this exercise is maintaining your shoulder position throughout the range of motion, not allowing your elbows to dip — making it easier. Best Biceps Exercises
Maintaining tension in the upper back will help keep shoulders stable and arm position constant, driving up tension in the biceps
Cable Rope Supinating Curl
This low cable curl variation has the lifter curling with a and twisting a rope attachment, prioritizing both functions of the biceps brachii muscle — supination and elbow flexion.
Because you’re standing farther away from the machine, your biceps will be under tension for the entire movement.
Twisting your hands inward toward your face will create even more biceps tension (which you’ll absolutely feel.
Benefits of the Cable Rope Supinating Curl
The ability to train both primary functions of the biceps brachii — supination and elbow flexion.
The addition of the Fat Gripz allows an object lever for your biceps to fight against during supination compared to the rope alone.Best Biceps Exercises
The use of cables allows for an even resistance across the entire range of motion.
How to Do the Cable Rope Supinating Curl
Stand in front of a single cable on a functional trainer or cable tower.
Set the cable to a lower setting with each side of the rope attachment in your hands (palms facing each other).
To complete the curling motion, start by flexing your elbows (bringing the hands up toward the shoulders), and around one-third of the way up, rotate (supinate) your hands to face up as you continue to curl up.
The key to increasing the challenge of supination of this exercise is waiting to supinate until you’re a third the way into the rep — this ensures the muscles responsible for supination can kick in while the resistance is on them. Best Biceps Exercises
Cable Hammer Curl
This variation, which has you lift two D-handles with a neutral grip, lets you lift more weight as you curl the handles all the way up and down, keeping your hands in a neutral position.
Because you’re squeezing the handles hard, you’ll also activate a lot of the muscles in your forearms for a grip boost.
To increase activation of the forearm muscles, you can add Fat Gripz to the handles.
Benefits of the Cable Hammer Curl
The ability to train muscles of the forearm — most notably the brachioradialis — and also muscles of the upper arm, like the brachialis and short head of the biceps.
The use of cables allows for an even resistance across the entire range of motion.
A great variation to use as a part of a bigger biceps superset or giant set.
Dual Cable Preacher Curl
This preacher curl variation uses a dual cable set up on a functional trainer.
The preacher curl comes with many benefits — namely, the opposing force created by the preacher bench.
This variation builds on that by adding the cables’ unique resistance, allowing for an even resistance across the entire range of motion.
The lifter will take hold of each handle and set it up on the preacher bench.
Once stable, the lifter will maintain their shoulder position, drive the back of the arm into the pad, and curl the weight up — creating a large amount of tension in the biceps Best Biceps Exercises
Benefits of the Dual Cable Preacher Curl
The ability to harness stability throughout the exercise increases the tension created and sustains it deep into fatigue.
The use of cables allows for an even resistance across the entire range of motion.
It can be used for a multitude of rep ranges, building muscle and strength in the biceps.
How to Do the Dual Cable Preacher Curl
Set up a preacher bench roughly three to five feet away from a cable tower with two cable pulleys.
Set the pulleys, so they’re slightly lower than the bench.
Sit on the preacher bench and have a training partner hand you both handles.
Position your elbows so that they rest over the pad.
Lower the arms until your elbows are nearly locked out, and then curl the weight back up.
TRX Suspension Curl
This curl variation is great for anyone with limited access to free weights, cables, and machines.
Like other suspension-based exercises, you can also easily adjust the difficulty of the exercise by adjusting your body position — the more upright your body position, the easier it will be. Best Biceps Exercises
Because you are only using bodyweight as your resistance, altering the rep tempo can increase the time under tension on the biceps.
Benefits of the TRX Suspension Curl
The ability to use your body weight as resistance.
The TRX suspension trainer can be taken anywhere, allowing you to train at home, the gym, or the park.
To increase the difficulty of the exercise, you adjust your body position.
The further you lean back, the more of your body weight you will resist during the movement.
How to Do the TRX Suspension Curl
Once the TRX suspension has been secured, grab hold of the handles, take a few steps forward, lean back, and curl your body weight up.
To increase the difficulty of the exercise, you simply adjust your body position. Best Biceps Exercises
The further you lean back, the more of your body weight you will resist during the movement. Best Biceps Exercises
If you want to make the exercise easier, you can position your body to be more upright
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EZ-Bar Reverse Curl
This exercise has the lifter use a semi-pronated (the middle point between pronated — palms facing down — and neutral — palms facing each other) grip on an EZ-bar.
With your hands around shoulder-width and hands in a semi-pronated position, grip the bar and allow it to hang with arms extended.
The lifter will curl the bar up while maintaining their shoulder position and keeping the elbows to their side.
The only movement should come from the forearm and biceps muscles flexing the elbow. Best Biceps Exercises
This curl variation trains the forearm and upper arm muscles — most notably the brachialis and brachioradialis — helping increase size and bolster grip strength.
Benefits of the EZ-Bar Reverse Curl
The ability to train muscles of the forearm and biceps with a pronated or semi-pronated grip position.
Cambered EZ-bar’s are easy to find in gyms across the globe, so it’s a very accessible curling variation.
This variation can train and add size to the forearms. Best Biceps Exercises
How to Do the EZ-Bar Reverse Curl
Grip an EZ-bar with each hand while standing. Turn your wrists, so your palms are facing down (or best fit to the slanted part on the bar).
Keep your arms tucked in at your sides and flex your elbows to curl the bar up towards your shoulders.
Lower the bar back down with control.
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