WEEK ONE :: What Is The Best Bicep Routine You've Used?

dumbell curls 8-12 4 sets 2 minute rest

barbell curls 12,11, 10.8-9 <--- 4 sets 45 second rest


preacher curls 4-6 then from 6-12 are forced reps 4 sets 2 minute rest

this gave me the most size, it was great, it was very intense, but training this way helped me break through to new a new level of training...

i credit the following to Jeremiah Forster (beverly international)

if you want to add some size to your arms, you might try this once a week. This does not count as an arm workout, but is best done 3 days after your arm workout...

20 reps straight bar curls, superset with 20 rep tricep dips/straight bar pushdowns. wait 30 seconds... repeat.

perform 5 sets of this superset, choose the weight so that your first set is a LITTLE bit of a challenge to get to 20.

a friend of mine did this and went from 15' to 16 in four weeks, he wasn't taking anything illegal either. for me, it's kept size while i've cut down this summer. oh, what are people trying to win on this thread again?

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by PROVERBS413 [/i]
[B]I hit biceps only once a week, so my regular bicep routine looks like this:

*Standing barbell curls w/ EZ bar - 4 sets / 8-10 reps

*1 arm preacher curls - 4 sets / 8-10 reps each arm

*Dumbell curls(standing or seated) - 4 sets / 8-10 reps

*Reverse barbell curls w/straight bar - 4 sets / 8-10 reps

* Hammers - 4 sets / 8-10 reps

I use the gym at my office and since I work an early shift I have the gym all to myself. This gives me the ability to move from exercise to exercise with more freedom. I do one set of each exercise instead of completing one exercise all at once. This routine has given me the best gains so far, I do switch up now and then and add in variations but this is pretty much my template. [/B][/QUOTE]

Just the 20 sets then?

I do Biceps on Tuesdays which is Back/Bicep day. I have found that my best bicep routine does not necessarily include the best exercises but rather the approach. The approach is to do everything in proper form in order to really BLAST my biceps.

I do my Back first because I want my Back to be worn out and unable to assist the biceps when I do my Bicep workout.

The most important thing I have is: a form spotter. The form spotter's job is to make sure I excute my exercises with the best form possible without "cheating".

Using weights that will allow me to do 6-9 reps, I do 3 sets of: Standing Bicep Curls, Alternating Incline Dumbbell Curls, and Preacher Curls.

With each set, my form spotter tells me if I am cheating by doing things such as:

-Swinging the barbbell up when doing Standing Curls
-Stamping or Shaking my feet when doing Alternating Incline Dumbbell Curls
-Arching my back when doing Preacher Curls
-Shrugging, using my traps and shoulders to help complete the rep
-Using gravity to lower the weights too fast

*And Most of all.. he yells at me if I decide and TRY to rest at top of a rep. At the top of each rep I have to contract my Bicep to it's fullest to ensure that the bicep works at its fullest.*

After listening to my spotter and doing everything in perfect form, my biceps are rock solid!! I have done a different mix of exercises for the biceps and still get the same results by applying the same principle: PROPER FORM! Doing exercises in proper form really maxmizes results like nothing else.

i think the way in which this poll is answered is affected by the way in which you have historically trained.

If you have historically trained with 8 to 10 reps then that will give you the best results. The reason for this is because you have trained the biceps and supporting muscles to support this rep range. If you suddenly try to go for 4 to 6 reps, since the biceps are such a small muscle, you may not be able to achieve a maximum overload in the biceps because the supporting muscles will 'give out' before the biceps can achieve a maximum pump.

Now if you change the question to read 'what is the best rep range for maximum hypertrophy and fastest growth', then there will only be one correct answer...5 to 8 reps. ;)

The fascination of biceps is overrated in my point of view (i just lost 50$).

My bicep burnout routine which i do once a week is simple:

4*8 DB Curl
4*8 Incline seated DB onearm curl
3*8 Cable Preacher Curl ( seated with 30 degree angle)
3*8 Cable Preacher Curl ( standing no angle)

I almost believe i can avoud working the biceps, since lot of the backtraining is going for the bicep too.

And remember, biceps is only a 1/3 of your armsize - the rest is triceps - so instead of focusing on that little muscle that hard, concentrate on the back instead.

When does the next topic begin?

I do 21 reps, this might also be known as simply 21's, or 3 part curls.

Purpose of Exercise: This is basically to develop and shape the entire biceps area. This exercise, a combination of partial- and full-range movements, is a great test of endurance. Because of the combination of 3 sets of 7 repetitions each, this exercise is also known as 21's (as I said above).

EXECUTION: (1) From a seated or standing position, take a dumbbell in each hand, holding the weights at arm's length down at your sides. (2) Curl the weights upward but stop halfway, when your forearms are about parallel to the floor, then lower them again to the starting position. Do 7 repetitions of this movement. Then, without stopping, (3) curl the weights all the way up but stop halfway down and do 7 repetitions of this partial movement. At this point, even though exhaustion will be setting in, finish off the set by doing 7 full-rage Dumbbell Curls. I like to do this exercise in front of a mirror (so that I can really be sure of lifting in exactly the proper range.

I suggest doing it seated also, this prevents from cheating.

I like to super set bicep exercises:

Standing BB curls
Alternate DB curls
Preacher curls

10-12 rep range, 3 times through this super set. If you don't grow from this you ain't human.

who won?

I did for my post above ^^^^^.

Biceps:

Close grip BB curls (ez bar)-5 x 12-5 or 6, 15-20
Close grip Preacher (ez bar)-4 sets, fast 10 reps
Bent over concentration curls (Arnold style) 3 x 12-15, reducing weight if nec.
One arm cable curls 2x 20 each arm

1 x per week.

Getting pumped just thinking about it.

the biceps got HUGE when i did this

3 sets of standing barbell curls with reps going 12, 10, 8 and adding 5 pounds each set...or ten if you want
3 sets of seated hammer curls 10 reps
3 sets of preacher curls 12 10 8 and once all the weight is on there after your third set, you get the weight up and have a partner pull it down as you tyr and pull it back up, and the partner will bull it down 1/4 of the way, then 1/2 of the way then all the way down and you try and pull it pack up the whole time but don't do so until he lets go....****ing shreded my biceps

the biceps got HUGE when i did this

3 sets of standing barbell curls with reps going 12, 10, 8 and adding 5 pounds each set...or ten if you want
3 sets of seated hammer curls 10 reps
3 sets of preacher curls 12 10 8 and once all the weight is on there after your third set, you get the weight up and have a partner pull it down as you tyr and pull it back up, and the partner will bull it down 1/4 of the way, then 1/2 of the way then all the way down and you try and pull it pack up the whole time but don't do so until he lets go....****ing shreded my biceps

Obviously this whole idea was handled very professionally.

The best of the best bicep training are these as follows:

For Bicep Curls

3 sets compromising of 6 / 4 / 2 reps

Begin with heavy weight doing 6 reps each lasting 3 seconds.

With 4 reps on the second set make it heavier allowing yourself now 2 seconds of repetition movement.

With the last set that compromises of 2 reps...you have to use such hard weight that when you drive the weight up it is mannered in motion according to its high intensity. you should feel intense burn in this, the pump, the second rep should be much harder than the first..it may last 10 seconds or more just to complete that last intense rep...After the work out stretch the biceps and drink some water. you should really feel the blood flowing in to the bicep area...this is a real manouvre for hardcore bicep growth.

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by AJbuilder [/i]
[B]I voted other.

It is ridiculous to assume that any rep range will work for a given individual all the time and for all lifters. It's in total contrast to the principle of individual differences. The principal states that the capacity for a given individual to adapt to exercise training is genetically determined on a degree of basis. Recovery abilities, response to the exercise stimulus , muscle-fiber makeup, and on a lesser scale, the tolerance of certain macro and micro nutrients all fit into the principle. One person might do well with 8-10 reps while another will grow best with 4-6 reps using higher tension methods and loads because that person is more able to recruit a large number of motor units synchronously and asychronously. But no one will ever do best by using just one single rep range .When we are doing bicep work, it's very often that a beginner will train with less intensity due to the fact that he/she is able to recruit a minimal number of motor units to stimulate growth. The person would obviously use higher repetitions( 10-12 reps) to do more work and in the case of using this higher density method , the lifter will be able to overload the muscles to grow. With proper nutrition, that person will experience dazzling newbie gains.


But as the person gets more advanced , he/she will be able to recruit motor units at a higher threshold which mirrors maximal and anaerobic strength gains as well. Now the person will and should employ repetition ranges in the 4-6 bracket and will soon find that works best at that point in his/her training career. After a while of training with 4-6 reps while using various free-weight exercises like incline db curls and standing bb curls , the body will gradually get accustomed to the 4-6 range. And the reason for your body adapting to this rep range is due another principle: the principle of accomodation. The principle states that your body will accomodate and adapt to the training stress if you continually apply the routine over and over again. The routine of doing 4-6 reps will eventually be less and less challenging for your body because it has already become a habit . Habituation results in plateaus . When the habit kicks in, there is a gradual reduction of response coming from the body. The body stops responding. Of course the next step would be to do micro-loading and increase the weight on the bb curls every week so you can progressively overload. But then we have to come back to the principle of accomodation. Your body accomodates to the overload and soon you'll hit dead on into a plateau. The 4-6 rep range will not be effective anymore. And that's why we must jump back to a different rep range for your body to get out of the rut and grow again. This explains why growth isn't exactly a linear process all the time. It's got it's ups and downs for most of us.

It's much wiser to use different rep ranges for cycles of your training. On a hypothetical 8 week cycle of training you may employ an volumization phase in which you do high volume work with standing bb curls as in using more reps(10-12 or 12-15) with the load kept moderately in range of 60% -70% of 1RM or so. Then after the 8 weeks are up you may switch to an intensification phase in which you do loading sessions using higher intensity , intensity with respect to the loads 1RM. You may now do more sets of bb curls and lift with 80-90% of 1RM using the 3-6 rep range. The body actually responds quite well this way as it keeps the body from the accomodation and habituation trap. This is just one example of Periodization and there are many different ways to set up training cycles while employing different rep ranges.

One way to really get the biceps to grow is actually through doing heavy compound back work. The biceps get worked very heavily on close grip chinups, pullups, lateral pulldowns, barbell bent over rows, db rows, seated rows, and all its variations. You do close grip chinups and you will definitely involve the biceps . Apply this to common sense and you'll start to think that if you can strap 135lbs. to a chinning waist belt and do chinups for 5 reps, you'll have a big back and also big biceps. You can't have just 12 inch arms and be able to do chinups with so much weight. And you don't see a guy that can chin 135lbs. having small puny flat biceps either. A big back usually comes with big biceps . Direct work on the biceps are not always needed. Most guys often do insane amounts of sets and reps for the bis day in and out. Before they sleep, they've already overtrained big time, creating a deficit that needs to come back to a base level. But that's not to say that we should always eliminate bicep work completely. It's nice to have a delicate balance in which one would focus on the heavy compound back movements, especially the lifts that require the person to move through space(chinups) , and supplement with some direct work using curls. The key area here is to watch out for excessive volume of the bb and db curls. Most folks will not benefit from the overload of too much volume in a given session, except for those of the genetically superior and gifted.

In the past i've had periods where I do direct work for the biceps as well as no direct work at all, relying just on heavy back compound lifts . When I started lifting I would do lots of reps with bb and db curls and shortly my biceps grew but eventually I fell into the accomodation trap like all of us do and plateaued . I started using different rep ranges, rep speeds, different exercises as well. The biceps grew little by little but didn't respond much at all in terms of measurable progress. With some message board advice I decided to drop direct bicep work for a while and focus on heavy back work. I'm still not working the bis directly as of today and have seen almost a fourth of an inch growth already. The gains are coming in slow but at least that just proves that you don't really need direct work all the time for the biceps to grow. A lot of us may very well be overtraining our biceps anyway so by eliminating some direct work, you will be able to let the body catch up to prior training stimulus and overcompensate to recover and grow again. This is just one tactic to consider as well as the periodization technique I mentioned above.

Changing the mechanics of an exercise can also do wonders for bicep growth.

-Use underhand grip on bb bent over rows
-with bb rows, row to the chest and you may feel the biceps getting more worked.
-instead of conventional shoulder-width chinups or pullups, do close grip chinups/pullups to place more stress onto the biceps
-maintain a more upright position when doing chinups and pullups
-on the eccentric(lowering) portion of a curl, try tensing and contracting the triceps as you resist against the lowering of the weight. Tense the whole body , squeeze in the buttocks, grip the bar tightly. You'll most likely be able to hammer out one or two more reps this way. This is the employment of tensile strength and hyper-irridation popularized by Bruce Lee and former Russian Special Forces Trainer Pavel Tsatsouline.

Those are just some of the creative ways to get the most out of your exercises. It's fun.

One great tip for the newbie is to learn proper form on all exercises. If you want your biceps to grow then you must learn the proper form to maximize tension through a sound muscle range of motion. The key to doing a proper bb curl is to monitor your elbow placement. When you lift the weight on the concentric phase, make sure your elbow does not travel more than 2 inches forward. If it does , you will be redirecting the stress onto your connective tissues and anterior deltoids rather than your biceps. The biceps brachi fibers are what you're trying to stimulate so watch that elbow and make sure they don't travel too far forward. The movement , from the bottom eccentric position to the top contraction position should be a slanted straight line rather than a half circle so take good note of this observation. When I started perfecting my bb curl form, I used a peice of equipment called the arm blaster . The arm blaster straps around your neck and chest and minimizes elbow placement to teach the newbie lifter proper form on execution of free-weight curls. It was a good investment for me since I work out at my own home gym.

One bicep exercise that , in my opinion, is most effective is the incline db curl. When performed correctly, it will hit both the biceps brachii muscles and the underlying brachialis muscles to a great extent. Incline db curls also allows for a greater stretch. It gives an awesome pump as well and who doesn't love a pump? Most lifters don't do this exercise anyway so it's a nice change of pace for the body . If you haven't been using incline db curls and haved just switched to it, the biceps may grow again because the body just isn't used to the stress applied at the incline position. It's well worth a try. An effective school of thought to consider is to do exercises that you've never done before or do something unconventional for certain periods of time. That will get your biceps or any other body parts to grow again. Incline db curls are also fun. If one were to just stick to bb curls year round then the accomodation trap will kick in and that spells P-L-A-T-E-A-U. :) [/B][/QUOTE]

AJBuilder - I agree with your points but the questioned asked was

"What is the bicep routine [b]you[/b] have used that gave [b]you[/b] absolute best results? Also, list any bicep training tips or exercises that [b]you[/b] have used that worked for [b]you[/b]."

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by da rel hogan [/i]
[B]AJBuilder - I agree with your points but the questioned asked was

"What is the bicep routine [b]you[/b] have used that gave [b]you[/b] absolute best results? Also, list any bicep training tips or exercises that [b]you[/b] have used that worked for [b]you[/b]." [/B][/QUOTE]



I gave out so many tips that haved worked for me, and it's stated in the second half of my post: hyper-irridation popularized by Tsatsouline and Bruce Lee, chinups, heavy back work, maintaining straight arc in curls, incline db curls, eccentrics. Just because i did not state that i have specifically used them doesn't mean i haven't practiced them. I used all those tips and i even stated my arms progressed, but slowly, on only heavy back work alone. Of course my arms grew initially really quickly but that was considered initial newbie adaptations and doesn't fit into the scheme of progress when one gets to the intermediate stage. And it is also nonsense to provide a specific routine detailing exactly how many sets and how many rest between sets, how many reps . Each routine does not do everyone equally well all of the time. Now we jump back to law of individualization, as stated in my post, and you'll see why a routine that worked for me may not work as well for you . Only the principles are to be applied and the specific nature of a routine depends on the person if he/she wants to improve on strength and development. For all you know I can be a genetic freak and will do lots of sets with high frequency. Then when some skinny guy follows it they overtrain on it given the nutrition and rest variables are similarly comparable. Now that routine will be useless for him but good for me. So outlining a very "specific" routine for the masses is quite useless for some of the time, especially when the readers of the article are innately angular, skinny, ectos with short muscle bellies and have less than average recovery abilities. When routiens are provided, it should always be made as a guideline, not as a formula in which one has to follow to a T.

Alright, this is what I have found to work best for me

After about six months of toying with different routines, I believe I have found my "holy grail" of bicep routines. It allows me to feel the blood rushing into my arms and the insane pump that is associated with great gains.

Here it is. My routine :-D

Monday:
3 sets of 6-8 Spider Curls
Use two seconds to curl the bar, another two on your declanation and hold for one. All the while make sure to keep your wrists straight, enhancing the contraction of your bicep.

Take 2 minutes of rest between each set.

3 sets of 6-8 Alternating Hammer Curls
Take two seconds on the positive curl and one on the negative. Be sure you keep your elbows locked at your side as this helps to isolate the contraction to your bicep thus maximizing your workout.

Take 1 minute of rest between each set.

Thursday:
3 Sets of 5-8 reps Standing Inner Bicep Curls
While doing these, keep the rep time slow taking care to focus on the contraction of the bicep. Make sure that your forearm stays in line with your deltoids.

Take 1 and a half minutes of rest between each set

3 Sets of 7-9 reps Close Grip EZbar Curls
Just make sure that your hands are on the inside of the curve on the bar, causing them to face towards each other. Also, use two seconds to curl the bar, another two on your declanation and hold for one at the bottom.

Take 2 minutes of rest between each set.


That is it for the routine; I know it will work just as good for you as it does for me. A few tips I'd like to add: use enough weight so that your "struggling the last 2 reps". These last two reps are critical to the stimulation of new muscle fiber growth and repair. Also, focus on the timing of your reps, the slower the rep the more mass you will put on (if that is one of your goals of course)... Not necessarily strength, but mass. Oh, and lastly, always, ALWAYS, stay true to proper form as this will give you an incredible boost in the time it takes to realize your goals.

My 5 cents!
Alex

I'm not sure if I overlooked it, but I do not think I did. Did everyone fail to mention Pull-ups for Bi's?? Or does no one here use them?
That is the first and most intense exercise I use to develop my bi's. After a hardcore back workout, I hit bi's up with

3 sets of 8-10 Pull-ups
3 sets of 8-10 Hammer Curls
2 sets of 8-10 Reverse Cable Curls

After an intense back workout of deadlifts, barbell rows, and chin-ups, it is not necessary to hit the bi's so hard.

Weighted Chins 2 sets 4-6
Heavy Barbell cheat curls 2 sets 4-6
Cable Curls 2 sets 8-15, honestly I only do this last one for the pump, i know it's not an indicator of muscle growth but still, **** I love that pump

theres one i like to use for a change from time to time that doesnt take all that long, and smokes your bis. call em whatever, i simply call them 8's. stand face to face with a partner. use a barbell or EZ bar with about 75-80 percent of your max weight for a barbell/EZ bar curl. do 1 rep. pass to your partner. he does one rep, passes back to you. then you do 2 reps, and pass it on. he does two reps and passes back. keep this sequence going for 3,4,5,6,7 and 8 reps passing after you complete every number of reps. once you hit 8 reps, work your way back down from 7,6,5,4,3,2 and 1 rep. you can put some pulses or negatives in right at the end for some added madness if you like. one set of this is usually sufficient as youll be doing 64 reps each, only resting long enough for you partner to finish his number of reps. sounds a little confusing, but is actually very easy to execute and gives the bi's a hammering! peace!

After 12 years of experimentation, here's what I've found to work best for me:

[b]Thumbs down EZ bar curls[/b]
Hold the bar with a regular grip then turn it around 180 degrees so your thumbs are at a lower height than your little fingures. This will feel a little odd at first but try a few reps. You'll really feel it isolate the bi's.
Make sure to keep your elbows firmly locked into your side (this grip will help do this anyway).
This is a MUCH better exercise then regular EZ curls. Great for overall mass.

[b]High pulley double bicep cable curls[/b]
Do these with a cable crossover machine with pulleys as high above your head as possible.
Place a bench in the middle and curl (as if you're doing a double bicep flex), seated on the bench. Keep your elbows still when curling and don't bring them forward.

[b]Low pulley double bicep cable curls - [color=red]see pic[/color][/b]
Do these with a cable crossover machine with pulleys at floor level, in a standing position. With arms straight at your sides, curl the weight until your hands almost touch at the top of the rep (they should end up at the centre of your chest).
Once again, keep the elbows still.
This is a great exercise to bring out your bicep peak.

My rep range is usually something like this:

Increasing weight each set:
Set 1 - 12 to 14 reps,
Set 2 - 8 to 10 reps,
Set 3 - 6 to 8 reps,
Set 4 - 4 to 6 reps.

Alternate CB curls 3 x 10
DB Hammer curls 3 x 10
DB Preacher curls 2 x10

I devote a whole day to arms, and on arm day, this is what I do for biceps:

Reps x Sets

Alternating Bicep Curls: 6 x 2
Preacher Curls (keeping my triceps on the vertical side and chest on the bent side): 6 x 3
Standing EZ Curl (alternating between outer and inner grip): 8 x 4

I think a whole day to arms is the best since it lets you work out a specific muscle without worrying about saving energy for isolating it in another exercise. Then I think working your biceps till you can't even flex them anymore is the way to go. Tear your muscle down as much as possible, then give it a long time to recover.

I have great peaks in my biceps, but I need to work on those hammer curls, because the length in the overall heads is short the front and back double bicep pose. But for the peaks, I got the greatest pump and actual growth from the medium rep range...

I do 4-6 reps and my biceps have done great with it.

I revolve all of my workouts around free weight, compound exercises. Free weight exercises allow you to achieve more overload and more overload equals greater muscle growth stimulation.

The two biceps exercises I like the best are barbell curls and standing alternate dumbbell curls. They are the back bone of my biceps training and have been for some time.

You need to scale back and train biceps one time per week only. This will give them time to fully recover and respond to the stimulus of heavy training before they are subjected to another workout session with maximum overload and intensity.

If you train too frequently you will actually impede your results because you are not allowing for adequate recovery time. You need to remember more is not better when it comes to training volume.

For maximizing your bicep development I suggest following the training with a low volume of total sets while overloading the muscle in a 4-6 repetition range.

Don't get too fancy and try a bunch of specific biceps isolation exercises. Isolation movements limit the amount of overload you can achieve and thus limit muscle growth stimulation.

I don't think it is productive or necessary to try and come up with a magic combination of exercises that will work your biceps from multiple angles. Training your biceps from various angles will not stimulate maximum strength and muscle development, overloading them will.

One of the problems people create when they try to get too fancy with their exercise selection is they end up limiting the amount of overload they can use by choosing isolation exercises. Isolation movements equal less overload and less overload equals less muscle and strength development.



Here is an example of an effective biceps workout:

Barbell Curls....3 sets 4-6 reps
Dumbbell Alternate Curls....2 sets 4-6 reps


Don't make the process of building muscle more difficult than it has to be. Stick with the basic lifts and train heavy. This will create the best stimulus for growth and lead to greater results in a shorter span of time.

Mr_Pakistan
[email]Hassan_madni@bodybuilders.com[/email]

This routine is what ive been using for awhile now and I believe it works extremely well and I am seeing very good strength gains week to week.

1 warmup set of Standing BB curls w/ straight bar-12 reps
3 sets 4-8 with strict form Standing BB curls w/ straight bar

3 sets 4-8 pullups ( nice and slow, full contraction)

3 sets 4-8 single DB preacher curls ( nice and slow as well, full contraction)

Thats all ya need. try it out.

How stupid is that? Why 21's and not 18's or 24's? Because there is no reason other than it has been passed along through the ages as a "bicep killer" and an exercise "you can really feel". People continually confuse muscle fatigue with muscle stimulation. Don't fall into that trap because the only thing exercises like that will kill is your progress.

I will not argue that 21's will fatigue your biceps but I will say without a shadow of a doubt, they will not maximally stimulate your biceps to grow. That is because maximum stimulation for growth is achieved by overload, NOT muscle fatigue.

Avoid getting too creative with your training or trying some "advanced techniques" that have no physiological basis. Stick with the low rep system that is 4-6 and basic compound exercises like barbell and dumbbell curls that allow you to achieve maximum overload. That will be the key to bicep growth.

mr_pakistan.

[QUOTE=mr_pakistan]
Avoid getting too creative with your training or trying some "advanced techniques" that have no physiological basis. Stick with the low rep system that is 4-6 and basic compound exercises like barbell and dumbbell curls that allow you to achieve maximum overload. That will be the key to bicep growth.

mr_pakistan.[/QUOTE]Agreed.

Take it from me, desi's have poor genetics for bicep growth...Gotta shock them with heavy weights.