Why do you do so many bicep curls?

**Greco** · 03-04-2009, 01:14 PM

This doesn't apply to everyone, but it seems that the general consensus is that the biceps are a very important major muscle group that need to have several lifts dedicated to them. Some even have an entire day of their split dedicated to biceps. I understand that everyone wants to tear their t-shirt sleeves when they flex, but is this really the best way of going about it? The following are a few reasons that I believe we all need to cut down on the curls and get back to exercises that involve a bar over our heads.

1.Pull ups (and other compound lifts) are just as much a bicep lift as they are a lat lift. Have you ever thought about why chin ups are easier than pull ups? The reality is that both movements are similar in difficulty for the lats, but pull ups are much harder on the biceps. This means that its not your lats failing at the end of a set, it's your biceps.

2. Your body is going to resist the growth. I'm working on finding the book I read this in, but the idea is that our bodies naturally use our muscles in coordination with each other. This means that our bodies have to keep the relative strengths of the different muscles even, so if you train your biceps out of proportion to your lats your body will recognize that the biceps are becoming biomechanically inefficient and resist their growth.

3. Your lats are not going to fail before your biceps. Some may say, "I would do pull ups, but I'm too worn out, so I'll do bicep curls instead." How would you ever tire out your upper back before tiring out your biceps? If you can do curls, you can do pull ups.

The points I've mentioned here also apply to several other isolation exercises, bicep curls are simply the best example.

I should also mention that I'm not trying to say everyone needs to stop doing bicep curls all together, they can be a great lift in moderation. My point is that there are too many people dedicating too much of their workouts to biceps when they could be doing other lifts that would be much more useful.

I will update this post as I find more of the research that I've based this off of.

**mjw8204** · 03-04-2009, 01:16 PM

It's always nice to be schooled by a 16 year old on how much of my workout should be dedicated to biceps. Thank you for your post.

**Turco** · 03-04-2009, 01:17 PM

Originally Posted by Greco

...

No.

**Hudacris** · 03-04-2009, 01:22 PM

in before age and/or stats

**Hengman** · 03-04-2009, 01:23 PM

I read the title, then saw the OP's age.

I WTF'd. Now, I am WTF'ing again.

**Greco** · 03-04-2009, 01:24 PM

Originally Posted by mjw8204

It's always nice to be schooled by a 16 year old on how much of my workout should be dedicated to biceps. Thank you for your post.

Wait a minute while I go take down my age, then come back and read it again.

Why does it matter how old I am? I've spent hours upon hours reading about exercise physiology and the science behind lifting. Tell me what is wrong with my information then you can give me crap about my age.

**SquatTilYouDrop** · 03-04-2009, 01:25 PM

Good Lawdy All Mighty......

All see an avalanche of negatories in the OP's future...

Or Present....

**Hengman** · 03-04-2009, 01:26 PM

No, I can't use my imagination.

I can picture you with a wig and wearing some stilettos...with a long...dress?

**Opies** · 03-04-2009, 01:27 PM

I used to think bicep curls were for gym rats and 15 year olds. Now I have 13.5 inch arms and im 192. Yea.... indirect bicep work doesn't work isn't enough for most people...

**Bosedes906** · 03-04-2009, 01:27 PM

Not only do many of them do so many exercises (overtrain) for their biceps, but I rarely see many doing them with correct forms. I agree with your first point but the 2nd and 3rd can be argued. In my case, usually my forearms wear out before my lats do. Usually I would just have one bicep work out day a week because I do alot of pullups on back days and that is almost considered partial biceps workouts, as well as military presses for shoulders, even db bench presses and flyes for chest. Ppl don't realize they're using their biceps alot more than they think.

But the main issue I'm seeing is improper forms doing biceps. Some guys will do anything to curl up heavy weights just to look good, and it usually works cuz the witnesses don't even know what cheating is even when they see it.

**Hengman** · 03-04-2009, 01:28 PM

No, jacking off does not make your arm bigger.

**Drekkor** · 03-04-2009, 01:29 PM

Bi's get me lookin' good so I can hit the clubs and pick up all the ladies.

Big Pimpin'.

**mjw8204** · 03-04-2009, 01:30 PM

Originally Posted by Greco

Why does it matter how old I am? I've spent hours upon hours reading about exercise physiology and the science behind lifting. Tell me what is wrong with my information then you can give me crap about my age.

Oh, sorry. I didn't realize your information came from books.

Please disregard everything I said.

**ThickAsABrick** · 03-04-2009, 01:31 PM

*enters*

*takes a *****

*leaves*

(this actually helps your thread)

**-Lucifer** · 03-04-2009, 01:38 PM

Oh hai!

This thread fails.

kthxbai.

**Hengman** · 03-04-2009, 01:41 PM

My humps, my humps, my lovely lady lumps...

Wut?

**TulsaCoker** · 03-04-2009, 01:43 PM

Originally Posted by ThickAsABrick

*enters*

*takes a *****

*leaves*

(this actually helps your thread)

I'm next in line for the stall

**chazzy1864** · 03-04-2009, 01:44 PM

I do not feel like arguing this point yet again. Perhaps this photo will suffice:

**mjw8204** · 03-04-2009, 01:46 PM

Originally Posted by TulsaCoker

I'm next in line for the stall

Wow, strong fecophiliac.

**-TC-** · 03-04-2009, 01:51 PM

I agree with the op. Too much time is dedicated to such a small muscle

**porcupinetree** · 03-04-2009, 01:56 PM

I tried the "less is more" training for biceps. Each time I did, I got less biceps size and more frustration.
I tried the "no curls" approach.
I tried the "6 sets or less" approach

Then I got wise and upped my volume to 15 sets of curls, twice a week
Added an inch to my arms in a couple of months.

I don't need a book to tell me what works.

**rgrwatson85** · 03-04-2009, 01:57 PM

Well I guess I don't need to do a direct ab work today because my stomach is sore from laughing so hard. I almost had to cut the line for the stall because I almost pooped myself.

**Greco** · 03-04-2009, 01:58 PM

Now that we seem to have most of the useless posts out of the way, would anyone like to defend bicep curls? Tell me why you do them so much, not just, "I do them and I have bigger arms than you so...ya."

**mjw8204** · 03-04-2009, 01:59 PM

Originally Posted by porcupinetree

Then I got wise and upped my volume to 15 sets of curls, twice a week
Added an inch to my arms in a couple of months.

Sorry, I haven't read anything in a book about you adding size to your arms, so I'm afraid it never really happened.

**SquatTilYouDrop** · 03-04-2009, 02:02 PM

Originally Posted by Greco

Now that we seem to have most of the useless posts out of the way, would anyone like to defend bicep curls? Tell me why you do them so much, not just, "I do them and I have bigger arms than you so...ya."

Didn't you just answer your own question?

**Greco** · 03-04-2009, 02:04 PM

Originally Posted by mjw8204

Sorry, I haven't read anything in a book about you adding size to your arms, so I'm afraid it never really happened.

I'm sorry, you're right. I've never actually been to gym before, nor have I done any of this so-called "lifting". I just sit at home and read books, hoping that my arms will grow because I am more knowledgeable about them. It's not as if I watch skinny guys bicep curling their hearts out every day in hopes of getting big when they could be doing other lifts 10 times as useful.

Give me a break.

**chazzy1864** · 03-04-2009, 02:04 PM

Originally Posted by Greco

Now that we seem to have most of the useless posts out of the way, would anyone like to defend bicep curls? Tell me why you do them so much, not just, "I do them and I have bigger arms than you so...ya."

Does the fact that I believed the bullshit of "compounds only", "rows and pull ups are all the stimulation you need for your biceps" bla bla bla for years, and never had good bicep growth, until I said to hell with that, and finally started devoting some time to various forms of curls, and saw more growth in the last 6 months, than I had in the 2 years before that?

I mean...just for starters.

**mjw8204** · 03-04-2009, 02:05 PM

Originally Posted by Greco

I'm sorry, you're right. I've never actually been to gym before, nor have I done any of this so-called "lifting". I just sit at home and read books, hoping that my arms will grow because I am more knowledgeable about them. It's not as if I watch skinny guys bicep curling their hearts out every day in hopes of getting big when they could be doing other lifts 10 times as useful.

Give me a break.

Help me out here. Are you being sarcastic with this post?

**lanolar** · 03-04-2009, 02:05 PM

I have to admit I chuckle at guys who spend so much time on arms vs real lifts. I see guy who will spend an hour on arms. I see some who spend 2 hours on arms on some days! My god.....

For the record, on pull days I do MAX 3-4 sets on curls. On push days, I do ZERO work on triceps. I do a lot of dip work and my triceps get tortured from them as it is.

**mjw8204** · 03-04-2009, 02:07 PM

BRB, standing over other people at my gym with a stopwatch and notepad to report on what they do and for how long.

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