Biceps Exercises And How Heavily Each Head Is Used (MRI study)

[Eclectic1]

Biceps exercises and how heavily each head is used based on an MRI study
From Tesch (1999) Target Bodybuilding, p.32.

See this link for the same study performed on triceps exercises: http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=2745401

L=lateral head
M=medial head
B-brachialis
*=how heavily that muscle head is used

Standing biceps curl with straight bar and wide grip
L*
M**
B*

Standing biceps curl with ez bar and wide grip
L*
M**
B*

Standing dumbbell curl with palm up
L*
M**
B*

Standing dumbbell hammer curl
L**
M*
B*

Standing supinating dumbbell curl
L**
M**
B*

Incline seated supinating dumbbell curl
L**
M**
B*

Incline seated dumbbell hammer curl
L**
M*
B**

Incline seated dumbbell curl with palm up
L**
M**
B*

Standing ez bar curl with arm blaster
L**
M**
B*

Standing biceps curl with straight bar and arm blaster
L**
M**
B**

Standing biceps curl with straight bar and narrow grip
L**
M**
B**

[papi93]

Nice find. Too bad this couldn't be stickied.

[Pen0r]

pfffft....no concentration curls? Weak.

[jmusclehead]

Biceps exercises and how heavily each head is used based on an MRI study
From Tesch (1999) Target Bodybuilding, p.32.

See this link for the same study performed on triceps exercises: http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=2745401

L=lateral head
M=medial head
B-brachialis
*=how heavily that muscle head is used

Standing biceps curl with straight bar and wide grip
L*
M**
B*

Standing biceps curl with ez bar and wide grip
L*
M**
B*

Standing dumbbell curl with palm up
L*
M**
B*

Standing dumbbell hammer curl
L**
M*
B*

Standing supinating dumbbell curl
L**
M**
B*

Incline seated supinating dumbbell curl
L**
M**
B*

Incline seated dumbbell hammer curl
L**
M*
B**

Incline seated dumbbell curl with palm up
L**
M**
B*

Standing ez bar curl with arm blaster
L**
M**
B*

Standing biceps curl with straight bar and arm blaster
L**
M**
B**

Standing biceps curl with straight bar and narrow grip
L**
M**
B**

Thanks for the link.....

[Uriel_da_man]

Some contradicting stuff there.

I've seen studies, and I myself feel so, that the EZ bar uses more brachialis than the straigth bar (unlike suggested there).

Good post nonetheless.

[PansyLad]

Thank you!

[Curl Master]

Nice find.

[hulkinout]

Do they have these for any other bodyparts?

[ThickAsABrick]

pfffft....no concentration curls? Weak.

They're a good ex., tube arms.

[Pen0r]

They're a good ex., tube arms.

Bitch, I gots mad bicepts peak!

[bassing68]

Biceps exercises and how heavily each head is used based on an MRI study
From Tesch (1999) Target Bodybuilding, p.32.

See this link for the same study performed on triceps exercises: http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=2745401

L=lateral head
M=medial head
B-brachialis
*=how heavily that muscle head is used

Standing biceps curl with straight bar and wide grip
L*
M**
B*

Standing biceps curl with ez bar and wide grip
L*
M**
B*

Standing dumbbell curl with palm up
L*
M**
B*

Standing dumbbell hammer curl
L**
M*
B*

Standing supinating dumbbell curl
L**
M**
B*

Incline seated supinating dumbbell curl
L**
M**
B*

Incline seated dumbbell hammer curl
L**
M*
B**

Incline seated dumbbell curl with palm up
L**
M**
B*

Standing ez bar curl with arm blaster
L**
M**
B*

Standing biceps curl with straight bar and arm blaster
L**
M**
B**

Standing biceps curl with straight bar and narrow grip
L**
M**
B**

That's good, except....
Now is there a link showing what the lateral, medial, and bracials are located?

[gecko2424]

That's good, except....
Now is there a link showing what the lateral, medial, and bracials are located?

Seriously. You bumped a year old thread to ask a question that any google search could have answered. C'mon, how lazy are you?


And you're almost 40! I'd expect this from a 17 yr old.

exrx.net has everything you need

[DiamondDelts]

Spider curls still > all.

[bassing68]

Seriously. You bumped a year old thread to ask a question that any google search could have answered. C'mon, how lazy are you?


And you're almost 40! I'd expect this from a 17 yr old.

exrx.net has everything you need

Actually, I'd expect this more from an older person cuz we aren't the computer wizes these 17 year olds are. I only found that thread cuz somebody posted it.

[uvdevnull]

Standing dumbbell curl with palm up
L*
M**
B*
Standing dumbbell hammer curl
L**
M*
B*
Standing supinating dumbbell curl
L**
M**
B*

What is the difference between the first and third exercies listed in the above short list? Supinated means palm up, doesn't it?

Also, does the second one in the list imply "hammer" curls (neutral grip)?

[Dr. Horse]

What is the difference between the first and third exercies listed in the above short list? Supinated means palm up, doesn't it?

Note that it doesn't say "supinated", but "supinating."

[jaberocs]

i know this thread's a year old, but im bored as hell. so here's a more asthetically pleasing chart:

[Kapisnaki]

since biceps have a long head and short head not lateral/medial, i'm assuming here that lateral=long, medial, short?

[Quickshot657]

i know this thread's a year old, but im bored as hell. so here's a more asthetically pleasing chart:

This visual interpretation is awesome. Its a good way to order your exercises in the gym, from building all the heads to isolation.

[hulkinout]

No preacher curls either...db, bb OR ez bar.

[Quickshot657]

No preacher curls either...db, bb OR ez bar.

Yea i'd have liked to see more variations.

[REPS-Forum-Rep]

I personally prefer the EMG work conducted by Lorenzo Cornacchia, Tudor O. Bompa, PH.D., Bill McIlro, PH.D., and Lenny Visconti. Instead of using an (*) to indicate bicep head recruitment, they used % of IEMG Max and used many more exercises in their research. the Narrow Grip Preacher Curl with a standard 7 foot Olympic Bar had a 89% IEMG Max with a 1-2.0% difference between test subjects. The Narrow Grip, Standing Barbell curl with an EZ Curl Bar and an Arm Blaster placed second with a 89% IEMG Max and a 2-3.1% difference between test subjects. I however feel that the one arm Barbell Curl is the best exercise at recruiting the maximum amount of motor units. Unfortunately there is no EMG data at this time for the lift. Hear is some info on the lift:

The One Arm Barbell Preacher Curl is one of the Best Exercises you can perform for your Bicep. I realize the word BEST is relative to what head of the bicep you are trying to target. For instance Incline Curls target the long head of the Bicep due to the initial stretch placed on it. Behind the head Cable Pull Down Curls work the short head well, due to the fact that the long head is in a relaxed position and thus can not contract maximally. This in turn places the majority of the load on the short head of the bicep. However, for total bicep soreness, motor unit recruitment, difficulty of cheating and just how much fun it is to perform the lift, elevates the One Arm Barbell Preacher Curl to my favorite bicep exercise. It is the only exercise in which you can actually feel the load switch form the short to the long head! Don't worry if the bar moves throughout the lift when you first start the movement. It just takes a while for your CNS to learn to fire the motor units correctly and for your stabilizer muscles to get strong.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vda3-GWs2KI

As you can see in the video, you use a standard 7 foot bar, but only hold it with one hand. If you are like me, you will only be able to use 80% of what you can normally use with a dumbbell. For example, if you currently use a 100 pound dumbbell on the preacher bench, you will have to drop to an 80 pound barbell. I performed a single in the video for fun, but it is not smart to perform singles on Isolation exercise, as the danger of hurting your self becomes to great. I have 20 years of lifting under my belt and I have performed the lift on and off for over a year and I do allot of warm up sets, so the risk of hurting my self was minimal.

I generally only do the lift when I am focusing on strength or functional-hypertrophy. The rep range I use when I perform the lift is 10X3 or 10 sets of 3 reps. You always keep the same amount of weight for the entire 10 sets. When following the 10X3 training protocol you never train to total failure, only tempo failure! The rep/set scheme is designed to induce strength gains by the high volume and intensity, "measured in percentage of 1RM" of the training program. As you can see in the video, the preacher bench was slightly too high in height for the starting position. This was due to the fact that when you lower the bar you do not want it to hit the stops. In order to utilize the preacher bench to the fullest of its potential, you must use a full range of motion! The lower portion of the movement is where the real growth potential lies, so do not short change your self by not using a full range of motion. However, if you are going to try a single, drop the pad one pin position, as it allows you to start the lift in a proper position where your are not bent over the preacher bench so much and thus you are able to make the lift easier in the bottom portion. When I did the single, I had to lean over the pad to far in order to grab the bar. This reduced the effectiveness of the lift, but it would have been fine for my usual triple.



When doing any kind of Preacher bench work it is necessary to use a properly designed preacher bench. A properly designed preacher bench has a convex or rounded surface. The rounded surface allows a greater amount of stretch over load to be placed on the bicep when you are in the bottom of the lift. More stretch overload equals greater motor unit recruitment and thus the possibility of greater muscular and strength gains. Now some people might claim that you might end up tearing a bicep due to a greater stretch overload. While there will be more stress placed on the bicep heads, you will not tear them unless you cheat or bounce the bar out of the whole. If you are prone to cheating when training biceps then you should stay away form this exercise! Also, if you ever broke your arm this exercise might place too much stress on your Radius and Ulna bones.

Properly Designed Preacher Bench:


Improperly Designed Preacher Bench:


Another advantage to a convex surface is that the curved preacher surface results in less strain on your elbow! This is due to the fact that the preacher surface will make contact on your triceps and not on your elbow like a flat preacher bench will! While this may not sound like a big deal now, it makes a large difference if you follow high volume/high intensity training protocols. High volume training on a preacher bench with a flat surface results in sore elbows. The curved portion of the preacher bench is also easier on the shoulders, as it allows them to rotate forward on the negative with less strain. I know some personal trainers that have zero formal education and only a 12 hour certification will say that your shoulders should never move when performing the barbell preacher curl exercise. However, that is not possible when your biceps are strong. Just look at the following image. You would need a Silverback Gorilla standing on your shoulders to counter balance the rotational torque placed on the shoulders.

Flat Preacher Bench is Hard on the Elbows:


Curved Preacher Bench Reduces Loads on Shoulder:


If any of you are going to try the exercise post some pictures as it is a fun lift to perform.

[user5611651]

Biceps exercises and how heavily each head is used based on an MRI study
From Tesch (1999) Target Bodybuilding, p.32.

See this link for the same study performed on triceps exercises: http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=2745401

L=lateral head
M=medial head
B-brachialis
*=how heavily that muscle head is used

Standing biceps curl with straight bar and wide grip
L*
M**
B*

Standing biceps curl with ez bar and wide grip
L*
M**
B*

Standing dumbbell curl with palm up
L*
M**
B*

Standing dumbbell hammer curl
L**
M*
B*

Standing supinating dumbbell curl
L**
M**
B*

Incline seated supinating dumbbell curl
L**
M**
B*

Incline seated dumbbell hammer curl
L**
M*
B**

Incline seated dumbbell curl with palm up
L**
M**
B*

Standing ez bar curl with arm blaster
L**
M**
B*

Standing biceps curl with straight bar and arm blaster
L**
M**
B**

Standing biceps curl with straight bar and narrow grip
L**
M**
B**

Sweet post man! I needed to look into this.

[RH08]

i thought

Standing biceps curl with straight bar and narrow grip
L**
M**
B**

worked mainly Brachialis. Well atleast that's how i've incorporated it lol.
Looks like it's time to change these up and use this more.

[mcxk]

bump
!!!

[jayready]

I tried finding this on google, but I couldn't. I know a bicep has a long and short head, but this study describes the heads as lateral and medial. Could anyone explain which is which to me? Thanks

[DJAuto]

Only a matter of time before I find myself posting this thread in numerous threads throughout the day.