I can't go heavy when using a barbell, but can do so with dumbells! isnt it supposed to be the opposite? whats wrong with me? is it because its easier to cheat up a dumbbell than a barbell? i notice the bottom portion of the rep is weak, and its usually that i can't pull it up past that point when it comes to barbell curling. even when i use a cambered olympic bar(i think 25 lbs total?), i stick maybe 2 10-lb weights on both sides(so each arm is doing about 32.5 lbs) and this maybe being my third or so set, am already feeling serious lactic acid buildup by the 6th rep or so, where as by the third or fourth set using dumbbells, i can use 35 lbs for a good 6-8 reps with pretty good form. what am i doing wrong?
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Results 1 to 13 of 13
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12-17-2005, 03:05 PM #1
i cant go heavy on barbell curls! help me!
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12-17-2005, 03:13 PM #2I need to eat
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Did you try doing barbell curls recently? Your CNS might need to learn the movement if it's new, even though you're working the same muscles. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.Originally Posted by idk*Someday I want to meet this "Everyone," he seems to have written so very much, yet all of it is wrong.
*Nature is the master of design, and knowledge is the master of nature.
*Uncertainty is the seed of all knowledge - it is the catalyst of investigation
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12-17-2005, 04:24 PM #3
ill admit, i havent done them in quite a while. i did, but i was so digusted with how little weight i could use compared to what i know im capable of that i pretty much gave it up altogether. that and i sprained my wrist about a month ago, and even the cambered bar gives me problems towards the ends of the sets.
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12-17-2005, 04:55 PM #4Moderator
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If dumbbells are more comfortable, stick with dumbbells. I never really enjoyed doing curls so I started doing chin-ups in their place and haven't looked back.Originally Posted by idk
Let's face it, what you can deadlift, row, and pull-up/chin-up with added weight, is going to be more important than what you can curl (only a few teenagers in the gym are going to care), so it's best to always see curls as the isolation exercise that they are and keep them as strict as possible to get results. Don't worry about the weight you're using on those. Let the compounds do all the talking.
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12-17-2005, 07:03 PM #5Registered User
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I dont like doing barbell curls because it naturally puts your wrists in a prone position. If I am not doing dumbbells, I will sometimes use the E-Z Bar since the bar puts the wrists in a more natural position. I find that I quickly get tendonitis if I use the barbell...
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12-17-2005, 09:33 PM #6Train smarter, not harder
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focusing on going heavy on curling = looser form = poorer results.
<->
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12-18-2005, 01:40 AM #7
well the concern has more to do with the fact that i havent increased the weight in quite a while, somewhere between 6 months to a year or so, and i can use more weight with dumbbells than with a barbell which has me concerned, because i thought it was supposed to be the other way around.
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12-18-2005, 02:42 AM #8Ghost Negger
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If you want to go heavy for arm growth. Try close grip weighted chins. Curls are not an exercise that you should be focusing on poundages.Originally Posted by idk
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12-18-2005, 09:12 AM #9Ballin' at 30
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I 2nd this.Originally Posted by DiamondDelts
My biceps routine revolves pretty much around chins and hammers.
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12-18-2005, 11:40 AM #10Registered User
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your not alone i can dumbell curl more than i can barbel.i have weak wrists so i find the dumbells much easier on the wrists anyway
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12-18-2005, 10:36 PM #11Train smarter, not harder
- Join Date: Sep 2004
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switch yoru routine up then.Originally Posted by idk<->
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12-19-2005, 12:29 AM #12I need to eat
- Join Date: Sep 2005
- Location: Petaling Jaya, Selangor, Malaysia
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If you haven't managed to increase your poundages in that long, there might be some factors involved. What's your routine like? And are you eating enough or growth and recovery?Originally Posted by idk
Sometimes the key to increasing bicep poundages are laying of direct bicep work for a while/reducing direct bicep work volume and focusing on heavy back work. Do that for a few weeks and try curling again. There'll be an increase.*Someday I want to meet this "Everyone," he seems to have written so very much, yet all of it is wrong.
*Nature is the master of design, and knowledge is the master of nature.
*Uncertainty is the seed of all knowledge - it is the catalyst of investigation
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12-19-2005, 01:19 AM #13
i just read in MD that its normal to be able to lift more unilaterally than bilaterally. well, before i used to do 16 sets for arms, which i think i noticed i was stronger on arms back then, but also devoted a whole workout to arms. i then cut back the volume to 12 sets, 3 exercises, 4 sets each for fear of overtraining, plus i was just starting out, and i know 16 sets for arms weren't really normal unless you were Lee Priest. i then switched over to doing 4 exercises, 3 sets each, realizing that it allowed me to cut back on rest time because there was less monotany to it, because i tended to get tired by the third set of every exercise, making me do the fourth set half-assed or getting way less reps than i probably could've. that made my vascularity a lil better too. thats what ive been up to in terms of arm training, dont know what to do next.
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