Fact checked by Tyler DiGiovanni, BSBM
FACT CHECKEDAside from chest day, is there any day better than arm day? Sure, it's great to bench press, but little can compare to a nice arm pump. The bicep muscles are arguably the most important muscle group for aesthetics, as nothing beats pumped-up bicep muscles bulging out of your tee shirt. One of the best ways to gain size and strength in the biceps is with barbell exercises. Science has shown that free weights are more effective than machines for muscle growth, so barbells are essential, regardless of the muscle group or workout routine. In this article, we will teach you the five best biceps exercises using a barbell, which are all bicep curl variations.
Table of Contents
In this section, we will explain the best biceps exercises to take your bicep workout to the next level and help those arm muscles grow to another level. For all of the exercises, you can use a regular barbell and add weight or a fixed-weight barbell.
Just as the squat is the king of leg exercises and bench press is the king of chest exercises, the barbell biceps curl is the king of biceps exercises. The barbell bicep curl is a variation of the classic dumbbell curl, primarily targeting the biceps brachii. It also involves the brachialis, brachioradialis, and various forearm muscles. The forearm muscles include the flexor and extensor muscles to help stabilize the wrist and maintain a strong grip.
Instructions:
Another excellent barbell biceps exercise is the barbell preacher curl. The barbell preacher curl primarily targets the biceps brachii, with secondary work to the brachialis, brachioradialis, and forearm muscles. The exercise requires a preacher bench, or you can create one using an incline bench.
Instructions:
The barbell drag curl is a lesser-known movement than the standard or preacher curl, but it is just as effective at building biceps muscle. The barbell drag curl is a variation of the straight barbell curl, where the barbell is dragged along the torso rather than being curled upward in a linear motion like a normal barbell curl. Even though it is a shorter range of motion, it removes momentum from other muscles like the shoulders to place more time under tension on the biceps. It also primarily targets the biceps brachii, with secondary work to the brachialis, brachioradialis, and forearm muscles.
Instructions:
Grab the barbell with a supinated grip, with your hands against your upper thighs, slightly closer than a regular curl. Keep your arms straightened so the barbell hangs near your thighs.
Another great barbell biceps exercise is the barbell spider curl, a unique variation with a preacher-like movement. Like all the other curl variations, spider curls primarily work the biceps, with accessory work to the brachialis, brachioradialis, and forearm muscles. The angle of the body allows for a greater range of motion and creates shoulder flexion. Exercises like this with shoulder flexion put more emphasis on the short head of the biceps. The shoulder flexion puts the long head in a disadvantageous position, so the short head takes the bulk of the lift.
Instructions:
The reverse barbell curl is a bicep curl variation where you use a reverse grip so that your palms are facing the ground while performing barbell curls. The barbell reverse curl primarily targets the brachioradialis, which is technically not part of the biceps muscles but is important for building biceps strength. It also works the biceps, the brachialis, and other forearm muscles secondarily. This exercise should be done towards the end of the biceps workout, after the straight barbell curl and other bicep exercises, since it primarily focuses on the forearms. If your forearms and brachioradialis are pre-exhausted, your biceps training will suffer because they will give out, even though you have the biceps strength.
Instructions:
The five barbell bicep exercises above should be the staple of all biceps workouts, but it's important to use isolation exercises to maximize biceps muscle growth.
Some great bicep isolation exercises include:
Isolation bicep exercises should be performed at the end of the workout as a way to target a specific head of the biceps, upper arms, or forearms, especially if you are doing a complete arm workout (rather than just biceps). These types of bicep exercises should be done at a higher repetition range, ideally in the ten to fifteen range, using a moderate weight that can be completed in a controlled manner with a full range of motion.
The biceps brachii is one of the two main muscles of the upper arm along with the triceps. The origin of the word is derived from the Latin words "bi" and "ceps," which means "two heads." This is because there are two biceps heads, the long head and the short head.
The two heads combine to form the biceps brachii, connecting the upper arm to the radius bone on the forearm.
Functions:
Every exercise that targets the biceps also involves the brachialis and brachioradialis because these muscles work in unison with the biceps during elbow flexion. Although they aren't technically part of the same muscle group, they are closely related.
Forearm muscles are divided into two categories:
Forearm flexors are on the palm side (anterior) of the arm and help to flex the wrist and fingers, as well as forearm pronation. The forearm extensors are on the back of the forearm (posterior) and help to extend the wrist and fingers, as well as forearm supination. All of these forearm muscles play a key role in maintaining grip strength and stabilizing the wrists during the barbell curl and other curl variations.
Biceps training is essential for building arm muscles and overall upper-body development. Depending on your routine split, you likely do the bicep workout as part of an arm workout or upper body day. Regardless of when you train, your bicep workout should be centered around the barbell curl and other barbell workouts. Some of the most effective biceps exercises include the barbell curl, preacher curl, drag curl, spider curl, and reverse barbell curl.
If you want bigger biceps, add these exercises to your biceps workout and perform the compound barbell lifts first, then isolation exercises at the end to sculpt lacking areas of the upper arms. Focus on having perfect form with a full range of motion where you can squeeze the contraction as much as possible rather than ego lifting with bad form. Lastly, pay attention to your hand positions and change them occasionally to build a complete bicep muscle.
References
Sheikholeslami-Vatani, Dariush, et al. "Comparison of the Effects of Resistance Exercise Orders on Number of Repetitions, Serum IGF-1, Testosterone and Cortisol Levels in Normal-Weight and Obese Men." Asian Journal of Sports Medicine, vol. 7, no. 1, 1 Mar. 2016, https://doi.org/10.5812/asjsm.30503.
Kleiber, Tim, et al. “Muscular Coordination of Biceps Brachii and Brachioradialis in Elbow Flexion with Respect to Hand Position.” Frontiers in Physiology, vol. 6, 6 Aug. 2015, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4526813/, https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2015.00215.
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