Written by Sam Coleman | Co-founder
Fact checked by Kirsten Yovino, CPT Brookbush Institute
FACT CHECKED
The barbell and dumbbell bicep curl is a rite of passage exercise. They are one of the first exercises people learn. And for beginner and advanced lifters alike, there is nothing more satisfying than seeing your biceps swell after each rep. Plus, when you’re doing them in front of the mirror, it’s a flex-time baby.
That said, when it comes to biceps training, you don't NEED free weight equipment. Did you know you can build your biceps with just bodyweight exercises?
Who knew! Yes, you need to be more creative to build your arms with bodyweight bicep exercises, and having a few tools around helps to get an even more satisfying biceps pump, but it can be done.
In this article, we’ll dive into:
- The biceps muscle anatomy & function
- Ideal tools for bicep workouts at home
- The 13 best bodyweight bicep exercises
- Programming tips and tricks for building bigger biceps
Ready to get your flex on? Let’s go.
BICEPS MUSCLE ANATOMY & FUNCTION:
Biceps is the Latin term for two-headed muscle and the bicep is the main muscle of the anterior upper arm. The biceps short head starts on the scapula (near the ball and socket joint) and inserts into the forearm bone the radius. The biceps long head starts on the supraglenoid tubercle of the scapula (a small projection of the scapula near the shoulder joint) and inserts on the radius bone near the short head.
The biceps cross two joints, the elbow and shoulder, so it acts on both.
As a whole, the primary function of the biceps is elbow flexion (aka curls). The biceps supinate the forearm as well (rotate the forearm laterally), and this movement is more powerful when the elbow is flexed.
As for the individual heads, the biceps long head helps with shoulder abduction and inward rotation of the arm, and the biceps short head assists with shoulder adduction.
The biceps also aid the anterior deltoid with shoulder flexion and together with the triceps they support the humeral head in the shoulder joint for shoulder stability.
CAN YOU BUILD YOUR BICEPS AT HOME WITH JUST BODYWEIGHT EXERCISES?
When it comes to building muscle, you need two things, resistance and time under tension. Both of these can be achieved at home or in the gym. Your body doesn’t know what type of resistance you are applying to it. The body has no magic switch that determines whether you are working out with dumbbells or your bodyweight.
It just knows resistance, and bodyweight works fine for most body parts, including the biceps. With time under tension, it is thought you need to apply between 30 to 40 seconds per set to spark muscle growth. When you’re working with bodyweight, this is achieved in a few ways:
- More reps
- Slower rep speed on the concentric and eccentric contraction
- Pauses and isometric contractions
All this can be done in the comfort of your own home, without any equipment.
It should be noted that we are NOT saying bodyweight biceps exercises are superior to dumbbell bicep exercises or any other equipment, or even that they are just as good, but we are saying that you can build big biceps without them.
Of course, if you do have access to equipment, you have a greater advantage of building your biceps because it's easier to progressive overload with weight and you'll have more exercise variety. Nevertheless, even with just your bodyweight, you have plenty of biceps exercises, as you are going to see below.
IDEAL TOOLS TO HAVE FOR TRAINING BICEPS AT HOME:
When it comes to bodyweight biceps exercises, it is helpful but not essential to have a few tools handy. Here are a few of our favorite implements to have around for bodyweight exercises.
- Towel: Everyone should have a towel. A towel will act as the handle to be able to access your bodyweight resistance. In fact, you can easily complete an at home biceps workout with only a towel.
- Pull Up Bar (aka Chin Up Bar): A pull up bar is the most important calisthenic tool you can have. It will go a long way for your at home biceps workouts. With it, you can do one of the best bicep builders around, the chin-up. But if you don't have it, no worries. There are still plenty of exercises.
- Squat Rack: In an ideal world, a squat rack would be even better, as it comes with a pull up bar, and you can do inverted rows and bodyweight curls using gravity as resistance with a barbell set into the rack. But, if you had all that, you might not be looking for bodyweight bicep exercises in the first place, unless maybe you just don't have dumbbells. Or, you simply prefer training relative strength (bodyweight). Note: You can replicate an inverted row/curl with two chairs and a pole along the center, but make sure it's safe.
- Suspension Trainer: A cheap and great option to train the biceps is the suspension trainer, with TRX being a prime example. With this, you can also do inverted rows and variations of bodyweight bicep curls.
- Resistance Band: Resistance bands pair beautifully with bodyweight exercises, especially for upper arm exercises. We won't include resistance band bicep exercises, as they aren't technically bodyweight movements, but if you have bands, here are our favorite resistance band biceps exercises.
Even if you don't have these tools, there are still workarounds to training the biceps at home. As you will see with these best bodyweight bicep exercises, there are plenty of options. Literally, all you really need is your body.
13 BEST BODYWEIGHT BICEP EXERCISES
Here are the 13 best biceps exercises you can do at home. Some will purely be bodyweight exercises, while others will use the tools we mentioned above.
It would be nice if you have a mirror around too, to admire that biceps pump!
1. Bodyweight Side-Lying Biceps Curl:
Having the stability of the floor and the weight of your torso by lying on your side you will perform a biceps curl that trains your biceps in a small but intense range of motion. It helps to lie on a mat or something soft as you will be pressing your forearm into the ground. Doing this on a solid floor may be uncomfortable.
How to:
- Lie on your left-hand side and then bend your knees to 90 degrees.
- Place your right hand behind your head or have it resting on your side.
- Place your left hand under your left leg grab your left leg and pull up until you feel a contraction in your bicep.
- Pause for a beat and slowly lower down to the ground.
- Repeat for the desired reps and then perform on the other side.
Best rep range: 10+
2. Bodyweight Standing Biceps Curl With Neutral Grip:
With the bodyweight standing bicep curl you need a solid anchor point to hold on to. Because of this, you’ll be training grip and forearm strength as well as training your biceps. Be careful here not to pull yourself toward the anchor point but to initiate the movement by bending your elbows.
How to:
- Stand up straight with the anchor point at arm’s length.
- Take a firm grip with both hands in a neutral position (palms facing in).
- Curl yourself towards the anchor point and keep your shoulders down and chest up until your elbows are fully flexed.
- Slowly lower back until your arms a straight and rest and repeat.
Best rep range: 10-20
3. Biceps Leg Concentration Curl:
Like the classic concentration curl but using yourself as resistance. With this exercise is best to sit up high so your legs are hanging completely free for a bigger range of motion. You are lifting your leg with your hand but you need to apply your own force and perform slowly to get enough muscle-building tension on the biceps.
How to:
- Put a few cushions on a chair and sit down with the working leg hanging above the ground.
- Put the working forearm on your inner thigh and grip underneath the knee on the opposite leg.
- Curl up your leg while actively pressing your leg down to provide extra resistance.
- Make sure your elbow stays on your thigh.
- Once your hip is fully flexed slowly lower down and repeat for reps.
Best rep range: 10-20
4. Reverse Push-up:
You all know push-ups train the chest, triceps, and shoulders and have great core stability benefits. But when you move the alignment of your hands by reversing then produces more elbow flexion which gets the biceps more involved. This is an advanced push-up variation that places more strain on the wrist and anterior shoulder so ease into this one with fewer reps and good form.
How to:
- Get on your hands and knees and position your hands shoulder width apart with your fingers facing toward your toes (as much as possible).
- Straighten your legs and get into a solid front plank.
- Slower lower to the ground by bending your elbows until your chest is just above the ground.
- Push back up until your elbows are fully extended.
- Reset and repeat for reps.
Best rep range: 8-15
5. Mind Muscle Biceps Curl:
This biceps curl is all you because it is you that provides the resistance. By squeezing your hands and focusing on the mind-muscle connection between you and your biceps, you slowly perform a biceps curl using just your body weight. To get the most out of this exercise, you must do your best to provide maximum tension. When you lose this tension, end the set.
If you don't believe that you can build muscle by just using forceful contractions like this, read our article on mind muscle connection.
How to:
- Stand tall with your arms by your side about shoulder width apart and palms in an underhand grip position facing away from you.
- Form a fist with both, actively squeezing your hands.
- Slowly perform a bicep curl, making sure to create max tension on the way up. Squeeze your biceps tightly as you curl the air and reach the top.
- Hold the contraction for a couple seconds.
- Return slowly to full elbow extension and rest and repeat for reps.
Best rep range: Do this for time making sure to get between 40-60 seconds of time under tension.
6. Lying Double Legs Hammer Curl with Towel (Body Moves):
This unique hammer curl looks like a sit-up, but it is not. You are using your torso as the resistance to perform a biceps curl. Because you’re holding a towel in the neutral grip position, you’ll train your biceps and forearms from a different angle. The trick is to keep your spine neutral as to not put too much pressure on your back.
How to:
- While at the top of a sit-up position, wrap a towel behind your knees and grip both ends of the towel with palms facing inwards.
- Lower your torso down to the floor and then lift your feet off the floor.
- Use your biceps to slowly lift your torso off the floor until you can sit up as far as you can go.
- Slowly lower your torso to the floor only using your arm, not your abs.
- Repeat for reps.
Best rep range: 8-15
7. Lying Double Legs Reverse Curl with Towel (Legs Move):
Similar to the exercise above except you are using a reverse grip. The reverse grip trains the weaker forearm extensors which are important to strength for better muscle development of the forearm and to prevent strength imbalance injuries to the wrist and elbow. It's also a good way to target the long head of the biceps.
How to:
- While at the top of a sit-up position, wrap a towel behind your knees and grip both ends of the towel, so your knuckles are facing toward you.
- Lower your torso down to the floor and then lift your feet off the floor.
- Use your biceps to slowly lift yourself off the floor until you can sit up as far as you can go.
- Slowly lower your torso to the floor only using your arms.
- Reset and repeat for reps.
Best rep range: 8-15
8. Lying Double Legs Hammer Curl with Towel (Legs Moves):
Similar to the lying double leg hammer curl above except your using your legs as resistance and not your torso. Now as you’re at the top of the sit-up, your core strength comes into play to hold this position. You need to actively resist with your legs here to provide the necessary resistance.
How to:
- Sitting down with your legs straight and ankles crossed over, place a towel underneath your knees and then sit up straight.
- Grip the towel with a neutral grip tightly.
- Perform a curl, curling your knees towards your chest while actively resisting with your leg to give you the resistance.
- Slowly lower to the starting position and repeat for reps.
Best rep range: 8-15
9. Inverted Biceps Curl:
With the bar biceps curl, think inverted row but you are using your biceps and not your back. The movement is all in the elbows, and since you arms a little wide, it's good for targeting the short head of the biceps for some arm thickness.
This is ideally performed in a squat rack with a barbell, but you have a few options if you don’t have one. If you have two very stable chairs and a strong pole or bar that you can set at the tops of the chairs back rest, but be careful as you need to make sure it's safe and the bar can support your weight.
If you have suspension trainer you can also use that, of course. Or if you have access to a playground or have play equipment at your house you can do an inverted biceps curl on it. You can get creative with other options too, but please make sure it can support your weight before repping out.
How to:
- Set the barbell in the squat rack at your desired depth. Lower is more difficult and higher easier.
- Get underneath the barbell and grip with an overhand grip shoulder width apart.
- Straighten your legs and engage your glutes and core to get your body in a straight line.
- Curl your chest towards the barbell until you cannot go any further.
- Slowly lower down and reset and repeat.
Best rep range: 8-12
10. Inverted Close Grip Biceps Curl:
The setup for the bar close grip curl is the same as the above exercise except your curling with your hands together. Close-grip curls target the long head of the biceps, which gives the biceps that nice peak when you flex. This is a progression from the shoulder width variation above.
Note: You can replicate this if you have two very stable chairs and a strong pole or bar that you can set at the tops of the chairs back rest, but be careful You need to make sure it's safe and the bar can support your weight.
How to:
- Set the barbell in the squat rack at your desired depth.
- Get underneath the barbell and grip with an overhand hand together grip. Please adjust for comfort.
- Straighten your legs and engage your glutes and core to get your body in a straight line.
- Curl your chest towards the bar until you feel an intense contraction.
- Slowly lower down and reset and repeat.
Best rep range: 8-12
11. Close Grip Chin-Ups:
Chin-ups are the ultimate upper body, back, and biceps builder because you’re using your entire bodyweight as resistance. It's not just the best bodyweight bicep exercise, it's also the best of the best bodyweight exercises. And all you need is a pull up bar.
As for the close-grip variation, it takes things to another level by training the long head with even more resistance. Essentially, the close grip places extra emphasis on your biceps/upper arms and a little less from your back, and it increases the range of motion...Make sure to flex after this one.
How to:
- Grip a chin up bar with an underhand grip with your hands around 6 inches apart. Again, adjust the grip for comfort.
- From a dead hang position pull your body up to get your chin/upper chest to the chin up bar.
- Lower down to the dead hang position and repeat.
- For added difficulty, hold the top and middle positions for time. These would be called isometric chin ups, and they are great for building even more strength.
Best rep range: 5-15
12. Standing Suspension Arm Curl (Elbows Up):
The beauty of the suspension trainer biceps curl is twofold. First, by adjusting your feet you can make this curl more or less intense so everybody will be able to do it. Second, the inherent instability of the suspension trainer will train more of your body's stabilizing muscles, improving your balance and stability. This is more than just a biceps curl.
How to:
- Set up a suspension trainer on the middle length setting and grip the handles with your palms facing up about shoulder width apart.
- Walk your feet in or out to your desired intensity.
- Extend your arms back to full extension.
- Curl the handles towards your temples and keep your elbows high.
- When your biceps are fully contracted slowly lower to the starting position and reset and repeat.
Best rep range: 10-20
13. Suspension Trainer Side Arm Biceps Curl:
Standing laterally to the anchor point this suspension on arm curl with train your biceps from a different angle for better muscle development. Not only do you provide more muscle-building resistance for your biceps but you strength imbalances between sides and train your lateral stability too.
How to:
- Stand side on the suspension trainer, grab one handle and straighten your arm.
- Adjust your feet to your desired intensity.
- While standing straight, curl your hand towards your ear until your biceps are fully contracted.
- Slowly lower to the starting position and reset and repeat.
- Repeat on the other side.
Best rep range: 8-15
BODYWEIGHT BICEP WORKOUT: IDEAL REP RANGES AND VOLUME
Muscle and strength are built in a variety of set and rep ranges. The key here with bodyweight bicep exercises is time under tension. As previously mentioned anywhere between 30 to 40 seconds per set is a great spark for muscle growth. This can be achieved with more reps, a slower rep speed, or using pauses and isometric contractions.
When you’re training primarily with bodyweight exercises using normal rep speed, the ideal rep ranges will be higher, between 10-25 reps for 2-4 sets. This ends up being between 40 to 100 reps of total volume, which will provide plenty of muscle-building stimuli.
However, when you slow your rep speed down or use pauses for isometric contractions, reps between 6-12 work best, depending on how long it takes you to get 30 to 40 seconds of time under tension.
A short note on isometric contractions, it is when the muscle produces force but there is no movement.
Isometrics works great with bodyweight exercises like pull ups, chin ups, and inverted curls. The biceps can be strengthened and activated extremely well with isometric contractions. You just need to really squeeze your biceps tightly. This is especially important if you have limited equipment to train your biceps and are doing bodyweight bicep exercises.
For example, performing elbow flexion with palms up underneath a countertop. Now the amount of force you produce is on you. The harder you press your palms up with this exercise the more you will feel it. When doing something like this, contractions of four to seven seconds for 10 to 12 reps works well.
For bicep body weight exercises that are difficult, like chin ups, you will have to just do your best with rep and time under tension. But the great thing is, you can easily progressive overload by doing more reps and then eventually adding an external load like a weighted vest. Chin ups are among the best bicep exercises, weights included.
WRAPPING UP BICEP BODY WEIGHT EXERCISES:
When you’re doing a bodyweight bicep workout at home without access to free weights, it pays to be creative and think a little outside the box. With a mix of bodyweight exercises and makeshift tools you have around your house, you can get in a great bicep workout and eventually build biceps worthy of flexing.
Other Bodyweight Exercises:
- Bodyweight Shoulder Exercises
- Bodyweight Back Exercises
- Bodyweight Chest Exercises
- Bodyweight Triceps Exercises
- Bodyweight Leg Exercises
- Bodyweight Core Exercises
Bodyweight Workouts:
Sam Coleman
Author