Fitness Blog

How To Build Bigger Biceps

So many men spend hours pumping weights, doing arm exercises to build their biceps to be their best, to no avail. Hours of your time, money on protein, and often risking injury, brings no joy when you are repeating the same old thing time and time again. There is no short cut, no easy way, however, we're here to tell you how to spend your time and effort getting the results you so desire.

How Heavy?

Dumbbell bicep curls are possibly the most common exercise used to increase the size and strength of biceps. It is vital that this simple exercise is done properly to ensure maximum effects.

Possibly the biggest mistake made by people looking to grow their biceps overnight, is to lift too heavy, too quickly. This style of training risks injury to your arm muscles and joints, and also to your back. It is also, not the best way to see results.

Perfect form is vital for increasing muscle mass. Slow, controlled and for a sustained period of time is the best method of dumbbell curling. There is no need to risk injury by lifting heavy, lighter for longer is key here, as perfectly as possible. Try to aim for reps of about 60 on these lighter weights; the weight should feel like your muscles are working, but it is easy to complete without resting in between these high rep sets.

How Fast?

Changing the speed of these curls is also a great way to ensure you are making the most of your workout. Your muscles are forced to work harder for longer, we want to push your muscles out of their comfort zone a little to get maximum results. You could do some faster reps to warm up, then slow them down and really feel the burn. From here, work the muscles at the lower part of the curl, coming only half way up and back down, and then work the top part of the curl, going from half to full position, and back to half. This said, completing controlled reps with the full range of motion needs to remain priority. Your muscles increase the time under tension in these instances. Varying your workout in this way will assist the muscle mass increasing.

Variety

There are other dumbbell curl exercises which can increase your muscle mass in your biceps, in addition to the basic dumbbell curl. These additions are as follows:-

Incline Dumbbell Curl

Rest on an incline bench with a dumbbell in each hand. Fully stretch out your arms, and curl the dumbbells up towards each other, keeping your palms face up and your elbows still. As above, high repetitions at a lower weight are ideal. This is a great exercise for isolating the long head of the bicep.

Concentration Curl

In a seated position, resting your triceps against your inner thigh, curl the bicep towards your pectoral muscle and then lower the dumbbell, so that your arm is fully extended. Full range is crucial to this concentrated curl, and you want the speed to be slow and deliberate.

Diamond Push Ups

Create a diamond shape with your hands and lower down and lift into a press up position. This style of push up will really work the arm muscles: chest and triceps, as well as your biceps.

Preacher Curl

Isolate your biceps with the use of a preacher bench and ensure maximum results, as you are less able to cheat than during a basic bicep curl. Fully extend your arm before curling, keeping tension in the muscle throughout the curl, and returning to full extension on completion. You can use your hand to keep your tricep in position. Fewer correct curls are more effective than more imperfect alternatives.

Chin Up

To perform this exercise, you need to have a reasonable amount of upper body strength, so this is ideal to increase biceps once you have already started your training.

Grasp the bar with a narrow grip, palms facing you, and pull yourself up, chin clears over the bar. Keep the chin-up and lower at a slow, steady speed, and continue with complete control, ensuring you come all the way down each time. This exercise is tough, so don't expect to be able to reach many reps, but you are sure to increase strength and muscle mass by repeating this exercise regularly.

Technique

Whichever blend of the above exercises you partake in, try to focus on form, pace and engaging the correct muscles. Bicep curling with an over heavy weight, where your back muscles contract with each lift is not going to increase the size of your biceps one iota. Your strength will gradually increase with more reps of lower weights, meaning, in time, you will be able to lift heavier weights, but don't rush this.

Variety

Doing a selection of the above exercises is more effective than repeating hundreds of bicep curls day in, day out. Mix up your workout, different exercises, different paces, different things on different days. Variety is the spice of life, and not only will it prevent boredom for yourself, it will also maximise the effects.

Rest

Rest days are as important as workouts. For our muscles to build, we tear muscle fibres. They then need rest days to repair, and when they repair, they come back stronger and bigger. Without a rest day, we risk muscle damage, and prevent the opportunity for it to to strengthen and grow. As tempting as it can be to train at every given opportunity, there is every chance that results will be hindered, not aided.

Diet

High protein foods included in your diet can aid muscle repair and growth. High protein foods include eggs, salmon, tuna, chicken, beans, lean beef and more. Consumption, on average, should be between 1.4 and 1.8 mg.

Any kind of workout is a marathon, a lifestyle change, as opposed to a quick fad. Changes don't happen overnight, but they will happen with determination and hard work. Why not treat yourself to a new piece of gym wear to help motivate you and show off the new guns. Visit www.GymWear.co.uk for a selection of gym clothing and accessories.

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