Bicep Curls

Muscles worked : Biceps, brachialis, forearms

Seated curls are done with dumbbells so that you can fully extend your arm.

The main function of the bicep muscle is to flex your elbows and supinate your hands. You can supinate your hands with a dumbbell by rolling them from a palms-down position to a palms-up position.

The brachialis is a second major arm flexing muscle. It is strengthened through curls also.

Bicep curls are very popular. People like seeing results and showing their strength visually. They can be done with minimal equipment. Most sports require the use of your arms for throwing, swinging, rowing, or dribbling...so athletes want them powerful.

Barbell Curl

2. Knees slightly unlocked

3. Supinated (palms-up) grip

4. Hands spaced wider than hip width

5. Keep wrists and hands in a straight line

6. Curl bar up (Don't swing it)

7. Hands come no higher than shoulders

8. Lower the bar under perfect control

9. Pause at bottom and repeat.

You will develop wrist and elbow problems if you can not maintain the straight, neutral position of your wrist and forearms. If your wrist bends, take a break from bicep curls for a few months until you have built your grip and forearm muscles.

Keep your elbows at your side. Your upper arms should start off vertical. Never allow your elbows to move outward or backward while your curl. Your elbows may come forward very slightly as you curl.

At the top position your forearms fall short of being vertical.

Resting in the top position should be near impossible if done correctly. If you can rest, you are cheating or lifting too light.

Cheaters tend to push their elbows if front of their torsos and get help from their deltoids. Don't be a cheater. You are only cheating yourself. This will create stress on your elbow, shoulders and lower back.

Watch your movement in a mirror. You may find that using correct form causes you to be unable to lift as much as before. That is because you were cheating before. Your deltoids were doing too much of the work. Done correctly you should have no deltoid pain afterwards.

Pause at the bottom of each rep and breathe. The next rep should start from a dead stop. Don't use momentum for assistance.

Adjust your grip width if you experience elbow pain. If that doesn't work try an EZ-curl bar or dumbbells.

To practice perfect form, curl while keeping your hips, back and head pressed against a vertical post. But with a barbell your thighs will get in the way at the bottom.

You can do seated curls, but again your thighs will prevent you from extending your arms fully. It would be easier to use dumbbells in these cases.

Dumbbell Curls

Hammer Curl

This grip holds both hands parallel with the thumbs at the top. This causes the least amount of stress on your elbows, wrists and shoulders.

Keep your wrists in the same neutral position as the barbell curl and use the same elbow positioning.

Supinated Curl

This style turns both hands palm-up during the lift. Start by holding two dumbbells with a pronated grip(palms down). Let the weight touch your thighs (horizontally).

As you curl the weight start rotating them to the supinated position. The supinating and curling happen together. Don't supinate first, then curl.

Don't let your elbows move outward or backward and keep hand and wrists in a line.

The later you begin your supinated twist the more challenging the lift becomes. Your elbows will want to cheat. Only lift weights heavy enough to do this lift with proper form.

Lower the dumbbells with extreme control and gradually pronate your hands while descending.

Leaning back and moving your elbows forward are a sign that you are lifting beyond your weight limit. This video demonstrates bicep curls using the barbell:

This video demonstrates alternating three different styles of dumbbell curls into one workout.

Dumbbell curls with a supinated grip. Dos and Don't of this exercise:

More Bicep Exercises

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