What if I told you that I can show you a biceps workout tip that you'll never forget? In this video, I am going to show you a tip that will help you to grow bigger biceps and will work the very next time that you try it. The best part is that it can be applied to just about any biceps exercise you do, regardless of equipment.
One of the most popular pieces of equipment I see used in any biceps workout is the EZ curl bar. While I think that it is a great tool to use when building big biceps, I often see something very wrong with the way that it is used when it comes to curling. Why? Well, most people choose to use the wider grip due to comfort but with the way the bar is engineered, it forces their grip out of supination and more towards pronation.
We know that the function of the biceps is not only to flex the elbow, but to supinate the forearm as well. To achieve maximum biceps contribution to an exercise, we need to supinate.
How do we fix this? Well we can flip the bar over and grab the handles in a position that allows for greater supination. However, there is another important aspect that we can't overlook when it comes to building bigger biceps and that is wrist extension. By allowing the wrists to go into extension, we are not only taking the forearm contribution out of the equation, but we are actually giving the biceps a better opportunity to supinate as well thanks to the way the anatomy of the arm and wrist is set up. So, the next time you opt to use an EZ curl bar in your biceps workout, just flip it upside down and grab the handles so that your hands are actually supinated instead of pronated. This will put the emphasis on the biceps and take away work from the brachialis.
What about using a different piece of equipment, such as a cable machine and doing cable curls? The key tip here is to make sure that your wrist remains in extension, especially at the top of the movement. This allows the elbows to come in tight to the body, forcing the hands to supinate relatively to where they would be if the elbows were drifted out. We also know that when it comes to big biceps, you want to keep the line of force perpendicular to the forearms to make sure that the biceps are doing the most work possible. By putting the wrists into extension, you are doing just that; you are making sure the cable stays perpendicular to the forearms, which means the line of force is perpendicular as well.
When it comes to a biceps workout, you are also likely doing straight bar or barbell curls. The same principles that applied to the cable curl are going to make an appearance again. However, to illustrate the point, I broke out the muscle marker and highlighted the outer meat on the palm of my hand. When you curl, with wrists in extension and those elbows tight, you are almost directing force through that part of your hand in order to go through the motion of supinating – something you didn't think possible due to the fixed nature of the bar.
If you are curling with dumbbells, supination and extension becomes a whole lot easier because the piece of equipment allows for more freedom of movement in the hands, wrists, and forearms. Just because it is easier, doesn't make it any less important or mean you don't need to pay attention to what you are doing. The best way to apply this to dumbbell curls is to hold an offset grip on the handle and when you reach the top end of the range of motion, trying to raise the pinkies higher to supinate even further. Remember to keep those elbows tight, too!
Now, if you've been watching my channel for a while now, you may have noticed the sleeve that I have been wearing on my arm. Well, I injured my right biceps when my son slipped on a patch of ice and I tried to catch him. The first thing I did was to make sure that the muscle was still attached by simply supinating. Know that the brachialis shares the function of flexing the elbow, I knew the best way to determine the status of the biceps itself was to go through the function that is limited to the biceps. Thankfully, I could still supinate despite the injury to the muscle.
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“FAST ACTION” Q&A* – Leave your most burning question about this video or any other training, PT or nutrition question within the first 2 hours of this video’s release (AS A SEPARATE COMMENT!!) and I will pick 8 to get a detailed reply from me right here in the comments. Answers will be posted within the first 24-48 hours of you leaving the question. Good luck!
How significant is protein and calorie consumption to building muscle
Amazing like all ways
Hello Jeff I’m David, i have an issue that i hope you can help me with , it’s my left shoulder ,problem with external rotation if i have my back against a wall and attempt rest my arm flat against the wall I’m not able to feels like it’s locked up also can’t put my left arm behind my back like a parade rest .. just wondering if you can guide me in the right direction, i didn’t have any type of trauma to my shoulder, but i do practice aikido .
I really appreciate any input you can offer .. thank you in advance David
D
Workouts or general advice for people with scoliosis
Have you ever broken down the split/weekly workout that YOU are currently following?
Us mortals could never begin to comprehend the divine split
Twice on each day that ends with a “y”.
Excellent question, he made a video about movie stars’ workout routines, but it would definetely be interesting to see his own.
You have to pay for that lol
facepulls every minute of every day
Jeff, I was diagnosed with Tricep Tendonitis last year and elbow still gets inflamed by any repetivite motion of workout, even the lightest of exercises.
I am on the verge of depression here. Any help to expedite recovery will be immensely appreciated. Thanks.
@Pawn vit C/2 glasses of water every morning and vit D with a small spoon of olive oil or, after dinner (because D needs fat to be well absorbed but helps very well with the joints and breaks down calcium intake for the bones) Also a good filter for the drinking water.
@Lifer thanks bro. Appreciate your wishes. Wish you the same.
Hey Jeff, huge fan. I’ve noticed I lift unevenly, even when not using hard weight. Sometimes I curl and my right shoulder always raises. Or deadlifting, I lean to a side. I was curious what corrective training do you recommend?
Most of the time it helps if you do exercizes that you can do with a single arm/side. Than u can start with your weaker side and do as much as u can on that side and copy that for the stronger side so you slowly balance things out. so lets say you are weaker on your left side at curls. YOu would do how many reps you can do on your left (for example 12 reps) and than excatly that amount on your right side ( so 12 reps on your right aswell)
I absolutely love the deep dives, especially when there is bones involved because it’s important to know the exact movement and why we do it a certain way.
Yes indeed. It’s like I’m watching a review inside of a physical therapy and sports performance office building. He’s both quasi-doctor and athletic trainer.
In my opinion this is what separates Jeff from similar guys like Jeff Nippard. You can quote multiple studies and have all the fancy graphics you want but understanding the anatomy behind each movement is whats most important.
Why is it important to know the minutiae of each movement? Do people make less gains if they don’t know the intricate inner workings of their anatomy even though they’re training correctly and with proper form?
Love the video, as always. I know there have been other videos regarding which are the best/worst exercises, but my question in reference to this technique video is: What is your recommended exercises in order and rep/sets? Thx.
This must be the most informative fitness video of youtube. No fancy words, on point and didactic. Jeff is on a league on his own. Thank you Jeff
Didactic?? Are you aware of the meaning?
@Jeremy Dean hey bro. I think it means “intended to convey instruction and information as well as pleasure and entertainment”
@Cristian Lira thanks!!
It really helps to understand how the bones moves with the muscle so as to avoid injury. Another great video Jeff
Great work man! When I progressed to bodyweight exercises arms got even stronger and ripped!!!
Awesome work on your channel garageman BRUTAL
Been watching you and doing your workouts and biceps weren’t my focus just do the workout. But it became my favorite part of my body because how define it is. So, I can’t wait to implement this into my workout because I didn’t do this before. Thank you!
Never thought about holding the EZ bar like that, I’ll be trying that tomorrow! Thanks for all of the advice.
This is a master class, combining anatomy, science, physical therapy, strength training!!!!
Jeff, I admire your wisdom and dedication! These kinds of videos put you in the top league!
Hey Jeff, I recently began to have nagging soreness in my left forearm, when my palm is upward or facing out. It seems to be the outside larger muscle that I believe is the Brachioradialis. It oddly enough began bothering me on a leg day. I go to the gym at 5:30 a.m. and I noticed it toward the end of the workout and did no arm exercises that day or anything crazy involving my arms.
Now certain back exercises and a number of bicep exercises can be painful to do. a few of the exercises that really bother that muscle are, bent over barbell rows, traditional cable lat pull downs with a standard bar and my grip/palms facing forward, bicep barbell curls at the bottom of the full eccentric extension down, dumbbell curls at the bottom of the eccentric extension. The bicep curls in particular hurt when my arms are at the full extension down and if I have my palms facing out, but if I do the curls you recommend where I start with my hands turn inward toward me and rotate my hands outward at the concentric top of the curl, it doesn’t really bother me. It also doesn’t bother me to do T-bar rows, standard cable rows, or bent over dumbbell rows, all when my hands are facing inward toward my body.
After a few days of rest, my arm feels back to normal, but when I get back into the gym after those days and do any type of exercises that bothered me before, the pain slowly comes back. Its not as bad as it was initially, but it has been a nagging, constant pain the last 4 weeks and I have never had this issue before. I have been working out pretty steady for around 13 years now, but I know injuries occur and I am now 37, so I am not a young 20 something guy anymore.
Like most guys, I don’t want to sit out of the gym for too long, but I also don’t want this to continue or to reinjure myself worse. Are there certain exercises you recommend avoiding or variations of some that will not cause me to miss hitting certain areas of the bicep or back? I also do use the versa grip style straps for back days, which seems to help a little. I am not a heavy lifter by any means, very lean for my height and age, and have never had many injuries except a nagging shoulder pain here and there and a lower, left back issue I have gone to PT for.
Thank you for your time and all the great videos and knowledge. Have a good week!
Very helpful as always Jeff! I will be trying these tips on my next arm day. Thank you!
6:03 The key to Jeff’s videos is him teaching the Why of movements. Understanding the underlying concept means I can focus on moving the muscle correctly rather than memorizing every exercise.
Love it! I’ve been following your tips and seeing more benefits than stuff I’ve tried in the past. Thank you so much for this!