How to pump biceps? Best biceps exercises in the gym and at home

On the way to the big biceps, any athlete expects many obstacles: genetics, physiological ceiling, the wrong technique, and most importantly - an incorrectly designed training program. Since pumping up biceps is not so simple, it is important to take into account all the anatomical features of the construction of this muscle, deal with your own physiological limits and develop an individual program for weight gain.

Biceps anatomy

Biceps is the muscle of the shoulder of the arm located on its front surface. It has two clearly visible heads that encircle the humerus. This muscle is considered an indicator of male power and strength, every self-respecting athlete dreams of pumping up biceps like the great Arnie.

The main mistake: pumping your biceps with your back

One of the most popular ways to build a training program is to divide the exercises into two groups: bench press and traction. Thus, pumping biceps usually falls on the day, coinciding with the training of the back. Here are some good reasons to change this approach to training hands:

• Starting from work on a large anatomical group, in our case the back, we spend all the energy very quickly. And for example, when it comes to lifting dumbbells for biceps or push-ups, our strength is already running out.
• Most exercises for working out the back, albeit indirectly, but still involve the biceps in the work. It turns out that an already tired muscle is subjected to an even heavier load. This may seriously affect the technique of the exercise, which will lead to its inefficiency.
• If you change the pumping of the biceps and back in some places, nothing good will come of it either. Having previously weary our hands, we will not be able to give all our best to pumping the back, which means that training such a huge anatomical group may not be intense enough.

This problem can only be solved by modifying the training program. But in any case, you have to sacrifice something. For shaking large and small anatomical groups together, we will overload some and not load others. Specialization of the training is the only way out in this situation. If your priority is large and massive hands, then the whole training must be adapted to your goal. Since quickly pumping up biceps and simultaneously developing all other muscles is simply physically impossible. Your training program may look like this:

1st week

• Monday: heavy leg workout, light chest workout.
• Thursday: heavy shoulder training, light back training.
• Sunday: heavy biceps workout, light triceps workout.

2nd week

• Monday: heavy chest workout, light leg workout.
• Thursday: hard back workout, easy shoulder workout.
• Sunday: heavy triceps workout, light biceps workout.

Getting rid of stereotypical exercises

Lifting the bar while standing, a complex on an inclined bench and lifting in a crossover are far from the best exercises for biceps in the gym. This program is long outdated, as are the pumping methods that Arnold Schwarzenegger himself once proposed. The use of classical and stereotypical exercises does not affect the growth of the key muscle in the best way. After all, the more we train her, the more stable she becomes to various effects of the load. How to shock a muscle? Perhaps constantly progressing with working weights? But after all, everything has a physiological limit, and you are unlikely to succeed in constantly throwing pancakes when lifting the bar for biceps. Our task is to maximize the stimulus on the target muscle, and it, in turn, will answer us with an unprecedented growth and increase in strength. For this, a controlled stress technique is used. Since it is impossible to pump up biceps using a standard program, you modify the training for yourself. From the whole variety, select those exercises that are effective specifically for you, in view of your physiological characteristics and initial strength indicators. What is suitable for one will not necessarily be useful for another.

We choose the right weight

Carrying out exercises for biceps in the gym, we often forget that the muscles of the hands are rather modest in size muscles and a lot of weight can be simply dangerous for them. However, in pursuit of mythical records and a mass of hands, athletes stubbornly strive to hang as many pancakes on the bar as possible, without thinking about the consequences and injuries. If you take the maximum possible weight, this does not mean that the entire load will go to the target muscle. It is likely that all your arms, part of your back, and even your legs will be involved in lifting the bar for biceps. In pumping hands, not the working weight is important, but the time that the muscle spends in the load. Speaking specifically about biceps, the maximum number of fibers is included in the work only after 40 seconds from the start of the exercise. And 6-8 approaches with a heavy bar will end much faster than this time. So, we take an adequate weight and perform lifting dumbbells for biceps for 15-20 reps, preferably in maximum tension and concentration.

Faithful girlfriend - supination

The anatomical function of the biceps is to bend the arm in the elbow joint and turn the wrist outward. If we actively use the first function, then the second is usually neglected. Any training program for the hands, whether it is exercise for biceps at home or a complex for the gym, should include an element of supination. Without turning the brushes outward at the upper point of lifting the barbell or dumbbell, the peak load on the muscle simply cannot be achieved. A similar technique is observed in triceps training, only the inverse element is used there - pronation. In this case, lifting the barbell to the biceps will be a more losing exercise, because both hands will be strictly fixed, which means that the turn of the hands is absolutely impossible.

Biceps Pullups

Despite the fact that there are more than a dozen exercises for pumping hands, the classics remain unchanged. No exercise equipment, barbells and dumbbells can replace the effectiveness of training with your own weight. Like it or not, the best exercises for biceps are special pull-ups that use reverse and parallel grip. But everything is not so simple, here are a few features from the technical side:

• Try not to twist the brushes, as when pulling up on the back, and also work only inside the amplitude. It will be quite difficult, especially for people with poorly developed arm muscles. But otherwise, this exercise will be useless, because the whole load will go to the wings and shoulders.
• Narrow the grip gradually, so you increase the load on the target muscles. But it’s worth doing it gradually, as this greatly complicates the exercise.
• If you can’t do more than 10 repetitions, then use the gravitron or replace the exercises with push-ups for biceps from the neck. These analogues will help you achieve the desired shape and move on to full pull-ups.

Download biceps barbell

One of the favorite biceps exercises for men is lifting the barbell while standing. This is a really good method of pumping hands, but only if you work with a zigzag bar. We still remember supination? Since it is impossible to carry out this technique with an ordinary barbell, the diagonal grip of the EZ-neck allows you to at least slightly bend the brush and achieve a stronger effect from pumping. Among other things, there are three sure ways to modify this exercise to achieve the highest possible result:

• Grasp your elbows between your knees and swing your biceps with a narrow grip in a sitting position.
• Lift the bar on outstretched arms while standing.
• Take your elbows back and perform a classic barbell lift.

Scott Bench Exercises

Everyone knows that the best exercise for biceps is lifting a barbell or dumbbell on Scott's bench. It is no coincidence that a huge queue always accumulates around this simulator. However, the manufacturers of this bench clearly did not take into account several physiological features in the pumping of the biceps. After all, the maximum load on this muscle is achieved if the exercise is performed at almost a right angle. Optimum is about 80 degrees. So why in this simulator is not provided for tilt adjustment, as in all others? Such a riddle. But to solve this problem is quite simple, just put a platform or a stack of pancakes under the support. Thus, you get the necessary angle and can modify the usual exercise.

One arm biceps flexion

Lifting dumbbells for biceps closes the circle of the most effective exercises for the growth of muscle mass in the arms. Despite the apparent simplicity, this type of pumping requires great returns and has several important technical features:

• Flexions should be as concentrated as possible on the target muscle. Do not chase weight, focus all your attention on the perfect technique.
• The dumbbell does not just need to be lifted up, it needs to be supinated. Twist the brushes to the limit. Without all this, exercise simply loses all its effectiveness.
• Take your time, try to stay at the top point for at least 3-4 seconds, and even better at 5. A slight numbness in the muscles is a sure sign that you are doing everything right.

Features of pumping biceps

Most often, it is recommended to start arm training with very hard and energy-intensive exercises, such as push-ups for biceps or working with the barbell, and then finish off the target muscle with sets of lifts with supination. Unfortunately, such a program does not work at all. After all, having overloaded brachialis, forearms and biceps with basic training, you will not be able to work out the turn of the brush in full concentration. After all, this is technically a very complicated technique, which requires maximum feedback and control, especially at the delay stage at the peak voltage point. Here are a few nuances and features in pumping hands that will maximize the effect of training:

• Do not neglect the workout. To do this, you can perform a superset of bar lifts with a minimum weight.
• Change the program in each lesson. To do this, select one basic exercise, which will be the main one this week, and work with it until the muscle failure.
• The basic exercise must include an element of supination, as well as a delay at the maximum lifting point. Try to keep your hand at peak load for 4-5 seconds, until you feel a slight numbness.
• Complete your workout on the biceps simulator. Choose a weight with which you can do at least 100 repetitions in short amplitude.
• Hitch and stretch. The end of the workout.

Drop Set Technique

We have already seen that pumping up biceps with both large and light weight is not difficult. Here, the main role is played by the technique and a properly selected training program. However, when working with good weight, we can slightly underload the target muscle due to the rapid fatigability of stabilizers and general fatigue. How to solve this problem? Here the drop set method will help us . This is a technique in which the working weight decreases as the exercise progresses. This can be done both within the framework of one approach, and with each subsequent one. Thus, we will work out the biceps at the limit of its physiological capabilities, which means that the muscle will respond with rapid growth and increasing strength.

Sample training program

Performing biceps exercises at home will be very problematic, so try to get a gym membership. Take this training program as a basis and modify it taking into account your own physiological characteristics.

To summarize

Remember that quickly pumping up biceps, like any other muscles, is impossible. Go towards the goal gradually, but do not forget about the main thing:

• It is necessary to develop YOUR own program for pumping hands. General rules and principles do not work here.
• Supination and pauses are the key to building muscle. Neglecting these chips, you are depriving your biceps of the peak load, and hence the stimulus to growth.
• The second condition for pumping biceps is a large amplitude. This means that muscle stretching should be a priority over a large working weight.
• Concentration and technique are the foundation of any workout. Do not neglect this during class.