Why Your Biceps Never Grow
By Jason
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Bicep curls seem like such a simple exercise, but one frequent mistake exists that often leads people to transfer the stress of this movement away from the bicep muscles and to the shoulders.
In his Encyclopedia or Modern Bodybuilding, Arnold Schwarzenegger describes that bringing the elbows forward during this movement creates a lower quality stress on the biceps and can potentially hinder their growth.
Are You Really Using Your Biceps?
Let’s take a look at a common mistake that could be holding your biceps back from having stellar growth.
For purposes of illustration, we’ll take a look at standing bicep curls using a straight bar. We begin this exercise with the bar resting just in front of the thighs.
The beginning of the motion is fairly easy. The biceps and forearms contract to bring the weight up until the arm is slightly bent.
This is the point where the exercise becomes difficult. As the elbows bend, greater stress is placed on the biceps. There is a strong temptation to move the bar upward by bringing the elbows forward in front of the body.
The problem with this method is that your shoulders are being used to push your elbows forward and raise the curl bar, while your elbows stay bent at approximately the same angle.
FYI- The more you shoulders work to move the bar upward, the less your biceps need to work through the full range of motion. Less work for your biceps means less growth for your biceps. This essentially shifts your curls from being a good bicep workout to a lame shoulder workout.
Once your shoulders have assisted you in bringing your elbows forward, your forearm is much closer to vertical and it becomes much easier for your biceps to move the weight the remaining distance to complete the contraction.
In addition, the weight of the bar is no longer being supported by your biceps at the end of the movement. Your forearms are now vertical and the weight is supported by the bones of your forearms with little assistance from the biceps. Your shoulders do most of the work to hold your arms up.
Keeping the focus
Let’s start over with the elbow in the correct position. This correct position usually begins with the elbow directly below your shoulder socket, or just slightly forward from that position.
Keep it right in that spot throughout the entire movement. Your elbow is only the hinge while your bicep is the pump that will power the weight upward.
Allow the bar to travel in a semi-circular arc until it stops in front of your chest and shoulders. Notice that the stress stays on your biceps at the top of the movement because the weight is not being supported by your forearm or shoulders. Lower the weight back down by following the same arc to the resting position.
There are always exceptions
Sometimes you may find it beneficial to use your shoulders in your bicep curls. It can be a good cheat movement to help your biceps eek out that last rep or two at the end of your workout.
The same goes for a small cheat movement with the back at the end of a set. It’s generally not considered to be good form, but can be beneficial for that last rep or two when your arms are otherwise spent.
What has your experience been?
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Topics: Training Tips |
February 8th, 2008 at 9:42 am
LESS BICEP CURLS
MORE COMPOUNDS !! lol
good post nontheless
February 8th, 2008 at 2:33 pm
This is the kind of article which you’ll never find in a fitness magazine!
Actually really usefull - I think I have made this mistake more than once, I just weren’t aware of it.
Thanks man
February 8th, 2008 at 8:23 pm
Another good article Jason! Just reiterates how important good form is. Cheating a bit for the last few reps is okay, but we must remember to keep it strict and good for the most part.
February 9th, 2008 at 12:28 am
A.J.- You’re absolutely right. I’ve had my rants about why isolation exercises should be used less than most people use them. I don’t think curls will be disappearing from gyms any time soon though
Alex- Yeah, and I think it’s pretty natural to start using your elbows to get more weight up unless you’re paying more attention to it. It always starts to happen if you don’t watch out for it.
Sean- Thanks man, I think you put it right by saying that it’s kept strict “for the most part”.
February 9th, 2008 at 4:40 am
I saw someone in the gym standing against the wall (feet a little away from the wall, knees bent) doing bicep curls - this cuts out the chance of cheating with the hips (mainly in terms of giving momentum) but I don’t know if it has any adverse effects…
(Of course, this doesn’t stop you cheating with the shoulders!)
February 9th, 2008 at 11:28 am
Sifaan- Leaning against a wall or sitting down are common ways to make the movement more strict. As you said, less chance of using the hips and swinging with the back. No adverse effects by doing this, and you can easily step away from the wall to get a cheat rep or two at the end. Of course, there’s still the shoulders…
February 13th, 2008 at 12:45 pm
Good article. Simple and to the point. So many people get this wrong and it always puzzles me. I guess it’s usually a case of using more weight than you can handle, but often I see curls that look more like some sort of hip thrust with the elbows only flexing around 10deg - no kidding!
March 27th, 2008 at 12:14 pm
The hip thrust/simply jerking the bar up, I’ve always been good about avoiding, but after reading this article, it makes me wonder how far out I let my elbows go.
I think I’m good, however, as I follow a pretty essential rule of form with any free weight lifts: If my joints hurt more than the muscles I’m targeting at the end (or at all, really), I’m doing something wrong.
March 27th, 2008 at 10:40 pm
Witmonger- How far out to the sides your elbows go will depend on how wide/narrow your grip is when you do this lift, but how far out to the front is shoulder involvement. This is usually pretty easy to correct though with a bit of focus.
And that’s a good rule that you follow. More people need that kind of common sense.