Bicep Workouts

The Biceps...

Quite the controversial muscle to workout, many people have completely different ideas on how to workout this muscle group. Ill agree, there is many ways on working them out, but what techniques work for you? The key to this muscle group is finding out what develops your biceps and what doesn't work for you. It is also said that over working this muscle can cause a reverse effect. I believe that this is not true, my theory for biceps is quite simple, work them out until they dont work anymore.

Now you may ask yourself what biceps exercises should I do? Well I can give you my 3 top picks for bicep workouts.

1. Barbell curls:


A very important workout to start off with, it targets the entire bicep, and is perfect for developing large biceps muscles. Now this does not mean its a wonder workout, especially if you dont perform them properly. This exercise should be done with heavy weights, with a total of 4 sets, and maybe a burnout at the end. Im not going to get too specific with the reps you should do for each set, but you need to know that heavy is the way to go, never let your muscles get used to a certain weight, challenge them with the next set with even more weight!!!

** How to do Barbell Curls Properly**
Keep hands about shoulder width apart, do not sway back and forth while performing your reps, keep your back straight, and keep knees bent for extra pushing power if needed. The bar should start where your biceps are fully extended, and reach to the highest point possible (do not move elbows forward, keep them by your side).

2. "21's" or 21 reps
A lot people consider this exercise to be the most effective for bicep muscle workout because it delivers growth and definition, obviously a strong contender when it comes to results!
4 sets of this workout should be more than enough!

**How to perform 21's**
The reps are divided into three sets of seven reps, performed in a row without resting with a barbell or a easy bar. Your first set will begin with 7 reps reaching about the same spot where your belly button is and back down, until you hit the magic number 7, then you go for another set that starts at your belly button and goes to the highest point you can possibly contact your biceps (without moving elbows from your sides). Now for your last 7 reps, these start from the bottom and end all the way at the top (full motion). Its a tough workout but the results are just amazing!

3. Hammer curls (side and straight)

This exercise targets the outer parts of the bicep muscle, quite effective when talking about diameter of the upper arms.
I prefer to do side hammer curls, I believe them to be more effective. I believe they gave me an extra 1/2 " on diameter on my biceps in less than 2 months.
Hammer curls are quite simple to perform, all you have to do is stand or sit straight, grab some dumbbells and start curling without twisting your wrists. The side hammers are a little different, same starting point, but instead of straight up the barbell comes up to the chest, as if you were flexing in front of a mirror.