Best Bicep Workout Routine

In the last post we discussed in detail the essential principles of constructing a bicep workout. In this post we’ll discuss in greater detail exercises for isolating connecting muscles for developing thick, full arms. Because this could be a rather long topic, we’ll stick to those muscles associated with the biceps in terms of pulling actions, namely the biceps brachii, the brachialis, and the brachioradialis.

But before we discuss these elements individually, there are a few things worth repeating from the previous post. The most important is that our bodies grow best when exercised as a whole, using big compound movements that provide the greatest total exercise intensity and fatigue in the shortest period of time. The biceps and triceps are muscles that receive indirect exercise every time you push and pull a weight. So if you’re doing bench press or pull-ups, your biceps and triceps are also being exercised. If you’re lifting heavy enough, these compound lifts will sufficiently recruit and exhaust the fast twitch muscle fibers targeted for growth in the arms. In other words, when training for power or performance, there may be no need for a bicep workout as such.

That said, if one does add in isolation arm work for purposes of bodybuilding or physique sculpting, keep in mind that the energy needed to train, break down, and reconstruct the arms after a serious bicep workout will take energy and recovery time away from those lifts which offer the greatest overall muscular growth for the body as a whole. This is something that must be balanced and monitored closely. There are very few sports that benefit from very strong arm strength in isolation. Most performance and power sports require the body to work as a unit, and therefore training it to do so not only produces systemic power, it also enhances motor memory and speed.

Ok, so that’s my pitch for focusing on compound lifts, and only using a bicep workout routine infrequently as a supplement to an otherwise strictly compound lift training program. By infrequent, I mean training the biceps in isolation no more than once a week, and depending on the intensity, once every 10 to 14 days. But for those that want biceps that make women swoon, let’s get to it. Have a look at this picture of the biceps.

You’ll notice a few muscles surrounding the biceps, and while biceps brachii training is sufficient for strength and tone, if you’re looking for massive arms, you’ll need to make sure that the brachialis, which rests under the biceps brachii and can be seen, when developed, on both sides of the arm between the biceps and triceps, and the brachioradialis, which runs from the brachialis to half way down the forearm. So lets look at the exercises needed to develop said muscles.

1. Curls.

Any bicep workout routine must, I say MUST, include a basic standing or seated curl. This can be done with a barbell or with dumbbells. When performed with dumbbells, all three major muscles mentioned above are targeted. When performed standing with a barbell, the biceps brachii and brachialis are targeted, and to a lesser degree, the brachioradialis. If done in conjunction with a proper total body program, this exercise alone, performed in 5 to 10 sets, one day a week, is sufficient to develop the arms and add significant mass.

2. Hammer Curls.

Curling a dumbbell while keeping your palm inward is the best exercise for developing the brachioradialis. It also develops the biceps brachii, brachialis, and to a lesser degree, several muscles along the forearm. This exercise along with a basic dumbbell or barbell curl, where the ending position results with palms facing the chest completes the circuit of exercises needed to sufficiently target and develop the biceps and surrounding muscles.

3. Preacher Curls and Machine Curls

This is one of the best exercises for targeting the biceps brachii. As if the previous exercises weren’t targeted enough, eliminating all extraneous movement that comes with the previous exercises allows you to hit the biceps harder and more directly. This exercise should be seen as a supplement to a bicep workout routine that contains curls, and should not be done exclusively or in place of them.

So that’s it. Is that every bicep exercise? No, by no means. But when I work with clients I assume they want the greatest results with minimal efforts. One could always add more exercises to a bicep workout, but I doubt they produce greater results than those listed above. Increasing poundage, volume, or the number of repetitions is sufficient to stimulate new growth.

The advantage of adding a bicep workout to your overall fitness program is obvious, it allows you to concentrate and isolate the biceps. This allows for greater intensity in training them and should result in strong gains. The downside, as mentioned, is that all resistance training taps into limited energy stores and recuperative ability. So one needs to factor in time to recover from each and every session.

Bicep Workout Routines

Beginner Bicep Workout:

4 to 5 sets of 6 to 10 reps of curls, 1 to 2 days per week

3 sets of 6 to 10 reps of curls followed by 3 sets of 6 to 10 reps of hammer curls

Intermediate to Advanced Bicep Workout (1 day per week):

3 sets of 8 to 12 reps or barbell curl

plus

3 sets of 8 to 12 reps of hammer curls

plus

3 sets of 6 to 10 reps of preacher curls or machine curls

An alternative for athletes and performance sports players

As I said previously, a bicep workout routine may not be necessary as the biceps and surrounding muscles can be developed with compound lifts. A wrestler or a mixed martial artist will see little practical value in doing isolation exercises for the biceps. There is great value for them however in performing compound lifts like pull-ups and rows. If, when working on the back, one adds in a simple reverse chin (a pull up where the hands are less than shoulder width apart and the palms face toward you), you can intensely exhaust the biceps and brachialis along with your lats. And adding a cable row with palms inward facing can complete the trio by sufficiently working brachioradialis.

The difference is that this will maximize recuperative ability as well as training efficiency. And with a proper diet with sufficient calories, will result in big bulging biceps. So each of us needs to decide what we’re training for, before we determine the value of adding a bicep workout to an otherwise comprehensive routine. If one decides to go for, let your bicep workout routine stick to the essentials and monitor your weights, sets, reps, and rest times for more scientific analysis.

Welcome to Best Bicep Workout Routine. Before we get into any specific bicep routine, let’s discuss the factors that comprise the best bicep workout.

Bicep Workout Principles

The principles of muscle gain are the same regardless of which muscles you’re talking about or what kind of person you’re talking about. The best bicep workout routine will need to adhere to these muscle building principles if it is going to be effective. So let’s break down the most crucial elements of muscle building so we can then create a bicep workout routine guaranteed to pack on the meat.

The first principle our bicep workout must adhere to is that of progressive overload. Progressive overload is the notion that each successive workout must surpass the previous workout in terms of intensity (pounds lifted per bicep workout). Intensity can be measured by multiplying the amount of weight you’re lifting by the number of repetitions, and then dividing that number by the time it takes to complete your bicep workout. Naturally this number will be different for everyone. No one can give you an exact routine for your body and current strength level but you. You have to scientifically monitor your bicep workouts.

Applying this principle to your bicep workout routine may take some trial and error. This equation is not as simple as ‘curl more weight and get bigger’. You may be able to curl 50 pounds 40 times in 5 minutes while you may be able to lift 70 pounds 27 times in the same amount of time. Even though in the second scenario you are lifting heavier weight, your body is actually exerting greater force and energy (pounds lifted per minute) in the first scenario, and therefore the first scenario makes for the better bicep workout for you. This is a hard concept for many gym rats to accept, because they think the heavier the better, but not so when it comes to building big biceps.

Another principle related to intensity is duration. Your bicep workout should not last very long. The biceps are small relatively small muscles, and beating them up will only exhaust you and require a great deal of time to recover. Not to mention it isn’t very scientific. While you may not be able yet to increase the weight you’re lifting in your bicep workout, and you may not be able to increase the number of repetitions, you can still increase the intensity of the workout routine by making it shorter. If last week your bicep routine consisted of curling 50 pounds 50 times in 15 minutes (including rest times), and this week you did the same weight for the same number of repetitions in 10 minutes, then you have dramatically increased the intensity of your bicep workout, and you’ve likely stimulated new muscle growth.

Even though we are talking about bicep workouts, let’s not forget that the largest muscles in the body are capable of generating the most force and exerting the most energy in the shortest amount of time. Lifting these muscle groups, the legs, the chest, and the back muscles, are essential for all around muscle growth. That’s right, lifting your legs has a direct and positive impact on bicep growth. Muscle building hormones are excreted when the larger muscles are worked heavily and these hormones help build muscle all around.

The best bicep workouts will not focus only on the biceps, they will focus on large muscle groups and compound movements which use the biceps to perform the motion, and for example pull ups or rows. Curls are isolation exercises, and while they can be beneficial, the fastest growth will be had if your bicep workout is really more of a total body workout with a couple sets of curls thrown in at the end to failure or exhaustion.

Bicep Workout Frequency

Now, even though we’re talking about the best bicep workouts, and rest is not exactly part of a routine, it does need to be factored in to your over all muscle building plan. As your biceps become stronger, greater force will be required to break them down and consequently more time required in order for you body to recover and construct stronger, bigger muscles.

Therefore the frequency of your bicep workouts should DECREASE, not increase, as you become stronger. Where you may have been able to do a bicep workout 3 times a week in the beginning, added strength and size requires more intense training, and that training must be done less frequently, perhaps only once a week or once every other week.

Feed Your Biceps

And finally, eat. A bicep workout routine does not build muscle, it breaks muscle down. Bodybuilding is destructive. It’s your body’s adaptive response to this stressful situation that causes it to build bigger and stronger muscles, and for that your body requires fuel and the raw tools to construct new biceps…food. If you want to grow, you need to consume more calories per day than what your base metabolic rate requires.

Your Best Bicep Workout Routine

Now, if you’re still with me, you’re probably wondering why I haven’t talked about specific bicep exercises for your bicep workout routine. I haven’t done so because it isn’t too complicated. If you select one exercise that maximizes resistance on the bicep, namely, the bicep curl, and apply the principles above to your bicep workout, you have all the tools you need to grow massive biceps. And with the ability to measure intensity comes the ability to customize your workouts for greater intensity every session.

Angles and variety of exercises are good to alleviate boredom, but there is no scientific evidence that including various exercises, specific weights, or certain reps does anything in particular for you. You need to study yourself, and apply that knowledge with one or two basic bicep exercises, either the compound exercises of rowing or pull-ups, or the simple bicep curl. You’ll then have the best bicep workout routine anyone could provide for you.