Maximize Your Barbell Bicep Curls!
Inside Grip Vs. Outside Grip!
Although the shape of your biceps will be determined by your genetics, you can always build bigger arms by increasing the size of the muscle. The biceps or “Biceps Brachii” consists of two heads, the inner head (short head) and the outer head (long head).
Depending on the grip used with various bicep exercises, you can actually target each head to ensure that you are in fact working both areas effectively.
Remember that form will play a key role when trying to build bigger biceps as with any other muscle group. Chances are that if you have been working your biceps for some time and haven’t seen much in terms of growth, you could be not using the full range of motion on your exercises, cheating too much by swinging your arms / back or both.
The key to building bigger biceps is to execute the exercises with proper form which will require you to use a weight suitable to the amount of reps you are trying to complete per set.
Depending on what gene type you have, your body may react better to growing muscle tissue by training with high volume or less sets with the focus on lifting heavier weights.
For me, I tend to maximize my training results when I stay in the 6 – 8 rep range and include lots of drop sets and burn sets as well as shorter rest periods in my routines. For those of you who benefit more from lifting heavy, focus on taking longer rest periods, a smaller rep range and trying to add weight with each set.
If you are a beginner, you maybe need to experiment with both of these styles of lifting to see which one suits your body best in terms of results and growth.
Below I am going to share with you my top two exercises that target the long head and my top two exercises that target the short head.
Be sure to give them a try with your next bicep routine!
Top two barbell exercises to target the outer / long head of the bicep (close-grip)
- Barbell Drag Curl
- Inside Grip E-Z Bar Curl
Top two exercises to target the inner /short head of the bicep (wide-grip)
- Wide-Grip Barbell Curls
- Wide-Grip Preacher Curls With E-Z Curl Bar
Key points
- The wider the grip, the more emphasis on the inner head of the bicep.
- The closer the grip, the more emphasis on the outer head of the bicep.
