HOW TO: Spider Curl

HUGE BICEPS BUILDER!

By Scott Herman • Published Jul, 21, 2025

The Spider Curl effectively targets both heads of the biceps helping you build strength and increase muscle mass!

Sure, standing barbell biceps curls are great.

But for most people this is where bad habits like falling forward during the eccentric, using too much momentum and skipping full range of motion come from.

So if you want to learn how to TRULY target your biceps and increase your mind-muscle connection to the area, let's clean up your form by following the 3 GOLDEN RULES to a perfect SPIDER CURL!

GOLDEN RULE #1: Keep Arms Locked!

The only thing that should be moving when performing this movement is your forearms as you bend at the elbows. In fact, you should be actively pushing your upper arm FORWARD as you curl to help stabilize your upper arm as you lift the weight up and down.

GOLDEN RULE #2: Full Range of Motion

Because we’re laying on an incline bench and have to focus on stabilizing the upper arm, this means we can take advantage of keeping maximum tension on the biceps throughout the entire range of motion.

Especially at the BOTTOM of the movement, also known as the sticking point.

I’d also recommend a slight pause at the top of the movement so you can focus on a hard squeeze or flex of your biceps at the top of every repetition.

Now before we get to the final Golden Rule, be sure to checkout my exercise database if you need more help with exercise form. Finding new exercises is as easy as clicking the muscle groups you want to train!

You can also make your way to my programs section and try any of my muscle building or fat loss routines for 7 days free when you sign up!

GOLDEN RULE #3: Flex Your CORE & Glutes

Now this might seem weird, but flexing your core and glutes will help to stabilize your torso so you can maximize the amount of weight you can curl. If your body is “loose”, because of the positioning as the barbell goes up, your upper body will have to work harder to fight to keep your upper-arm stabilized in place.

However, if your upper-body is solid while laying on the bench this becomes a whole lot easier. So do your best to keep everything tight as you perform your reps!

One last thing before you go, if you guys are looking to upgrade your home gym and need some of the equipment used in this video such as an EZ Curl Olympic Barbell or Adjustable bench. My friends at Gronk Fitness Products have everything you need and you can use my code “SCOTT5” for a discount at checkout.