When you enter the gym to train arms, you have to give certain exercises priority over others. After all, some movements simply work better than others. You cannot dedicate equal energy to every single exercise for a body part. You’d never place cable crossovers on the same level as incline bench press, when it came to chest. You’d never place leg extensions on the same plane as squats, when it came to leg training. Yet for some reason, many bodybuilders seem to just toss any and all exercises at the arms in the hopes of saturating them with a wide variety of stimulation, which will lead to growth. Variety is important in order to keep the muscles from becoming too complacent. However, you need to use the same solid stable of exercises continually because they do work. You’ll even see professional bodybuilders, at the top of their profession, using the same exercises they used their first day in the gym. Here are the top 5 movements for each of the parts of the upper arms.
Top Five Biceps Movements
1.Standing Biceps Barbell Curls
2.Standing Alternate Dumbbell Curls
3.EZ-Bar Preacher Curls
4.Seated Dumbbell Curls
5.Biceps Cable Curls
Top Five Triceps Movements
1.Skull Crushers
2.Close-Grip Bench Press
3.Triceps Dumbbell Press Behind Head
4.Triceps Cable Pressdowns
5.Dumbbell Kickbacks
When it comes to training the biceps, heavy metal rules. You will notice your gym is likely packed with trainers using every sort of biceps cable and machine movement known to man. It’s much less common to see the same trainers using set after set of standing barbell curls. They’re heavy, they are painful, and there’s nothing glamorous about them. But they work! Start your day with barbell curls and work your way down the list.
The triceps comprise the majority of the bulk, or the meat, of the upper arm. Many bodybuilders mistakenly train their biceps with reckless abandon, yet neglect the much larger triceps muscle. Nobody ever asks one to “flex your triceps!” of course. However, a complete and thorough arm training routine places three-fifths of the total number of sets in the triceps category. As a result your training ratio on a standard arm day will be 3:2 triceps:biceps. Always begin your routine with the two exercises which add the most muscle mass to the upper arms, skull crushers and close-grip bench pressing. From there, you can use a variety of dumbbell and cable movements to help better shape the triceps head.
Forearms will need direct stimulation work, but only after the biceps and triceps have received adequate stimulation. They can be trained at either the conclusion of biceps and triceps training on arm day, or at the tail end of back training. Begin your forearm training with four sets of either hammer curls or reverse-grip biceps curls using the EZ-curl bar. Then, move to wrist curls with a very light barbell to complete the day. You’ll be spending only 8 sets on forearms, so train them to the maximum to make each set count.
