Re-Thinking Bicep Curls and Consideration on Working The Biceps Brachii Muscles

Quick Brief Summary of Biceps and What They Do

Inside the gym we all ways see lots of people working out their arms and one of the main exercises I see for arms is the bicep curl.    This is a good simple workout for those people who are looking to get bigger arms or just wish to have more definition.  Any workout is better than no work out, however I think a better understanding of what the muscle does and how you might be unknowingly not making maximum use of your time while training your Biceps.

Lets review! The Biceps brachii or biceps as it is generally called has two muscle heads.   The two heads are the long head and the short head and both originate in at two different points on the scapula (the part where the shoulder is made up). The two muscle heads then insert down on to the radial tuberosity just past the elbow.

So why does this matter your asking yourself?  Because ,by just looking at where the long head originates, we know it has some effect on flexing at the shoulder.  It is a small affect but still some affect.  We also know that it plays a small part in supinating the forearm.

So the biceps main function is to flex the elbow, then a minor role in shoulder flexion and lastly a minor role as well in supination of the forearm.   If we were to put all three of those motions together we would have standing bicep curl with weights to our side.  Next as we begin to curl we would perform a rotation of the weights as early as possible so palms are facing up.   Continue with the curl as you bring the weight up towards your shoulder until you can’t curl any more.  At this point raise the shoulder up by 5 to 10 degrees.  (Doing this will raise the point of your elbow up).

Notice the Supination and elbow raised?

Congrats!  You have performed a bicep curl and work all three jobs the Biceps Brachii are responsible for. 

Now this is just some technical methods to consider when working out your biceps.  When it comes down to it, nothing beats hard work and repetition, and to stay motivated you need to mix up your workouts.  This is why I’ve included a link to some other methods to consider while working out.  Check this link below for more ideas or click here!