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2005/09/07, 09:38 PM
Before starting biceps exercises, it is important to understand the concept of supination during biceps curls. Supination is the act of rotating the arm from the elbow to the wrist so that the palm faces upwards. Hold your upper arm along the side of your body and raise your forearm from the elbow so that it is at right angles to the upper arm and parallel to the ground. Now rotate your forearm so that the palm faces upwards, in a begging position. This is the act of supination. Now rotate the forearm so that the palm faces the floor. This is the act of pronation.
To fully develop the biceps and to bring out the peaks in the flexed muscle, you must always supinate your hands as you do various permutations of dumbbell curls. Obviously, you can¡¦t do this with barbells or with EZ bars because your hands are restricted to a set position and cannot be rotated.
In order to demonstrate how supination is combined with curls, let us consider the simple standing dumbbell curl. The movement starts with the dumbbell held in the hand, palm facing the thigh. The curl is started bringing up the dumbbell in an arc from the elbow, while the upper arm is fixed in position against the side of your body. The dumbbell moves in a semicircle from the side of the thigh, all the way up to the shoulder. While this movement is taking place, you must simultaneously rotate the thumb outwards so that at the end of the movement the palm is facing towards your face. The more the wrist is rotated, the stronger the effect on the biceps.The combination of supination with every kind of curl adds that extra quality to biceps development.
Exercises for developing biceps:
Barbell Curls:
„h Keep the bar at arms length (elbows extended). Make sure that the bar is hanging in front of the thighs.
„h Now curl the bar by flexing (bending) at the elbows. The weight should elevate to the chest through an arc in front of the body. Exhale as you raise the weight. In this position the weight should not rest on the chest at the top of the movement.
„h Once the weight reaches the top it is then lowered through the same arc back to the original position. Inhale as the weight is lowered.
„h Continue this for as many repetitions as you can. To maximise the benefit from the exercise, contract your biceps forcefully at the height of the lift before beginning the descent.
Important: Never lean forward or back at any time during this lift. Make sure that the torso remains stationary.
Cable Curls :
„h Attach a medium sized bar to a cable pulley machine which has been fastened to the lowest socket about 6-8 inches from the pulley machine.
„h With back straight, knees unlocked, and feet hip-width apart hold the bar just outside of hips with palms up. Your arms should be extended straight down and the bar should be leaning on your upper thighs.
„h Keeping your elbows close to your body, use your biceps to curl the bar up to your chest.
„h Hold for a brief second flexing your biceps.
„h Lower the bar to the starting position in a slow, controlled manner. Keep your wrists straight and elbows at your side throughout the curl. Important Don¡¦ts: Don't let your elbows leave your sides. Don't sway your back or rock your body in an attempt to complete the lift. Don't just let the bar drop when lowering it. Let the bar down slowly resisting the weight of the bar.
Hammer Curls :
„h This works primarily for developing the lower belly of the biceps close to the elbow joint, a part which most beginners tend to neglect.
„h Hold the dumbbells at the side with the palms facing the body.
„h Raise one dumbbell by flexing (bending) the elbow until the dumbbell comes in contact with the shoulder. The hand and wrist should remain in the neutral (thumbs up) position throughout the entire lift. The upper arm and forearm should remain in the same plane.
„h Exhale when you raise the dumbbell and make sure that the movement should only occur at the elbow.
„h Now lower the dumbbell through the same arc until it reaches the original position at the side of the body. Inhale as you lower the dumbbell.
„h Repeat the same pattern on the opposite arm. Continue alternating arms for as many repetitions as possible.
Reverse Curls :
„h Performed exactly like a barbell curl.
„h The only difference is in the way that you hold the bar.
„h During the barbell curl the bar is held with the palms facing up and the thumb wrapped completely around the bar; for the reverse curl the palms face downwards with the thumbs lying along the index fingers.
Preacher Curls :
„h Set the preacher bench to a height so that the top margin of the bench is about the level of your ribcage when you are standing erect.
„h Take a firm grip on a barbell or EZ bar with the palms facing upwards, hands slightly wider apart than your shoulder width.
„h Lean over the bench with your upper arms running down the padded and angled surface of the bench.
„h The top edge of the bench should now be against your armpits. Now lower the barbell slowly and from this starting position slowly curl the bar up to your chin by bending your elbow and allowing the barbell to travel in a semicircular arc.
„h Repeat the movement for the desired number of times.
„h A variation can be performed by using a dumbbell and alternating between arms. Alternately a pulley with adjustable weights can be used for the exercise. Also try experimenting with different grip widths while doing this curl.
„h A favourite training trick with the pros is to do 5-6 slow burns once the arms are tired do a full lift. The bar is allowed to settle to the maximum extension of the elbows and raised a few inches or as high as possible. This allows the biceps to be exercised past the point of fatigue, maximising the benefits of the workout.
Dumbbell Curls :
„h Grasp two moderately weighted dumbbells and stand erect.
„h Run your arms down the sides of your body with your palms facing towards your legs.
„h Place your upper arms along the sides of your torso and keep them there throughout the range of the movement.
„h From this basic starting position, slowly curl the dumbbell upwards towards your shoulders, being sure to supinate your hand as described above.
„h Slowly lower the dumbbell back to the starting position.
„h Repeat the movement as many times as you want.
„h The exercise is usually done with alternate arms, one dumbbell beginning the curl at the time that the other arm is coming down.
Concentration Curls :
„h Sit at the end of a flat exercise bench or a stool.
„h Grasp a light dumbbell in your left hand. Keep your feet apart from each other (a little wider than shoulder width).
„h Bend over at the waist so that you can brace the lower end of your triceps of your left arm against the inside of your left knee.
„h Straighten your left arm fully and make sure your palm is fully extended at the start of the movement.
„h From this starting position, slowly curl the dumbbell up to your shoulder as you rotate your palm outwards (supination - see above).
„h Lower down slowly to the starting position and repeat the movement as many times as you can.
„h To get a peak contraction effect, hold the arm in the fully bent position for three or four seconds. At the same time tense your biceps as forcefully as possible.
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C.V.VISVESH
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