Flex 2018-03-01 Flex Magazine | Page 92

BEST ALL-AROUND BICEPS MASS MOVE

KNEE-JERK REACTION “ Well , sure , but I ’ ve seen lots of guys turn it into a lousy lower back exercise .”

OUR EXPERTS ’ TAKE The standing barbell curl is universally lauded by our experts as a solid biceps builder , which can annihilate both the long outer head and short inner head of the biceps when done correctly . But “ correctly ” is crucial . Your ego will whisper in your ear , “ Slide the 45s on each side , you can do it .” Chances are , you can ’ t — and attempting too heavy a load means you ’ ll be jutting your hips forward to start the movement , then leaning way back to get your elbows under the bar . Your biceps will barely see any action at all .

HOW TO DO IT Q In a standing position , feet placed shoulder-width apart , hold a barbell with a shoulder-width underhand grip , arms extended . Q Maintaining a tight core , with your chest up and head straight , flex your biceps to curl the bar from hip level toward your upper chest , keeping your elbows at your sides throughout . Q Hold for a count at full contraction at the top , then slowly return the bar along the same path .

KEY POINTERS The standard shoulder-width grip tends to hit both the long and short head of the two-headed biceps muscle well , but you can adjust your grip to emphasize one of them more . A wider grip works the short head — it ’ s on the inside of your arm and helps give the overall muscle more width and thickness — while a closer grip inside shoulder width stimulates the long head , which runs on the outside of your arm and forms the “ peak ” when flexed .

Add chains on each

which increase the resistance one link at a time as you lift .