The
Incline Dumbell Curl is an excellent exercise
for building the biceps. It places a great stretch
on the muscles at the bottom of the movement and
results in a strong contraction at the top. I've
found a way to make it even better!
Bracing
your upper arms when you train your biceps is
a great way to increase the strictness of the
exercise, ensuring you are placing more tension
on the target muscles while keeping you from cheating
on the movement. When applied to the incline curl,
bracing can not only increase the strictness of
the exercise, it can add a dimension to the exercise
that cannot be found any other way -- you can
actually turn the exercise into an incline preacher
curl!
To
do this exercise in the gym, you will need a power
rack or Smith machine.
Set
a flat bench in the rack and set an Olympic bar
to about 6 inches above the level of the bench.
Place the bar back against the uprights of the
rack to keep it from moving as you'll be leaning
back into the bar during the movement.
Pick
up two dumbells and sit on the bench with your
back to the bar. Sit about 6 inches in front of
the bar. Lean back into the bar and brace your
upper arms just above the elbow against the bar.
Don't rest them on the bar - brace them against
the bar. This is very important as if you rest
them on the bar, you will lose much of the tension
of the exercise. You may need to adjust where
on your arm you place the bar - it can also be
placed higher up on the arm if the lower position
is uncomfortable.
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Starting with
your arms straight and stretched, begin
the curl movement with both dumbells. Keep
your upper arms against the bar at all times
as you curl the dumbells.
The bar will
act as your pivot point for the curl, forcing
maximal tension on the biceps throughout
the movement. If you are doing this in the
rack, be careful you don't bang the dumbells
into the side safety rails. This exercise
can also be done one arm at a time.
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Squeeze your
biceps hard at the top, then lower the dumbells
back down under full control. When you come
to the bottom of the movement, let your
arms fully extend while still maintaining
tension in the biceps.
This will
stretch them out fully as well as giving
you the most tension on the next rep (trust
me!). After several reps of this exercise,
you should feel a very strong pump in your
biceps.
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This picture
shows where on your arm the bar should be
braced.
If you experience
any pain with the position, you can drop
your arm down and brace the bar higher up
on your arm.
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This
exercise is excellent for increasing the tension
on the biceps through all aspects of an incline
curl. Give it a try the next time you do your
biceps!
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