The 5 best exercises for your biceps

Before we explain how to best target the biceps, let's first explain the anatomy of this upper arm muscle itself.

The 'biceps brachii muscle' consists of two parts; the long head and the short head. The short head of each biceps brachii originates at the top of the scapula (at the coracoid process). The long head originates just above the shoulder joint (at the supraglenoid tubercle). Both heads are joined at the elbow. For the sake of convenience, we call the Biceps brachii 'just' the biceps in this blog! But there is more: in addition to the Biceps brachii, your upper arm also consists of the Brachialis and Brachioradialis. To keep it simple, the brachialis muscle is located below the biceps. This one is responsible for bending and rotating your arm. The brachioradialis is part of your forearm and its function is to bend your elbow joint. For the sake of convenience, we call the Brachioradialis the forearm muscle in this blog.

We explain what we think are the five best exercises for developing impressive biceps! It is therefore important to include all components in your training.

1. Barbell curl

Grab a barbell and choose a weight with which you can do around 8 to 12 repetitions. Stand up straight with the elbows at your sides, this is also where you keep the elbows while performing the exercise. Then you make the full movement: start with your arms outstretched and make the movement upwards. You really focus on your biceps (with the brachialis and brachioradialis controlling the movement).

2. Barbell Preacher curl

Take a seat on the 'Preacher bench'. Grab an EZ bar and on it you put the weight with which you can do around 8 to 12 reps. Perform the exercise with an underhand grip.

3. Hammer curl

The hammer curl! This is a real winner for your forearms, the exercise mainly focuses on the forearm muscle. Both with dumbbells and with the use of a cable. Grab the dumbbells or ropes in both hands, wrists facing each other. Again with the elbows at your sides, make the full movement. First extend all the way up and then contract. You also repeat this 8 to 12 times for one set.

4. Dumbbell curl

The dumbbell bicep curl is, as the name suggests, again for the biceps. Just like the barbell curl, but with dumbbells. The big difference is that here you can choose whether you move both arms at once or separately from each other. If you do the movement one by one, you can use a little more strength. You repeat this 12 to 15 times for one set.

5. Reverse curl

Last but not least, the reverse bicep curl. This one works the same as number one, the barbell bicep curl. The big difference is that you hold the bar with an overhand grip, so your wrists towards the ground. This is another exercise specifically for your forearms. In addition, the movement that your forearm muscle makes is guided by the biceps. You also repeat this 12 to 15 times per set.
If you want to vary, you can, for example, also do the reverse curl with a cable. As you may know, variation is always recommended when you want to stimulate the muscles to the maximum. For example, do a dropset .

On to the gains!