5 Dumbbell Biceps Exercises You Haven’t Tried Yet

Nearly everyone loves the idea of more muscular arms, and the idea of bigger biceps has probably driven more people to start lifting weights than almost any other goal.

And if you grew up in the 80’s, this image may have done more to convince you to buy your first at-home weight set than COVID-19 did in 2020.

Predator biceps

The challenge with biceps training is that it can feel fairly repetitive, especially if you don’t have access to cables or machines. After all, you can only do so many barbell curls, dumbbell curls and hammer curls before it feels like you’re just repeating the same motion over and over (hint: you pretty much are).

With that in mind, here are 5 dumbbell curl variations that you may have never tried before – perfect for those of you who work out at home, who have to use small hotel gyms to train when traveling, or for navigating a busy commercial gym at 5pm when all you can find is a bench and some dumbbells.

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Zane Curl

Named after former Mr. Olympia Frank Zane, this dumbbell curl variation ramps up the challenge level by forcing one arm to hold an isometric contraction while the other arm works. I highly recommend you switch which arm goes first from set to set, as the second arm to perform the curl will tend to feel much more challenging than the first after having held a contraction first.

Zottman Curl

This curl variation adds extra workload to the forearms, as you’ll be using a heavier weight than you could typically do for a standard reverse curl. You’ll do a traditional palms-up, or supinated, curl on the way up, where the biceps are more active, before turning the palms down (pronating) on the way down, which removes the biceps and overloads the forearms.

This type of training is referred to as an accentuated eccentric, a training technique that I learned from Charles Poliquin when I started attending his training courses in the early 2010’s, and is a great way to bring strength up on a lagging muscle group.

1-Arm Dumbbell Preacher Curl

The preacher curl, also sometimes referred to as a Scott curl (after former Mr. Olympia Larry Scott), typically uses a specialized piece of equipment to perform, especially if you’re trying to perform it with a barbell or EZ curl bar. However, if you’re using a single dumbbell and only doing one arm at a time, an incline bench can be just as effective and much easier to find.

Be careful not to extend your arm completely as the biceps tendon is in a fairly compromised position with the upper arm locked into position. Stopping 10-15 degrees short of full extension and focusing on the contraction at the top is a much better route to take.

Incline Dumbbell Curl

The incline curl is essentially the opposite of the preacher curl – instead of the arm being in front of your torso and the focus being placed on the contraction, the arm is positioned behind you, with more of the emphasis being placed on the stretch position. Unlike the preacher curl, you should absolutely extend your arm all the way – I prefer to think about actually flexing the triceps at the bottom, which pulls the biceps into a fully stretched position.

Dumbbell Spider Curl

This is a fairly similar movement to the preacher curl as far as arm position, but is more practical for using two dumbbells at the same time. It’s also a little tougher to execute as there isn’t anything to lock the arm into position – you have to be more conscious about doing it yourself.

I like to keep both dumbbells touching throughout the curl, actually trying to squeeze the ends together the whole time. This is a technique I picked up from John Meadows, who would refer to this style of spider curl as an “incline concentration curl.”

Give these different dumbbell curl variations a try, and let me know your favorite in the comments below!

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