Top 5 best bicep builders

Most people have been training their biceps the same way for decades: grab a bar, curl it up, throw in some dumbbell curls and hope their arms eventually get bigger. That works — up to a point. But if you want genuinely impressive biceps, exercise selection should be more intelligent. The biceps don't experience the same mechanical challenge in every curl. Changing the position of your upper arm, the resistance curve and even the direction of the cable can completely change where an exercise becomes hardest.

Interestingly, recent research comparing different types of curls suggests that exercise choice may even influence where along the elbow flexors the greatest growth occurs. One trial comparing preacher and incline curls found greater proximal growth with incline curls and greater distal growth with preacher curls. So rather than doing five versions of essentially the same curl, build your biceps from different angles.

1. The Bayesian Cable Curl

If you've never tried Bayesian curls properly, prepare for a completely different sensation from a normal cable curl. Stand facing away from a low cable with the working arm slightly behind your body. Allow the biceps to stretch at the bottom, then curl the handle upwards without allowing your elbow to drift forward.

The beauty of the Bayesian curl is that the cable keeps tension on the arm while the shoulder is extended behind the torso. Instead of getting an easy rest at the bottom as you can with some free-weight curls, you're immediately working against the cable. Recent research comparing Bayesian cable curls with preacher cable curls found substantial increases in biceps and brachialis thickness from both movements after ten weeks of training.

Don't chase weight. Let the arm extend behind you, pause briefly in the stretched position and curl without moving the shoulder. Try 3 sets of 8–12 reps per arm.

2. The Incline Dumbbell Curl

This old-school exercise has become interesting again because of the growing research into muscle length and resistance training. Set an incline bench to approximately 45–60 degrees and allow your arms to hang naturally behind the torso. Curl the dumbbells without bringing your elbows forward.

You won't be able to use as much weight as you can on standing curls — and that's precisely why ego lifters tend to avoid them. The biceps start each repetition in a relatively lengthened position. Research comparing incline and preacher curls found that incline curls produced greater increases in proximal elbow-flexor thickness, while preacher curls produced greater distal increases. That makes the two movements potentially excellent partners rather than competitors.

At the bottom of every repetition, straighten the elbow under control instead of immediately bouncing the dumbbell upwards. Try 3 sets of 8–10 reps.

3. The Preacher Curl With a Brutally Slow Negative

Preacher curls deserve far more respect than they sometimes receive. The bench removes one of the biggest problems with ordinary curls: cheating. Once your upper arm is planted against the pad, you can't easily turn the exercise into a combination of a curl, front raise and backward lean.

Research has shown preacher-curl training can significantly increase biceps thickness, and different preacher resistance profiles can both produce hypertrophy. But here's the upgrade. Instead of simply curling the weight up and dropping it back down, use a 3–4 second eccentric. Curl normally, squeeze at the top and then take three or four seconds to lower the weight.

Suddenly a weight that felt relatively easy becomes savage. Don't completely relax at the bottom and don't hyperextend the elbow. Maintain control throughout the repetition. Try 3 sets of 6–10 reps with a 3–4 second lowering phase.

4. The Cross-Body Hammer Curl

If you want bigger-looking arms, don't become obsessed with the biceps brachii alone. Underneath it sits the brachialis, while the brachioradialis contributes significantly to the muscular appearance of the upper forearm. Developing the entire elbow-flexor complex can make the arm look substantially thicker.

This is where hammer curls earn their place. Hold the dumbbell with a neutral grip and curl it diagonally towards the opposite side of your chest. Don't rotate the wrist into a conventional curl. The movement is simple, heavy and extremely effective.

There's another advantage. After several sets of supinated curls, switching to a neutral grip allows you to continue training the elbow flexors without simply repeating exactly the same movement. Alternate arms and make every repetition independent. Avoid swinging the dumbbells or using momentum. Try 3 sets of 8–12 reps per arm.

5. The Mechanical Drop-Set Curl

This is the unconventional one. Instead of reducing the weight when you reach failure, you change your mechanical advantage. Start with the hardest curl variation. When you can no longer perform clean repetitions, immediately move into an easier position and continue using the same dumbbells.

For example, begin with incline dumbbell curls, move immediately into standing strict curls and finish with controlled hammer curls. You might get 8 incline curls, another 5 standing curls and then 5–8 hammer curls. The dumbbells never changed. Your body position did.

This creates a large amount of work from a single extended set and makes an excellent finisher when you don't want to perform endless conventional sets. The important word here is finisher. Don't perform five giant mechanical drop sets and wonder why your elbows hate you the following morning. One or two mechanical drop sets at the end of the workout is plenty.

The Bigger-Biceps Formula

The real innovation isn't finding one magical curl. It's combining exercises that challenge your arms differently. A highly effective biceps session could consist of 3 sets of 8–12 Bayesian cable curls, 3 sets of 6–10 preacher curls with slow negatives, 3 sets of 8–12 cross-body hammer curls and one final mechanical drop set. On another training day, swap the Bayesian curl for incline dumbbell curls.

That gives you loading with the upper arm behind the body, loading with the arm supported in front of the body, neutral-grip work for the wider elbow-flexor complex and a high-intensity finishing technique. But there's one final rule that matters more than finding exercise number six.

Record Your Curls

Most people know exactly what they bench press. Ask them what they curled three weeks ago and they haven't got a clue. If your goal is bigger biceps, start treating curls like serious exercises and write down the weight and repetitions you perform.

If you perform 10 clean reps with 16 kg dumbbells today, aim for 11 next time. Eventually reach 12, then increase the weight and begin building the repetitions again. That gradual progression is far more important than constantly changing exercises because you saw a new curl on social media.

Your biceps don't know whether an exercise is fashionable. They respond to tension, effort, progression and recovery. Pick several great movements, perform them properly and become significantly stronger at them over time. Do that consistently and your arms will have very little choice but to adapt.