How to go about building biceps is probably one of the most inquired about questions out there these days. After all, which guy wouldn't want to have an impressive pair of strong muscular arms with tall peaking biceps peaking out of them? Or biceps that women go crazy for. The stereotype of a guy who works out at his gym has always been a huge guy with bulging biceps doing bicep curls.
This muscle group is probably the only one on the human body which has earned itself scores of nicknames such as 'Guns', 'Pythons', 'Thunder and Lightning' and the 'Rockweillers' to name a few. Also, it doesn't matter what kind of a guy you are - fat, skinny, health conscious or simply lazy, there is not one group of men who would turn down an opportunity to enhance these muscles and flaunt them! Especially to women who like feeling on them.
Gone are the days when bulging biceps were only for professional bodybuilders and weightlifters...these days almost anyone can read up stuff on the internet or join a local gym and start on a strict work out regime to pump their arms. It has now become an obsessive addiction and has guys even carrying their weights with them on business trips so that mere meetings and presentations do not break their workout regime!
However, long believed notions that, the longer you spend slogging it out with your weights the bigger your bicep is not really true. While that may work for a short-term solution, it's not a sound long-term training strategy. Sooner or later, when the stress placed on the targeted muscle becomes more than the muscle can recover from, your body will start to suffer from overtraining. When that happens, muscle growth stops and injuries occur.
Another problem, which is common, is that, no matter how many exercises some people do, their arms stay about the same size. Why? Well, it's generally from training the wrong way.
5 of the most common problems with bicep training are examined in the text below combined with step-by-step program to take your bicep peak to new heights.
Problem #1 - More is not always better
The first thing to remember always is not to overwork the muscles and this rules applies to your biceps as well. You only need to work out twice a week, incorporating 3 sets of 6 to 8 reps each, in order to see the results. When you 'over train' yourself, you're not allowing your muscles the time they need to rest and build back and are therefore prone to injuries. Contrary to what you might think, working your biceps too many times a week will actually take away your results.
The way to build big powerful biceps is by lifting more weight. You can't expect to do three sets of curls with a light amount of weight and see any growth. You'll need to add on an extra pound or two and push yourself with heavier weights to get the results you're looking for.
Problem #2 - Look at me! Am I looking good?
This problem goes hand in hand with problem # 1. Most men love to see themselves in the mirror while training and therefore are prone to be more interested in noticing how they look while training rather than training itself! This narcissist trait will not do any good at all. Though training for a considerable period of time at the gym will cause your biceps to peak up for sure, as well as get you admiring glances, the honest truth in all of this is that the longer you keep at the weights in this fashion, the higher the chances are that you will 'over train' and wear your muscles out. Also, if you try doing this with weights that do not overload your muscles and emphasize an increase in your strength, your biceps will deflate quickly and your "look" will vanish leaving you with no muscle growth at all and a whole lot of wasted time spent at the gym!
Problem #3 - All round increase in strength Vs Peaked biceps only
Another problem many guys are faced with is that whether to work on the biceps only or go in for chest, back and shoulder exercises too? All they know is the end result - have well built arms and look spanking good. Working more on your chest, back and shoulders will increase your strength overall and will also beef up your biceps. This all round work out will be more proportional and you will not have to worry about having strong well-built arms with a thinner body. Simply focusing on the biceps all by itself will have feeling tired and drained by the end of it and with a lesser developed chest and back.
It is advisable to gradually increase the weights on your rowing, pull-ups and chin-ups as well as other common back and shoulder exercises and your biceps will gradually develop along in a proportional manner.
Problem #4 - Using the same bicep exercises every time
The most common of all recommended exercises to building your biceps are barbell curls and dumbbell curls. 2 sets of 5 - 7 reps of barbell curls along with standing dumbbell curls - 1 set of 5 - 7 reps should start you off properly. These sets undertaken seriously and regularly will produce results in the short span of time. However, one should remember that if continuing with the same set of exercises, week after week, one should gradually increase the weights and reps to see effective results and actually growth of muscles.
One can try to build the barbell curls up to 110 pounds approximately, and undertake a few slow speed sets with these, and your dumbbell curls to up to 50 pounds or so, doing these in slow speed sets too. This will gradually tone your arms and will enhance muscle growth.
Once you reach this stage of barbell curls of 110 pounds, you would be ready to variate your exercises to involve the bar too. Initially you can start off by reducing the weights a little to get you accustomed to the rig, but then gradually you will have to build up the weights to the 110 pound level in order for the exercises to be effective.
Bicep Exercise 1: Place your elbows outwards, using a super-close grip, thereby stressing the outer portion of your biceps. Do this a couple of times.
Bicep Exercise 2: Next, you will "stress" the inner portion of your biceps by taking a super-wide grip on the bar and digging your elbows into your side without moving an inch.
Bicep Exercise 3: The brachialis and brachioradialis are the last in focus in this set of bar exercises. You are advised to stick to common hammer curls and reverse curls while doing this particular exercise.
Problem #5 on biceps - Being too easy on the muscle
For guys training to build their biceps, it is important to know and understand the concept of training a single group of muscles in isolation to the rest. Not understanding this simple, basic truth can lead to fatigue and over trained muscles. Biceps are a group of muscles which are highly responsive to strain / tension on them. Therefore, continuously concentrating your efforts on this little group without any sloppiness, or swinging motions whilst you are exercising will produce the results you are expecting in a short time and which will also lead to actually muscle growth of the biceps. Swinging while exercising or sloppy exercises will spread the tension around the muscle groups and therefore the biceps are "spared" from feeling the full force of the tension. Whilst exercising, the bar should be kept constantly moving, without pausing at the top or bottom, focusing on squeezing the bar and never stopping for regular rests in between until the set is over. The goal of sticking to such a rigorous manner of exercising is to not allow any oxygen into the muscle, which will then create a spike with your anabolic hormones to promote muscle growth. Trainers can also resort to a slower - 3-0-3 or 4-0-4 - tempo to achieve desired results in bicep muscle growth.
Yomi A is a freelance writer for Build Muscle Mass 101. He promotes a workout program called No Nonsense Muscle Building This is the same program that has help many guys get the muscular physique that women go crazy for. You can get more information on this muscle building program at http://www.buildmusclemass101.com
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