"Lengthening the negative engages more muscle fibers and makes your muscle work more.". In order for your bicep to work, your elbow needs to straighten completely, getting a nice stretch, and then flex completely, getting a tight contraction. I can take your training to the NEXT LEVEL! It’s all about core control. But Smith says most of his hacks and tweaks were borne out of necessity. Using the Smith machine also allows him to pause longer at the bottom of the movement, giving the chest muscles a serious stretch right before each contraction. This is an advanced bodybuilding tool and I wouldn’t suggest something like this for beginners. Keep elbows by your ears and upper arms in a vertical position as you smoothly lower the dumbbell over 30 seconds behind the head. What you are going to do is cheat the weight on the way up and then do a 5 count negative on the way down. I'd find all the different variations—because I didn't want to wait.". Barbell reverse curls (supersetted with Seated barbell wrist curls) 2 x 12 Return the weight back down with a slow and controlled tempo to the starting position, ... (negative) on the way back ... Place a Fat Grip around the dumbbell handle and perform your bicep curls. Even when performing “cheat” reps, your torso should still remain upright as much as possible. You can place your free hand on the base of your opposite thigh. Once in place, keep your elbows in front of your hips and curl all the way to the top but make sure your elbows stay in that fixed position. What I see, is essentially no elbow flexion and extension which is obviously compensated by almost uppercutting/boxing the air using the front delt to do the work. But letting the weight fall is even worse. Step 2: Let your arms hang down and stand straight up. Repeat the negative-only rep once more. Whenever you do any exercise in the gym, the stronger your core is, the more power you will be able to exert. This will help keep extra tension on your muscle fibers and further mimic a preacher curl movement. "I've had people say, 'oh, you don't need to go that slow,' and—I don't want to sound cocky—it's almost like the proof is in the pudding.". The content on our website is for informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice or to replace a relationship with a qualified healthcare professional. Lifting weights is associated with a concentric or muscle shortening contraction — the positive portion of the lift. That is what perfect form looks like. Or do eccentric curls, where you take twice as long to lower the dumbbell, aka the negative phase of the lift. 7) Incline Dumbbell Curls (outer head, biceps belly), 8 reps. Make sure that you squeeze at the top and fight the weight the whole way back down. The most experts claim that by making some specific phases intensely slow, you can compel your muscles work harder. I find that if you are very comfortable with regular bicep curls, then hammer curls can be … Heather’s mission is to use her passion for fitness and her knowledge of training and nutrition to educate and motivate others to enjoy a healthy and active lifestyle. Just ask rising fitness star Julian "The Quad Guy" Smith. That's what turned some guy into "The Quad Guy," after all. Using a weight belt or dumbbell between your legs, stand on the box and place your hands in the correct position on the bar before jumping yourself to the top of the chin-up with your head above the bar. But if you can control the weight, you'll find that your muscles must stay under constant tension to lower the weight. So, whenever you are doing a dumbbell curl, if you want to get the most amount of power to lift the most amount of weight, here’s what you do. Alternate arms … Check out my PROGRAMS and 1 on 1 Coaching! And now that we got that out of the way, let’s jump right into the 5 most common mistakes involving the dumbbell bicep curl! "I'd rather do the lightest amount of weight possible if it's going to stimulate my muscles the right way," he says. Bicep curl 50 lbs 2 x10 then negative 80 lbs 3 x 6 and so on. Smith asks you to consider an entirely new approach. Slow negatives can produce DOMS like nothing else, though, so handle with care, lighten the weight, and be prepared to struggle—in a good way. So, to do that, you have to come up, really flex your biceps forcing as much blood as possible into the area, and then control the negative. But once I get to the top, I control the dumbbell on the way down because we know that the majority of muscle damage occurs on the negative portion of the lift. If you start really leaning back and using your lower back and whole body to curl the weight up, you are taking almost all the tension out of your bicep and transferring it directly onto your lower back, which can obviously cause an injury due to the massive spinal extension you are creating. As a 12-year veteran of bodybuilding, Smith is well versed in the ways of aesthetic lifting. 1/9th variety . 3 x (8-10) 45-degree incline dumbbell curls. | STOP DOING THESE! Keeping the legs out of the movement ensures all the work stays in the appropriate muscle groups—keeping those pecs under constant tension to help build the kind of shredded mass this NPC champ is known for. Notice anything else out of the ordinary? So, I joined forces with, But before we dive into the dumbbell bicep curl, if you missed the last article of the, Hopefully, this can really help you perform the dumbbell bicep curl correctly and remember…You don’t have to be a hero and do it wrong! Of course, you will notice that it’s much easier to hammer curl the weight up and then twist at the top, rather than to perform the entire movement with your arms supinated. In this exercise, he elevates his heels on the edge of a dumbbell to focus more of the tension on the quads. Here are Smith's top five exercises to turn around and slow down. Today we are going to go over a bicep dumbbell curl. 6) Dumbbell Preacher Bench Curls (lower and middle biceps), 10 reps. Then move on to another body part during the same workout session with the same idea. MISTAKE #3 – Not Keeping Your Core Tight During The Lift. Instead of relaxing your hand, and just dropping the dumbbell without any control, try squeezing the dumbbell as hard as you can when you reach the top position and instead of keeping your wrist straight, try turning it in ever so slightly, towards your body. Think the only way to bench is with two feet on the floor, two hands on a barbell, and your heart set on big numbers? The second most common mistake people make is not earning their reps. What I mean by that is using momentum and swinging motions to get the dumbbells up and not concentrating on the negative. If you want to focus on twisting the dumbbell to get more bicep activation, you can do just that but only do it when you get to the top. Strength gains happen fastest for beginners, so don’t sacrifice strict form and a slow, controlled negative. Wide-Grip D-Handle Pull-up Eccentrics in … All of his videos are like that. "Lengthening the negative engages more muscle fibers and makes your muscle work more." Why use a machine to squat when most coaches swear free weights are the superior option? Lower the dumbbell for the finishing 30-second negative. Pay attention, and you'll see there's a lot of thought put into every detail. Dustin is going to teach you the ins and outs of the heavy cheat curl negatives and what better way to show you than with this heavy ass log bar. Eccentric (or negative) muscle contraction happens when the muscle gets longer, such as when you lower the dumbbell during biceps curls or when you lower your body doing pull ups. Julian Smith stands up for some of the things that many lifters either love to hate, or just plain overlook. The dumbbell bicep curl is an excellent exercise you can utilize if you really want to work on some serious arm growth and get those huge biceps! You can also do your alternating dumbbell biceps curls sitting on a bench. There is also the possibility that you are keeping your core semi-solid but you are also leaning back too far and again, that has to do with lifting too much weight. Choose heavy weight, get help up, VERY SLOW negative phase Once in place, keep your elbows in front of your hips and curl all the way to the top but make sure your elbows stay in that fixed position. When it comes to upper-body pulling strength, the pull-up is king. This is a time-honored technique that can be put to work on just about any movement. This is not something you want to do. Dumbbell Concentration Curl Tips. In fact, many lifters advocate straight up dropping every rep from the top, and swear that to do anything slower is downright dangerous. The first mistake has a lot to do with people confusing and merging two different exercises, the bicep curl and the hammer curl. Remember that the slow, negative part of the repetition, is very important. An eccentric contraction is a muscle-lengthening contraction; in the gym world it is known as a negative. All rights reserved. For the final must-have negative exercise in his arsenal, Smith uses a standard bar and a spotter—albeit one who isn't paying much attention to the bar. This former multi-sport athlete had multiple collegiate offers to play football, but he realized the downside of such a punishing sport after sustaining multiple concussions his senior year. Squeeze your biceps as hard as you can, getting a tight contraction, and then slowly control the negative on the way down. The dumbbell bicep curl is an excellent exercise you can utilize if you really want to work on some serious arm growth and get those huge biceps! Bodybuilding.com℠ and BodySpace® are trademarks of Bodybuilding.com. As you can see in the video, he even uses the stopwatch on his phone to help keep him honest. but like i said, 2 weeks is nothing, be patient. Related: Complete Guide to Big Biceps & Triceps Related: 5 Insane Biceps and Triceps … It doesn’t matter if you are doing seated curls, … If the weight is one you can barely get off the ground, this approach won't work for more than a shaky rep or two. The dumbbell curl remains one of the favourite movements among gym-goers of all ages, gender or even body types thanks to its universal appeal as well as its direct impact on the arm muscles. "You will see more benefits from these than almost any other exercise!" Triceps Extension with One Dumbbell. But by focusing on how many reps they can do—either to hit certain rep ranges or to finish high-intensity workouts—many lifters end up doing high-speed, momentum-heavy reps that limit their strength and muscle gains. How it's NOT done! Since then, he's built a pair of legs that earned him the nickname "The Quad Guy," as well as a cult-like following online for his open-minded approach to training and his ability to craft innovative updates of gym classics. you could also try shocking principle, on that particular day do 20 sets of biceps curl(no i'm not ****ting you), this is a very good way to break thru plateaus. When performing this exercise you should be using slow negative reps. The key to incorporating longer negatives is understanding when and where to slow down—and how to maintain your focus. Example: Preacher Curl | 3 x 8 ea arm + top set 1 x 5 ea arm eccentrics Top Set Example : 1 x 5 eccentrics with a tempo of 6-seconds completed with … Isometric contractions take place when a muscle develops tension but its length does not change. Up halfway, down and flex tricep, full curl and supination; SUPERSET; Cross body hammer curls – 3 sets of 8-10 . Incline dumbbell curl – 3 set of 8-10. Start with your palms facing forward (supinated forearms). Dumbbell Concentration Curl is an isolation movement exercise with the primary purpose to peak your arm's biceps, especially the Brachialis (outside part of biceps). Squeeze your biceps as hard as you can, getting a tight contraction, and then slowly control the negative on the way down. So once more, get the dumbbells in front of your hips, keep your elbows tight to your body, curl the weight up getting a good contraction at the top, and then lower in a controlled fashion. Hopefully, this can really help you perform the dumbbell bicep curl correctly and remember…You don’t have to be a hero and do it wrong! Make sure every rep is being earned and you are not doing a couple right and a couple wrong reps. Every rep counts and every rep should be aimed towards maximum muscle breakdown. For example, take three to five seconds to lower down in a squat, or three seconds to lower down on a chin-up or push-up. Take in a breath, keep your core tight, and then perform your curls until you run out of air. Seriously! "I rarely do deads anymore," he notes, "but I make sure I get them in every second or third back workout, and I've seen way more benefits slowing it down to make the back really work.". Using slow negatives and unique body positioning is the secret to building a show-stopping physique. The starting position is very important. What makes this exercise amazing is that, if properly performed, you will be effectively targeting both the short and long head of the biceps! During the bench press, for example, the eccentric is the loweringphase of the movement. Lower the dumbbells until your arms are straight, then immediately curl them up. What you want to do is utilize mind-muscle connection and REALLY work the muscle you’re targeting. Try it and expect to be shocked at how much stronger you feel. Smith's solution is to push the time under tension through the roof by slowing the lowering half of the pull-up down to a crawl. A lot of lifters start with their arms neutral and then they twist the dumbbells out halfway to the top, effectively mixing the two exercises together. Most spotters would snooze from boredom watching a 10-second negative on every rep of the bench press. Always consult with a qualified healthcare professional prior to beginning any diet or exercise program or taking any dietary supplement. Step 3: Curl the barbell up to yous shoulders and then slowly let it back down to your waist.