GET BIG-BICEPS

BIGGER BICEPS

AESTHETIC AND MUSCULAR ARMS ARE VITAL FOR ALL ROUND PHYSIQUE.AND BECAUSE ARMS CONSIST OF DIFFERENT SMALL MUSCLES, WE NEED TO TRAIN EVERY MUSCLE ACCORDINGLY AND PROPERLY.WE SHOULD MAKE A PROPER TRAINING SPLIT TO HIT EVERY MUSCLE GROUP OF THE ARM SO THAT WE CAN AVOID OVER TRAINING AND UNDER TRAINING.

FIRST IT IS NECESSARY TO KNOW FUNCTION OF EVERY MUSCLE GROUP TO TRAIN EFFECTIVELY.SO, UPPER ARM CONSIST OF

A.      INTERIOR COMPARTMENT

B.      POSTERIOR COMPARTMENT

INTERIOR COMPARTMENT INCLUDES-BICEPS BRACHII, BRACHIALIS AND A TINY CORACOBRACHIALIS.

 POSTERIOR COMPARTMENT INCLUDES: - TRICEPS BRACHII

ALTHOUGH TRICEPS IS THE BIGGEST MUSCLE OF THE ARM BUT TRAINING OVERALL PROVIDES BEST RESULTS.

BICEPS

FUNCTION WISE BICEPS ARE TECHNICALLY TRIARTICULAR AS THEY ACT ON THREE JOINTS TO PERFORM THREE MAIN FUNCTIONS OF THE ARM.

A.      ELBOW FLEXION (CURLING)

B.      FOREARM SUPINATION(ROTATION)

C.      SHOULDER FLEXION(RAISING THE ARM)

AND IT CONSISTS OF TWO HEADS.

A.      LONG HEAD –FRONT OR UPPER SIDE OF THE BICEPS.BEST ENGAGED WHEN CURLS PERFORMED WITH WIDE GRIP.TRAINING LONG HEAD WILL PROVIDE PEAK TO THE BICEPS.

B.      SHORT HEAD –BACK OR LOWER SIDE OF THE BICEPS.BEST ENGAGED WHEN CURLS PERFORM

WITH CLOSE GRIP.TRAINING SHORT HEAD WILL GIVE WIDER LOOK TO THE BICEP.

NOTE – GRIP TOO SHORT WILL HINDER THE BICEP ACTIVATION.

THERE IS ONE MORE SMALL IN THE BICEP CALLED “BRACHIALIS” WHICH DOES NOT GET MUCH ATTENTION BECAUSE IT LIES DEEPER IN BICEP AND WE CAN’T REALLY SEE THIS MUSCLE.BUT INCREASING ITS SIZE WILL PUSH THE BICEPS UP AND OUT MORE.

THERE ARE TWO PHASES OF WORKING THE MUSCLE WHILE PERFORMING AN EXERCISE.

A.      CONCENTRIC (POSITIVE)

B.      ECCENTRIC(NEGATIVE)

FOR EXAMPLE – WHILE PERFORMING BICEP CURL WHEN WE PULL THE DUMBBELL UP, IT IS A CONCENTRIC PHASE OR POSITIVE FACE OT THE EXERCISE AND WHEN THE DUMBBELL GOES DOWN THEN, IT IS A NEGATIVE OR ECCENTRIC PHASE.

MANY SCIENTIST AND BODYBUILDING COACH SUGGEST THAT PUTTING MORE EMPHASIS ON ECCENTRIC MOTION WILL GIVE BETTER RESULTS.LIKE PERFORMING ECCENTRIC MOTION SLOWLY OR WITH A PAUSE WILL PUT MORE EMPHASIS ON THE MUSCLE.WHILE MANY SCIENTIFIC LITERATURE AS A WHOLE INDICATES THAT POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE MUSCLE ACTION BOTH PROMOTES SUBSTANTIAL HYPERTROPHY OR MUSCLE GROWTH.

GRIPS

GRIPS MATTERS A LOT WHILE PERFORMING BICEPS EXERCISE AS USING DIFFERENT GRIP WILL HIT MUSCLES FROM DIFFERENT ANGLES AND WILL HELP IN OVERALL GROWTH OF THE BICEP.

SUPINATION GRIP –

BICEPS ARE POWERFUL SUPINATOR .SO, TRAINING BICEPS WITH SUPINATED GRIP WILL PUT MORE LOAD ON THEM.AND WILL PROMOTE HYPERTROPHY MORE THAN ANY OTHER GRIP.

HAMMER GRIPS-

THIS GRIP WILL NOT ENGAGE BICEPS AS SUPINATED GRIP DOES BUT PERFORMING CURL WITH A HAMMER GRIP WILL TRAIN THE BRACHIALIS, WHICH USUALLY GET NEGLECTED. AND IT WILL GIVE MORE DEFINITION TO THE BICEP.

PRONATED –

(REVERSE GRIP) PERFORMING CURL WITH THIS GRIP WILL ENGAGE THE BICEPS AS LESS AS 13% BUT IT ACTIVATES BRACHIORADIALIS MUSCLE OF THE FOREARM AND DEEPER BRACHIALIS MUSCLE.

WORKOUT

AS THERE ARE DIFFERENT MUSCLES IN BICEPS WHICH PERFORMS DIFFERENT ACTION. IT IS BEST TO COMBINE DIFFERENT EXERCISES TO HIT EVERY MUSCLE

1.START YOUR WORKOUT WITH A HEAVY MOVEMENT LIKE BARBELL CURL AS WE HAVE MORE ENERGY AT THE START OF THE WORKOUT.AND DOING A HEAVY COMPOUND MOVEMENT WILL PUT MORE STRESS ON THE MUSCLE AND WILL PROMOTE HYPERTROPHY(GROWTH).

DO IT WITH HEAVY WEIGHTS IN A 4-6 REP RANGE FOR MAXIMUM RESULTS.

2. THEN INCLINE DUMBBELL CURL WHERE THE SHOULDER WILL BE EXTENDED.DO IT IN A 8-12 REP RANGE.

3. AFTER THAT DO PREACHER CURL WHERE THE ELBOWS WILL IN FRONT OF THE BODY.ALSO IN AN 8-12 REP RANGE.

4. AT LAST SOME HAMMER GRIP CURLS TO HIT THE BRACHIALIS.(FIGURE SHOWN IN THE GRIP SECTION).

NOTE –BICEPS PEAK TORQUE OCCURS WHEN ELBOWS ARE AT 90 DEGREE ANGLE.SO ANYTHING BELOW OR ABOVE THAT WILL NOT ENGAGE THE BICEPS THAT MUCH.SO DO IT IN A CONTROL WAY RATHER THAN JUST SWINGING THE WEIGHT UP AND DOWN.

FREQUENCY

ALTHOUGH IT DEPENDS ON INDIVIDUALS AND THEIR PREFERENCES BUT DOING MINIMUM 8 SETS FOR A MUSCLE GROUP IS ESSENTIAL FOR MUSCLE GROWTH AND DOING 14-20 A WEEK IN BEST FOR HYPERTROPHY.

WORKING A MUSCLE AS FREQUENTLY AS FREQUENTLY AS 2 TIMES A WEEK IN OPTIMAL.