Most Explosive Dumbbell Exercises for Bigger Biceps

Check out these explosive dumbbell exercises for bigger biceps. They have been selected and explained by Jeff from Athlean X.

Most Explosive Dumbbell Exercises for Bigger Biceps

“In today’s video we look at the best dumbbell exercises for biceps. We’re going to focus on several areas of training: from strength, to power as well as hypertrophy and a few others you’d expect along with the best way to train the brachialis muscle of the upper arm, which supports the size and appearance of the biceps.”

Strength

“First we cover strength.  The key, just like in our chest video, is that there are two non dumbbell exercises that fit perfectly here and that is the barbell curl and the weighted chinup.  As we know from the dumbbell bench press however, there is a drop off in the amount of weight you can lift when you move from a barbell curl to individual dumbbells.  That is, unless you split them up into alternating arms.  Here your core doesn’t have to work as hard to stabilize the upward motion of the dumbbells and you can handle more weight for an easier progressive overload.”

Source: Tima Miroschnichenko on Pexels

“That said, I don’t believe this is the only option when it comes to building the strength of the biceps.  I would suggest you also do the weighted chinup.  Unlike the barbell bench to dumbbell bench however, you don’t have to experience a drop off in the weight you use just because you switch from weight plates to a dumbbell.  Just hook the dumbbell up the way I show you and you are all set and ready to perform the weighted chinup and load up the biceps for growth.”

Power

“Next, we focus on power.  The element of speed is critical to maximizing the effect of power training for our biceps.  Here as well, you want to try and find a way that you can release the load during the repetition to realize true power development.  The best way to do this is with the weighted plyometric chinup.  The goal is to explode your body up and over the bar with a quick catch and release of the cross bar. If you cannot handle the additional weight around your waist, use the dumbbell as a step up to the bar.”

The Goal

“The goal, as with any power development training, is to stay sub maximal in your effort and focus on moving as much weight as you can control with an increased rep velocity.  If you find that the weight you select is so heavy that you have to either cheat the form too much or you cannot maintain proper speed, lower the weight used and start again.”

Hypertrophy

“For hypertrophy you want to explore eccentric muscle damage.  The best way to do this is with the seated incline curl.  Pick up a pair of dumbbells and curl them but don’t forget to actively contract the triceps at the bottom of every rep to enhance the stretch reflex and strength of contraction on the biceps.  You can see me do this on every rep in the video demonstration.  Once you reach failure, one of the most effective things you can do is take the reps beyond. You can do this with an eccentric only rep performed by sitting up at the end of the bench and then slowly lowering your body and the dumbbells back down.”

Metabolic Stress

“A slight variation on this is shown to achieve a metabolic stress as well.  Here you want to establish a burn in the working muscle and try to keep it there for as long as possible.  I use an additional position that allows me to get some drag curls in at the end of the combination to do this really well.”

Source: Mahmood Sufiyan / Pexels

Correctives

“We always want to keep an eye on the correctives on this channel as well.  In the case of the biceps, we focus on maintaining health of the elbow.  As anyone who has had issues with medial elbow pain while curling or doing any pull movements for that matter can tell you, it can hamper your ability to get results.  Remember to load the dumbbell deep in the palm of your hand to avoid overstressing of the distal finger tendons.  This can be achieved through either a dumbbell wrist curl if you can handle lighter weights only or a carry if you are up to the task of heavier weights.”

Emphasise the Brachialis

“Included are a few other exercises to emphasize the brachialis.  This muscle lies underneath the biceps and can be trained with some modifications of the curl to lessen the contribution of the biceps slightly.  Here I show you a cross body variation of a hammer curl that will help to add width to the upper arm and can be performed with just some dumbbells.”

Video – Dumbbell Exercises for Bigger Biceps

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Muscles of the arms

This section will discuss the major muscles of the arms.

Biceps

The biceps is a muscle in your upper arm that flexes your elbow and supinates your forearm.

It’s a two-headed muscle, meaning it has two heads: the long head originates on the supraglenoid tubercle of the scapula and inserts on the radius; while the short head originates on coracoid process of scapula and inserts on the radial tuberosity.

Dumbbell Exercises for Bigger Biceps – Triceps

The Triceps brachii is a muscle in the back of your upper arm. It is the largest of three muscles that comprise the triceps and it’s responsible for extending (straightening) your arm and helping you to push against something or lift something.

Dumbbell Exercises for Bigger Biceps – Deltoids

The deltoids are located on the sides of your shoulder. They are used to lift and rotate your arm. Muscles that make up this group include:

• Anterior deltoid (front)
• Side delt
• Posterior deltoid (back)

Dumbbell Exercises for Bigger Biceps – Latissimus Dorsi

Latissimus dorsi. Located on the back of your upper arm, this muscle extends from the lower back to the outside part of your upper arm. It acts to pull your arm down and back, as well as rotate it inward toward your body.

The latissimus dorsi works with other muscles to counteract gravity so that when you lift an object from a low position, such as picking up a box off of the floor or reaching for something above you such as a shelf in a closet or cupboard, there is less effort required because these other muscles help take some of your weight off while lifting.

Dumbbell Exercises for Bigger Biceps – Rotator Cuff Muscles

The rotator cuff muscles are the supraspinatus, infraspinatus, teres minor, and subscapularis. These four muscles connect to the shoulder joint and help to stabilize it during movement. They also assist in rotating your arm backward (supination).

These are the major muscles of the arms

The muscles of the arms are divided into two groups: flexors and extensors. The flexor group includes the biceps brachii, brachialis, and brachioradialis. The extensor group includes the triceps brachii (long head), triceps brachii (lateral head), and anconeus.

The deltoids are a muscle complex made up of three distinct heads: anterior clavicular portion; acromial process; posterior clavicular portion.

The latissimus dorsi is a wide triangular muscle that extends from each side of the lower back to attach to various parts of your upper arm. It’s sometimes called “the wings.” In addition to helping you lift your arms forward at the shoulder joint, it can also help you lower them back down again by acting as an extensor when your arms hang at your sides or behind you with palms facing behind you.

Rotator cuff muscles include infraspinatus; supraspinatus; teres minor; subscapularis

Conclusion – Dumbbell Exercises for Bigger Biceps

The biceps is a muscle in the upper arm that helps to flex the elbow joint. It runs from the shoulder to the elbow and consists of two heads: long head and short head.

The triceps is another muscle in your upper arm that allows you to straighten your elbows. There are three heads: long, medial and lateral heads, all located on the back side of your arm just below where it attaches with your shoulder blade (acromion process).

Add these biceps exercises into your training.