Good day to all, athletes! Today we will analyze 2 top exercises that will blow up your arms (if you do them correctly, of course). We will talk about lifting a barbell for biceps and French press.
Brief information and facts about biceps and triceps:
- Triceps - Takes up about 2/3 of the volume of the upper arm. This is a large muscle with three heads (hence the name «triceps»).
- Biceps - Takes up about 1/3 of the volume of the upper arm. Smaller than the triceps in size, consists of two heads.
It is important to remember that visually, the triceps has a much greater effect on the overall volume of the arm. To increase the volume of the arm, you need to focus on training the triceps. The biceps are responsible for bending the arm at the elbow, and the triceps are responsible for extension.
Barbell Biceps Curl
You won’t be able to pump up your biceps in a week even in the coolest gym. But you can build up the muscles of your dreams with the help of home workouts without expensive equipment, if you are determined to train at least twice a week for one hour.
How do muscles grow? Briefly for beginners
The main thing you need to know: muscles grow due to a gradual increase in load and the process of super-recovery.
What triggers muscle growth?
The size of the muscle depends on the thickness of the muscle fibers. The body «understands» that it needs to increase muscle mass when it cannot cope with the load and experiences stress. This stress is created by mechanical tension of muscle fibers - that is, exercise. Therefore, the main task is to choose the right workouts so that the stress is sufficient to trigger growth.
What is super-recovery?
You can’t increase muscle size with just one workout. Growth begins during recovery and super-recovery. Training is like damage to the body: energy is lost in the form of glycogen, muscle fibers are damaged.
Recovery is the process of eliminating this damage. After recovery, super recovery occurs, when the muscles become a little stronger than they were before the training. This is a kind of protection for the body in case of repeated stress.
If you do not load the muscle at the moment of super recovery, the gain will disappear. But if you give it enough load during this period, the cycle will repeat itself again, and the muscles will become bigger and stronger. Therefore, training cannot be skipped, and the weight of the equipment should gradually increase.
Important: «raw materials» and resources
You cannot pump up your muscles if you do not have the «raw materials» and resources for this. These «raw materials» are food and sleep. At the initial stage, it is enough to add a pack of cottage cheese or 2-3 eggs and a little carbohydrates to your usual diet to compensate for the energy costs of training and replenish glycogen. For example, you can add 50 grams of cereals or other familiar carbohydrate foods.
Standing Barbell Curl: Technique
- Starting Position: Stand straight with your feet shoulder-width apart. Feet should be almost parallel, toes should point slightly outward. Grab the barbell with an underhand grip (palms facing up) at shoulder width.
- Preparation: Stand up straight, arch your lower back slightly, lower the barbell to your hips. Look straight ahead. Tighten your lower back and maintain the natural curve of your spine throughout the entire approach.
- Lift: Take a deep breath, hold it, and bend your elbows to lift the barbell to upper chest level.
- Elbow and Wrist Position: Keep your elbows at your sides as you lift. Do not bend your wrists.
- Top Point: As soon as your hands are level with your upper chest, pause for a moment, exhale, and squeeze your biceps even harder.
- Lowering: Smoothly lower the barbell down, but do not fully straighten your arms (do not lock your elbows).
- Body Position: During the entire exercise, do not lean your body forward or backward. Maintain proper posture.
Tips for Performing Standing Barbell Curls
1. Grip:
- To increase the size of your biceps, use an underhand grip (palms facing up). This grip puts the same amount of force on your biceps and brachialis.
- To raise the peak of your biceps, use an overhand grip (palms facing down). This puts most of the force on your brachialis and forearms.
2. Torso Position:
Keep your torso straight and don’t swing. The only movement should be at your elbows. The rest of your body should remain still. If you raise or pull your shoulders back, you reduce the force on your biceps and can injure your spine.
3. Elbow Position:
Keep your elbows locked at your sides and don’t move them. If you point your elbows forward as you curl the barbell, you will reduce the force on the upper part of your biceps and won’t achieve the maximum contraction at the top.
4. Weight:
Don’t use too much weight. Otherwise, you’ll be pushing the bar with your hips at the start of the lift to get it off the ground. This will reduce the load on the biceps and could lead to a lower back injury. Also, a bar that’s too heavy will reduce the range of motion and prevent you from getting a full stretch at the bottom of the lift.
- A full range of motion is important when working on mass.
- A reduced range of motion is only acceptable if you want to elevate the peak of the biceps.
French Press
The triceps is a three-headed muscle of the arm located on the back of the upper arm and is a large muscle group. It consists of three heads: long, lateral and medial. These heads originate at different points on the humerus and join to form a tendon that attaches to the ulna.
A developed triceps has a characteristic «horseshoe» shape, which significantly increases the width of the arms and the overall volume of the upper body.
The main function of the triceps is to extend the elbow and straighten the arm. In addition, the triceps plays a role in stabilizing the shoulder.
There are many ways to train the triceps:
From bodyweight exercises such as close-grip push-ups and push-ups from the bar, to weighted exercises such as the French press with an EZ-bar. This allows you to diversify your workouts and adapt them to your individual preferences and available equipment.
Including triceps training in your overall training program is an important aspect of achieving a well-developed and strong upper body, which has a positive effect on athletic performance, aesthetics and everyday functionality.
The French bench press is an exercise that primarily works the long (back) head of the triceps, especially its lower part. It lengthens and thickens the lower part of the triceps and is a shaping exercise.
In bodybuilding, the French bench press is used for overall triceps development, but primarily for targeted training of the long head, in order to lengthen and emphasize its lower part. The thicker this head of the triceps, the more massive the upper arm looks when viewed from the side.
Extension of the arm at the elbow joint, performed by the triceps, is a key movement in many sports: tennis (serving the ball and overhead slash), basketball (overhead throw), volleyball (serving the ball, blocking the ball at the net, overhead slashes), athletics (pole vaulting), martial arts (overhead slashes).
French Press: Technique
- Preparation: Lie down on a horizontal bench, firmly plant your feet on the floor. Straighten your arms up (perpendicular to the floor) and ask your partner to hand you the barbell.
- Selecting a barbell: It is better to use a barbell with an EZ-bar, but if you do not have one, you can use a regular barbell with a straight bar.
- Grip: Grasp the bar with an overhand grip and press the barbell up.
- Starting position: Fully straighten your arms with the barbell and tilt them back (towards your head) at about 45° from the vertical.
- Lowering: Take a deep breath and hold it. Keeping the upper part of your arms (from the elbow to the shoulder) motionless, smoothly bend your arms at the elbows and lower the barbell to the top of your head. At the bottom, the angle at the elbow joint should be about 90°.
- Lift: Having reached the bottom, immediately change the direction of movement and, straightening your arms at the elbows, return the bar to the starting position. During the lift, do not exhale or pull your elbows forward. The upper part of the arms should remain motionless until the end of the approach.
- Top point: When you have fully straightened your arms, hold for a couple of seconds, exhale and additionally tense your triceps.
Tips for performing the French press
1. Weight:
The weight of the bar should not interfere with proper technique. If the bar is too heavy, you will not be able to hold it with your arms straight at a 45° angle to the vertical and will involuntarily pull your elbows forward. This will significantly reduce the load on the triceps.
2. Fixation of the arms:
Fixation of the upper part of the arms at an angle of 45° to the vertical is the key moment of the exercise.
3. Straightening the arms:
Fully straighten your arms at the top of the exercise. This is necessary for maximum contraction of the triceps.
4. Load on the triceps:
Although the French press involves all three heads of the triceps, the main load falls on the long head of the muscle. It is located on the back of the arm and is clearly visible when viewed from the side.
5. Position of the feet:
Never place your feet on the bench. They must rest firmly on the floor to avoid losing balance and injury.
Conclusion:
So, the biceps and triceps are the key muscles of the shoulder, which together form the strength and appearance of the arm. The triceps, occupying the largest part of the volume, is responsible for the extension of the arm, and the biceps - for flexion. Balanced training of both muscles is important to achieve harmonious development and functionality. Choose exercises that target both muscle groups, observe the correct technique and do not forget about the progression of the load to constantly stimulate their growth and strengthening.
Thank you for reading and the AnabolShop.org team wishes everyone good anabolism!
Good anabolism to all!