Peaky Bicep Workout

Introduction

For this bicep workout, we will give you a nice set of exercises, that focuses on developing the so-desired, peaky bicep. Developing a bicep peak of course, depends on some individual factors like genetic muscle attachments- How your biceps attaches. The shorter your bicep is, the more prominent your peak will be.

The longer your biceps are (smaller gap between the biceps and the elbow when flexed) the smaller peak potential you have.

However, don’t get discouraged- A peaky biceps can be achieved in both cases, as the peak also depends on the development of the outer biceps head.

Workout Priorities

The workout uses the traditional standing curl only as a warm-up, work-in exercise, after which, the focus switches to a variety of exercises under different angles. The exercises target the outer bicep head and we also use a more pronounced wrist supination, to squeeze out every bit of energy out of the prioritized outer bicep head.

The exercises are done within the ~75% intensity range and failure is not reached.

The workout is recommended for beginner and intermediate trainees, but as in our split bicep workout, you can use more intense training principles and methods to boost the effectiveness of the workout. That is in case you are a more advanced trainee that needs stronger de-adaptation, after having reached significant adaptation of the working musculature.

Exercises

Exercise Map

Standing dumbbell curl

Execution

• Stand up with your feet at shoulder width
• Grab the dumbbells and keep them by your sides
• Keep your back straight and head looking forward
• Curl both dumbbells simultaneously, supinating your wrist
• Contracting the biceps fully, hold the contraction briefly
• Let the dumbbells return to their initial position slowly

Incline bench dumbbell curl

Execution

• Set up a bench to an incline angle and grab a pair of dumbbells
• Sit down comfortably and open up your wrists
• Curl the dumbbells up, contracting the biceps fully
• Hold the contraction briefly
• Let the dumbbells down slowly, stretching the biceps
• Repeat

Machine preacher curls

Execution

• Sit down on the lever machine and tuck your arms on the pad, so that the armpits are on the edge and the whole upper arm is in contact with the pad
• Grab the lever and curl it up slowly, contracting the biceps fully
• Let the lever down slowly, stretching the biceps
• Repeat

Dumbbell hammer curl

Execution

• Grab a pair of dumbbells and stand up with your feet at shoulder width
• Keep the dumbbells by your sides, so that their sides are pointing forward
• Hammer the dumbbells up, without letting your elbow go forward
• Contracting the biceps and forearms, hold the contraction briefly
• Let the dumbbells down to their original position
• Repeat

Cable one arm biceps curl

Execution

• Stand by the side of the cable machine and grab the upper pulley
• Step away slightly and raise your arm so that it is parallel to the ground
• Place your other hand on your hips for balance
• Curl the cable, contracting your biceps fully
• Let the weight down to its original position slowly
• Repeat

Workout Tips

Wrist Supination

Targeting the outer head of the bicep can be done not only by picking appropriate exercises that focus on it more, but also, by rotating your wrist clockwise with your pinky on the outside, as much as possible. Such movement is called “Supination” and can be done either during each repetition, or before each repetition.

Squeeze & Flex

With your wrists optimally supinated at the top of each repetition, you can apply the Peak Flexion method and squeeze out the prioritized outer biceps head, holding the contraction for up to 1 second. Peak flexion will allow you to really feel how the biceps is starting to bulge and pop-out more, during the workout itself.

Constant Tension

Throughout each exercise, set and repetition, try to keep the tension upon the working musculature as much as possible. Pick the proper weight for your repetitions and try not to use any inertial movements that will take away from the tension of the biceps. One of the main priorities of this workout is Constant Tension and a powerful contraction during the peak flexion.

Iso-Tension

Additionally, you can squeeze out your biceps under no tension from weights, in-between sets. When you’re done with the set/workout, easily flex your biceps and hold the peak flexion. Feel the blood going through the biceps as it gets tighter and tighter. Hold the contractions for up to 1 second, release and repeat a couple of times on each arm.

Read more on Iso-Tension.

Conclusion

This beginner/intermediate workout will help you develop a more prominent bicep peak. The goal of each exercise is to target the outer biceps head, accounting for a peakier look of the biceps. The workout follows a moderate intensity scheme, making it perfect for the application of principles like constant tension and peak flexion.

The outer head’s work is more prominent as we supinate our wrists. The workout can also be used by more advanced trainees, however, if that is the case, intense training methods should be applied. Such as – Training until failure and Forced Repetitions.