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Curls

CURL — BAR, DUMBBELL, BENT BAR, MACHINE

Taken from Dave Draper's book, Brother Iron, Sister Steel

A curl is a curl is a curl. Not exactly.

I do all of these movements regularly (doesn’t everybody?) and enjoy them equally. The straight Olympic bar rules until my wrists begin to complain; I then switch to a thick-handled bent bar. Stand erect with your feet shoulder-width apart and the bar hanging fully extended before you. Pull the bar somewhat in front of you and up at the same time to a point even with the shoulders. Pause only long enough to reverse the action and lower the bar slowly to the starting position.

Your reps in all exercises will vary according to the muscle, its mass and fiber, your goals and scheme. I work reliably in the six to ten rep range, matching my mood, endurance and level of repair. As I fatigue, and this is evident in all my training, I draw upon a calculated body thrust to enable the completion of the final tough repetitions without losing workload integrity. (Some people might call this cheating; can’t fool everybody.) These deep, hard reps call the rest of the body to action. As long as they are defined and directed, they’ll work for you. They bite.

These are big, full biceps builders if that’s your target. None better. The heavy curls with built-in thrusts put a welcome demand on the system, shifting them from single-joint isolation movements to broad-range muscle recruiters. Dig in.

CURL — MACHINE

Machine curls are like cars; they’re designed to get you from one place to another. Drive one, you can drive them all, just that some are a better ride. Hop in, wiggle till you’re comfortable and pull. Now you’ve got it. I’ll be over here doing dumbbell alternates with Leroy. Don’t fall off.

CURL — PREACHER OR SCOTT CURL

You know the drill. You approach the bench when it least expects it, sit down like you were going to take a breather and then suddenly and fiercely wrap your legs around the thing, grab the suspiciously close bent bar and start curling in hungry reps over its padded and perfectly angled post. Some people claim tendinitis from the outward slant and prefer to curl from the pad which allows the arms to drop straight down; no hyperextension, no elbow aggravation, no over-curling to stress the brachialis. Instead, lots of screamingly intense, isolated biceps pulling and slow, vascular, mind-altering descents. Let someone else count if anyone’s keeping score.

Wicked Willie here, if I may be so bold...let me augment what Dave has said about preacher curls and examine the ins and outs of the exercise a touch more closely:

The proper bench

Most benches today are torture devices. The angle could be better and the proper shape and padding are non-existent. Also, most benches are designed to be used while seated. Not only is this convenient and relaxing but it eliminates the need to bolt the unit to the floor. It has absolutely NOTHING to do with the proper way to perform the movement.

For the best built preacher curl bench on the market...there is only one. Larry Scott's is the best out there of which I'm aware. (He's awful proud of it, though!) Well shaped and well padded in the right places. Body Master equipment has a somewhat similar bench...but it is not a duplicate of the Scott bench.

Don't throw away your bench, yet. Just get a couple of big towels or spring for a piece or two of high density, closed cell foam padding...and use this on your bench.

The form

First, you will do this movement standing (or more accurately, crouched.) Get right in close to the bench, so that your hips or abdomen touch the top edge of the arm platform. Then you will lean over the bench and place the points of your elbows right in the midline padding of the arm platform. DO NOT place your entire upper arm on the platform and touch the platform with your chest...THIS IS DEAD WRONG and I'll explain why later.

Now, stand back up and fold the towels or place the foam padding where you had your elbows. Pin it down with your elbows, remembering to touch the edge of the arm platform with your hips or abdomen. Take your preferred grip on the bar or dumbbell(s.) Now, place your feet a little forward of your body, like you are bracing for a tug-of-war. Not too much, just enough to feel solidly in control.

The movement properly done

With the weight in your hands, start the movement by lowering the weight while simultaneously moving just slightly back and leaning away from your arms. This will allow a fair stretch, without excessive ROM. ( Vince Gironda recommended letting the weight roll down the fingertips and then curling it back up to start the movement.) The bench top will stop your arms before they completely straighten...don't worry about it. What most people consider a "good stretch" in this movement is actually a mild hyperextension of the elbow and that is where the problems start....

(When you lay the full length of your upper arm on the platform, rather than just the elbows...you reach a hyper extended position where the muscles involved are no longer powerfully controlling the movement. At this point, all the stress is on the joint and the tendons. Over time, this is bad juju and creates many problems, such as sore elbows or "forearm splints," a pain in the extensors similar to tennis elbow.)

By limiting the ROM slightly with the elbow positioning, you create a self-spotting condition that won't allow you to hyperextend the elbows...and thus protect the joint.

Now, as you curl the weight up, lean forward and over the bar slightly, while squeezing the bar hard. (Strong grippers are strong curlers.) The bar should pass just under your chin. (Stick your chin out and forward slightly.) You should feel your brachial/bicep group contract strongly and almost cramp up. The ROM will be short, since you aren't rotating the elbows forward and involving the deltoids. Squeeze at the top, if you can stand it. An examination of both the start position and the finish position shows that inefficient mechanical positioning is being utilized, making the movement harder...not easier. (When you cheat curl...you don't lean forward, right? That would make the curl harder. Rather, you lean back to make it easier. Preacher curls done as described are harder rather than easier)

You also lean over the bar to avoid the common failing of the resistance dropping off at the top third of the preacher curl movement. Note how easy the movement is once you pass midpoint? By leaning forward, you move the resistance point higher and avoid that "let-off." Hard to explain, easy to feel.

Continue to lean back while lowering and lean forward while curling till the prescribed number of reps are completed...if you can get that far. You won't need to use as much weight as normal, till you become conditioned to the movement. Enjoy!

CURL — SEATED DUMBBELL INCLINE

Choose your favorite incline to give your biceps the extension and mechanical advantage you desire. Stay tight, let the dumbbells hang and pull them, palms forward, toward the shoulders; contract and slowly lower. Same ole’ curl yet different enough when you fight the metal going down to the count of three or four, rep after rep, or curl them outwardly from a super-extended palms-out position, up and down like fire and ice.

CURL — STANDING DUMBBELL INCLINE

Injuries cause you to try different exercise positions. Not long ago, a bruised shoulder prevented me from effectively doing seated dumbbell incline curls. Seeking an option, I stumbled across a mighty, somewhat isolated biceps builder, a stray from the norm. At a seventy-five degree incline, I stand with my back against the pad of an adjustable bench. I bend at the knees slightly to gain a position of sturdiness and let the dumbbells fully hang at my side. I engage the weights one arm at a time and proceed to do four sets of alternate curls. Dig in and pull to the shoulder and since we’re on the subject, I like six to eight reps. Fully extended, dig in and pull. Put total attention on each arm, separate and alone, concentrate, back and forth. You’ve got it!

CURL — STANDING OR SEATED DUMBBELL

Let’s see. How does it go again? Assume either the standing or seated position with the dumbbells hanging by your side, fully extended and palms forward. Just as you would in the barbell curl, pull the weights slightly forward and up to shoulder height. Don’t do anything fancy as if it would make a difference. Pulling the weight with all you’ve got and looking for more is sufficient. With each new rep, focus all your attention on the movement of the weights, the path they travel and the team of muscles aching, pumping and burning to finish the rep. Notice the change in demand as the dumbbells are lowered, stretching and taut, to the starting place. Note the relief that comes with the pause, the drawing in of air and the tightening of the body as the glorious process is repeated until it can’t be repeated again.

I will remind you every once in awhile: I like supersets. Dumbbell curls go nicely with lying triceps extensions and a dark Zinfandel (non-alcoholic). They work the biceps, completely and throughout. You will hear different stories about high sets and reps (ten or more) and low (six or less), single sets, ultra slow reps, rest periods; “I read it on the Net,” “my uncle said.” You’ve got to experiment and mix it up at first, listen to yourself, dig around inside, match your personality. It’ll come to you, have fun and don’t give up.

CURL — THUMBS-UP/HAMMER CURL

A variation of the curl that I’ve been doing since an injury fifteen years ago that urged me to stray from the norm, the thumbs-up curl and I have come to know each other quite well. Stand as indicated earlier, only now the bells are held palms facing inward. Here again, drag the weights upward but in a slightly modified groove, one that brings the plates toward the face — the cheekbones, to be precise. This positioning clearly puts a demand on the forearm and across the biceps, a welcome and productive diversion.

Moreover I, who seek water from a rock, find that with a mind on the back muscles, front delts and minor pecs, this movement with explosive yet controlled thrust and emphasized negative hammers nearly the whole upper body. Sets of 12, 10, 8, 6, 4 are common with me, supersetted with wrist curls and pulley pushdowns, just to be sure.

CURL — ZOTTMAN

Biceps, forearms, wrists and hand cap muscles all in one tidy little package. However, open this package and you’ve got your hands full. Again, stand upright, dumbbells a’ hangin’. Zottmans are done alternately. With total attention on one arm, pull the weight upward and toward you; as it approaches the shoulder, rotate the hand into the body and lower it with restraint to the starting position — a tough journey down as power advantage is lost to the reverse grip and altered muscle mechanics. This flexing and flaring of the biceps and forearm produce compound muscular demand and account for pronounced muscle shape and delineation.

Complete extension and flexion accomplished, switch your attention to the other arm and repeat. Look for rhythm and building momentum as you seek your limits in the sets and reps. Yet again a caution: Use a lighter weight to protect the tendons and insertions.

• And now, a bit more on curls from Dave in a recent column:

Standing barbell curl

Straight bar or bent bar, your choice. They both work, if you do. I like to choose the bar minutes before I plunge into the workout. You never know what urge might overcome you, what longing or premonition or what twinge in the wrist or forearm. I do know this: Choose a thick bar, bombers, and the sparks will fly! The difference is night and day.

How many times -- too many to count -- I see a guy or gal pick up a bar and perform 6 or 8 repetitions of the curl like they just read the Sears pamphlet. The bar goes up and down robotically; they wince and pout and they put the bar back in its starting place. What was that all about? Another guy will grab the bar like it was a venomous snake, toss the reps with robust cheating motions and drop it where he found it. Hiss! Oh, my back, but I didn’t get bit.

Throughout five sets of the standing barbell curl I suggest you start with a comfortable, moderate weight and work your way up to a decent and controllable meaningful heavy weight. You get my drift? Bodybuilders use different lingo than powerlifters when describing weights used, like girls who refer to things under the hood of a car as thingamajigs.

Now the first set can approach 12 to 15 reps, depending on zeal and freshness, and these reps are managed to engage different areas and ranges of involved muscle. I take a close-footed stance, which provides a small footprint and thus requires a more vigorous struggle for balance and control. This apparent exercise disadvantage is a system builder in disguise -- more energy and muscle at work while tuning the body’s ability to stabilize.

I pull the first 3 or 4 reps high to the forehead with flat wrists, accentuating the ball of the biceps (whatever you call it), and I wear out fast. Next, I mimic the Sears bodybuilding student by tilting forward slightly at the waist and bringing the bar upward in a most isolated fashion. Feels good all over, clean and correct. A+. Finally, as pink cheeks turn to crimson, deep breathing to gasping, I resort to mild body thrusts, which nudge the bar to a most gratifying position and allow me to edge the bar upward to completion one dynamic inch at a time. The negative of the last rep, as the negative of the first rep, is fought for dearly. The bar is replaced with honor and it’s time for the next set, a triceps exercise -- make that a "movement" -- part two of a bi-tri superset.

A well-designed and executed barbell curl builds big biceps better than any other movement. It also works the whole system of muscles from head to toe, especially when you realize this fact and apply it with intentional gusto. Flex those integrated muscles with appreciation -- more output for the input.