tomi.one » The Best Biceps Exercises for Stronger Arms

Building strong arms, especially the biceps, was a struggle for me right from the start. Biceps are one of the most attractive and most aesthetic muscle groups on the human body. They are symbols for strength, proportion and symmetry.

I am sure many of you train your biceps frequently, as often as 3 times a week with what you believe is proper weight, but fail to see progress. I have had that experience too, where the effort invested does not match the outcome, and this is precisely due to the frequency, weight and choice of exercises.

The amount of frustration is increasing even more when we see other people with much less effort are getting nicely shaped and toned biceps and you ask yourself “what am I doing wrong here”!? Stick with me as I explain what could be going wrong and what you can change to achieve the expected result. Let's start from here:

Anatomy of the Biceps

The full scientific name is biceps brachii. The "bi" part is crucial—it literally means "two heads."

While it looks like one solid lump of muscle on the front of your arm, it’s actually two distinct muscle heads running parallel to each other. They start at different places near your shoulder blade, run down the front of your arm, and then fuse together into one common tendon that attaches just past your elbow. To build a complete arm, you need to understand the difference between those two muscles.

The Inner Head or The Short Head - It sits on the inner side of your arm (closer to your chest). It’s called the "short" head because its starting point on the shoulder blade is a shorter distance to the elbow than the long head.

When you look at someone straight on, from the front, a developed short head is what makes the arm look thick and wide. It provides the density.

The Outer Head or The Long Head - The long head is responsible for the legendary "peak." It runs along the outer side of the arm. It’s "long" because its tendon actually travels right over the top of the shoulder joint before anchoring down.

Brachialis - the secret weapon for bigger arms - This muscle is not a part of the biceps. It sits directly on the humerus (upper arm bone), buried underneath the biceps muscle.

You might be thinking, "If I can't see it from the front, why train it?"

As the Brachialis gets bigger, it physically pushes the biceps upward. This muscle pushes the biceps outward, expanding the circumference of your arm and making your bicep "peak" look taller, even if your bicep muscle itself hasn't grown that much. The Brachialis is actually stronger than the biceps.

Training techniques for Biceps

With 25 years of experience and mentorship from some of the world's top coaches, I can assure you of one thing: the 'perfect' universal workout doesn't exist. Training is an individual journey of finding what clicks with your unique muscle structure and lifestyle.

Let's look at a few different methods. I encourage you to experiment with them, see which ones give you the best muscle-mind connection, and build your own formula for growth.

Training the biceps twice a week

This "old school" method focuses on allowing enough recovery time after the first workout, but not waiting too long before the second session.

Typically, the first workout is combined with triceps for a complete arm day. The second workout should be strategically paired with your strongest muscle group.

For example, if your chest is well-developed, you could combine your second biceps training with your chest day. Since the biceps are a small muscle with a recovery time of 48 to 72 hours, be sure to schedule the second session outside of this recovery window from the first session.

The 8 weeks method

This method is less known among typical gym goers but is a well-kept "secret" among professionals. In the 8-Week Method, you train your biceps twice a week, but the second training session is not combined with any other muscle group. This sounds like a small modification from the previous technique. However, the key difference is that if your chest is your strongest and most developed muscle group, you stop training it for 8 weeks and instead focus only on the biceps during that workout.

I understand some of you will be worried about losing size in your chest, but I assure you that your chest will maintain its full volume, size, and power. Once the 8 weeks are over, you resume your normal training regimen for the following 8 weeks, and if you see good results, you can repeat the cycle for further gains.

Alternating exercises for biceps and triceps

This technique is always combined with triceps. Usually, gym-goers first do three exercises for biceps and then three for triceps when training arms. If this works for you, keep doing it; there is nothing wrong.

However, the alternating method focuses on training one exercise for biceps in full power, followed by one for triceps, then again biceps, and again triceps, and so on, alternating between the two muscle groups. The key is to use maximal power and weights on the first exercise; while you are doing the triceps exercise, you allow the biceps to rest, so the next biceps exercise can be executed with the same power.

With this method, you will be able to lift 10-15% more weight than you are used to lifting.

1 0 5 tempo full range of motion (ROM)

The 105 technique is focused on the execution of the exercise itself, essentially controlling the time your muscle is under tension.

The "1" means one second for the upward, or lifting (concentric), movement; this motion must be explosive and powerful, hence the single second.

The "0" means zero seconds, or no stop, at the top of the movement; there should be no pause and no rest for the muscle.

The "5" is the lowering (eccentric) movement, which should be controlled and performed over five seconds. This controlled descent is also known as a "negative movement" and is the biggest opportunity for muscle growth. Scientifically, the muscle is proven to grow up to three times more during the negative (the lowering) movement compared to the positive (the lift). If you let the weights just drop, you are missing a significant opportunity for muscle growth. If the movement is out of control, it is time to reduce the weight and adjust to your current strength and performance level.

Last but not least, one of the most important elements of the entire training is to perform a full range of motion with good form. As the saying goes: half range of motion equals half results; full range of motion equals full results.

Drop sets, super sets and giant sets

Our muscles store glycogen. It is a sugar that is used as fuel for normal movement and training. If we deplete our body’s glycogen stores, the body tends to store 2-3 times more as a defensive mechanism, which is known as Super Compensation.

This principle can be used to enhance muscle growth by completely depleting glycogen from the muscles, prompting the body to store more, which in turn can stimulate growth in the arms and biceps.

Specific training techniques related to intensity include:

Drop Set: Performing the same exercise, immediately reducing the weight, and continuing for consecutive sets (typically 3-4 times) without a break.
Super Set: Combining 2-3 exercises in one set without a break between them.
Giant Set: Combining 7 to 10 exercises without a break.

Biceps exercises

Pull ups

I can see some of you making that expression when I mention this exercise as the first one, but let me explain.

A friend of mine, who is a gymnast, and we know that gymnasts have some of the best arms among all athletes, told me his workout routine for the arms, especially for the biceps.

I was in shock when he told me that he doesn't train his biceps at all and that the only thing he does is pull-ups!

I was surprised, but I later applied it to my training routine, and it really worked. Just grab the bar, make sure your grip is neither too wide nor too close, and try to bring your chin as close as possible to the bar.

I know for some of you, especially the beginners, this will be very difficult. You can use elastic bands to help you lift yourself up until you feel strong and confident doing them without assistance.

Straight bar curls

The Straight Bar Curl is the perfect exercise to directly hit the inner (short) biceps head and minimize activation of the brachialis (unlike with the Z bar). This is key for building significant volume and size. Applying the 105 tempo to this movement will boost your results to the maximum.

I recommend using cable exercises for individuals who naturally have longer muscle fibers, while those with shorter muscle fibers will benefit more from performing this exercise with free weights.

Dumbbell curls

Dumbbell curls are the most famous exercise for biceps. Most people perform this exercise simultaneously with both arms. While this technique may work for some, it is often ineffective for most because the brief "rest" period while the other arm is performing a repetition is too long. The muscles in the arm recover very quickly, and a 2-3 second rest can be too long.

For this exercise, I recommend performing 10-12 repetitions with one arm (starting with the weaker arm), and then immediately performing 10-12 repetitions with the stronger arm. This reduces the resting time for the biceps, creating more tension and effort on the muscle.

Concentration curls

Concentration curls are a highly isolated exercise. By resting your elbow on your knee, you eliminate all swinging momentum, and by twisting your pinky finger away from your body and squeezing the muscle at the top of the movement for a second or two, you will create maximum muscle fiber activation that will build the peak you want.

Drag curls

This is an old-school bodybuilding move that, honestly, too many modern lifters are completely sleeping on.

Instead of just letting the bar swing in a big arc like a regular curl, you have to consciously "drag" it right up your torso by driving your elbows straight back behind you. When I first did it, the shift in focus was incredible, it hit the long head, that legendary bicep "peak" muscle, almost exclusively.

It's a very short, almost awkward range of motion, but trust me, the tension you feel on the outer bicep is absolutely intense.

A little tip that really helped me: use a slightly narrower-than-shoulder-width grip on a barbell or EZ-bar. That small adjustment really amplified the focus on the outer head. It’s a game-changer for building that peak.

Is it possible to apply all the methods, techniques, and exercises and still not achieve the desired results?

Unfortunately Yes, and here is why:

Stress is a very limiting factor for muscle growth. When the body is under constant stress, it produces a hormone called cortisol. This hormone goes into our muscles and can literally destroy them. When stress is elevated, it is almost impossible to create new muscle tissue.

Lack of sleep - There is a Japanese saying: "The general who is able to sleep, wins the war!" Lack of sleep often stems from stress, which can lead to insomnia and anxiety. This, in turn, means less time for recovery, and therefore less opportunity for creating new muscle tissue.

Not eating enough! Being in a constant calorie deficit also makes it impossible to create new muscle. Building muscle is a journey that requires a constant intake of quality calories.

Not creating progressive overload - If we train with the same weights and the same exercises all the time, our body gets used to it—this is called metabolic adaptation—and with that, there is no reason why the muscles should grow.

To avoid this plateau, we must apply progressive overload by adding weight or changing the exercises, which will continuously make the training more challenging.

Reaching the plateau - this happens if we train for a long time with maximum weights and effort without a deload or resting period. From that point, our energy and motivation are going down, the weights that were light before, now are too heavy, and the whole situation is very demotivational. To avoid this trap, we must add a deload (training light) or resting(no training) week in our training program.
Genetics - decide the shape of your muscle and the maximum size. If you reach your genetic maximum potential it's impossible to grow your muscles.

Building nice biceps is a slow process. Sometimes you will ignore the necessary rest period, sometimes you will lift with your ego, or sometimes you will skip a meal. It's okay to make these mistakes - this is the price we pay for growth. We learn, we correct, and we keep the consistency day after day, week after week, year after year.