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I work 12 hour midnight shifts, 7p - 7a, 4 on/4 off, and also teach occasionally at a local community college. My wife and I work out at a local gym, she is strictly TSPA with a six day split. I am THT + MANS. I like the short intense workouts and am getting good results everywhere but biceps. I do the normal cable preacher curls x3 plus barbell (curl bar) curls x3 on back/bicep days. Is there anything I can add to my routine that may yield more results? 44 years old and fairly new to weight training.

What does Mark say?
He has a routine where you do dumbell standup curls, straight barbell curls, and incline bench barbell curls.
Now, I'm no huge monster insect but relative speaking I'm making gains.

jerry674 wrote:I work 12 hour midnight shifts, 7p - 7a, 4 on/4 off, and also teach occasionally at a local community college. My wife and I work out at a local gym, she is strictly TSPA with a six day split. I am THT + MANS. I like the short intense workouts and am getting good results everywhere but biceps. I do the normal cable preacher curls x3 plus barbell (curl bar) curls x3 on back/bicep days. Is there anything I can add to my routine that may yield more results? 44 years old and fairly new to weight training.

Do I ever feel your pain. Everyone's got that one part that just doesn't want to respond - for me it's biceps, just like you. As far as adding things, you could consider picking up the arms blast experiment book. I haven't tried that yet, so I can't speak to what it is or efficacy, but apparently that is for arms what TSPA is for your abs. What I can speak to is what finally broke that plateau for me.

For starters, ditch the ez-curl bar, and use a straight one. The ez-curl bar doesn't position the muscle correctly for maximal contraction and range of motion, so you're not getting 100% out of your sets using it. It does provide some relief for the wrists, but it is at the expense of efficacy, and you have other options to provide that same relief - specifically, hooks. Your grip is frequently the "weak link" in any given exercise, and hooks completely remove that from the equation by stopping you from using your forearms to start the rep. Since your wrist and hands aren't really engaged, there isn't as much of an isometric contraction in your forearm, and the load is more effectively transferred to where you want it - your bicep. Also, if you're stretching before your workout, knock it the hell off. No change I have ever made has had as much of an immediate payoff as ditching the precor stretcher before my work out and just doing a few light sets to warm up instead.

Last but not least, and I say this a lot but it's true, mind your form. For preacher curls, sit upright (slouching will engage your anterior delts), and remember it's a bit more than a 90 degree angle - you go from the angle of the preacher bench to having your forearms perpendicular to the floor. Beyond that, gravity works against you. The top of the rep is where the weight is literally at its highest - straight up - and that's the peak contraction point where you should pause and hold. For barbell curls, stagger your feet to prevent yourself from wobbling, which will allow you to keep better control of the weight. Allow some movement in the back, but do not swing yourself and do not hyper extend your back. Keep your elbows in and back slightly - it should be physically impossible to completely straighten your arm at the bottom of the rep. You will have to play with this a little to get it right. The issue isn't actually your arms on this one, it's how your shoulders are constructed and how broad your chest is versus how narrow your waist is. Don't be afraid to move your grip wider or narrower until you find your personal "sweet spot". What you want is to feel virtually zero strain in your shoulders, hands, and forearms, all of it in your biceps. Irritation or strain in your hands, wrists or forearms is too narrow, in the shoulders is too wide - both will thwart your progress.

That's all I got. Hope it helps.

sounds good to me
and this ain't even my thread

JohnOregon wrote:sounds good to me
and this ain't even my thread

Community thread. Share and share alike.

Thanks for the tip. The e-z bar was a more comfortable option because of some fairly serious wrist issues in both arms. Hooks are an option where I work out and I will definitely give them a go. I spent a considerable amount of time studying and working on my form and have seen gains, just not as much as other areas. Being fairly new to the sport I appreciate the advice. My gym has those preloaded barbells and I have used them with little discomfort. But as my weights progressed I started using the e-z bar. I do light warm up sets instead of stretching so no problem there.

jerry674 wrote:Thanks for the tip. The e-z bar was a more comfortable option because of some fairly serious wrist issues in both arms. Hooks are an option where I work out and I will definitely give them a go. I spent a considerable amount of time studying and working on my form and have seen gains, just not as much as other areas. Being fairly new to the sport I appreciate the advice. My gym has those preloaded barbells and I have used them with little discomfort. But as my weights progressed I started using the e-z bar. I do light warm up sets instead of stretching so no problem there.

Me too! My wrists are very badly spurred, both hands. Some of the spurs are pronounced to the point you can see them, and my hands' neutral rest position hasn't been what it's supposed to be in a decade. Makes wrist curls fun, cuz I get to watch my hands seize up and shake like a freakin meth addict when I'm done... Seriously dude, invest in good hooks. They've been a life-saver for me for bicep curls and deadlifts. I just use the little cheap Harbinger ones, though I am considering swapping them out for Altus or Schiek ones, since the hook on the Harbingers is kinda small and on deads I'm always worried of dropping a couple hundred pounds on my toes... but yeah, if your hands are borked up, get you some hooks and some good gloves (I love my Harbinger ones with the wrist wrap, like I'm gonna be buried with these things some day). It'll make a HUUUUUGE difference just to get the extra support and comfort for a weakened joint.

I concur.

Thanks to both JoH and JohnOregon,
Just got off Amazon.com, Schiek hooks for around $35 US. Not bad. Will let you know how things work out. These should be useful for Deads, too.

jerry674 wrote:Thanks to both JoH and JohnOregon,
Just got off Amazon.com, Schiek hooks for around $35 US. Not bad. Will let you know how things work out. These should be useful for Deads, too.

Definitely please do follow up with us on those Schiek hooks. I can't find them locally here in PHX and I'm not a big fan of buying my exercise equipment sight unseen - though I did make out quite well on a Schiek belt with the help of some online reviews. If you could be so kind as to follow up and let us know how they feel and how well they fit the bars that'd be much appreciated.