Barbell curls. Preachers. Extensions. Pressdowns. On arms day, these are a few of our favorite things. But these moves are single-joint moves that isolate your biceps and triceps. Larger muscle groups, such as the chest, back, and quads, are usually bombarded with an array of multi-joint moves that allow for more weight before isolation exercises come into play. Is it possible to use that same strategy on your arms? Justin Grinnell, C.S.C.S., owner of State of Fitness, believes it is.
“When athletes think about developing ripped arms, they immediately think of isolation exercises, such as biceps curls and triceps pressdowns,” he says. “While isolation movements are great when trying to add some detail to a muscle group, for overall mass and strength gains, compound movements will always trump isolation movements.”
Grinnell says that multi-joint moves and heavier weight loads will lead to a greater release of your body’s natural growth hormone: testosterone and IGF-1. Collectively, these hormones work to help you add size—everywhere. That includes your pipes. Just train, feed, and repeat. Here are Grinnell’s four moves to get you going.
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Close-Grip Chinup
Target: Biceps
When was the last time you did a full set of chinups to failure? If you have, then you are likely familiar with the ache in your biceps’ bellies the next day. Turns out, it’s not really just a back exercise. Not by a long shot.
“Your biceps have to work so hard to grip and pull your elbow into flexion that there is a tremendous amount of muscle tissue that is stimulated,” Grinnell says.
Grinnell says to grip a pullup bar underhand with your palms 6″ apart, and, starting from a dead hang, “pull yourself up until your upper chest comes into contact with the bar.” Pause for a full second and the top, and lower yourself slowly until your arms become totally straight. Pulling yourself up all the way to the bar, Grinnell says, slightly increases the range of motion, and, thus, the demand placed on the biceps.
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One-Arm Hammer Row
Target: Biceps
You likely already do hammer curls in your routine but hammer rows? Grinnell says to think of it as a modified concentration curl, where you’re getting a bit of help from your back to complete heavier-than-normal reps of an already effective biceps exercise.
“Grab a dumbbell that you can usually row for about 15 reps,” he says. “Assume the same position as a standard one-arm dumbbell row. Instead of pulling straight back, as you do when rowing, you will perform a hammer curl as you pull the dumbbell to the top, near your pecs. Pause and squeeze your biceps and then lower slowly until your arm is fully extended. Due to your position and the support from your back muscles, you are able to put more stress on the biceps due to the increased weight being used. Your upper back will be fried as a byproduct.”
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Ring Dip
Target: Triceps
One of the most beneficial yet underused exercises for building bulging triceps is the dip. Because it calls your delts and pecs into play to complete each rep, you are able to more effectively overload the triceps. And if you get to the point where you can add resistance, then you’re in for some serious size. But if you have the opportunity to use rings, you can reap additional rewards.
“The added instability causes your triceps and supporting muscles to work harder to complete each rep,” says Grinnell. “In the absence of rings, standard dips will still add serious mass. They may not be the biggest guys, but gymnasts have some of the best-looking arms in the world.”
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Edgar Artiga
Close-Grip Ring Pushup
Target: Triceps
A lot of mass-seekers tout the benefits of the close-grip bench press for triceps. They usually do this before rubbing their shoulders or elbows. Yes, it’s an effective exercise for adding three-head size to your tri’s but there’s a better way to go if you want to avoid tender joints.
“I like close-grip bench presses, but with close-grip pushup variations you can increase your volume and frequency, due to less stress on the shoulder joints,” Grinnell says. “More training frequency and more training volume with better recovery equals increased muscle growth.”
Grinnell adds that weighted or elevated close-grip pushups are adequate substitutes if you don’t have access to rings or a suspension trainer.
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The Routine
Isolation moves are so yesteryear. Try this compound-focused routine to wage a serious shock-and-awe campaign on your biceps and triceps.
The Workout
1.Close-grip chin-up: Sets – 3, Reps – 8 superset with ring dip: Sets – 3, Reps – 8
2. Close-grip ring push-up: Sets – 3, Reps – to failure superset with one-arm hammer row: Sets – 3, Reps – 12
