BIGGER & STRONGER ARMS WITH THESE 2 EXERCISES | The Best Exercises For Bigger and Stronger Arms
Updated: Sep 10
Are You Doing The Right Exercises to Produce Bigger Arms?
There are many exercises for developing the arms, but if we are talking about the best exercises for producing strength & muscle mass there are two exercises in particular that we simply can't ignore.
Unlocking The Value
Each section of this post has a video that contains key points and then we read through the article to go a little bit deeper on each section.
So more than just finding out a couple of exercises, we are going to look at what value these exercises bring to our workouts, as well as specific workout strategies to help you produce bigger and stronger arms.
Here's what we are going to look in this post
Best Exercise For Bigger Triceps
Best Exercise For Stronger Biceps
How To Maximise These Exercises For Increased Muscle Growth Potential
Workout Strategies You Can Apply To Your Routine
An Online Workout You Can Take To Any Gym
The Best Exercise for Producing Thicker Denser Triceps: The Close Grip Press
Watch the video to uncover the power of The Close Grip Press
The Close Grip Press
While isolation exercises have there place and can have significant relevance in any workout, it's the Close Grip Bench press that is going to help develop mass and power.
The Close Grip Press being a compound exercise will enable you to move more weight, and that weight will have a significant impact in producing functional tension through the Triceps which will lead to the muscle mass gains we desire.
Pushing Power
This also enables us to incorporate a 3rd pushing session in our workouts, where we have hit the Chest with a Bench Press, the shoulders with a Shoulder Press, and with the Close Grip Press, we get that 3rd session of more pushing power.
Benefits of Pushing Exercises
We just quite simple cannot ignore the power of pushing movements!
Working with the Bench Press, Shoulder Press and the Close Grip Press are foundational to developing upper-body strength, which also provide us with amazing physiological benefits to not just muscle alone, but also joints, tendons and connective tissue.
Tendon Thickening & Strength:
Stimulates collagen syntheses
Increases diameter and structural integrity of the tendons
Increased resilience to strains and tears
Increased Bone Mineral Density:
The increased mechanical stress on the bones produced through pushing heavy loads stimulates osteoblasts (bone building cells.) This strengthens joint structures where tendons are inserted.
Enhancing Joint Stability:
Multi-joint compound movements recruit the body's stabilising muscles (such as the rotator cuff), creating greater stability for the joint capsule through ranges of movement.
Synovial Fluid Circulation: The best exercises for bigger and stronger arms
As we pump out our reps, the contraction and extension of the joints also acts as a pump that circulates synovial fluid within the joint. This lubricates the cartilage, increases blood supply and delivers nutrients, helping to keep the joints on top form.
The Best Exercise for Producing Stronger Biceps: The EZ Bar Curl
Watch the video to find out about how to maximise the EZ Bar Curl
The History of The EZ Bar
Invented by Lewis G Dymeck in 1948, he created the angled bar to reduce pain through his wrists and elbows when curling. Originally called the Dymeck Curling Bar, the patent rights were later bought out by Bob Hoffman of the York Barbell Company in 1964 and then re-branded as the EZ Bar, which is what we know it as today.
Further to its original designed intention, the EZ Bar is an amazing tool for heavy lifting.
The Ergonomics For Heavy Lifting
Angled in a way to keep the hands and lower arm in a semi neutral position, this allows a solid engagement of the Brachialis, which is the powerhouse for lower arm flexion, whilst still engaging the Biceps. This ergonomic design can make it easier to lift heavier weight ,therefore increasing functional tension but we still need to work to ensure that we are focusing tension through the biceps.
Techniques Tweaks To Optimise Muscle Contraction
In the video we looked at specific technique tweaks to engage the short head of the bicep and lifting methods that can be used to manipulate where the workout load hits, ie, (short head of the Biceps, Long Head), as well as mixing contraction types through the lift.
The methods described will help your body adapt to the increased load and begin to help the body to develop increased load through the short head of the Biceps.
Examples of Lifting Techniques Using The EZ Bar Curl
LIFTING TECHNIQUE 1
We don't emphasise the supination pressuure (pinky finger side of the palm) on the concentric phase of the lift (curiing the bar upwards).
On the eccentric phase apply the pressure through the pinkyfinger side of the palm to engage the short head of the biceps.
LIFTING TECHNIQUE 2
We keep light tension through the pinky finger side of the palm all the way through each part of the rep, but don't fight body when it wants to emphasise through the index finger and thumb.
LIFTING TECHNIQUE 3
For the more advanced, we commit to forcing the pingy side of the plam against the bar all the way through each phase of the lift and through every repetition.
Short Head of the Biceps:
Increased Shape & Density of The Biceps
If it is asthetics you are looking for it is the short head of the Biceps that you are going to need to focus on. While the short head is strong, the body naturally wants to emphasis weight through the stronger Brachialis, and you will notice when you are beginning to fatIgue during a curl that the little finger side of the palm on the bar is not going to be as connected. Work between the lifting techniques described in the video and develop your ability to work through that short head. It is hard work, but the gains will be visible in your T-shirt.
How To Maximise These Exercises To Increase Muscle Growth Potential
Simple Technique For More Gains
We all want maximum gains. We want the results faster, we want to make each exercise give us more. With that being the case, adding this simple yet effective way of training is a sure way to up your game and revolutionise your gain. That simple technique unite these two exercises together to make what is called a superset.
Producing an environment perfect for muscle growth, read on to find out how good even the most basic superset is when training the arms.
The Basic Superset
So in its basic form the superset functions like this. We do lets say the Close Grip Bench Press, we move straight onto the EZ Bar Curl, then we have a break. As basic as it comes, what is happening with this exercise combination is that even though we've got one muscle group having a break and then putting the focus in on the next muscle group, because it's all located in that same place in that upper arm region, we're getting a huge increase in blood flow in those upper arms, and this is where the extra value button gets pressed.
Workout Intensity
Combining these together will provide you with an instant elevation in workout intensity. Applying this simple workout modification has some muscle growth, strength and performance values that just can't be ignored. Even a basic superset will deliver short sharp intensive bursts, which as well as the physiological benefits that can also change the mental dynamic of your workout. Instead of being one dimensional and stuck in a 'one exercise at a time', 'plod along', you can turn up the heat, reset your focus and produce some high value concentrated short bursts. You will be suprised how much more you will get out of your workout.
Increased Blood Flow Equals Muscle Growth
Now, this is actually not only amazing just for its pump value alone, we all love the pump, but that increased blood flow increases nutrient delivery and metabolic stress, and these are key components that go on to produce optimal muscle growth. So with some good form, a determination to produce some concentrated intensity, you are now setting the stage for your body to max out on its full potenital of building muscle.
Time Efficiency
Now imagine this, we have just maximised all of the benefits above in one routine instead of doing them separately.
Putting them together, we've made something really quite amazing happen which is going to support bigger and stronger arms and now we are maximising our time in the gym as well.
Time Effective as Part of A Bigger Workout
So even if you were doing this superset as part of a bigger routine, you're still being time effective because you're condensing a crucial phase of your workout and maximising it.
Let's do a comparison. You are doing your close-grip press, you have a break, scroll on your phone, have a look in the mirror then go through the same thing through each set. You then move over, get onto your EZ-bar curls do the same. You then you go and do another couple of exercises. Not only only are you losing the intesity you need do it this way, but its also taking forever to do it.
So instead, If you can put that routine into one: not only have you got that concentrated intensity (which, as explained, is absolutely fantastic for your progress), but we're being time efficient, focused, purposeful and completing a workout that justifies a shower at the end of it.
Not Got Time? Just Do A Superset!!
Then there is the time factor where you are really pressed for time but don't really want to miss a day, but might have to. You have been disciplined, consistent for a few weeks and you simple don't want to break the cycle. This is where you can use a superset as a great back up plan and use it as a one quick hit wonderwaffle workout that will do what is needed. It is going to pull out of you the effort levels where you feel like you have done something worthwhile and will have produced enough physical output that ensures your body is still moving forwards.
You can go, 'Right, I'm going to do close-grip press and EZ-bar curls,' 'i'm gonna superset it and smash these arms' and you just go, hit that in one routine and within 15 minutes, Boom, that is it: you've got a nice little workout in, and at least you've done something.
Superset Strategies For Muscle Growth
Watch the video to find out about Training Strategies you can use with your Superset
Superset Strategies Benefits
As we have seen, there are ways that we can modify our supersets to gear them to suit our training needs, time constraints and overall objectives. Further to this, strategies have a super power in themselves alongside the physiological gains.
You have always got something fresh to work on.
A different way of hitting the gym yet still steered towards your primary goal focus.
Keeping the body in constant adjust mode without going off track(this is also where progress is made) by switching the workout terrain.
Keeping yourself mentally stimulated by adjusting to new routines.
Take Me to Your Next Workout
If you have made it this far through this article you are definitely someone who is serious about making an impact on themselves and want to make progress!
Well why not take me to your next workout, where I will coach you through every rep, push you through strategic workouts that are geared to maximise your output and workout capabililty.
Check out This Superset Routine Below, where I will coach you through a full audio coach routine. Pushing it deeper than the strategies discussed in this article, we incorporate REP Pace training techniques where we manipulate contraction types during our workout, to bring even more to your Tactical Bigger Stronger Arms superset.
Watch the workout brief below and if you want to apply a training cheat code to your workouts, with full coaching support in your ear every training session, click the button to go to the workout page.
Click on the link below and you can get started on not just this routine, but workouts for every muscle group.
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