Ninety-nine percent of Muscle & Fitness readers started lifting weights to build bigger arms, the other one percent are liars! Iconoclast, old-school bodybuilder, the late Chuck Sipes, had this to say, “The settler, the village blacksmith, the lumberjack, the carpenter and builder — all needed powerful arms to ply their trade well, and in time those with the greatest, most powerful arms grew to be respected for their contributions.”
Regardless of era, the bottom line is men want powerful, well-developed arms. In spite of the desire to build muscular arms, most folks toil endlessly in vain with no guns to show for it. Why is this? More than likely it’s exercise selection.
Let’s take a closer look at six exercises to work your arms to exhaustion for the most effective results.
1 of 6
chabybucko
Dip
Behind bars, the triceps are referred to as the “back arms.” Any Jailhouse lifter will tell you there is no better way to build the back arms than with dips. Let’s move past Jailhouse anecdotes to Per Tesch’s classic bodybuilding science book, Targeted Bodybuilding, where it was demonstrated through MRI that dips maximally target all three heads of the triceps. For decades, dips have been a staple in the routines of top bodybuilders and strength athletes.
2 of 6
Per Bernal
Chinup
Most folks classify “chins” as a back exercise, which it most certainly is but remember one of the functions of the biceps is supination; in the case of the chin-up, this means grabbing the bar with your palms facing you. Countless lifters have experienced bicep growth by dropping curling movements all together and specializing in chins. Just think of the overload your biceps will experience as you pull your bodyweight through the air and your chin over the bar, if you are strong enough you can even add additional weight. Chins, like cheat curls, are used for overload, the difference is chins are safer, more effective and more weight can be used.
3 of 6
Edgar Artiga
Skull-Crusher
I train at Metroflex Gym, home to Ronnie Coleman. It’s safe to say King Coleman’s arm development speaks for itself. One of the main stays in Ronnie’s triceps routine was the skull-crusher; interestingly, many bodybuilders at the gym used more weight than Ronnie on this exercise even though they were less-developed and much weaker. Point being, this exercise is about working the muscle not your ego. Stay strict to maximize results, use cheat reps to maximize elbow pain and neglect the triceps.
4 of 6
Brian Kuhlman / M+F Magazine
Incline Dumbbell Curl
This is an extended range of motion exercise because of the incline which forces your arms to go behind your torso. To shorten the range of motion totally compromises results, think of this movement as a stretch movement.
5 of 6
Jose Luis Pelaez Inc / Getty
Overhead Rope Triceps Extension
This is very elbow-friendly triceps exercise. Some folks have trouble feeling their triceps work with free weight extensions because in the top position the weight is no longer providing adequate resistance. Overhead rope triceps extensions provide continuous tension on the triceps, even at the top position; because of this, a unique overload is provided and is helpful in building a mind muscle connection.
6 of 6
Pavel Ythjall
Hammer Curl
Hammer curls are very effective for working the brachialis, the muscle Charles Poliquin refers to as the “workhorse” of elbow flexors. The way the brachialis lies under the biceps makes it look small because you only see a portion of it—looks are deceiving, it is much bigger than it appears. The bigger you build the brachialis, the more it can push your biceps upward, giving you bigger, thicker arms.
Final Thoughts
No matter how hard or often you train when it comes to arm—exercise selection is everything! Give these half dozen tried and true exercises a shot and take your arm development to the next level.
