So come over here, guys. I want to show you something. This is going to be
probably the best bicep video you ever seen, including all the ones I've already done on
this channel. So, if you've been trying to build your biceps, I'm sure at some point you're using
some version of an easy bar curl, right? You've approached a rack like this at the gym,
you've grabbed it and you started curling away. How you grab this thing, though,
may or may not lead to more or better results. Because the way these bars are actually set up
is that they're set to kind of stay in one position here on the rack, they all fall down into
one position. That's because of the way the bar is engineered. The center of mass keeps it like this.
The problem is you look at this, it's got two grip options here. You've got these inside grips
and you've got the outside grips. And a lot of us don't like to grab the narrow grip because it
doesn't really feel comfortable when we're curling like this, so we'll grab the more comfortable
shoulder width. But if you grab it like this, look what happens as the bar is set up. I grab it. I'm
actually doing something that's less optimal for my biceps, why because I've actually grabbed it
from a less supine position. In other words, I'm grabbing it from more of a permanent position.
You can see that the angle of my hand when I put this down is like this, not turned over.
So, what you have to do if you want to get more out of this, is to actually understand that
and then flip that bar over before you grab it. So, that when I grab this outside handle now you
can see that the hand is having to be separated more, right? This would be that kind of flat
position. I can separate more to grab those same grips and then get in this position to get a lot
more bicep contraction and not let the brachialis sort of dominate the flexion of the elbow to bring
this bar up to the top. Now you probably see me also doing something else that I do automatically
that I shared with you before, and that's the real desire and need to keep the wrist somewhat bent
backwards at the top of a curl. It's essential to an optimally performed bicep curl. Why?
because of anatomy. We know that an accessory motion to supination is wrist extension,
and this is why that happens. So, if I was going to just lay this in here like it's in my body,
you can see that this is the radius and this is the ulna, right? And my hand is pretty
much in this position. If I want to pronate like this, then this radius has to rotate
around the ulna, which doesn t really move. Right? The ulna is kind of fixed. But we know
that if I want to get back into this position in supinate and continue to go that way, that I
need to have this extension at the wrist. Why? Because if I have a flexed wrist here and this
tries to open up, you'll see that it's actually getting blocked by the bones that are in there.
Right? The bones, the carpal bones of the wrist don't have freedom of movement there to allow
for that. So, if I can get into extension, all of a sudden, that can open up a lot easier. So,
it's really important that we have that ability to do that. So how else would this apply? Because
it's not just that exercise you're going to do. I want to make this an all-encompassing video
for you so you get this right every single time. So, if you were to go do, let's say, a Cable Curl,
there's a few other benefits that actually come in play here that
help you out. So again, if I were just to curl up like this,
I'm going to limit how much I can get in terms of separation. I want those risks back for a
couple of reasons because number one, as the risk go back, I'm actually going to see you
can see the elbow coming in tight to my body. I'm able to get the elbow underneath because
I'm going to show you something in the second here when we get to the straight bar that illustrates
exactly why you need to get this right. But I want this so I can get underneath.
And when I'm underneath, I'm getting more of that supination by getting that wrist bent back. But
also, I'm keeping the force on the biceps with the cable. If I curl in here like this, the line
of resistance is this line right here, this cable line. And look at its relationship to my forearms,
right? It's approaching parallel. And we know that in order to keep the force on the muscle,
we're trying to work. We want it to be more perpendicular to the moving segment, in this case,
the forearm. So, if I bend those wrists back a bit, look at the relationship now that cable is
more perpendicular to my forearm and right away I feel a lot more tension on the biceps even at the
top of this exercise. And the more I can kind of keep that by keeping the wrist bent back, I have
more tension here on the biceps. So, reason number two of why you want to get some of that wrist
extension here as you come up. But over here at the straight bar, you might be thinking, well, how
do you do that? Because you really again, you're even more limited than you are with the cable
because gravities are acting straight up and down here, not the line of force being the cable.
So, here's what we do, pulling out all the stops, guys. Raymond, muscle marker, everything. This
area right here is where you want to direct your force when you're curling with a straight bar.
Why? Because it's going to encourage supination and it's going to get the elbows tucked into the
sides. How? If I grab this straight bar here and I focus on pushing through this part of the hand
just like that, then what that does is it first of all, it prevents the elbows from drifting,
which just takes away some of the work of the biceps. But it actually by pushing through that
inside portion of the hand right there, you can see the bar actually being pushed through there.
I can almost supinate my hand into a straight bar. So not even being limited anymore by the fact that
I don't have any manipulation or orientation of the bar that allows for more supination. So,
I'm able to come down, up, push through that inner portion of the hand, almost allow for supination
in a bar that was once thought to be unable to allow for that because of its fixed nature. So,
I'm able to kind of do that. And again, in order to do that, I've got to get the elbow underneath
for leverage, so it discourages any flaring of the elbow because it has to come underneath
to push through this portion of the hand. And then finally, if I go over to a dumbbell, I've
shown you guys this before, but again, it bears repeating because if you understand the whole
concept, you're going to get this right every time. And if you struggle to grow your biceps,
you're going to start growing them. So, when I grabbed the dumbbells, I told you about an offset
grip. If you take a grip all the way at the end of the dumbbell, the top end of the dumbbell here,
just like that. And then you curl, and you make sure that the dumbbell is level at the top
or if anything, pinkie side higher, you're going to make sure that you're getting the biceps to do
more of the work because the biceps are the supinator. It's the differentiator between,
let's say, the brachialis and the biceps is their ability to do supination. And how do I know that?
Well, quick little story you probably been watching for a while here and wondering why
I've had this brace on or this little sleeve, it's because I've had a bicep tear. So, if I actually
come down here, you can see the difference, right? The fullness in here and what's lacking in here.
But when I had the injury, when I was walking my son into school and he slipped on the ice
and I went to go grab him, I had to assess what was going on.
The first thing I did was look at my ability to move into supination,
not just flexion. Because if I could go like this and still see a bicep, but not really know whether
it's torn or not. Because I could carry the biceps along in elbow flexion and make it ball up,
but not necessarily have it still be attached. So, the way you test for that is you want a supinate
and you can see that when I supinate just the wrist here in the forearm that I get good movement
here. So, I have supination capabilities. It is the differentiator between brachialis flex and the
elbow and the biceps flexing the elbow. If you want to grow your biceps, learn from this injury,
realize you need to get into supination. The best way to do that is to allow for it by getting
some extension at the wrist and to keep those elbows as close to the body as possible.
Guys, I hope you found the video helpful. If you're looking for more of these deep dives,
leave your comments below. I'll do that. If you're looking for more bicep workouts and tips,
you can find those over here. Make sure you click, subscribe
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