Is it possible to do biceps and triceps on the same day? A separate day for arm training: pros and cons

18.08.202327.05.2017

Is the T-shirt sleeve hanging loosely around your shoulder? Use expert advice on your arm days and pump up your biceps and triceps!

If you are guided by the rule “the less you know, the better you sleep” when training your arms, you are most likely not interested in learning something new and finding a way to pump up your biceps and triceps even more. You can walk around the gym with 35-centimeter cans, not realizing that armed with a minimum of knowledge and a little effort, you could pump up your biceps to 40-43 centimeters, or even to larger sizes!

If this prospect seems tempting to you, it's time to forget about old habits and hit the books. First, check out the nine most underrated tips for training your biceps and triceps. You'll find that when building quality muscle is on the line, knowledge is just as important as hard work. So, let's go!

1. Set aside a separate day for arm training.

One of the most popular approaches to organizing a training split is to combine large and small muscle groups on deadlift and press days. As a result, triceps are often trained with the chest muscles, and biceps with the back day. This approach works for many bodybuilders, but over time people begin to notice that the second muscle group - the arms in each example - is not receiving the same training load as the first.

The problem is solved by providing special training for the arms. Without heavy lifting or pulling exercises that will drain you early, you'll be able to approach your workout with full tanks, which will help you perform at your best. Because you can lift more weight, your muscles will be stimulated to grow.

2. Start with the maximum weight

I stress this a lot, but it's really important: start your arm training with exercises where you can lift your maximum weight. There is no need to immediately start doing or after warming up. You can give your muscles double or even triple the load in the simulator for or in.

If we are talking about biceps, it is foolish to start with or, when you can give the muscles a much greater load in or. The first exercise you do on arm day will have the biggest impact on your overall results, so think carefully about where you want to start your workout.

Once you've found the right exercise to start training your arms, don't waste your chance by going too light. If you're building mass, don't be afraid to work with weights that stop you after 6-8 reps. This will give you more incentive to increase strength and mass than if you rely on light weights for high-repetition training with a pumping effect.

3. Train your biceps by thinking about "angles"

Elbows-at-the-sides, shoulder-width grip - this should be your starting position for biceps curls. But, as with the basic bench press and bench press, it makes sense to explore different variations that can spur muscle development in your arms.

When the arms are in front of the torso plane, such as in Scott curls, the long head of the biceps cannot fully extend and emphasis shifts to the short head. By analogy, when the arms are behind the plane of the body, as in the incline dumbbell raise, the long head is fully stretched and can contract more, making it the main target of the movement.

To shift the emphasis, you can change the position of your hands while lifting the barbell. The long head of the biceps is located outside the short one, therefore, with a narrower grip on the barbell (relative to shoulder width), you work it more effectively. Conversely, by using a wider grip, you focus primarily on the short head.

4. To pump the long head of the triceps, raise your arms above your head

For every body part, there are one or two tricks you need to master to pump your muscles in an advanced style. One of the main tricks to developing horseshoe triceps is moving the training to the overhead plane. The fact is that the fleshy long head is attached above the shoulder joint, which means that it is fully stretched only when we raise our arms above our heads. Remember that a muscle contracts with maximum force only after it has been fully stretched. Therefore, when the elbows are located on the sides of the body, the outer head of the triceps takes on the lion's share of the load.

Any triceps exercise that places your arms above your head will change the alignment. and, or extension of the arms above the head on a block transfers the load to the long head. A similar trick can be performed in some simulators. It is worth noting that if the arms are positioned perpendicular to the body, for example, in, the long head is already stretched to some extent. But as soon as you raise your arms above your head, for example, during the same exercise on, you get even greater activation of the long head of the triceps.

5. Use different grips for maximum height.

With an underhand grip, biceps curls are reduced to simply lifting the projectile due to muscle contraction. Of course, this is a great way to build muscle, but it’s far from the only one. The fact is that the arm flexors consist not only of the biceps brachii, that is, the biceps muscle. Beneath it lies the brachialis muscle, pumping which will significantly increase the overall volume of the arm.

To train the brachial muscle, you need to perform it with your hands in the so-called neutral position and your palms facing each other. Hammer grip curls can be performed with dumbbells or on a lower pulley with a cable handle.

The brachioradialis muscle, which forms the bulk of the upper forearm on the thumb side, is also involved in curling with a hammer grip. You can also work it out by doing barbell curls with a reverse grip.

6. Don't swing your elbows

It seems that there is nothing easier than extending your arms at the elbow joints in triceps exercises. However, on your way you may come across a small obstacle in the form of your elbows moving to the sides. In any exercise, from French bench or standing presses and lat extensions to close-grip bench presses, keep your elbows close to your torso to maximally target your triceps.

This is easier said than done - especially for big guys - because the elbows naturally move out to the sides. With this movement of the elbows, the muscles of the chest and shoulder are involved, and this reduces the effectiveness of the exercise. To increase triceps isolation, keep your elbows close to your torso.

7. When doing bicep curls, don’t lift the weight too high.

By far the most common mistake in biceps exercises is wanting to lift the bar as high as possible in an attempt to go through the maximum range of motion. I'm all for full range of motion training, but in this case you don't need to lift the bar too high. Most often, the front deltoids are included in this movement.

Let me explain. With your elbows close to your sides, bending your arms can lift the barbell to approximately shoulder height. But years of bad habits leave their mark, and for many bodybuilders, moving their elbows forward in an effort to lift the projectile even higher becomes second nature.

As the elbows move forward, the single-joint movement becomes a multi-joint movement involving the front delts. This not only engages another muscle group, but also creates a comfortable rest area for the biceps in the upper phase of the movement. The hands are located directly above the elbows, which means that the load on the biceps is sharply reduced.

For better isolation, stay true to the single-joint nature of biceps exercises. Remember that your elbows tend to move forward as you lift the barbell. Keep them pressed to your sides throughout the entire movement.

8. Don't focus on pumping

There is a persistent and popular belief that to succeed on arm days you need (insert one of the adjectives: killer, monstrous, incredible) muscle. The problem is that for a pump, high-repetition training is more suitable, in which blood fills the target muscle and stretches the muscle fascia by increasing volume.

Yes, this is one of the mechanisms of muscle growth known as sarcoplasmic hypertrophy. However, I believe that it is better to save the pump for the final stage of training, when the heavy exercises are over.

Training with heavy weights activates myofibrillar hypertrophy, in which actual damage to the muscle fiber structure occurs. The relatively light weight fills the cells with fluid, but does not necessarily lead to deep disruption of the cellular structure.

The question arises: why not use both options? This is possible if you work with heavy weights at the beginning of the training session, and use the pumping effect at the end. The main rule: save the killer pump for the end of the workout.

9. Train your arms more often

Large muscle masses, such as the legs, require grueling workouts, after which you have to recover for several days, so one session per week is enough. With small muscle groups, everything is a little different, and therefore many athletes train their calf and abdominal muscles up to three times a week. As for the biceps and triceps, they represent the golden mean of muscle groups and are somewhere between the first and second.

If you have the energy, time and desire, adding a second round of arm training to the end of your weekly split is easy, provided your split is planned correctly. Here's a chart I used a few years ago (does not include abs or calves).

Day 1: Chest and triceps
Day 2: Back and biceps
Day 3: Shoulders
Day 4: Legs
Day 5: Biceps and triceps
Day 6-7: Rest

If you're going to train your arms twice a week, I recommend adding variety and making your workouts completely different in terms of exercise selection and approach. Let one be heavier than the other, with an emphasis on working on weak points and increasing the number of unilateral (one-handed) exercises. Try different techniques for increasing intensity, such as (blood flow restriction training) and eccentric phase training ().

Defined arm muscles are often perceived as the main pride of an athlete.

The pumped up muscles in this area are clearly visible even under clothing, which is why beginners and experienced athletes pay a lot of attention to the biceps and triceps.

In this article we will analyze the most popular loads and recommendations for better progress.

What muscles can you train in one day?

Be sure to check out:

Information about how to properly pump up your arm muscles will allow you to increase the intensity of your workouts and speed up your progress:

Warm-up is key. Without proper warming up, muscles are quite often susceptible to injuries, which not only guarantee pain, but also significantly slow down training progress. For arm muscles, not only general warming up with cardio is important, but also local warm-up exercises (rotation of the hands, forearms, shoulders).
Biceps and triceps are small muscle groups. Therefore, they need to be trained in one day only in conjunction with large muscle groups (legs, back, chest). For this reason, comprehensive training should be used for the harmonious development of the whole body.
Start with basic exercises. Such loads require more strength and build muscle mass more effectively - which is why it is better to start a program for training biceps and triceps on the same day with them.
Note the brachialis. Thanks to this muscle, which is located on the outer part of the arm just below the biceps, it will look larger and more prominent. Popular exercises for brachialis are: “hammers” with dumbbells and barbell lifts with a reverse grip.
Aim for complete failure. In any exercise, regardless of the approach, you should work until your arms fail completely. Only this way and not any other way.
Progressive load. At each strength training, try to increase the working weight, while it is important to maintain the correct technique. Perform the exercises slowly enough, controlling muscle movements. This method makes it possible to switch the load from all muscles except the target ones (in this situation, biceps and triceps).
High quality stretch. Use stretches while resting between sets to improve blood circulation in your muscles. For example, move the arm you are working as far back as possible, holding onto the support with your free hand.

An effective set of loads and execution technique

standing barbell lifts. With a wide grip of the bar, the emphasis of the load shifts to the outer part of the biceps; with a narrow grip, the main load falls on the inner part of the biceps. Stand up straight and begin lifting the barbell by slowly bending your elbows. At the same time, make sure to keep your body still - any swaying reduces the effectiveness of the workout, shifting the main load to the back and pectoral muscles. Also try to keep your arms tightly pressed to your body up to the elbows. Perform 3 sets of 10-12 repetitions;
dumbbell lifts with turns. The main load falls on the biceps and small muscles of the arms. Stand up straight and pick up dumbbells with a suitable weight, turning your hands, raise your arms to chin level. In this case, the elbows should be fixed near the body, and the shoulders should be straightened. Do 3 sets of 10 repetitions;

Pay attention! This exercise can be done on a special bench with an incline (approximately 60°), this allows you to make the range of movements as large as possible and pump up the muscles faster.

Close-grip bench press in a prone position. The exercise involves the triceps and partially the pectoral muscles. Grasp the barbell with your hands shoulder-width apart or slightly narrower. As you inhale, slowly lower the bar to your chest, while exhaling, lift it to the top. During the exercise, the shoulders and elbows should be close to the body. Frequency of repetitions: 3 sets of 8-10 times;
French press. The exercise is focused on deep development of the triceps. Lie with your back on a flat bench and grab the barbell with a narrow grip. Next, while bending your elbows to an angle of 90°, lower the barbell behind your head. For this exercise, you should use a special curved bar (EZ) to avoid causing wrist injuries.

During this exercise, carefully monitor your own elbows; it is forbidden to spread them to the sides.

The best supersets

A biceps and triceps training program on the same day can be even more effective if you use the principle of supersets.

A superset is a combination of 2 or more training exercises that are performed sequentially without a break. The most successful supersets include the following.

Option 1:

dumbbell lifts in a standing position: 3 sets of 10-12 repetitions;
French press: 3-4 sets of 10-12 repetitions.

Option 2:

Barbell lifts (reverse grip): 3 sets of 10-12 repetitions;
block row on the simulator: 3-4 sets of 12-15 times.

Option 3:

arm curls: 3 sets of 10 repetitions;
Dips: 3 sets of 12 reps.

Important! Supersets are high-intensity, so they should be used in a training program no more than 2 times per month.

Detailed training program

An approximate program for pumping up arm muscles looks like this:

Warm-up: cardio exercises (running, jumping rope) and local warm-up of the arm joints.
EZ-bar biceps curl: 3 sets of 12 reps.
Extension of arms with a dumbbell in the position from behind the head: 3 sets of 12-15 repetitions.
Lifting dumbbells on a bench (positive inclination - 45°): 3 sets of 10-12 repetitions.
Arm curls in a block machine (upper block): 3 sets of 8-10 repetitions.

Pay attention! The break between approaches should be approximately 60 seconds, between individual exercises - 2-3 minutes. During the break between loads, try to move for better blood circulation in the muscles.

Superset program:

warm-up

2 basic exercises:

dumbbell lifts: 3 sets of 12 reps;
Bench press (close grip): 3 sets of 10-12 repetitions.

Supersets:

dumbbell lifts in a standing position + French press with each arm separately: 3 sets of 8-10 times;
barbell lifts (reverse grip) + lat pull-downs in the machine: 3 sets of 10 repetitions.

Although I have already substantiated the pointlessness of isolated exercises for biceps and triceps, until reaching at least an average level of fitness, in the section "questions and answers"(in response to the question “is it possible to pump up one muscle group, and not the whole body?”), I decided to write a note specifically about the biceps-triceps, since these muscle groups, in the stereotypes of ordinary people who are far from any sport, are associated with athleticism, and beginners in 90% of cases, when they come to the gym, they zealously begin to “pump up” them - and this is what often becomes the reason for the complete lack of progress among beginners, in the growth of not only their arms, but anything else in general.

In fact, training your arms with isolation exercises (all kinds of extensions and curls of the arms with a barbell or dumbbells) from the very beginning of training is like putting the cart before the horse. The fact is that an isolated exercise, and even progress in it (and an increase in muscle volume is generally possible only as a result of progress in its strength), can really add 0.5-1 cm in arm girth, and no more. Then it loses its effectiveness, due to the impossibility of pumping up one muscle group in isolation from the rest (more on this in the “questions and answers” section).
In other words, pumping up the biceps (the circumference of the arm bent at the elbow, in the thickest place - of course, the “lion's share" of this volume is given by the triceps, but usually they talk about the circumference of the biceps, I will say that too) with 33 to 40 cm of biceps lifts - this is non-science fiction. Having an initial volume of around 33-34 cm, you can use a dumbbell to pump it up to 35 cm, but that’s all - there’s no further, further growth of the biceps is possible only with the total body weight, and it can only grow from basic multi-joint exercises such as presses and rows for large torso muscles. Those. increase the volume of the arm from 33-35 to 40 cm, it is possible only by progressing in strength, in exercises such as bench/standing press and row/pull-ups, at least twice.

Moreover, as I said above, performing isolated arm exercises from the very beginning can cause a complete lack of progress in training: if, in addition to basic exercises (presses and rows) in which the biceps and triceps receive a significant indirect load, you also “hammer” » their isolating exercises, there is a high probability that overtraining of the same small triceps will permanently stall progress in bench presses, and as a result there will be no growth of anything - neither the triceps, nor the overall mass/strength in general.

Thus, it makes sense to start pumping your biceps-triceps “targetedly” only if you already have an arm circumference of at least 37-38 cm, and this means being at least at an average level of fitness.
N.B. The specific centimeters that I give are, of course, average and conditional, and individually depend on the initial data - height and body type. I met people in the “rocking chairs” who were two meters tall, and according to their height, weighed under 100 kg and biceps over 40 cm, but at the same time their strength level of training did not reach the average (if a person weighing under 100 kg has results in the bench press lying down 100 kg / 6-8 reps, i.e. with a weight equal to the weight of his body he cannot do at least 10-12 repetitions, and he never remembers the squat at all, this is not even an average level of fitness, despite the seemingly solid working weight in bench press 100 kg). And although the volume of the biceps, as I already said, in such people was over 40 cm, the appearance of the biceps, as well as the general physique, could only be called athletic at a stretch - abstracting from the fact that they had been visiting the gym for several years (the question arose - For what?).

As for my personal experience, I must say here that I was never at all interested in the volume of my biceps - unlike most jerks, from the very beginning of training I was fixated on strength indicators in exercises such as deadlift and standing press, squat and bench press , and total body weight. The circumference of anything was the last thing I was interested in. And although from the very beginning I still tried to do biceps curls and some kind of triceps extensions, fortunately I very quickly realized that this was a waste of time and effort.

Bearing in mind that the biceps and triceps receive sufficient indirect load for their proportional development in such basic multi-joint exercises as standing/seated presses And bench press , traction And pull-ups, I almost never downloaded them in isolation. This approach provided me with an arm circumference that was quite proportional to my overall development, around 39 cm, with a body weight of 80-85 kg. (I already mentioned in my articles and notes that I began to gain weight from 55 kg, and my arm volume seemed even less than 33 cm) (in the photo, weight is 82 kg, biceps 39 cm in a cold state).

Those. my experience fully confirms the postulate that the arm muscles develop and increase in volume in proportion to other muscles, not from isolated biceps curls and triceps extensions, but exclusively from basic presses and rows for the large torso muscles, at least until intermediate level of training, and even better advanced .

In principle, if I was worried about the size of my biceps, having been at an advanced level of training for a long time, I could “pump up” it beyond 40 cm without significantly adding to my total body weight. For this, there is “specialization” (effective only at an advanced level of training - when the foundation of body mass and strength has already been created).
“Specialization” of hands is a delicate matter. If, for example, you need a small development priority, within the framework of basic training, to give to the shoulder girdle or chest, for example, then this can be easily achieved while remaining within the “general” set of exercises, performing exercises for a specialized muscle group at the beginning of training, and adding an additional exercise for it to the complex, while reducing the number of working approaches in the remaining exercises (an example of such a complex is in the section "questions and answers", in answer to the question “how to pump up your shoulders?”).
With the arms, everything is not so simple - there is nothing stupider than placing isolated exercises for the biceps-triceps at the beginning of the “general” basic complex (I hope it is clear that with the arm muscles tired from isolated exercises, it will be impossible to do basic presses and pulls), which means should be included in a separate training session, alternating basic training for general strength and mass with “manual” training (of course, training no more than every other day, otherwise overtraining of both the arms and the general one is guaranteed).
At the same time, if we are talking about increasing the mass and power of the arms, then the choice of exercises for special “manual” training is also important. If for the biceps it is difficult to do without isolated exercises such as barbell/dumbbell curls within the framework of specialization, then when choosing exercises for the triceps you should give preference to bench presses with a medium or narrow grip, dips, and even standing/seated presses, and not French presses and triceps presses on the block.
I will not give more specific recommendations, since I have no practical experience in hand specialization.

P.S. Those who do not trust my experience and knowledge in this matter, or, being at least at an average level of fitness, want to significantly focus their efforts on developing their hands, and need a specific program of action and effective recommendations, I refer you to Stuart McRobert’s brochure “Hands” Titan",

which contains all the necessary practical information, with specific sets of exercises for both beginners and experienced ones - in my opinion, this is the best hand specialization program that I have ever come across in the literature and on the Internet.

It wouldn’t hurt me myself, now - when I’ve long benched one and a half body weights and squatted two, but I can’t help myself - I’m not interested in the circumference of my biceps, and accordingly I’m too lazy to do anything specifically for it (even just biceps curls at the end of the workout, not to mention specialization).

One of the optimal combinations for targeted training of individual muscle groups is a workout in which we pump our shoulders and arms on the same day. After all, the fundamental principle of athleticism is the competent distribution of load with the use of all muscle groups on all training days of the weekly cycle. Here is one of the popular options for such a breakdown into splits. One day we pump up the chest and back; in the other - shoulders and arms, the third is completely devoted to the legs. We do abdominal exercises at each of these workouts.

There are nuances. For example, some athletes separate biceps and triceps on different training days. The triceps are pumped together with the shoulder muscles, and the biceps are pumped together with the pectoral muscles. This is also a good combination. In the future, the program broken down by muscle group will not be the same in any case. Then you change it. But for now, focus on exactly this combination: arms and shoulders on 1 day.

Will it be effective to train your shoulders and arms in one day?

The muscle groups named in the introduction are located next to each other, and the blood flow during the work of the shoulders and arms will be carried out to the upper body, with an even saturation of the deltoids, trapezius, biceps, triceps and forearms. Joint training for arms and shoulders allows you to effectively hammer both muscle groups within one hour of training.

This program is certainly effective, but it makes sense to change it from time to time for another, with a new combination of muscle groups. After all, to ensure progressive progress, you need to “surprise” your body from time to time by “throwing” at it combinations of exercises to which it has not adapted.

You need to start your training with special attention to warming up, since the elbow and shoulder joints are among the risk areas. That is, the most traumatic, susceptible to stretching and rupture of ligamentous tissues. The shoulder joints are generally one of the most complex and unstable in the human body. Following the general physical exercises from the usual morning exercises, which will help warm up these joints, do the following warm-up exercises:

push-ups from the floor (elbows are not apart, but close to the sides, to engage the triceps);
Bench press with low load (barbell with 30% of working weight).

This will not only help warm up the joints and increase their elasticity, but will also drive blood into the muscles of the upper body, increasing their saturation with oxygen, nutrients and energy.

There is a reasonable opinion that it will be better if the training on this day begins not with the shoulders, but with the muscles of the arms. The fact is that in almost all basic exercises for the shoulder muscles, the arm muscles are always involved. Therefore, there is a high probability of “hammering” them prematurely and not purposefully, preventing full loading in the actual arm exercises.

In this case, the forearms, if you are specifically working on them, should be left for the final part of the lesson. Arm training should start with exercises for the biceps, and continue with working on the shoulders. However, some athletes claim that it is best to pump your shoulders in front of your arms, and this opinion also has a right to exist. Everyone determines for themselves by experience which option is most effective for them personally.

Any workout for arms and shoulders is the work of small or short muscle groups, which include both. And muscles of this type are very well worked out by supersets. Supersets are especially good for opposing antagonist muscles (such as biceps and triceps).

Necessary clarification: a superset is the joint performance of 2 different exercises, alternating approaches, and without rest between these approaches.

The point is that small muscle groups contract during exercise without the need for significant energy expenditure, and do not cause the athlete to quickly run out of energy. Therefore, you can alternate approaches without rest, ensuring the greatest blood flow to the working areas and their best development. This is exactly what is called a “maximum pump”, and which is difficult to achieve on large or “long” muscle groups, but more than possible for the arms and shoulders.

Another important principle of competent loading of these muscles is static dynamic training. Details below.

In order to achieve impressive results in the development of arms and shoulders, you need to train with high intensity and isolated load. A good solution is a superset on the shoulders and arms. This is a specially selected set of exercises to be performed in an intensive mode, alternating sets of one and two exercises.

When performing supersets on these muscle groups, you should pay special attention to the technique of performing the movements. You shouldn’t chase heavy weights during supersets. This not only affects technique, but also involves other muscle groups, and also increases the possibility of microtrauma and sprains.

As noted, when organizing training with supersets, it makes sense to use static dynamics for the best muscle development. Namely: special attention should be paid not so much to the maximum amplitude of movements, but to:

make sure that the muscles are constantly tense during each repetition;
upon reaching peak contraction, hold for a few seconds;
Perform movements slowly, without jerking; extension muscles are noticeably slower than flexion muscles.

Let us emphasize: a training program with supersets for arms and shoulders does not involve the use of extreme weights.

Proven and effective shoulder exercises combine perfectly with traditional arm exercises. Therefore, joint training on shoulders and arms brings guaranteed results.

Description of an effective exercise program

Superset No. 1, hands on

Standing biceps curl with curved EZ bar

Using weights on an EZ bar allows you to minimize the load on your back and wrists, and on the contrary, increase the load on your biceps. At the same time, such biceps training maintains the natural position of the static and dynamic balance of the torso.

Tips on the technique: do not allow the shoulders to involuntarily rise, or the elbows to move relative to their original position; make movements slow and controlled, with lowering slower than lifting.

This exercise only works the elbow joint; The entire volume of the triceps is subjected to load, with a predominance of working out its inner part.

Correct technique involves controlling the position of the elbows: they should not move to the sides during movement. Your arms should remain perpendicular to your body and the bench.

2nd superset, shoulders

A basic exercise that includes a full range of motion and forces the deltoids to work well at their full strength. The main load falls on the area of the middle bundles of the deltoid muscles, a moderate part of it - on the front, a small part - on the back.

The barbell should be grasped with a moderately wide grip (slightly wider than shoulder width). The main thing when performing repetitions is to fight inertia, not allowing yourself to swing, and also tilt your torso back.

The middle and anterior parts of the deltoid muscles are subject to load, with a slight predominance of the middle. You should try to move your elbows further to the sides, so that your shoulders move in the planes of your torso. Because if the shoulder is moved out of the plane of the body, and movements are made mainly in front, then the front delta beam is turned on to the maximum, the trapezoid is also turned on, and the middle part is practically not used.

Therefore, try to keep the barbell close to your torso. Then it will not only be working on the anterior deltoid muscles. The press will provide a high-quality load and a medium beam. And it plays a decisive role in adding volume to the shoulders.

This time, the first exercise will work the triceps, and the second, alternating approaches, will work the biceps.

A simple but extremely effective way to make your arms look larger and more massive. The main thing is to strive to keep your chest and shoulders straightened when performing, not to slouch or round your back. Do not make jerky movements! All repetitions must be performed smoothly.

If bench push-ups seem too simple or easy an exercise on this day, then you should put dumbbells or weights on your knees.

One of the best isolation exercises for working the biceps muscle. With the correct technique, in the initial position, the palms with dumbbells “look at each other”, and supination (rotation of the hands outward) occurs when the rising arm reaches shoulder level.

And this complex completes, allowing you to efficiently load your shoulders and arms in 1 workout with a final superset.

Superset 4 – for final shoulder work

The area of load on muscle tissue becomes the entire volume of the deltoid muscles, with some predominance of their middle bundle.

When performing reps on lateral raises, you need to make sure that your arms are as straight as possible. When bending your arms at the elbow joints, only the muscles of the front part of the delta begin to work. This is not advisable: if you need to shift the emphasis to the front bun, then you can turn them slightly inward when raising your straight arms.

Another valuable note: when performing lateral raises, tilt your wrists down slightly. Also, dumbbells should be held with a straight grip, and try not to allow the load to transfer to the front of the body.

Load areas are the middle and posterior deltoid muscles, with the predominant work of the posterior part of the deltoids.

Features of competent execution: it must be performed in a position of the torso “parallel to the floor”. Your arms need to be straightened as much as possible. Only in the last two or three repetitions and in the last approach can you slightly bend your arms at the elbow joints. It is necessary to monitor the grip and tilt of the body, in which the shoulder, even in movement, maintains a position perpendicular to the body.

If it is difficult to swing with both hands at the same time, then you can perform the exercise separately (with one hand). In both cases, the most effective exercise for the rear delts is bent over dumbbell swings.

About the number of approaches and repetitions

It is worth emphasizing: when performing each of these exercises, it makes sense to use the capabilities of static dynamics. Namely, perform each repetition slowly, with a short pause at the moment of peak contraction. An effective arm and shoulder workout using the superset principle is three or four of each exercise in each cycle. A larger number of approaches for a superset is hardly justified.

Do you need to train your arm muscles separately? What day should you pump your arms? Will this approach lead to muscle growth and increased volume? How do you train?

Biceps volume is one of the most pressing questions in the gym after: “How much can you bench press?”

Big hands are so popular that they have received their own emoji. We're sure you've used them too. The fitness audience cannot do without them.

There are two different ways to train your arms.

Training arms along with other muscles of the body

If you are new to sports, then you feel well when the muscles of the upper arms are activated when training the upper body: chest, back, shoulders.

The triceps are activated, especially several repetitions of the exercise to failure. Working out on a rowing machine or doing lat pulldowns will target your biceps. Having worked your hands in this way, it is enough to give them just a little extra attention, and they will begin to grow, and very soon they will take on a perfect shape.

The point is that the triceps are perfectly prepared when training the chest. After the chest workout is completed, you can simply “finish off” the triceps with the help of separate isolated exercises. The same applies to the biceps, which are most convenient to train after training the back.

It's not a good idea to train them before training larger muscle groups because they won't help you get through those final reps as you approach failure.

Here is a sample workout plan for chest and triceps, as well as back and biceps.

Chest/Triceps

Exercises	Approaches	Repetitions
1. Hummer Chest Press		10 – 12
2. Incline Dumbbell Press
3. One-arm dumbbell press while lying on a bench
4. Bringing your hands together in a crossover		12 – 15
5. Dumbbell triceps press from behind the head with two hands while sitting
6. Close grip press
7. Crossover triceps row

Back/Biceps

Exercises	Approaches	Repetitions
1. Chest row in a vertical block with a reverse grip
2. Bent-over barbell row with reverse grip		8 – 10
3. Row of a horizontal block to the belt
4. Pull the upper block in the crossover with one hand
5. Dumbbell biceps press on Scott bench
6. Standing crossover row for biceps
7. Incline dumbbell biceps press

There are always alternative training methods for those who would like to train their arms separately.

For example, instead of finishing off your triceps after training your chest, you can leave them alone and train your biceps, which are not yet tired and full of strength.

As for the triceps, they can be trained together with the back, since the biceps have already been worked out. The result will be as effective as possible, because individual muscles with this approach are trained twice.

Triceps are trained on chest day and after training the pectoral muscles separately. during exercises on the pectoral muscles and afterwards separately. Therefore, the variants of the ligaments of the trained muscles can be changed to chest/biceps and back/triceps.

Arm training separately

Another (probably more popular) way to train your arms is to set aside a separate day for this purpose. Many lifters believe that this approach maximizes muscle growth potential and improves strength performance. However, dedicating a separate day to training your arm muscles does not mean that there is only one training plan. There are as many as 3 ways to train your arms separately.

The first method is illustrated in the example training plan below. Start with one arm and train it to failure, completing the entire training plan. Once you're done, you can move on to training the other arm. If you feel that one arm is weaker than the other, then train it first, since at the beginning of training there is always more energy and strength, which is more likely to allow you to successfully complete the entire exercise program.

If you are planning to work on your biceps, start in order. If your triceps are weaker, start from the end of the list of exercises.

Exercises	Approaches	Repetitions
1. Standing biceps curl
2. Raising the barbell for biceps on an incline bench
3.Two-arm biceps crossover row
4. Bench press while lying down
5. Dumbbell bench press
6. Extension of arms from behind the head on the lower block in a crossover

The second method allows you to increase the load on the biceps and triceps, while maintaining the potential for muscle growth. It consists of alternating biceps training and , thanks to which the muscles have time to rest more than usual. And they are restored while you work on others.

This kind of training might look like this:

Exercises	Approaches	Repetitions
1. Standing EZ-barbell curl
2.Extension of the EZ-shaped bar from behind the head while lying down
3. Incline Dumbbell Curls
4. Dumbbell triceps extension with two hands in an incline position
5.Bicep curls
6. Triceps lat pulldown

Arnold Schwarzenegger can be cited as an example of ideal hand training. Having received the title of Mr. Olympia 7 times, he was the owner of the best hands in the history of bodybuilding. He has been training for over 3 decades if you count until his last competition. Most likely, he knew a lot about training.

His approach was to use supersets. Preparing for the next competition, he combined a couple of exercises for biceps and triceps into one superset and made progress. I trained other muscles in the same way. Everyone noticed the results of his training: his muscles increased in volume.

After many years of his own practice, Schwarzenegger said that he considers supersets to be the main reason for increasing the size of his arms to 55 cm. They listen to him and try to repeat his record.

You should definitely try this approach. Combine two exercises into a superset and perform them without rest, moving from one to the other. This way you can save time and spend it on more lifts.

What's your opinion?

We looked at the 3 most popular ways to train biceps and triceps. Now it’s your turn to tell how you train your arms.

In the comments, please answer the following questions:

Do you train your arms separately from other muscles or not?
What are your favorite arm exercises?
Is there anything else you would like to add?