At Home Biceps Exercises

Exercising at home is very convenient. The American College of Sports Medicine advises that developing a simple, convenient program at home increases your chances of maintaining an exercise program. You can work your biceps using soup cans, manual resistance, dumbbells and resistance bands. Improving the strength and tone of your biceps will make your arms look more defined, especially in a tank-top.

Isotonic Biceps Curls

Your bicep muscles are made up of two sections, the long head and the short head. Both heads arise from the shoulder blade then insert just below your elbow joint. Biceps bend your elbow to draw your palm toward your shoulder. Additionally, when your palms are faced down, your biceps help to rotate your forearm so your palms are facing up.
Isotonic bicep curls use the same amount of tension throughout the movement. You will not need a dumbbell or soup can. The resistance for this exercise is the tension you develop in your bicep muscle. Relax your arms beside you. Perform an isotonic bicep curl by tensing both arms and curling your palms toward your shoulders. Rotate your palms to face up as you bend your elbow and face down as you straighten it.

Isometric Curls

An isometric contraction is a contraction in which your muscle neither shortens nor lengthens. Use two of your heaviest, identical soup cans. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and knees slightly bent. Grasp a soup can in each hand with your palms up and bend both elbows to 90 degrees. Hold this isometric contraction for 30 to 90 seconds. Suck your navel toward your spine and breathe normally when holding the contraction.

Concentration Curls

Concentration curls focus on one arm at a time. Hold a dumbbell in your right hand, sitting at the edge of a chair. Open widely at your hips to separate your knees. Then, bend forward so your right elbow lies on the inside of your right thigh. Next, curl the dumbbell toward your right shoulder moving only from your right elbow. Support your body weight by placing your left hand on your left thigh. Do not swing your trunk and your shoulder to move the dumbbell.
Rotate your forearms so your palms are facing up when you draw the dumbbell toward your shoulder, then rotate your forearms so your palms are facing down when you return to the start position. Rotating your forearms more fully activates your biceps muscle and your brachioradialis, the muscle you feel at the side of your elbow. Your pronator teres and supinator muscles, lying primarily in your forearms, also assist in rotating your forearm.

Hammer Dumbbell Curls

This exercise focuses on your brachioradialis. You may do this sitting down or standing up. Hold a dumbbell in each hand with your arms straight beside you and your palms facing toward your body. Curl the dumbbells toward your shoulders, maintaining the vertical position of each dumbbell. Work both arms at the same time or alternate arms.