The biceps brachialis is an underappreciated muscle. It is positioned underneath your bicep, which generally gets the credit for elbow flexion. However, the brachialis is the only pure elbow flexor, unlike the biceps brachii, which both flexes and rotates the elbow. To strengthen your brachialis, you need to flex your arm against a heavy resistance that causes muscle fatigue. The resistance can be dumbbells, barbells, resistance bands, a kettlebell, medicine ball or anything heavy.
Step 1
Hold a dumbbell in each hand of a weight that allows you to perform a biceps curl no more than 12 times.
Step 2
Stand tall with your feet underneath your hips, your back straight and your arms straight at your sides.
Step 3
Position your palms facing away from your body and tighten your elbows into your sides.
Step 4
Exhale and bend your elbows, raising the weight toward your shoulders. Keep your elbows into your sides.
Step 5
Inhale and straighten your arms, lowering the weight to the starting position.
Step 6
Complete eight to 12 repetitions. Increase the amount of resistance if you can perform more than 12 arm curls. Decrease the amount of resistance if you cannot complete eight curls.
Tips and Warnings
- Allow for one day of rest between arm strengthening workouts.
Things You'll Need
- Resistance tool, such as a dumbbell
References
- American Council on Exercise: Arm Exercises
- "Manual of Structural Kinesiology"; Clem W. Thompson, Ph.D.; 1989
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