Login or Register

Exercises for Massive Arms

Jun 14, 2011 | By Miguel Cavazos
Exercises for Massive Arms
Photo Credit Photodisc/Photodisc/Getty Images

Exercises for massive arms require intense bursts of energy, which stimulate the most muscle growth. Position your working joints at the greatest angle of resistance to maximize muscle activation. During free-weight exercises, the greatest angle of resistance is always against gravity. Free-weight exercises are ideal for developing massive arms, because you must stabilize the load while moving it in three-dimensional space.

Heavy Repetitions

Developing massive arms requires heavy weightlifting exercises that target muscles that extend and flex your arms. The National Federation of Personal Trainers recommends using the amount of weight that exhausts your muscles within four repetitions and increasing the weight only after you can complete six full repetitions without assistance. Stay within the four- to six-repetition range to optimize muscle growth. Heavy lifting within this range effectively causes the most damage to the your muscle fibers. Your muscles adapt by repairing the damage and increasing in size and strength.

Eccentric Contractions

Eccentric contractions occur when muscles lengthen while exerting force. For example, your hamstrings lengthen while contracting when you push up with your legs and move from a sitting to a standing position. As your muscles lengthen while lifting weights, the number of motor units supporting the weight decreases. Therefore, the remaining motor units must withstand an increasingly greater load, which stimulates more muscle growth. Writing for Bodybuilding.com, fitness trainer Chris Goulet recommends extending the eccentric portion of each arm exercise repetition across five seconds.

Biceps

Your biceps are the muscles in the front upper portion of your arms. According to data published in an article by strength and conditioning specialist Bret Contreras, weighted chinups are the best exercise for building massive biceps. Position your hands less than shoulder-width apart, and keep your lower back as straight as possible throughout each repetition, to emphasize bicep activity while deemphasizing your back muscles. Include five chinup exercise sets in your arm workout.

Triceps

The triceps are the muscles on the back of upper arms; they are responsible for extending your elbows to straighten your arms. Triceps extensions with a rope or cable pulley, triceps extensions and triceps dips are especially effective exercises for building massive arms. Perform six sets of exercises that target your triceps in your workout.

Brachialis

The brachialis is the strongest elbow flexion muscle, which is sometimes referred to as the lower biceps muscle. Developing the brachialis on each arm helps add more overall size to your bicep area. According to professional bodybuilder and trainer David Robson, a well-developed brachialis pushes the biceps up and creates the illusion of a peak while filling out the lower portion of the biceps. Exercises such as preacher curls, concentration curls and hammer curls target the brachialis. Include three sets of exercises that target the brachialis in your workout for building massive arms.

References

Article reviewed by Adela McKay Last updated on: Jun 14, 2011

Must see: Photo Galleries

Member Comments