Barbell Curl

Stand holding a barbell in front of your thighs with an underhand, shoulder-width grip. Tuck your upper arms into your sides and do not allow them to shift forward or backward during the movement. Exhale, bend your elbows and curl the barbell toward your shoulders. Keep your torso stationary. Do not sway your hips or arch your lower back to get the weight up. Pause at the top before slowly returning to the starting position.

Dumbbell Curl

Using dumbbells allows you to twist your forearm and incorporate supination into the movement. Stand holding a dumbbell in each hand with your arms relaxed by your sides and your palms facing your thighs. Keep your upper arms tucked into your sides. As you curl the dumbbells, rotate your forearms so your palms face the ceiling at the top of the movement. Pause and rotate your forearms back as you return to the starting position.

Preacher Curl

The preacher curl exercise targets both muscle heads, but it emphasizes the long head slightly more. The short head of the biceps brachii is involved in shoulder flexion, lifting the upper arm to the front of the body. During the preacher curl your shoulder is flexed, which places the short head in a contracted position, rendering it less able to contribute to elbow flexion. Press the back of your upper arms firmly into the preacher pad and perform the curl holding either a barbell or dumbbells.

Other Exercises

Other exercises will also target the biceps muscles. The biceps are secondary movers in many compound back exercises, such as pullups and rows. Compound exercises, which involve more than one joint and work more than one muscle group, mimic the activities you perform in daily life more closely. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends performing multiple-joint exercises first in your routine, as they require more energy and effort. Finish your workout with one or two biceps curl exercises, completing two or three sets of eight to 12 repetitions each.