By Joseph Coyne
I have a natural masculine truth that will stand the test of time for as long as I am associated with exercise in any shape or form. The only thing that males enjoy more than drawling over the hot blonde on the cross trainer is training their arms. However despite the time and effort people invest in ‘sculpting their guns’, most trainees only make minor progress, if any at all. So I have decided to give five reasons that are holding you back from true arm strength and size and, especially if your are male, picking up in the nightclub. Here we go…
1) Same Old Routine
Too many trainees have used the same rep and set scheme for months expecting that somehow the planets will align, Jessica Alba will dump the schmuck she is married to and their arms will by some means force themselves to grow. Unfortunately it doesn’t work like that. Repeating the 3 sets of 8-10 reps more than 6 times is a surefire way of killing your progress.
2) Not Choosing ‘Bang for Buck’ Exercises
Sadly most trainees simply are not willing or not wise enough to pick effective arms exercises that will develop Herculean arms. Each time you train your arms you have to ask yourself – ‘what exercise will give me most bang for my buck?’ Incline dumbbell curls, seated dumbbell Zottoman curls, close grip barbell Scott curls are all examples of effective biceps exercises. For the triceps, close grip bench press, dips, overhead French presses and decline EZY bar extensions all are superior exercises. Oh and if you were wondering about tricep kickbacks and pushdowns, they are pretty much useless for shaping ‘horseshoe’-like triceps. However, they are excellent for maintaining a great view of that hot blonde on the cross trainer.
3) Lack of Direct Work For The Long Head of Biceps
The long head of the biceps is actually crucial for strength, shoulder health and neglected by most bodybuilders due to poor form and exercise choice. The exercise that recruits the long head most effectively is the incline dumbbell curl. It must be performed with the elbows drawn back behind the midline of the body and with the wrists cocked a la Spiderman. Cocking the wrists will actually work for all curl movements as it takes the wrists flexors out of the movement, increasing bicep activation and hypertrophy.
4) Not Getting A Grip
Without a doubt, training grip will develop impressive forearms. It will also lead to unprecedented growth in your upper arms and rest of your body. The reason? Less neural drive will be needed to grip the weight or bar and you can now increase your load, which will spark new muscle growth. One of the best methods to spark strength and muscle gains that I absolutely love is increasing the thickness of training implements. This is definitely not a new concept either as one of the fathers of weight training, Alan Calvert actually recommended using thick bars and dumbbells as early as 1924. If you would like to stimulate a thick grip experience at your local gym, FATGRIPZ or Ivanko’s EZ Grips which attach around dumbbell handles both fit the bill nicely. If you are interested, contact lisa@josephcoyne.com for dealer information.
5) Everyone Forgets About The Reverse Curl
The reverse curl primarily recruits the brachialis muscle, which along with the long head of the biceps are the forgotten arm muscles. The brachialis when developed will actually push the biceps upward helping to create the sought after peak in the biceps. Any curling movement with your palms facing the floor will recruit brachialis to achieve this effect. Also if you want a standard to aspire to the standing reverse curl should actually be around 35% of your best barbell bench press. But be warned – there is nothing like a direct brachialis work to make grown men cry. In fact, I have known riot squad police officers reduced to fragile little girls during one of my reverse curl dominant sessions.
Most people I know have not made progress with their arms since John Howard first became Prime Minister. By incorporating the above advice into your training regime, you can be sure to break plateaus in size, definition and strength. Who knows you might even pick up.
Now although this is primarily designed for males, females will also benefit from this advice, especially if they aspire to do bodyweight exercises like chin ups or pull ups. In fact, I have found weakness in grip and the reverse curl to be among the major reasons behind a lack of bodyweight strength in females. All the females out there can rest assured that using these exercises will not suddenly make their arms resemble the Governators. Interestingly, statistically and if you ask any gymnastics coach, the pull up is actually the lift that females have the potential to most closely match males. And once a female actually completes their first chin up, look out – they are unstoppable in the gym after that moment!
About the author..
JOSEPH COYNE MAESS AEP, is an accredited exercise physiologist, and one of Queensland’s most sought after athletic strength & power development specialists. He has helped to produce four world champions and currently runs the Coyne Conditioning Performance Center (CCPC) located on the Gold Coast, QLD, Australia.