How to Build Muscle - The Road to Bigger Biceps

ByJay Chesterman

Before we dive in, I would just like to state that this article is not based on any specific scientific research, or taken out of any books or magazines. This following article is completely based on personal experience, derived from trial and error, not without the help of friends, of course.

Alright, here we go!

More often than not, most guys that take up weight lifting are looking to gain muscle, and in turn, get BIGGER. Bigger is better after all, right? The ladies pay you more attention, your girlfriend feels safe around you, all that good stuff.

This information I'm about to drop on you may or may not be better suited for "hardgainers" or "ectomorphs". I only say this as an ectomorph myself, and my own experience using these muscle building techniques.

Ok, let's get started.

I have had great results when it comes to training arms; at 5'7/165lbs, I'm currently sitting at around 16 inches in the arm department. I've had many people ask me how I train them, and how they can achieve similar results.

The first question we need to ask ourselves here is: how many times a week am I training my arms? - If the answer is more than 2, you may be overtraining.

The second question I ask these people, and that I ask you is, are you concentrating on the negative movement? There are two parts to the most simple bicep exercise, the bicep curl. Whether it be dumbbell or barbell, the two parts are the concentric contraction, and the eccentric contraction.

Let's take a look at these a little closer -

The Concentric Contraction is the upward motion of the curl. This is the movement that 90% of gym goers focus on. I see a lot of guys hurling up dumbbells that are way to heavy, spending 4-5 seconds just to get the weight up, and then let it down in under 1 second. To work out this way is like filling up a tank of gas, and then pouring half of it out (horribly analogy, but stick with me here).

The Eccentric Contraction is the downward motion of the curl. During this movement, your muscles are actually capable of heavier loads, and it also hits different muscle fibres. By concentrating on the eccentric motion when lifting, you will increase the amount of muscle damage, and in turn increase the amount of muscle growth.

Let's take it a step farther

For your next arm workout, give this a try - Grab a spotter, and station yourself on the preacher curl. Sitting or standing is fine. I prefer the easy curl bar, because it's easier on my wrists when dealing with heavier weight.

Take the weight you usually curl for 8-10 reps, and add 20 pounds to it.

IE. If you curl 80 pounds normally, use 100.

Now, starting from the bottom, have your spotter lift the weight up for you. Now you should be in the top position of the curl, this is where the fun starts. Lower the weight slowly, I usually aim for a 6-one-thousand count (1-one-thousand, 2-one-thousand etc.). When you hit the bottom, repeat. Aim for 5 or 6 reps, and when you start to hit failure, have you spotter assist you on the negative movement.

3 sets of this and in the coming days you will be feeling a soreness in your biceps that you will not soon forget.

To begin, I would throw this exercise into your regular arm workout. In coming articles i'll be going into dropsets and supersets. In addition to using negative movements, these will help you achieve the gains that you've always wanted.

This is just the beginning, and we will dig deeper in the coming articles.

Lift hard!

Check out Six Star Whey Protein for some great muscle building resources!

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Health and Fitness: Build-Muscle
Jay Chesterman

Email Address:SubscribeBuild Muscle Article FeedFind More ArticlesSearchRecent ArticlesWhat Are Some Methods to Develop Muscle Without the Assistance of Weights?BPI Super Pro - How This Supplement Can Benefit YouBPI Solid - 6 Important Things To Know About This SupplementBPI Rx6 - Answers To Your Frequently Asked QuestionsBPI A50 - Facts About This Supplement You Should Know Before BuyingBPI Arimedex - What Are The Benefits Of This Supplement?Pull Ups As An Excellent Way To Build MuscleBio-X Power Meal - 6 Things You Should Learn About This SupplementBio-X All Natural Power Whey Protein Bar - 6 Important Facts About This ProductAdvanced Genetics Alpha - What You Need For A Well Built BodySubmitted On October 26, 2011. Viewed 16 times. Word count: 629.

MLA Style Citation:
Chesterman, Jay".".26 Oct. 2011EzineArticles.com.7 Feb. 2012 .APA Style Citation:
Chesterman, J. (2011, October 26). . Retrieved February 7, 2012, from http://ezinearticles.com/?How-­to-­Build-­Muscle-­-­-­The-­Road-­to-­Bigger-­Biceps&id=6652599Chicago Style Citation:
Chesterman, Jay "." EzineArticles.com. http://ezinearticles.com/?How-­to-­Build-­Muscle-­-­-­The-­Road-­to-­Bigger-­Biceps&id=6652599EzineArticles.com© 2012 EzineArticles.com
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