Best Way to Lift Dumbbells for Biceps

When you talk about bodybuilding, you usually associate it with biceps. Biceps respond to your training very quickly. That’s why a lot of people start with biceps in bodybuilding. However, a lot of people approach building biceps incorrectly by just lifting heavier weights. Here’s the best way to lift dumbbells for biceps. 

Best Way to Lift Dumbbells for Biceps 

The best way to lift dumbbells for biceps involves proper form more than how much weight you’re lifting. You should also not focus on biceps alone rather than having a well-rounded workout schedule. Lifting light dumbbells with proper form will give you better results than lifting heavy dumbbells without proper form.

Woman lifting a dumbbell on her chest level

In fact, you should use lighter dumbbells because bicep muscles are small compared to your chest and back muscles. It gives you better isolation and focuses on your bicep muscles for better development. 

You should also have time to rest your dumbbells. Building biceps involves lifting and letting your muscles rest and repair themselves. You can follow these tips to have an effective dumbbell lifting. 

  • You can work your biceps three times a week. However, you should not work your biceps in consecutive days. Have at least 1 rest day between your biceps workouts.
  • If you’re lifting heavy weights with at least 6 to 8 repetitions, you should rest at least 2 days before you start another biceps workout. 
  • For endurance and getting lean muscles, doing 1 to 3 sets of 10 to 16 repetitions will give you great results. You also need to have at least one day of rest between your biceps workout.

How Do Biceps Work?

You can find your bicep muscles from the front of your shoulders to your elbow. Bicep muscles contain the long head and the short head. Both parts get worked on during bicep exercises but involve different movements. 

Your biceps gets used in a lot of movements like:

  • Elbow flexion which involves curling the arm up and down
  • Forearm supination which involves turning the arm in and out
  • Shoulder flexion

Building biceps will open up a lot of workout exercises for you. Biceps play a major role in lifting, pushing, and pulling which a lot of exercises have. You also get a lot of benefits from them as you grow older. 

Muscle function decreases with age. You will see a decline in how you perform your routine tasks. If you don’t strengthen your biceps early on, all other areas of your body get compromised including your:

Woman lifting a dumbbell over her head
  • Elbows
  • Wrists
  • Forearms
  • Shoulders
  • Latissimus dorsi

What is the Best Dumbbell Exercise for Biceps? 

You should go for biceps curl as the best dumbbell exercise for biceps. It’s one of the basic dumbbell exercises for your biceps. Bicep curls involve the basics of lifting and supporting the weight of dumbbells with your biceps. 

Bicep curls also open up a lot of dumbbell exercises for your biceps. Mastering the basic motion of lifting with your biceps will give you a lot of benefits as you progress with your fitness lifestyle. 

Going for complicated dumbbell exercises will just give you a hard time. You should start with the basics and it will help you a lot in the long run.  

What Are the 3 Best Bicep Exercises?

As mentioned above, biceps curls make the best exercise to do because it involves basic movements, and mastering them will open up a lot of exercises. Once you master the basics of the biceps curl, you should go for these 3 bicep exercises. 

  • Alternating Incline Dumbbell Curl: strengthens the upper section of your biceps for large muscle growth.
  • Seated Alternating Hammer Curl: great for singular growth and isolation and is a favorite by bodybuilders and strongman
  • Zottman Curl: works the biceps brachii, brachialis, and the brachioradialis which are the 3 major muscles of the biceps

Does Lifting Dumbbells Make Your Biceps Bigger?

While lifting dumbbells do make your biceps bigger, it shouldn’t be your main goal. Strength-training should be your priority when it comes to lifting dumbbells for biceps. If you want bigger biceps, lifting heavier dumbbells should give you that. 

However, strength-training will help you in a lot of ways in the long run. Some of the benefits it provides you includes:

Woman lifting a dumbbell over her head
  • Relief from a number of medical conditions
  • Strengthen your bones
  • Maintain a healthy heart
  • Enhances your mood
  • Enhances your metabolism

Can You Get Jacked with Just Dumbbells?

You can get lean muscles with just dumbbells. You don’t even have to use heavy dumbbells, just light ones will do. It’s all about consistency and how many sets and reps you do. 

Muscle building isn’t just about how heavy you can lift, it also involves how many times you can lift and for how long you can lift. With light dumbbells, you can get jacked by doing a lot of sets and repetitions with it. 

Can I Do Biceps Exercise Daily?

You shouldn’t do biceps exercise daily, it puts a lot of strain on your muscles and may cause fatigue. Your muscles need at least 1 to 2 days of rest after a workout to initiate a growth response. Daily biceps exercise will only lead to counterproductivity and muscle imbalance. 

Conclusion

That’s the best way to lift dumbbells for biceps, slow and basic movements. It’s not about how complex a workout is but the right use of weights and using the proper form will give you the optimal muscle growth that you want for your biceps. 

Robert Lemus has been a natural competitor for 6 years, starting in Men’s Physique, then Bodybuilding, and then into Classic Physique. He is the Orange County Bodybuilding champion in 2016 for the Musclemania Organization. In 2018, he received his Pro Card with the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) in Classic Physique.