Table of Contents
Incline curls might not be the most popular biceps exercise, but I’ve recently been experimenting with them for greater gains.
Inclines require more effort from your muscles since gravity is already pulling the weight down toward you.
Therefore, by adding an incline to a curl movement, you can effectively increase tension on your biceps. This added stress will eventually lead to greater gains.
Incline Curls Muscles Worked
The biceps brachii is the primary muscle worked on an incline curl. As mentioned above, the effort on the biceps is increased due to gravity pulling the weight down toward you.
The brachialis and brachioradialis are also activated if you maintain a straight bar path (i.e., don’t let the bar drift downward or up during a curl).
The brachialis and brachioradialis serve to protect the elbow from injury when lifting heavy, so it is important not to ignore these muscles.
Benefits of Incline Curls
Incline curls provide many benefits and can be used as an effective tool for strength and size gains.
First, they increase time under tension due to the increased effort needed to complete a set of reps on an inclined bench.
One study found that by decreasing the angle between your arms and torso during a curl, there was a subsequent increase in blood flow to the biceps.
When you add incline curls into your routine, you introduce an element of variety and potentially new growth-inducing stimuli.
Disadvantages
There are no disadvantages to using incline curls in your workout regimen. If anything, it is a great way to switch up your usual curl movement and add a new stimulus.
How to Perform Incline Curls
Incline curls are performed just like a normal curl, except you will have your upper arms against an inclined bench.
1. Grab a barbell with an underhand grip and begin in a standing position holding the weight at shoulder- height.
2. Keeping your elbows pinned to your sides, curl the weight up so that it lines up with your upper chest.
3. Lower the weight back down to your side and repeat for desired reps.
Incline Curls Example Workout
Monday: 4 x 8-12 reps (4010 tempo)
Thursday: 4 x 6-10 reps (3010 tempo)
Increase weight gradually every week to continually challenge your muscles. Remember to use proper form and take each set to muscle failure or near failure. The first 2 weeks should be relatively easy before the difficulty ramps up.
Incline Bicep Curl Angle
What changes during incline curls?
The incline curl is where the angle of your torso gets greater compared to the floor/horizontal position.
This means that, in general, it will be harder because you are increasing the weight being lifted by adding gravity’s pull on the barbell.
You may also have less control of how much weight you can lift. Not all of your muscle is being utilized.
Incline Dumbbell Curl Angle
For incline dumbbell curls, you can use either an adjustable bench or just a normal bench and set it at a desired angle.
A flat or inclined bench is ideal for incline curls with both hands/arms; however, you can also do one arm/hand at a time on an inclined bench so that the opposite arm/hand is resting.
Cluster Incline Curls
In some cases, you can do a set of incline curls with a rest-pause method. Within a set, you take short pauses during the negative phase (the downwards portion) of your curl. This allows for greater blood flow and activation on the biceps.
With this technique, you first warm up with lighter weight then choose a weight you can handle for 8 reps.
Rest 10 seconds and do as many repetitions as you can with good form (aiming for around 5-6 reps).
After resting another 10 seconds or so, complete a few more reps. This will really overload the biceps with blood and fatigue them.
Incline Curls Alternatives
-Preacher Curl – The preacher curl is a variant of the traditional curl, where you place your forearms on an inclined bench to take tension off of your elbow joints.
- Cable Rope Curls – This bicep curl variation is great for building maximum strength and size. It also allows you to feel the muscle more since there isn’t a bend in your arm, which you’ll feel during traditional barbell/dumbbell curls.
- Spider Curls – These spider curls are a type of concentration curl done on an incline bench where you sit sideways and close to the bench. The great thing about this exercise is that it allows you to isolate your bicep since your shoulder and chest aren’t doing any work.
- Hammer Curls – The hammer curl is a great way to take tension off of your elbow joint by using dumbbells with the palms facing each other.