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Best Exercise for Bicep Peak
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EZ Curl Bar for Bicep Peak
Before we talk about the staple for any bodybuilder/weight trainer who wants to get bigger arms, the EZ-bar curl, we need to cover a bit of anatomy so we are all on the same page. The upper arms involve 6 different muscles, 3 triceps, the biceps brachii, brachialis, and that muscle that goes into your forearms the brachioradialis.
That "bump" on your arm is your biceps brachii and it has been the quick demonstration of strength for over a century. This muscle is attached to two joints, this two-headed muscle also crosses the shoulder plus the elbow joint. The two heads of the biceps are the short head and the long head.
Your long head attaches to the lateral (side) of the arm, very close to the lateral head of your triceps. Your long-head connects at the scapula on the supra-glenoid tubercle, this is a deep insertion but it's inferior to the flat shelf on your shoulder called the acromion process.
Your short head is on the medial side of your arm, sitting next to the pecs, obliques, and your serratus. The short head also inserts into your scapula on the biceps brachii which starts at the coracoid process. Both your long and your short biceps contribute to your shoulder stability when lifting a weight. The shoulder is without a doubt the most flexible of all the joints in your body, it's held together primarily with musculature.
The long head is usually the most injured head as most injuries occur at the origin of a muscle. Injury will lead to decreased mobility and stability, usually followed with pain and some discomfort when doing a shoulder press or bench press. Any injury of your biceps will ultimately ruin any pressing movement.
These two biceps essentially become just one muscle because they insert primarily onto the bicipital tuberosity on the radius. The tendon of the short head often is split off and inserts on the ulna. The long head is what enables the biceps to supinate.
It's all about showing the size and peak of your biceps which is shown on the famous biceps peak pics that has now become part of our culture. Impressively large long heads are what the judges are looking for in a bodybuilding competition. For males and females, focusing specifically on isolating the long head will get better results in developing the peak.
Although the barbell preacher curl is self-explanatory using a straight barbell leaning over a preacher bench. Using an EZ bar is far better than doing straight barbell curls because of the extensive rotation of the wrist at the top of the curl when using a normal barbell.
When using a EZ bar there's a lot less pressure on the wrists at the top of full range of motion (ROM) when using the preacher curl. If you find that there is pain in your wrists when doing preacher curls, then you should stay away from this movement which isolates the long head.