Now is the winter of arm discontent,
Our lagging limbs held up for monuments . . .
A course, a course, my kingdom for a course!
Steve Reeves
Freddy Ortiz
Although the back and legs are the strongest parts of the normal body, the size and shape of the upper arms have always been the symbol and measure of strength and power. Every sports-minded man, young and old, focuses his attention upon the bared arms of the circus strongman, the competitive amateur lifter, or the Mr. America contestant, as he attempts to gauge the strength and potentialities of the strength athlete.
The serious bodybuilder gives a large share of his attention to the development of his arms, striving for peak development of round, full biceps, well defined triceps and coconut-shaped deltoids. Many beginning students of muscle culture, however, neglect the development of other important parts of the body in their enthusiasm to obtain larger arms. Therefore, we cannot ignore the appeal that powerfully developed arms have for most of us. And the demand for instructional material seems to keep ahead of the supply at the present time.
For this reason we are outlining a specialized course of training
designed to accelerate development of the upper arms.
Doug Hepburn
Robbie Robinson
Chester Conklin
It is true that general bodybuilding programs usually produce favorable results in arm development. There are, however, quite a number of individuals who find that their arms simply will not respond to generalized programs. Whether this is due to faulty training habits or peculiarities of body construction, we cannot say. The chances are very good in those cases that intensive work on arm development will jar the arms of such a person out of their rut and bring forth the much desired results.
Arms, jarred.
As in the case of other programs of specialization, we recommend that extra work be placed on body parts that are actually behind in development, NOT on parts that are prominently developed.
It is a generally accepted fact that increased bodyweight, particularly in the chest and legs, make way for greater arm development. An intensive weight-gaining program which would increase the bodyweight of a man 20 or 30 pounds could scarcely fail to also produce noticeable gains in arm size. We're gonna need a bigger bottle. Therefore, it would be advisable to add general bodyweight as a preparatory step to obtaining maximum arm size.
Large arm girth, on the other hand, is not always too desirable if muscular shape and separation are sacrificed. Except in a few cases, greatly increased bodyweight is accompanied with a loss of muscular definition. As a compromise for getting the optimum in size, we are suggesting a program of specialization which not only bears down on arm work, but which includes two or three more generalized exercises for maintaining overall body condition. In fact, many body builders should make marked bodyweight gains while they watch their arms grow.
THE UPPER ARM MUSCLES
Lower image taken from:
The muscles involved in this discussion include the Biceps, Triceps, Brachialis, Coracobrachialis, and Deltoids. Each muscle is described briefly with regard to its anatomical features and function and specific exercises which develop them are covered in detail. Please refer to the generalized anatomical drawings for position of each muscle and its relationship to the others. Details of the muscle anatomy and drawings were derived from Gray's Anatomy as revised by W.H. Lewis (hint, hint).
BICEPS BRACHII
The biceps is a long muscle on the front of the upper arm and has two heads from which the name is derived. The short head arises by a tendon from the apex of the coracoid process (1) in the shoulder region. The long head arises from the supraglenoid tuberosity (2) at the upper margin of the glenoid cavity. This tendon arches over the head of the humerus (3) and is succeeded by an elongated muscular belly as is the short head. The two bellies are closely applied to each other and can be separated until they are within 3" of the elbow joint. Here they end in a flattened tendon which is inserted (4) into the rough posterior portion of the tuberosity of the radius (lower arm bone on the thumb side). The points of origin (5) of the short and long head of the biceps are covered by the pectoralis major (principle chest muscle) and the deltoid.
The main function of the biceps is to flex the arm and bring up the forearm until it touches the upper arm in the biceps region.
The most effective exercises for developing the biceps consist of variations of the one and two arm curl employing sufficient weight resistance to permit not more than 12-15 repetitions or movements.
The most popular variations are described as follows:
1) Two arm barbell curl (may be performed with a pair of dumbbells)
(a) Starting position - standing with body erect and barbell held against the thighs with palms forward, arms straight.
(b) Movement - curl (or lift) bar upward bending arm at the elbow, but not appreciably moving the upper arm.
(c) Ending position - arms bent until hands holding the bar are nearly touching the shoulders. Elbows should not be raised or razed so break in slowly when specializing on the arms.
(d) Breathing - inhale on lifting movement; exhale as weight is lowered.
(2) Curl while leaning. Performed in the same manner as the regular two arm curl, except that the body is bent forward when using a barbell (or to one side in the case of one arm dumbbell curls), slightly from the hips. This forces the biceps to carry the weight throughout the entire movement; that is, the biceps are still strongly contracted at completion of the movement. The weight should be lowered slowly in order to work this muscle thoroughly.
Note: Time, energy and concentration spent with the
Gironda Perfect Curl might be useful to you.
(3) One arm curl with elbow braced against support. This method of curling the dumbbell forces the biceps to do all the work and prevents "cheating" by swinging the upper arm under the weight and thereby making the lift easier. The exercise may be performed in a variety of ways. The one preferred by the author consists of sitting on a bench and bracing the elbow and upper arm against the inside of the thigh during the curling movement.
The upper arm should be maintained in the vertical position; avoid leaning back with the shoulder for the purpose of getting the elbow under the bell. The biceps should be under intense concentrated contraction during the last half of the movement.
Here is a hint regarding the development of high prominent biceps: after a normal set of 10-12 repetitions and before setting down the dumbbell, go through a short set of 5 to 8 short "half-movements," lowering the bell about half-way until the arm forms a right angle, and then returning to the fully flexed position. Attempt to contract the biceps as forcefully as possible with these short-range movements that will at some time in the future be referred to as "burns" by people who should know better than to believe they have invented something new.
Alternate from one arm to the other. Concentrate strongly on the biceps contracting, and only allow short rest periods between each set. This type of curl is all about the concentration.
(4) Curl to behind neck in leaning position. This variation of the curl is a refinement of the leaning curl with barbell. It differs from this exercise by the manner in which the head is held low and the bar is curled to a position behind the neck. Also, the body is bent to a much lower position.
Part Two: Triceps
Enjoy Your Lifting!
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