Arms Workout

If you want to build the muscles in your arm well, you'll need a multi-faceted approach to targeting the triceps, biceps, forearms, and shoulders. The best arm exercises for strength and size gains include a combination of compound and targeted assistance exercises–in addition to incorporating the right amount of reps and sets.

Best Arm Exercises With Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Hammer Curl

2. Dip

How to do it:

  1. Hold a dumbbell in each hand with palms facing your sides and arms extended straight down.
  2.  Keeping your upper arms against your sides, curl both weights at the same time, minimizing momentum used during the curl.

How to do it:

  1. Use dip bars, if available, or place your palms on a bench, chair, or on the floor as you extend your legs in front of you.
  2. Lower your body until your upper arms are parallel to the floor, but no lower. 
  3. Extend your elbows to come up.

3. Close-grip Curl

4. Chinup

How to do it:

  1. Curl with your hands inside shoulder width, in the middle of the bar. 

How to do it:

  1. Grab the bar at (or slightly inside) shoulder width, with a supinated grip.
  2. While keeping your core tight, pull yourself up until your chin is over the bar.
  3. Try not to use momentum to get your chin over the bar. 

5. Diamond Pushup

6.Neutral-grip Triceps Extension

How to do it:

  1. Get into a pushup position but place your hands close together so your thumbs and index fingers touch.
  2. Keeping your body in a straight line with abs braced, lower your torso until your chest is just above the floor, then press back up.

How to do it:

  1. Lie back on a bench or the floor holding a dumbbell in each hand with palms facing each other.
  2. Press the weights over your chest, then bend your elbows to lower the weights toward your face until you feel a stretch in your triceps.
  3. Extend your elbows.
  4. Keep your elbows facing the ceiling the entire set.

7. Behind-the-Back Cable Curl

8. EZ-Bar Preacher Curl

How to do it:

  1. Attach a D-handle to the low pulley of a cable machine, grasp the handle in your left hand, and step forward (away from the machine) until there’s tension on the cable and your arm is drawn slightly behind your body.
  2. Stagger your feet so your right leg is in front.
  3. Curl the handle but do not allow your elbow to point forward.

How to do it:

  1. Sit at a preacher bench and adjust the height so that your armpits touch the top of the bench.
  2. Grasp an EZ-curl bar at shoulder width with arms extended (but allow a slight bend at the elbows).
  3. Curl the bar, keeping the backs of your arms against the bench.
  4. Take three seconds to lower the bar back down.

9. Overhead Press

10. Face Pull

How to do it:

  1. Set the bar up in a squat rack or cage, and grasp it just outside shoulder width.
  2. Take the bar off the rack and hold it at shoulder level with your forearms vertical. Squeeze the bar and brace your abs.
  3. Press the bar overhead, pushing your head forward and shrugging your traps at the top of the movement.

How to do it:

  1. Attach a rope handle to the top pulley of a cable station.
  2. Grasp an end in each hand with palms facing each other.
  3. Step back to place tension on the cable.
  4. Pull the handles to your forehead so your palms face your ears and your upper back is fully contracted.