Is it possible to get wider arms? Isn’t this just genetics? Can you really build wider biceps through your bicep workout? Well, once you understand the anatomy of the short head biceps and long head biceps, you'll see it's possible. And after strapping some electrodes to my arm, I found the best exercises you need to include in your biceps workout. Without further ado, here’s how to get wider biceps.
Click below for a step by step plan training plan that reveals all the best exercises you should do for each and every muscle group:
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Before diving into how to get wider arms, let’s talk biceps anatomy. There are 2 heads of the biceps that when well developed, give it that full and wide look. The long head is the muscle on the outside of your arm - providing that outer-thickness. And the short head runs down the inside - giving you more of that inner-peak. Now whenever you do any bicep exercise, both heads are being used to some degree. But, if you know how to target one more than the other, you can not only create more effective, targeted bicep workouts but you can also prioritize the part of your biceps that may be lacking.
To find out what exercises target each of the two bicep heads, I used the EMG machine and found that the long-head was activated 2x more than the short head when performing curls in what’s known as “the scapular plane”. To get in this position, all you’ve gotta do is stand up straight, and bend your elbows into a 90-degree angle. Then, while keeping your elbows at your sides, turn your wrists outward as much as you can. So, if you want to really target the outer part of your biceps in your bicep workout, I recommend performing cable curls in this position.
Just stand a few steps in front of the cable machine and then a small side step towards your working arm; keep your arms in that scapular plane, with your elbow tucked into your side; and use the resistance from the cable to keep your arm locked into position as you curl. For even better results, you can move the cables up by about 2-3 notches to around wrist-height. But if you don’t have access to cables, you can always replicate this movement with dumbbells.
The second part to getting wider biceps: the short head. While the long head is emphasized by external rotation, the short head is emphasized by internal rotation. And one of the best exercises that applies this arm position is a concentration curl. You just sit down, pick up a dumbbell, and then perform a curl while resting your elbow against your inner thigh. To really nail down the arm path of the short head, just think about it as if you’re doing the curl across your body and towards your opposite pec.
The only potential downside with this exercise is that it’s most challenging near the top position of the curl when the biceps are almost fully contracted. Remember, we ideally want an exercise that’s hardest near the bottom. Luckily, you can easily accomplish this by using an incline bench or a preacher curl bench, but angling your body sideways against it, and curling the dumbbell across your body towards your neck.
Wondering if there’s anything you can do with a bar during your bicep workout to target one head or the other? When I tested close grip curls with EMG, the long head had more activation relative to the short head because your arms are trying to externally rotate. The opposite happened with a wider grip. Because your arms are now trying to internally rotate, the emphasis shifts to the inner part of your biceps. But my personal recommendation is that you use these exercises with caution, as I’ve found they can place a lot of stress on your joints. So if you have dumbbells or cables handy, take advantage of those instead.
Ok, now which exercise should you focus on, in your training? When it comes to how to get wider arms, my advice is to prioritize whichever head seems to be lagging the most. Now the easiest way to find out which head is lagging is literally just in the mirror, and see which side looks less developed. Or, just test out both exercises and see which one you find more challenging and gives you the better pump. Let me know what you guys notice with your biceps, but in my case, I noticed my long head was less developed, so I’ll now be spending more time on it to try and bring up some of the outer width. Practically, this just means that, if I'm doing 3 bicep exercises each week, I'll focus 2 around the long-head and 1 around the short-head.
Of course, if you're still a beginner, I’d recommend you just focus on following a solid routine that builds your biceps big enough to the point where you’d be able to recognize if one head was less developed than the other. The easiest way to do this is just to follow a comprehensive program that nails all the basics and lays it all out for you.