Dumbbells are brilliant for arm workouts. This article features exercises that target both the biceps and triceps and also explains how each exercise targets the particular heads of the muscles too. Try these exercises in your next dumbbell arm workout.
Dumbbell Arm Workout – Why Use Dumbbells?
Dumbbells are an incredibly versatile piece of equipment. They come in a vast variety of weights meaning anyone can pick up a dumbbell and start on their fitness journey. There are a countless number of exercises you can perform with dumbbells for any part of the body you would want to build muscle.
Dumbbells are found in all commercial gyms and you should have a wide range of weights to choose from. Dumbbells can also be bought for home use and are not particularly expensive but the cost will add up to achieve the range of weights available at a gym!
Dumbbells allow for a huge number of different positions of working the muscle. It’s important to change the positioning of your muscles when working them in order to target the muscle from every angle. Dumbbells are perfect for this, as some of the exercises in this article will demonstrate.
Key benefits:
- The best solution for avoiding and correcting muscle imbalances
- For beginners, dumbbells are very easy and accessible to use to learn good form to set yourself up in the best way possible
- For home workouts, dumbbells are also one of the best options as they’re small, maneuverable, and easy to store.
Anatomy of the Bicep
Before moving into the different exercises, it’s important to understand the anatomy of the muscle we are trying to grow. We can then understand how to better activate it for maximum gains. The bicep is used to flex the elbow and, as the name suggests (bi), is made up of two main muscles, the long head and the short head.
The long head runs on the outside of the arm and this muscle will give the look of big biceps when viewed from the side. The long head is targeted best when the upper arm is positioned behind the body.
The short head is smaller and runs next to the long head, but on the inside of the upper arm. This muscle will make the biceps look bigger and wider when viewing from the front. The short head is targeted best when the upper arm is positioned in front of the body.
However, there is another muscle which plays a role in the bicep, which is the bicep brachii. This muscle runs almost underneath the other two and it’s important not to overlook the development of this muscle when building the biceps.
Anatomy of the Triceps
Before moving into the different exercises, it’s important to understand the anatomy of the muscle we are trying to grow and how we can activate it for maximum gains. The triceps (or the triceps brachii) when contracted will extend the elbow and, as the name suggests (tri), is made up of three muscles, the long head, the lateral head and the medial head. A resistance band triceps workout allows us to target all these heads very effectively.
The long head is the largest of the three muscles and, opposite to the bicep, runs on the inside of the arm, closest to the torso. A well-developed long head will build immense overall size of the upper arm due to how large the muscle is. The long head is best targeted by exercises that extend the shoulder above and almost behind the head.
The lateral head runs on the outside of the arm. If you contract the muscle by extending your elbow you should be able to feel a hook shaped muscle, this is the lateral head. The lateral head can be targeted more effectively by exercises that have to shoulders down and the arms in front of the body.
Finally, the medial head is the smallest of the three muscles. It sits just underneath the long head, but it cannot be overlooked when training. It’s harder to isolate this head compared to the others but all of the exercises will target it to some degree. It is not possible to directly isolate a particular head of the triceps entirely but we can use the aforementioned arm positions to emphasize a certain head better.
Triceps Exercises
We’ll first look at exercises for the triceps. The triceps are the bigger muscle out of the two as it has three major muscles in the group compared to the two of the biceps. The three exercises below target all heads of the triceps so nothing is overlooked. Use these in your next dumbbell arm workout.
Narrow Press
The first triceps exercise of this article is the narrow press. It is a bench press variation that puts more tension onto the triceps. It does this by limiting the stress put on the chest by keeping the dumbbells tucked in together. As the arms will be tucked in front of the body, this exercise will best target the lateral head of the muscle. This exercise can be performed using a bench if you have one, or can be done just as effectively by laying on the ground – consider using a yoga mat for comfort.
To perform:
- Pick up a dumbbell of the same, manageable weight with each hand and lay on your back on either a bench or the floor
- With a neutral grip and the dumbbells resting against each other, extend your elbows to press the weight up into the air
- Control the weight on the eccentric (way down) part of the movement until your hands are back at the starting point – this completes a repetition.
Dumbbell Kickback
The dumbbell kickback is performed one hand at a time. It is possible to do the movement with both arms at the same time but this reduces the stability. Better stability means we can focus on the contraction of each muscle individually. It involves having your body parallel to the floor by either using a bench or kneeling down on the floor. The kickback will put focus on all heads of the triceps but particularly the lateral and medial heads.
To perform:
- Pickup a dumbbell of a manageable weight with one hand and place your other hand on either the bench or the floor underneath your chest – your body should be parallel to the ground
- Keep your upper arm tucked into your body and alongside your torso, allow your elbow to bend so the weight comes toward the floor
- Extend your elbow so the weight comes up and back
- Control the weight on the eccentric part of the movement until your hand is back at the starting point – this completes a repetition.
Overhead Extension
The final triceps exercise of this article is the overhead extension. This is a unilateral movement performed while seated up right. It involves lifting the weight up above your head and then flexing the elbow to the weight comes back behind the head. This puts the tension onto the long head of the muscle. You can perform this seated on the floor or on any elevated object, such as a bench or chair.
To perform:
- Pick up a dumbbell of a manageable weight and bring it above your head
- Flex your elbow and allow the weight to come back behind your head, this will put the tension onto the long head of the muscle
- Extend the elbow and contract the muscle, the weight should come above your head
- Control the weight on the eccentric part of the movement until your hand is back at the starting point – this completes a repetition.
Biceps Exercises
We will now cover the bicep exercises in this article. The biceps should be trained to get well-developed upper arms. We will again look at three exercises in the list. One that targets both heads, and one exercise each for the long head and short head of the muscle group. Use these in your next dumbbell arm workout.
The Standard Bicep Curl
The first bicep exercise in this list is the standard bicep curl. The bicep curl is the most common bicep exercise you will see and it’s an incredibly effective exercise to perform when using dumbbells. This exercise is a must do even for experienced lifters due to how effective it is for growing the biceps. It is performed using a supinated (underhand) grip and puts focus on both the long and short head of the muscle.
To perform:
- and either stand up or sit up right on a sturdy object such as a bench (make sure you have room to let your arms down by your side)
- With a supinated grip, curl the weight by bringing your hands up towards your shoulders, keep your upper arm in line with your body and focus on tensing/squeezing the bicep
- Control the weight on the eccentric (way down) part of the movement until your hands are back at the starting point – this completes a repetition.
The Drag Curl
The drag curl is similar to the standard bicep curl, however when it’s performed correctly it will shift the focus to the long head of the bicep as the upper arms will come behind the body. As mentioned earlier, well developed long head muscles in the bicep will make them look big when viewed from the side.
To perform:
- Pick up a dumbbell of the same, manageable weight with each hand and either stand up or sit up right on a sturdy object such as a bench (make sure you have room to let your arms down by your side)
- With a supinated grip, curl the weight by bringing your hands up towards your shoulders, but this time focus on bringing your elbows back behind your body until your hands are where the elbows would be, make sure to focus on tensing/squeezing the bicep
- Control the weight on the eccentric part of the movement until your hands are back at the starting point – this completes a repetition.
The Preacher Curl
This is the last exercise in our list of movements for your dumbbell arm workout. The preacher curl puts most of the strain onto the short head of the bicep. This is because the arms will be placed in front of the body. For this movement you will require a sturdy object at about a 45-degree angle in front of you. You could use a bench or sit on a seat with a pillow across your body to support your upper arms. This exercise can be done standing or seated, depending on what object you use.
To perform:
- Pick up a dumbbell of the same, manageable weight with each hand
- Depending on what object you’re using, place your upper arms against that object in front of you, your elbows should be about shoulder width apart
- With a supinated grip, curl the weight towards your shoulders, ensuring your upper arms are staying fixed against the object
- Control the weight on the eccentric part of the movement until your hands are back at the starting point – this completes a repetition.
Conclusion
That wraps up this list of exercises for a dumbbell arm workout. As mentioned, for a complete arm workout you need to focus on both the triceps and biceps. It is probably unreasonable for you to do all the exercises on this list but you cannot overlook a certain head of the muscle either. If you only want to do a couple exercises for one muscle each session, you may want to then alternate and include the other one in the next workout. For example, keep the standard bicep curl in all sessions, but alternate between the preacher curl and drag curl each workout. This will mean a certain head of the muscle doesn’t become more overdeveloped than the other.
Hopefully with the above steps applied to your arm workout and the exercises performed well, you will see your arms develop over time. Ensure you focus on form before moving up in weight to make sure you are progressing in the right way. Progress by getting the form right, increasing volume and then increasing weight. This is the best way to develop all muscles in your body, not least your arms.