The Best Arm Exercises for Bigger Biceps and Triceps

Building Arms That Match Your Frame

Big arms are one of the most common goals in the gym, and for good reason. Well-developed biceps and triceps are visible in nearly every outfit and contribute to a balanced, powerful physique. But despite their popularity, arms are one of the most poorly trained muscle groups. Too many lifters either neglect direct arm work, assuming compound movements are enough, or they train arms with sloppy form and no real plan.

The truth is that arms benefit from focused, intelligent training. The biceps and triceps are relatively small muscles, but they respond powerfully to consistent volume, proper exercise selection, and progressive overload. Here are the best exercises for each and how to program them.

Understanding Arm Anatomy

The biceps has two heads: the long head (outer) and the short head (inner). The long head contributes to the peak of the bicep, while the short head adds width. The brachialis, which sits underneath the biceps, pushes the bicep upward when developed and contributes significantly to overall arm size.

The triceps has three heads: the long head, the lateral head, and the medial head. The long head is the largest and crosses the shoulder joint, meaning it is stretched when the arm is overhead. The lateral head creates the horseshoe shape visible from the side. The medial head sits deeper and contributes to overall triceps thickness.

Effective arm training hits all of these heads through varied grip positions and arm angles.

The Best Biceps Exercises

Barbell Curl

The barbell curl is the foundational biceps exercise. It allows for the heaviest loading of any curl variation, making it the best choice for progressive overload on the biceps.

How to perform it: Stand with feet hip-width apart, grip a straight barbell or EZ-bar with an underhand grip at about shoulder width. Keeping your elbows pinned to your sides, curl the bar to shoulder height. Squeeze at the top and lower under control to a full extension.

Programming tip: Use 3 to 4 sets of 6 to 10 reps. The barbell curl is one of the few biceps exercises where slightly heavier loads and moderate reps work well. Use a straight bar for maximum bicep activation or an EZ-bar if your wrists are uncomfortable.

Common mistake: Swinging the torso and using momentum. A small amount of body English on the last rep or two of a set is acceptable, but if you are heaving every rep, the weight is too heavy.

Incline Dumbbell Curl

The incline curl stretches the long head of the bicep by positioning the arm behind the body. This makes it one of the best exercises for building the bicep peak.

How to perform it: Set a bench to about 45 to 60 degrees. Sit back with a dumbbell in each hand, arms hanging straight down. Curl the dumbbells up while keeping your upper arms stationary. Squeeze at the top and return to the fully stretched position.

Programming tip: Use 3 sets of 10 to 12 reps. Do not rush these. The stretched position at the bottom is where the magic happens. Control the eccentric.

Hammer Curl

Hammer curls target the brachialis and the brachioradialis (forearm), both of which contribute significantly to overall arm size. A well-developed brachialis makes the arm look thicker from the front.

How to perform it: Stand with dumbbells at your sides, palms facing your body (neutral grip). Curl the dumbbells up without rotating your wrists. Squeeze at the top and lower under control.

Programming tip: Use 3 sets of 10 to 15 reps. You can perform these with both arms simultaneously, alternating, or one arm at a time.

Preacher Curl

The preacher curl eliminates momentum by bracing your upper arms against a pad, isolating the biceps completely. It is especially effective for the short head and for building fullness in the lower portion of the bicep.

How to perform it: Sit at a preacher bench with your upper arms firmly against the pad. Grip an EZ-bar or dumbbell and curl it up, keeping your upper arms glued to the pad. Lower slowly to near-full extension.

Programming tip: Use 3 sets of 10 to 15 reps. The strict positioning makes this exercise ideal for moderate weight and slow tempos. Do not bounce at the bottom, as this puts excessive stress on the biceps tendon.

Cable Curl

Cable curls provide constant tension throughout the entire range of motion, including the top of the movement where dumbbells lose tension due to gravity.

How to perform it: Attach a straight bar or rope to a low cable. Curl the attachment up while keeping your elbows stationary. Squeeze hard at the peak contraction, then lower slowly.

Programming tip: Use cables as a finishing exercise for 3 sets of 12 to 15 reps. They are excellent for drop sets and high-rep burnout work.

The Best Triceps Exercises

Close-Grip Bench Press

The close-grip bench press is the most effective compound movement for the triceps. It allows for heavy loading and provides a stimulus that isolation exercises cannot replicate.

How to perform it: Lie on a flat bench and grip the barbell with hands about shoulder-width apart. Lower the bar to your lower sternum, keeping your elbows tucked close to your body. Press back up to lockout by driving through the triceps.

Programming tip: Use 3 to 4 sets of 6 to 10 reps. Place this early in your arm or pressing workout when you are freshest. It doubles as a chest and triceps exercise.

Overhead Triceps Extension (EZ-Bar or Dumbbell)

The overhead extension stretches the long head of the triceps, which is its strongest growth position. Since the long head is the largest of the three tricep heads, prioritizing it is critical for arm size.

How to perform it: Hold an EZ-bar or single dumbbell overhead with arms fully extended. Lower the weight behind your head by bending at the elbows, keeping your upper arms vertical. Extend back to the starting position.

Programming tip: Use 3 to 4 sets of 10 to 15 reps. The stretch at the bottom is the most important part. Control the eccentric and feel the long head stretch before driving back up.

Triceps Pushdown (Cable)

The pushdown is the most common triceps isolation exercise and for good reason. It is joint-friendly, easy to progressive overload, and allows for a strong peak contraction.

How to perform it: Attach a straight bar, V-bar, or rope to a high cable. Stand with a slight forward lean, elbows pinned to your sides. Extend your arms downward until fully locked out. Squeeze the triceps and return slowly.

Programming tip: Use 3 sets of 12 to 15 reps. The rope attachment allows you to split the ends at the bottom for a stronger contraction. Alternate between rope and bar attachments across weeks.

Dips (Upright, Triceps-Focused)

While dips were mentioned in the chest article as a chest builder (with a forward lean), performing dips with an upright torso shifts the emphasis primarily to the triceps.

How to perform it: Grip the parallel bars and keep your torso as vertical as possible. Lower yourself until your upper arms reach about 90 degrees, then press back up to full lockout. Keep your elbows pointing backward, not flared.

Programming tip: Use bodyweight or add weight via a belt for 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps. This is one of the few triceps exercises that allows for progressive loading in the same way as pressing movements.

Skull Crusher (Lying Triceps Extension)

Skull crushers are a classic triceps exercise that provides an excellent stretch on the long head while allowing moderate to heavy loading.

How to perform it: Lie on a flat bench holding an EZ-bar with a narrow grip, arms extended over your chest. Lower the bar toward your forehead (or slightly behind it for more long head stretch) by bending at the elbows. Extend back to the starting position.

Programming tip: Use 3 sets of 10 to 12 reps. If your elbows are sensitive, lowering the bar behind your head rather than to your forehead reduces joint stress.

Programming Arm Training

How Much Volume Do Arms Need?

Most lifters need 10 to 16 direct working sets per week for biceps and 10 to 16 for triceps to grow. This is in addition to the indirect work they receive from compound pulling (biceps) and pressing (triceps) movements.

Sample Arm Workout

• Close-grip bench press: 4 sets of 6 to 8 reps
• Barbell curl: 3 sets of 8 to 10 reps
• Overhead triceps extension: 3 sets of 10 to 12 reps
• Incline dumbbell curl: 3 sets of 10 to 12 reps
• Triceps pushdown (rope): 3 sets of 12 to 15 reps
• Hammer curl: 3 sets of 12 to 15 reps

Supersets for Efficiency

Arms lend themselves perfectly to superset training. Pairing a biceps exercise with a triceps exercise allows one muscle to rest while the other works, cutting your workout time significantly without reducing effectiveness.

Example superset pairs:

• Barbell curl paired with triceps pushdown
• Incline dumbbell curl paired with overhead extension
• Hammer curl paired with skull crusher

Frequency

Training arms two to three times per week produces better results than one weekly arm session. You do not need a dedicated arm day if you include direct biceps work on pull days and direct triceps work on push days. However, if arms are a weak point, a dedicated arm session once per week on top of your normal training can accelerate growth.

Arm Training Myths

Myth: Compound lifts are enough for arm growth. While rows, pull-ups, bench presses, and overhead presses do work the arms, they do not provide enough direct stimulus for maximum growth. The biceps and triceps benefit enormously from isolation work.

Myth: You need to go heavy on curls. Heavy barbell curls have their place, but most biceps growth comes from moderate loads with full range of motion and controlled tempos. Cheating every rep with 60-pound dumbbells does far less than strict form with 30 pounds.

Myth: High reps only for arms. Arms respond to a range of rep ranges. Include heavy work (6 to 8 reps), moderate work (10 to 12 reps), and high-rep pump work (15 to 20 reps) for complete development.

The Long Game

Arms grow slowly. This is normal. The biceps and triceps are small muscles that do not add size as quickly as the quads, back, or chest. The lifters with the best arm development are the ones who train them consistently, with good form, across a variety of exercises and rep ranges, for years. There is no shortcut. Pick the exercises from this list that feel best on your joints, program them intelligently, train them with purpose, and let time do the rest.