8 Tips For Bigger and Better Arms 53/84

Let's be honest here, if you lift weights, you care what your arms look like. I don't care if you're a guy or a girl, trying to lose fat or gain muscle, everyone wants nice arms. To many, this can be too big of a focus and you end up looking super silly with big arms but no upper back or lats. But if you're like most people and want to get a respectable set of pipes then check out these tips to help you out.

- Still focus on compound movements

Big compound movements like rows, pullups, dips and presses are still going to activate that most muscle fibers and cause the most overall stimulus. These should generally take place towards the beginning of your workout so that you can use tons of energy on them. 4-6 sets of 5-10 reps is great for compound movements

- Use a supinated grip

If bigger biceps is the goal, try using a palms up grip for most of your pulling exercises. It's important to incorporate lots of different grips but supinated works the biceps the most. It will give you the best stimulus for compound movements.

- Use a close grip

Now for triceps, try doing most of your pressing with a close grip. This includes bench, incline bench, and overhead pressing. This will give you slightly more triceps involvement resulting in more growth. If you're using dumbbells, keep your elbows in close to your body to simulate a barbell close grip.

- Focus on TUT

Time Under Tension (TUT) is now being considered one of the most important factors in muscle growth. TUT refers to how long the muscle is actually doing work. Ways to increase TUT include higher rep sets, shorter rest periods, and (most importantly) increase the concentric and eccentric time of each rep. Try 2 seconds on the concentric (up) and 2 seconds on the eccentric (down) for each rep. Add a big squeeze and pause for even more growth.

- Utilize the Mind-Muscle Connection

The Mind-Muscle Connection refers to focusing your attention on the muscles you're intending to work. If you're doing a bicep curl, look at your bicep the whole set and focus on squeezing that muscle as hard as you can. This has just recently been proven by research (even though people have unofficially known for years) to increase muscle hypertrophy when compared to not utilizing it.

- Vary your reps

As mentioned, as long as TUT is high, various rep ranges can all cause muscle growth and you should use many of them. I like to do one heavy day (5-8 reps) and one high rep day (10-20 reps) for each group to get a nice mix of both.

- Don't train to failure

If you're on drugs then by all means do that, but if you're natural like 99% of us then training to failure has no real benefits. Outside of certain times (see yesterday's post) all it's going to do is make it harder to recover from you session. Always try to leave 1-2 reps in the tank on each set. This will allow you to recovery better, build more muscle, and save your joints from some pain.

- Don't focus just on getting a pump, except sometimes do

Some people focus too much on the pump, others don't focus enough. It has a time and place and should be used strategically. Getting a huge pump at the beginning of your workout is just going to make all of your other lifts suck, so save it till the end. At the end of your workout, refer again to yesterday's post for some different techniques

Give these a try and let me know how your progress goes! Training smarter can make all the difference in the world. If you feel like you're lost and need a little extra help then I'd love to get on a free 30 minute consultation call with you to start to put a plan together. To do that, simply click on the link below and reserve a time. All I'll need is some basic info and we can really get you moving towards your goals!

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