If you’re like most bodybuilders, you love biceps day. There is a good chance that you typically shuttle from exercise to exercise, hitting them from every angle imaginable. You might start with the barbell curls, then move to the dumbbell curls to move some serious metal. Maybe the machines catch your eye and you spend a few sets trying them out. You can’t neglect the cables, right? When all is said and done, you might complete 10 or 15 or even 20 sets for biceps, but you probably neglect one movement which isolates and targets the biceps like perhaps no other movement, the concentration curl. Let’s learn more about this movement by answering some of the most commonly asked questions regarding its use.

Q: First off, how do I properly complete at concentration curl?

A: Stand up with a medium sized dumbbell in your hand. The 20 pound dumbbell should work fine for your first set. Bend over with the dumbbell hanging from your extended hand. The weight will be hanging down, placing tension on your biceps. Staring at your biceps, slowly bring the weight up in a slow, methodical curling motion. Flex the bicep at the top of the movement. Allow the weight to be lowered back down.

Q: Which area of the biceps does the concentration curl target?

A: While the movement is effective at drawing blood to all areas of the biceps muscle group, the outer biceps is primarily targeted. Many bodybuilders use the movement a great deal during the pre-contest phase because it does help to bring out the biceps peak, especially in conjunction with very low body fat.

Q: What rep/set scheme should I employ?

A: You should never complete less than 12 repetitions per sets. This is an open air exercise, in which the bicep is completely exposed, completing 100% of the work. This means you could easily injure the muscle or tendon if you trained with too heavy of a weight. Additionally, since the goal is to flood the muscle group with blood, high repetitions are certainly required.

Q: Where should this movement be placed on biceps day?

A: Place this exercise at the end of your training day, right before you move on to forearms. With a little technique and a lot of concentration, you won’t be able to move the biceps after this exercise, as they will be filled with blood.

Q: What kind of speed should I use on this movement?

A: You should have a 4 to 6 second positive (lifting) clock on this movement, along with a negative lift of 3 to 4 seconds. Move even slower if you want to experience an even greater burn when lifting.

Q: Should I use this exercise with every workout?

A: Use this movement in 75% of your workouts as a finisher. For the other ¼ of your routines, experiment with the cables. Your muscles will become accustomed to any movement you use with every workout, and it will lose its effectiveness.

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