Sculpt Strong Biceps at Home: Killer Workout Routine

Step into a gym and you’re sure to find at least one person by the weight rack doing this…

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Yep, growing big biceps is on every fitness freak’s wish list. And there’s no shame in that. Turns out that having some serious mass on your arms (and legs) could make you live longer!

But what if you don’t have the time or the money for a gym, but still want to get those enviable biceps? Fear not, we’ve got your back (or biceps, rather😜)

In this blog, we’ll share with you an amazing home biceps workout routine that’ll sculpt and tone your #1 ‘mirror muscles’💪

Let the gun show begin!

Benefits of Training the Bicep Muscles

There are various benefits of doing biceps exercises at home.

1. Increased arm strength

Bicep exercises help you level up your arm strength, lifting power, and grip strength thus allowing you to perform daily activities easily.

2. Enhanced shoulder stability

A study published in The American Journal of Sports Medicine suggests that the biceps play a critical role in the anterior stability of the shoulder. This added stability can reduce the risk of injuries, such as strains or tears, and promote overall joint health.

3. Improved exercise performance

Strong biceps helps improve your performance in other exercises where they act as antagonist muscles.

In the bench press, for instance, it is your biceps that provide your arm with enough volume to handle the weight and lower it down with control towards your chest.

4. Improved athletic performance

Swimming, basketball, boxing. Whatever your choice of sports, strong biceps can help you generate more power and perform with greater efficiency.

15 Best Biceps Exercises at Home

Wondering how to do a biceps workout at home?

Simple! Just get yourself a set of resistance bands and a convertible dumbbell kit (dumbbells, barbells, and kettlebells all in one!!) and you're good to go!

1. Chin up

This is one of the best biceps exercises as your biceps will be taken through a large range of motion.

Muscles worked: Biceps, lats, deltoids, forearm flexors, rotator cuffs.

How to perform

• Stand underneath a pull-up bar. Reach up and grasp it with an underhand grip at shoulder-width apart.
• Hang from the bar with your arms fully extended, and your feet off the ground. Keep your body straight, and core muscles engaged.
• Pull yourself up towards the bar until your chin clears the bar. Your elbows should be tucked in and your shoulder blades pulled back.
• Feel the contraction in your biceps and then slowly lower yourself back to the starting position.
• Repeat for reps.

2. Wide-grip pullup

One of the best exercises for biceps at home for not just building your biceps but also improving your forearm, grip, and core strength.

Muscles worked: Lats, biceps, abs, shoulders, upper back.

How to perform

• Using an overhand grip, grab a pull-up bar with your hands wider than shoulder-width apart.
• Now pull yourself up by keeping your chest up and pulling your shoulder blades downward and together, until your chin goes above the bar.
• Pause for a second at the top before slowly returning to the starting position.
• Repeat for reps.

3. Kneeling clean to eccentric curl

Your biceps are subjected to longer time under tension (leading to bigger gains) thus making this one of the best biceps workouts at home.

Muscles worked: Biceps.

How to perform

• Begin in a half-kneeling position with your right knee on the ground.
• Hold a heavy kettlebell in your right hand.
• Engaging your core and hinging back slightly, clean the kettlebell up to your shoulder. Your arm should remain close to your body.
• Now lower the kettlebell down in a slow (around 3 seconds) and controlled manner, rotating your palm upwards as you do so.
• Repeat for reps on this side and then switch sides.

4. Standing inner dumbbell curl

One of the best biceps workouts at home for targeting your short head as your elbows are glued to your sides.

Muscles worked: Biceps, Brachialis, brachioradialis, forearm flexors.

How to perform

• Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart.
• Hold one dumbbell in each hand so that your palms are facing your thighs. Your elbows should be close to your torso.
• Keeping your upper arms stationary, curl the dumbbells out as you contract your biceps. Ensure that your wrists turn so that your palms are facing up as you reach the top of the movement.
• Continue to lift the dumbbells until they reach shoulder height.
• Pause for a second before slowly returning to the starting position as you rotate your wrists back to a neutral grip.
• Repeat for reps.

5. Two-arm preacher curls

This biceps workout at home allows you to maximize your time under tension during the eccentric phase thus giving you some serious size gains!

Muscles worked: Biceps, brachialis, triceps.

How to perform

• Hold one dumbbell in each hand using an underhand grip. 
• Begin by sitting erect and placing your upper arms on top of a preacher bench or an incline bench. Your arms should be fully extended.
• Now bend at your elbows and slowly curl the dumbbells up until your elbows are at 90 degrees.
• Pause for a few seconds, feel the contraction in your biceps, and then slowly lower the dumbbells back to the starting position.
• Repeat for reps.

6. 21s Dumbbell bicep curl

One of Schwarzenegger’s favs, this biceps workout at home maximizes time under tension thus giving you those powerful biceps.

Muscles worked: Biceps, brachialis, brachioradialis.

How to perform

• Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart.
• Grasp one moderate/light dumbbell in each hand using an underhand grip. The dumbbells should be by the side of your thighs.
• Engaging your core and keeping your elbows close to your sides, slowly curl the dumbbells up until your forearms are parallel to the floor.
• Pause for a second and then lower back to your thigh level.
• Repeat this movement for 7 reps.
• Without taking a break, now start at the point where your forearms are parallel to the floor and curl up until the dumbbells reach your shoulders. Repeat for 7 reps.
• For your last 7 reps, start with the dumbbells by your thighs and then curl the dumbbell up towards your shoulders (full range of motion).

Tip

You can also do this exercise against a wall to reduce your chances of cheating.

7. Wall biceps curl

A fantastic biceps workout at home as it prevents you from using momentum to lift the weight.

Muscles worked: Biceps, brachialis, brachioradialis.

How to perform

• Stand in front of a wall with your feet shoulder-width apart.
• Grasp one dumbbell in each hand with an underhand grip with the dumbbells by your thighs.
• Plant your back, your upper arms, and elbows firmly against the wall with your feet a few inches away from the wall. Maintain this position throughout the exercise.
• Now curl the dumbbells up towards your shoulders.
• Pause for a moment and then return to the starting position.
• Repeat for reps.

8. Resistance Band bicep curl

In this biceps workout at home, your biceps are subject to constant tension during all phases of the movement thus resulting in greater size and strength gains.

Muscles worked: Biceps, brachialis, brachioradialis.

How to perform

• Step onto a resistance tube with your feet shoulder-width apart.
• Hold one handle in each hand using an underhand grip.
• Begin by bringing the handles up to your thigh level such that there is some tension in the band.
• Keeping your elbows close to your torso, bring your forearms up until shoulder level.
• Pause for a moment, feel the contraction in your biceps, and then lower back to the starting position.
• Repeat for reps.

9. Banded Bayesian Curl

This biceps workout at home puts greater stress on your biceps long head as your elbows are positioned behind you. The result: Bicep peaks to die for!

Muscles worked: Biceps, brachialis, brachioradialis.

How to perform

• Anchor a resistance band to the bottom of a sturdy object that has sufficient space in front of it.
• Stand with your back to the anchor.
• Grab the band using an underhand grip with your right hand and get into a split stance.
• Begin with your right arm extended behind you such that there is enough tension in the band.
• Engage your core, and then pull the band forward and up to around shoulder height.
• Pause for a moment and then return to the starting position.
• Repeat for reps on this side and then switch sides.

10. Banded Hammer curls

An awesome biceps exercise at home to improve your pulling performance and elbow and wrist stability.

Muscles worked: Biceps, brachialis, brachioradialis.

How to perform

• Step onto a resistance tube with your feet shoulder-width apart.
• Hold one handle in each hand with your palms facing each other.
• Begin by bringing the handles up to your thigh level such that there is some tension in the band.
• Now curl the band towards your shoulders while keeping your upper arms stationary.
• Pause for a moment and then return to the starting position.
• Repeat for reps. 

11. Resistance Band Zottman Curl

The pronated grip used in the latter half of this biceps workout at home is excellent for targeting your brachialis and brachioradialis.

Muscles worked: Biceps, brachialis, brachioradialis.

How to perform

• Step onto a resistance tube with your feet shoulder-width apart.
• Hold one handle in each hand using an underhand grip.
• Begin by bringing the handles to slightly below your hip level such that there is some tension in the band.
• Engaging your core and keeping your elbows pressed to your body, slowly curl the band up to your shoulders.
• Once you reach your shoulders, rotate your wrists so that your palms are now facing downwards.
• Now lower your arms back to the starting position and rotate your wrists so that your palms are facing up again.
• Repeat for reps.

12. Standing concentration curls with resistance band

Since your little finger will be pointing up in this biceps workout at home, you’ll get maximum peak contraction at the top of the movement.

Muscles worked: Biceps, brachialis, brachioradialis.

How to perform

• Loop a resistance band around the bottom of your left foot.
• Grab the other end of the band with your right hand such that band comes across your little finger side and not your thumb side.
• Hold the band at a point low enough that there is sufficient tension in the band.
• Keeping your elbow tight to your body, curl the band across your body until it reaches your chest level.
• Feel the contraction in your bicep and then return to the starting position.
• Repeat for reps.

13. Reverse grip barbell row

Although this exercise mainly targets your ‘wings’, the reverse grip puts your biceps to work making this a good biceps workout at home.

Muscles worked: Lats, biceps, trapezius, rear deltoids, brachialis, brachioradialis.

How to perform

• Grab a barbell with your hands around shoulder-width apart using an underhand grip.
• Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your legs slightly bent.
• Bend over until your back is parallel to the ground. The barbell should now be just below your knee level.
• Row the barbell up towards your chest driving your elbows back behind you.
• Lower the barbell back to the starting position.
• Repeat for reps.

14. Close-grip barbell curl

This bicep workout at home uses the close-grip position which works your bicep long head, thus giving you those desirable bicep peaks.

Muscles worked: Biceps, brachialis, brachioradialis, abs, obliques.

How to perform

• Stand upright with your feet shoulder-width apart and grab a barbell with a grip narrower than shoulder-width. Your palms should be facing upward.
• Keep your upper arms close to your sides, your elbows tucked in, and your back upright.
• Start with the barbell hanging down in front of your thighs, arms fully extended.
• Now exhale and curl the barbell up until it is close to your chest.
• Feel the contraction in your biceps and then slowly return to the starting position.
• Repeat for reps.

15. Barbell drag curl

Two factors that make the drag curl one of the best exercises for biceps at home – 1) your shoulders are taken out of the equation and 2) your elbows are positioned behind your body which allows for maximum bicep contraction.

Muscles worked: Biceps, brachialis, forearms.

How to perform

• Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart.
• Grasp a barbell using a shoulder-width underhand grip and position it in front of your thighs.
• Keeping your back straight and your core engaged, pull your elbows back and slowly drag the barbell up along your body towards your shoulders.
• Keep dragging the barbell until your lower chest level.
• Feel the contraction in your biceps and then slowly return to the starting position.
• Repeat for reps.

Tips to remember while doing biceps exercises 

1. Emphasize all 3 biceps functions

Choose biceps exercises that focus on the 3 main functions:

• Elbow flexion (e.g. dumbbell curls with an underhand grip)
• Shoulder flexion (e.g. Bayesian curls)
• Forearm supination (e.g. Zottman curls)

2. Use different grips

Use an underhand grip to target your biceps brachii, and a neutral grip or overhand grip to emphasize your brachialis and brachioradialis.

3. Target both biceps heads

Target the long biceps head by using a narrow grip and the short head by using a wider grip.

4. Try using a range of loads

Train for both hypertrophy and strength. This means using both lighter weights in the higher rep range and heavy weights in the lower rep range.

5. Focus on the mind-muscle connection

Research shows that people who concentrated on feeling their biceps while doing biceps curls had nearly twice the amount of gains as people who didn’t!

So, if you want to see some serious gains, don’t underestimate the power of your mind-muscle connection!

Conclusion

With our expert bicep training tips and amazing lineup of biceps exercises at home, nothing’s stopping you from getting those rockin’ biceps you always wanted!

So grab your fitness gear and curl your way to biceps greatness!