Beyond Curls: 7 “Forgotten” Bodybuilding Exercises for Explosive Bicep Growth

When it comes to biceps training, most people build their workouts around a small handful of proven exercises, namely barbell, dumbbell, and EZ bar curls. Most lifters find that these staples deliver reliable results and consistent progress.

Of course, there are certain caveats to that success, such as training hard and frequently enough to stimulate muscle growth, consuming sufficient protein, and getting enough rest and recovery.

Still, for the majority of exercisers, basic curl variations are all that’s needed.

However, as a veteran personal trainer with more than 30 years of experience, I know that there are exceptions to almost every workout rule. So, while conventional curls are effective for most people, some need different movements to optimize biceps growth.

During the last three decades, I’ve discovered and experimented with dozens—if not hundreds—of lesser-known exercises so that I have the tools I need to bust through any training plateau. Surprisingly, the best “new” exercises often aren’t new at all; they’re just long-forgotten treasures from the golden age of bodybuilding.

In this article, I share some of my favorite “secret” biceps exercises. Use them if conventional biceps curls have stopped delivering the results you want.

Why You Might Need More Than Curls to Build the Arms of Your Dreams

Barbell, dumbbell, and cable curls are great exercises—until they’re not. Over time, your muscles can used to doing the same movements over and over again, and more reps, sets, or weight won’t help you overcome your arm-training rut.

After all, the very definition of insanity is repeating the same action and expecting a different result.

And that’s where unconventional exercises come in. Replacing your regular diet of curls with a more unusual movement exposes your muscles to a unique stimulus that will unblock your progress and get your gains back on track.

Plus, if you think about it, barbell, dumbbell, and cable curls all feature an almost identical movement and muscle recruitment pattern, so even if you rotate between these curl variations, you’re essentially swapping like for like.

Switching to unconventional exercises allows you to train your arms from lesser-used angles, at different muscle lengths, and using less common strength curves that load your muscles in new and unfamiliar ways. These changes can help jolt your muscles out of their sleepy state and reignite your progress.

Remember, though—these exercises are neither new nor untested. Rather, they’re what golden-era bodybuilders used to sculpt their incredible arms. They worked then, and they’ll work now!

7 Forgotten Bodybuilding Exercises for Bigger, Stronger Biceps

Stuck in a biceps-training rut? I feel your pain! Get your progress back on track by ditching conventional barbell, dumbbell, and biceps curls and doing these exercises instead.

1. Gironda Drag Curl

Vince Gironda was a legendary old-school bodybuilding coach. Always controversial, Gironda all but created the “ripped” look that’s so popular with today’s bodybuilders and invented numerous exercises that he believed were better than their conventional alternatives. The Gironda drag curl involves keeping your elbows back which eliminates momentum, forcing your biceps to do all the work.

Steps:

1. Hold a barbell with an underhand, shoulder-width grip. Brace your core and pull your shoulders back and down.
2. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent, and arms straight.
3. Bend your arms and drag the barbell up the front of your body as you simultaneously pull your elbows backward. Raise the bar as high as you can while keeping it close to your body.
4. Slowly lower the weight and repeat.

Pro Trainer Tips:

• Pause for 1-2 seconds at the top of each rep, squeezing your biceps hard for an intense contraction.
• Go light—too much weight can pull the bar away from your body and make this exercise less effective.
• You can also do Gironda drag curls with dumbbells, an EZ bar, or a cable machine.

Read more about Vince Gironda in these articles:

• Bodybuilding Tips from The Iron Guru Vince Gironda
• The Vince Gironda 8×8 Method: High Volume Training for Maximum Muscle Growth
• Gironda Guillotine Press Guide – Muscles Worked, How-To, Benefits, Tips and Variation

2. Spider Curls

One of the best ways to breathe new life into any exercise is to change the angle of your joints. That’s why incline bench presses are such a good plateau buster and using a wider or narrower than usual squat stance can help unlock new leg size and strength.

Spider curls work your biceps in a unique way, placing your arms in a position you probably don’t use very often. While you won’t be able to lift as much weight as usual, the tension on your muscles at the top of each rep has to be felt to be believed!

Steps:

1. Adjust an exercise bench to around 45 degrees.
2. Lie chest down on the bench with a dumbbell in each hand, palms facing forward to maximize muscle stretch.
3. Without swinging, bend your arms and curl the weights up toward your shoulders.
4. Slowly lower the dumbbells and repeat.

Pro Trainer Tips:

• You can also do spider curls with a barbell or EZ bar.
• Experiment with the angle of the bench to see what feels most comfortable and effective.
• Pause at the top of each rep to maximally engage your biceps.

3. Super Slow Chin-Up

No—I haven’t accidentally put a back exercise into my biceps article! While chin-ups DO work your lats, they’re also a fantastic biceps builder, and many old-school lifters did them as part of their unconventional arm routines. I learned this variation from high-intensity training (HIT) expert Dr. Ellington Darden, who recommended it as a strength and size plateau buster.

While you’ll only be doing one rep, I reckon that it’ll probably be the hardest chin-up you ever do. Studies show prolonged time under tension can maximize muscle fiber recruitment and metabolic stress—both key drivers of hypertrophy (1).

Steps:

1. Hang from your pull-up bar with an underhand, shoulder-width grip.
2. Without kicking or swinging, bend your arms and slowly pull your chest up to the bar. Take 20-40 seconds to complete your ascent.
3. Pause briefly at the top and then extend your arms and slowly come down. Again, take 20-40 seconds.
4. Rest a moment and repeat—if you can!

Pro Trainer Tips:

• The slower you do this exercise, the more effective it becomes.
• Descend more slowly than you pull up to maximize the eccentric training effect of this classic biceps builder.
• On completion, grab a set of dumbbells or a barbell and crank out reps to failure for a skin-splitting biceps pump.

4. Zottman Dumbbell Curl

The biceps brachii is just one of the muscles on the front of your upper arm. Beneath it lies the brachialis and brachioradialis, two additional muscles that can add a lot of size and strength to your arms.

While some people train these muscles, e.g., with reverse curls, most do not, which leaves a lot of gains on the table. Zottman dumbbell curls, invented by 19th-century Philadelphia strongman George Zottman, are guaranteed to increase biceps and forearm size.

Steps:

1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and knees slightly bent. Hold a dumbbell in each hand by your sides, palms facing your legs. Brace your abs and pull your shoulders down and back.
2. Keeping your upper arms close to your sides, bend your elbows and curl the weights up to your shoulders. As you raise the weights, rotate your wrists so that your palms are turned upward.
3. Next, without lowering the weights, rotate your forearms, so your palms are downward, i.e., a pronated grip.
4. Keeping your hands pronated, lower the weights down towards the starting position. As the dumbbells near your legs rotate your wrists so your palms face inward.
5. Continue for the prescribed number of repetitions.

Pro Trainer Tips:

• Lower the weights more solely than you lift them to keep your muscles under tension for longer and maximize muscle growth.
• Use an alternating arm action or train both arms together as preferred.
• Rest your back against a wall to prevent cheating.

5. Supinated Grip Bent-Over Rows

With most types of curls, the limiting performance factor is often not biceps strength. Rather, it’s the amount of weight you can hold without toppling forward. That’s why you often see people leaning backward during curls as they attempt to overcome the unrelenting pull of gravity.

Supinated bent-over rows eliminate this problem by putting you in a more favorable position. And yes, this IS another back exercise but, like chin-ups, it’s also a fantastic old-school biceps builder.

Steps:

1. Hold your barbell with an underhand, shoulder-width grip. Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent. Pull your shoulders down and back.
2. Hinge forward from the hips until your body is inclined to about 45 degrees. Let your arms hang straight down.
3. Leading with your elbows, bend your arms and pull the barbell into your lower abdomen.
4. Slowly extend your arms and repeat.

Pro Trainer Tips:

• Keep your lower back slightly arched throughout. A rounded spine is more prone to injury.
• Keep your elbows close to your sides to maximize biceps and back muscle recruitment.
• Experiment with the angle of your torso to determine what feels most comfortable and effective.

6. Seated Barbell Curls

Just because regular barbell curls have stopped working doesn’t mean you have to quit them entirely. Simply switching from standing to sitting could be enough to make them productive again. This variation allows you to lift heavy loads in relative safety, making it a great way to bust through your biceps training plateau.

Steps:

1. Sit on a bench with your legs bent and feet flat. Rest a barbell across your thighs and grip it with an underhand, shoulder-width grip.
2. Brace your core and pull your shoulders down and back.
3. Without moving your upper body, bend your elbows and curl the weight up to your shoulders.
4. Slowly lower the bar back to your thighs and repeat.

Pro Trainer Tips:

• Squeeze rather than jerk the weight off your legs to minimize momentum.
• Use a bench with back support if preferred.
• Pause at the top of each rep to maximize biceps recruitment.

7. Gironda Perfect Curl

I started this list with a biceps exercise from old-school legend Vince Gironda, so it seems fitting to finish it with another—the Gironda perfect curl.

This exercise is designed to maximize your range of motion while optimizing leverage. In short, it “fixes” many of the shortfalls of conventional curls. Yes, it looks pretty weird, but your arm gains will make those questioning looks much easier to bear!

Steps:

1. Hold a barbell with an underhand, shoulder-width grip. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent. Brace your core and pull your shoulders back and down.
2. With your arms straight, lean back to get a good stretch in your biceps.
3. Bend your elbows and, as your arms approach 90 degrees, lean forward and lower your shoulders toward the bar.
4. Lean back as you lower the weight and repeat.

Pro Trainer Tips:

• Move your upper body forward and back slowly to minimize momentum and avoid taking work away from your biceps.
• Take care not to hyperextend or round your lower back, as doing so could lead to injury.
• You can also do this exercise with dumbbells.

Closing Thoughts

You don’t need to reinvent biceps training to get out of your current arm training rut. Instead, just revisit a few forgotten exercises from the past. These old-school and overlooked exercises will challenge your arms in new ways, hitting the muscle fibers from angles you’ve probably been neglecting.

But don’t just read about them—try them. Pick two or three, add them to your next arm workout, and your biceps will feel the difference—and grow because of it.

References:

1 – Schoenfeld BJ. The mechanisms of muscle hypertrophy and their application to resistance training. J Strength Cond Res. 2010 Oct;24(10):2857-72. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0b013e3181e840f3. PMID: 20847704.

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