10 Best Barbell Seated Close-grip Concentration Curl Alternatives for Rehab

If you can’t perform the Barbell Seated Close-grip Concentration Curl, use unilateral or neutral-grip options that preserve elbow flexion and forearm supination. Try single-arm dumbbell concentration curls, supinated chin-ups, cable single-arm preacher curls, incline dumbbell curls, or resistance-band supinated curls to target the biceps while managing wrist or joint limits.

Original Exercise: Barbell Seated Close-grip Concentration Curl

Barbell Seated Close-grip Concentration Curl
Primary Muscle
Biceps
Equipment
Barbell
Difficulty
Beginner
Type
Isolation
Secondary Muscles: Forearms
How to Perform Barbell Seated Close-grip Concentration Curl
  1. Sit on a bench with your feet flat on the floor and hold a barbell with an underhand grip, hands shoulder-width apart.
  2. Rest your upper arms against your inner thighs, just above your knees, and let the barbell hang down in front of you.
  3. Keeping your upper arms stationary, exhale and curl the barbell up towards your shoulders, contracting your biceps.
  4. Hold the contracted position for a brief pause, then inhale and slowly lower the barbell back down to the starting position.
  5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Best Barbell Seated Close-grip Concentration Curl Alternatives

Best Match
Barbell Reverse Preacher Curl

1. Barbell Reverse Preacher Curl

96% Match
Biceps Barbell Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Sit on a preacher bench with your chest against the pad and your arms extended straight down, holding a barbell with an overhand grip.
  2. Keeping your upper arms stationary, exhale and curl the barbell upward while contracting your biceps.
  3. Continue to raise the barbell until your biceps are fully contracted and the barbell is at shoulder level.
  4. Hold the contracted position for a brief pause as you squeeze your biceps.
  5. Inhale and slowly lower the barbell back to the starting position.
Barbell Preacher Curl

2. Barbell Preacher Curl

93% Match
Biceps Barbell Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Sit on a preacher bench with your upper arms resting on the pad and your chest against the support.
  2. Grasp the barbell with an underhand grip, slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.
  3. Keeping your upper arms stationary, exhale and curl the barbell up towards your shoulders.
  4. Pause for a moment at the top, squeezing your biceps.
  5. Inhale and slowly lower the barbell back down to the starting position.
Barbell Curls Lying Against An Incline

3. Barbell Curls Lying Against An Incline

93% Match
Biceps Barbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Lie against an incline bench, with your arms holding a barbell and hanging down in a horizontal line. This will be your starting position.
  2. While keeping the upper arms stationary, curl the weight up as high as you can while squeezing the biceps. Breathe out as you perform this portion of the movement. Tip: Only the forearms should move. Do not swing the arms.
  3. After a second contraction, slowly go back to the starting position as you inhale. Tip: Make sure that you go all of the way down.
  4. Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
Ez Barbell Seated Curls

4. Ez Barbell Seated Curls

93% Match
Biceps Ez-barbell Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Sit on a bench with your feet flat on the ground and your back straight.
  2. Hold the ez barbell with an underhand grip, palms facing up, and your hands shoulder-width apart.
  3. Rest your upper arms on your thighs, allowing the ez barbell to hang down in front of you.
  4. Keeping your upper arms stationary, exhale and curl the ez barbell upwards towards your shoulders.
  5. Pause for a moment at the top, squeezing your biceps.
Ez Barbell Close Grip Preacher Curl

5. Ez Barbell Close Grip Preacher Curl

93% Match
Biceps Ez-barbell Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Sit on a preacher curl bench and place your upper arms on the pad, gripping the ez barbell with an underhand grip.
  2. Rest your triceps on the pad and fully extend your arms, keeping your back straight.
  3. Slowly curl the barbell towards your shoulders, contracting your biceps.
  4. Pause for a moment at the top, squeezing your biceps.
  5. Lower the barbell back to the starting position, fully extending your arms.
Ez Barbell Reverse Grip Preacher Curl

6. Ez Barbell Reverse Grip Preacher Curl

90.2% Match
Biceps Ez-barbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Sit on a preacher bench with your chest against the pad and your feet flat on the floor.
  2. Grasp the ez barbell with an underhand grip, hands shoulder-width apart.
  3. Rest your upper arms on the pad, allowing your forearms to hang down.
  4. Keeping your upper arms stationary, exhale and curl the barbell up towards your shoulders.
  5. Pause for a moment at the top, then inhale and slowly lower the barbell back down to the starting position.
Dumbbell Incline Biceps Curl

7. Dumbbell Incline Biceps Curl

87.5% Match
Biceps Dumbbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Sit on an incline bench with a dumbbell in each hand, palms facing forward, and arms fully extended.
  2. Keeping your upper arms stationary, exhale and curl the weights while contracting your biceps.
  3. Continue to raise the dumbbells until your biceps are fully contracted and the dumbbells are at shoulder level.
  4. Hold the contracted position for a brief pause as you squeeze your biceps.
  5. Inhale and slowly begin to lower the dumbbells back to the starting position.
Barbell Standing Close Grip Curl

8. Barbell Standing Close Grip Curl

87% Match
Biceps Barbell Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Stand up straight with your feet shoulder-width apart and hold a barbell with an underhand grip, hands close together.
  2. Keep your elbows close to your torso and your upper arms stationary throughout the movement.
  3. Exhale as you curl the weights while contracting your biceps. Continue to raise the bar until your biceps are fully contracted and the bar is at shoulder level.
  4. Hold the contracted position for a brief pause as you squeeze your biceps.
  5. Inhale as you slowly begin to bring the barbell back to the starting position.
Barbell Reverse Curl

9. Barbell Reverse Curl

85.9% Match
Biceps Barbell Beginner Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Stand up straight with your feet shoulder-width apart and hold a barbell with an overhand grip, palms facing down.
  2. Keep your upper arms stationary and exhale as you curl the barbell upward, contracting your biceps.
  3. Continue to raise the barbell until your biceps are fully contracted and the barbell is at shoulder level.
  4. Hold the contracted position for a brief pause as you squeeze your biceps.
  5. Inhale as you slowly lower the barbell back to the starting position, keeping your upper arms stationary.
Ez Barbell Close-grip Curl

10. Ez Barbell Close-grip Curl

85.4% Match
Biceps Ez-barbell Intermediate Isolation
How to perform this exercise
  1. Stand up straight with your feet shoulder-width apart and hold the ez barbell with an underhand grip, hands shoulder-width apart.
  2. Keep your elbows close to your torso and your upper arms stationary throughout the movement.
  3. Curl the barbell up towards your shoulders, contracting your biceps.
  4. Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower the barbell back down to the starting position.
  5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Why You Might Need a Barbell Seated Close-grip Concentration Curl Alternative

You might swap this isolation move for reasons such as wrist pain from a narrow bar grip, limited access to a barbell, or a need for unilateral control. Alternatives let you change wrist orientation, load distribution, and range of motion to reduce tendon stress while keeping biceps tension. For example, a single-arm dumbbell concentration curl lets you brace the elbow against your inner thigh to minimize shoulder involvement and increase biceps peak contraction; cue: keep the wrist neutral and supinate at the top to maximize biceps brachii activation.

How to Choose the Right Substitute

Select a substitute based on your goal (strength, hypertrophy, rehab), available equipment, and pain patterns. If you have wrist irritation, favor neutral-grip options like hammer curls or band curls; cue: keep the thumb up and elbow tucked to bias the brachialis and protect the distal radioulnar joint. For unilateral weaknesses, use single-arm cable or dumbbell concentration curls and progress with slow eccentrics to improve motor control and peak contraction. If you lack equipment, choose chin-up variations that combine elbow flexion and forearm supination to load the long and short heads of the biceps.

Frequently Asked Questions

What muscles does Barbell Seated Close-grip Concentration Curl work?

It primarily targets the biceps brachii (long and short heads) through elbow flexion and forearm supination, with secondary loading of the brachialis and brachioradialis. Keeping the elbow fixed and the wrist supinated transfers more load to the biceps and reduces shoulder contribution.

What is the best bodyweight alternative to Barbell Seated Close-grip Concentration Curl?

A supinated (underhand) chin-up is the best bodyweight substitute because it combines elbow flexion and forearm supination to load the biceps heavily. Cue: start from a dead hang, pull with the elbows driving down and back, pause briefly at the top to emphasize biceps contraction, then lower slowly.

Can I build muscle without doing Barbell Seated Close-grip Concentration Curl?

Yes. You can achieve equal or better biceps growth with progressive overload using alternatives like incline dumbbell curls, single-arm cable curls, and weighted chin-ups. Focus on full range of motion, controlled eccentrics, and consistent muscle tension to stimulate hypertrophy.

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