10 Best EZ Barbell Curl Alternatives for Home Gyms

Original Exercise: EZ Barbell Curl

Primary Muscle

Biceps

Equipment

Ez-barbell

Difficulty

Intermediate

Type

Isolation

Secondary Muscles: Forearms

How to Perform EZ Barbell Curl

1. Stand up straight with your feet shoulder-width apart and hold the ez barbell with an underhand grip, palms facing up.
2. Keep your elbows close to your torso and your upper arms stationary throughout the movement.
3. Exhale as you curl the barbell up towards your shoulders, contracting your biceps.
4. Pause for a moment at the top, then inhale as you slowly lower the barbell back down to the starting position.
5. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Best EZ Barbell Curl Alternatives

Best Match

1. Dumbbell Biceps Curl

99.9% Match

Biceps Dumbbell Beginner Isolation

How to perform this exercise

1. Stand up straight 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 weights 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.

2. Dumbbell Biceps Curl (with Arm Blaster)

99.9% Match

Biceps Dumbbell Beginner Isolation

How to perform this exercise

1. Stand up straight with a dumbbell in each hand, palms facing forward.
2. Keep your elbows close to your torso and your upper arms stationary.
3. Exhale and curl the weights while contracting your biceps.
4. Continue to raise the weights until your biceps are fully contracted and the dumbbells are at shoulder level.
5. Hold the contracted position for a brief pause as you squeeze your biceps.

3. Barbell Biceps Curl (with Arm Blaster)

99.9% 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 underhand grip, palms facing up.
2. Place your upper arms against the arm blaster, keeping your elbows close to your torso.
3. Keeping your upper arms stationary, exhale and curl the weights while contracting your biceps.
4. Continue to raise the barbell until your biceps are fully contracted and the bar is at shoulder level.
5. Hold the contracted position for a brief pause as you squeeze your biceps.

4. Ez-bar Biceps Curl (with Arm Blaster)

99.9% Match

Biceps Ez-barbell Beginner 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, palms facing up.
2. Place your upper arms against the arm blaster, keeping them stationary throughout the exercise.
3. Keeping your elbows close to your body, 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 to the starting position, fully extending your arms.

5. Dumbbell High Curl

99.4% Match

Biceps Dumbbell Beginner Isolation

How to perform this exercise

1. Stand up straight with a dumbbell in each hand, palms facing forward.
2. Keep your upper arms stationary and curl the dumbbells as high as possible while contracting your biceps.
3. Pause for a moment at the top, then slowly lower the dumbbells back to the starting position.
4. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

6. Dumbbell Standing Biceps Curl

99.4% Match

Biceps Dumbbell Beginner Isolation

How to perform this exercise

1. Stand up straight 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.

7. EZ-Bar Curl

99.4% Match

Biceps Ez-barbell Beginner Isolation

How to perform this exercise

1. Stand up straight while holding an EZ curl bar at the wide outer handle. The palms of your hands should be facing forward and slightly tilted inward due to the shape of the bar. Keep your elbows close to your torso. This will be your starting position.
2. Now, while keeping your upper arms stationary, exhale and curl the weights forward while contracting the biceps. Focus on only moving your forearms.
3. Continue to raise the weight until your biceps are fully contracted and the bar is at shoulder level. Hold the top contracted position for a moment and squeeze the biceps.
4. Then inhale and slowly lower the bar back to the starting position.
5. Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.

8. Close-Grip EZ Bar Curl

99.2% Match

Biceps Barbell Beginner Isolation

How to perform this exercise

1. Stand up with your torso upright while holding an E-Z Curl Bar at the closer inner handle. The palm of your hands should be facing forward and they should be slightly tilted inwards due to the shape of the bar. The elbows should be close to the torso. This will be your starting position.
2. While holding the upper arms stationary, curl the weights forward while contracting the biceps as you breathe out. Tip: Only the forearms should move.
3. Continue the movement until your biceps are fully contracted and the bar is at shoulder level. Hold the contracted position for a second and squeeze the biceps hard.
4. Slowly begin to bring the bar back to starting position as your breathe in.
5. Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.

9. Close-Grip Standing Barbell Curl

99.2% Match

Biceps Barbell Beginner Isolation

How to perform this exercise

1. Hold a barbell with both hands, palms up and a few inches apart.
2. Stand with your torso straight and your head up. Your feet should be about shoulder width and your elbows close to your torso. This will be your starting position. Tip: You will keep your upper arms and elbows stationary throughout the movement.
3. Curl the bar up in a semicircular motion until the forearms touch your biceps. Exhale as you perform this portion of the movement and contract your biceps hard for a second at the top. Tip: Avoid bending the back or using swinging motions as you lift the weight. Only the forearms should move.
4. Slowly go back down to the starting position as you inhale.
5. Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.

10. Drag Curl

99.2% Match

Biceps Barbell Intermediate Isolation

How to perform this exercise

1. Grab a barbell with a supinated grip (palms facing forward) and get your elbows close to your torso and back. This will be your starting position.
2. As you exhale, curl the bar up while keeping the elbows to the back as you "Drag" the bar up by keeping it in contact with your torso. Tip: As you can see, you will not be keeping the elbows pinned to your sides, but instead you will be bringing them back. Also, do not lift your shoulders.
3. Slowly go back to the starting position as you keep the bar in contact with the torso at all times.
4. Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.

Why You Might Need a EZ Barbell Curl Alternative

You might substitute the EZ bar for several reasons: wrist or elbow irritation from the bar angle, lack of an EZ bar at your gym, or a need for unilateral correction and varied muscle emphasis. Alternatives change wrist rotation and elbow mechanics to shift load between the biceps brachii and brachialis. For example, a hammer curl uses a neutral grip to recruit more brachialis and reduce forearm supination stress; cue: keep a neutral wrist and pull through the elbow, not the shoulder.

How to Choose the Right Substitute

Choose a substitute based on grip position, joint stress, available load, and desired muscle emphasis. If you have wrist pain pick neutral-grip hammer curls or cables with a rope to lower supination torque; cue: maintain a straight wrist and steady tempo. For unilateral weakness use single-arm concentration or incline dumbbell curls to force symmetry and full range of motion. If you need consistent tension throughout the set, choose cable curls and emphasize controlled eccentrics to target the biceps long head.

Frequently Asked Questions

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