- Training
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Anatomically, the biceps brachii consists, as its name suggests, of two muscle heads, one long and the other short, which attach to the deltoid tuberosity of the humerus and, running along the front of the arm, attach to the radial tuberosity.
It is a bi-articular muscle, meaning that it spans two joints: the shoulder and the elbow. The function of the biceps that we are all familiar with is elbow flexion, but in reality, it also plays a role in shoulder flexion. For example, in the bicep curl exercise, depending on the position of the shoulder – whether it is in the anatomical position, flexed or extended – the muscle will be activated differently.
When training the biceps, we must first distinguish between:
- Multi-joint exercises: pulling exercises such as the lat pulldown machine, low pulley, rowing machine and pull-ups.
- Single-joint exercises: these are exercises that target the biceps more specifically and involve elbow flexion. To vary the muscular stimulation, they also involve varying the position of the shoulder (as mentioned above).
Is it better to train with dumbbells and a barbell or with cable machines?
To give the biceps a complete workout, all exercises must be performed with maximum muscle extension, followed by maximum muscle contraction at the point of peak muscular effort.
When using cable machines, muscle tension remains constant throughout the exercise, so there are no points where the muscular effort is greater; when using dumbbells or a barbell, at the starting point of the movement, the muscle is relaxed and offers no resistance; during arm flexion, the muscular effort increases until the forearm is parallel to the floor, at which point the muscular effort is at its peak, but there is no maximum muscle contraction; this is achieved only when the forearm is fully flexed, although this does reduce the muscular effort.
The most common exercises for training the biceps are:
- Straight-bar or curved-bar curl
- Barbell curl on a Scott bench
- Alternating or simultaneous dumbbell curls
- Hammer curls with dumbbells
- Low cable curl with a bar or single cable
- High cable curl or cable hold
These exercises can be structured using fixed repetitions, supersets, or techniques such as rest-pause, stripping, isomix or FST-7, depending on the muscle group being trained, the specific goal at that time and nutritional considerations.
Deltoid training
The deltoid is a muscle that covers the shoulder joint, so named because of its delta shape. Anatomically, it is divided into three parts:
- The anterior head, which inserts onto the clavicle. Biomechanically, it flexes and internally rotates the humerus and abducts it towards the intermediate deltoid
- Lateral or acromial, which originates from the acromion. Biomechanically, it abducts the humerus
- Posterior head, which originates from the spinal part of the scapula
Biomechanically, the posterior deltoid, from the anatomical position of the human body, enables the humerus to perform extension and external rotation movements, and also abducts the humerus in the transverse and frontal planes.
Training the deltoid
The best exercises for the deltoid are undoubtedly lateral raises with dumbbells, where, depending on the starting position of the humerus, we can place greater emphasis on one of the three heads.
- With the humerus in external rotation, we will place greater emphasis on the anterior deltoid.
- With the humerus in a neutral position, we will place greater emphasis on the middle deltoid.
- With the humerus in internal rotation, we’ll target the posterior deltoid more.
Another well-known exercise for shoulder training – in this specific case, for the anterior portion – is the front raise, which involves a 90° flexion of the shoulder and can be performed with dumbbells or a barbell, or in certain variations with a weight plate or cables. It can be performed either sitting or standing.
Other very important multi-joint exercises for training the deltoids include dumbbell overhead presses and slow forward movements with long-handled dumbbells, which can also be performed on a multi-gym machine, the Arnold press or the shoulder press.
Training the posterior deltoid
The most common exercises involve abduction movements in the transverse plane, such as lateral raises whilst lying on a 35° bench or with the torso bent at 90°, either standing or sitting at the edge of a bench. In all these cases, the movement during the exercise must be controlled and the elbows must be aligned with the shoulders. It is important to note that the rear deltoid is also engaged in certain multi-joint exercises such as pull-ups, the lat pulldown machine, the rowing machine and the pulley machine.
We also invite you to read a comprehensive article that will introduce you to the best exercises for building gluteal muscles!