The Key to Big Arms
Building huge arms will make your physique stand out from the crowd. To walk around in a sleeveless shirt and look good, big well defined arms are vital. Big arms are the reward for years of dedicated gym effort and rarely does it go unnoticed.
Of course, not everyone is going to be able to build arms like Arnold. But even if you're not genetically blessed with big arms, there are plenty of things you can do to make the most of what you have.
Your upper arms are divided into three main muscle groups. First, we have the biceps, which is actually two muscles that run along the front of the arm, from your elbow to your shoulder joint. The primary function of the biceps is to flex the elbow. The triceps also run from the elbow to the shoulder, but their main role is to extend the elbow.
The brachialis is an upper arm muscle that runs under the biceps. It's really only visible when looking at the arms from the side. If it's so small, why bother training it? Working the brachialis will not only add mass to your arms, but also will actually push the biceps peak higher. If you neglect the brachialis, your arms will never reach their full potential.
Although most people focus on biceps training, if you want really big arms then you must not neglect building your triceps. Triceps are a bigger muscle group, with far more potential for mass. Because the triceps make up the bulk of your arm, building your triceps will do more to make your arms look bigger than having larger biceps. If you focus attention on building your triceps it will develop your whole arm, and you'll get the sleeve-busting look you're after!
Here are the most important time-tested training principles you need to follow in order to pack some serious size on your arms...
Train the arms a maximum of twice per week
The muscles in your arms are more prone to overtraining than other muscles of the body, mainly because they're both very small and can't tolerate as much work as bigger muscle groups such as the legs and back. Your biceps are also given additional work in rows, pulldowns, and chin-ups, and your triceps are worked hard during most pressing movements. This makes it very easy to overwork your arms. But so many guys think that training their arms 3-4 times a week is the best way to get them to grow. Do this, and you're setting yourself up for major disappointment! Stick to 1-2 arm workouts per week. This gives your arms the recovery time they need to grow big and strong.
Train them hard
To get your arms to grow, you need to overload them by periodically training them to failure and beyond. Don't just go through the motions. Prepare yourself for some high intensity sets and really squeeze out every last rep.
Train them fast
If you're primary goal is to add muscle mass to your arms, your entire arm routine should take you no more than 30 minutes tops! Building muscle is not like running a marathon. Many people do too much arm work in search of big arms. You'll often see people in the gym training arms for 40 minutes or more - no wonder they haven't added even a half an inch to their arms in a year! Short and intense is the best training way to add mass quickly. Remember in training arms - more is not better!
Use correct technique
Lift and lower the weight slowly in a controlled, focused manner. By using too heavy weights, ie: jerking it up using your back and dropping it - you're only training your ego. This will never build big arms. If you're sacrificing good form for more weight, then you're lifting too much - Reduce your weights and lift properly. To develop your arms fully, you must start every repetition with your arms fully extended. This makes the exercise harder, and targets all the fibres in the muscle. The result is that your arms will look fuller and bigger. But if you're using too much weight (like most people do) you'll end up doing partial repetitions, and swinging your body all over the place. This will not produce the results you're looking for. Watch how many people do this in the gym - it's very common - hence few guys have big arms!
The role of nutrition.
Bigger arms don't come from curls or presses alone. Exercise only provides the stimulus for growth. It's up to you to provide your muscles with the fuel they need to get bigger and stronger, most notably carbohydrate and protein. If you skimp on the carbs, your body shifts from an anabolic (muscle-building) state into a catabolic (muscle-losing) state. If you want bigger arms, you'll need to be in an anabolic state as often as possible.
To really get your arms growing, you need to make sure you eat enough calories every day. There are so many people who eat just two or three meals a day and a protein drink now and again (when they remember), and then wonder why they're not putting any mass on their arms. Visit: www.maximuscle.com/calculator to work out your precise calorie and protein requirements.
If your arms are growing, and the scales are moving up, you know you're on the right track! Something else you can do to ensure rapid muscle growth in your arms (and your entire body) is to consume protein and/or carbohydrate immediately prior to, and straight after exercise.
Nutrients eaten at certain times, most notably before and after your workout, can better contribute to muscle repair and recovery compared to the same nutrients consumed during other times of the day.
Studies show that protein taken before your workout actually works better for muscle growth than when it's taken after the workout. And when you take carbohydrate after exercise, the carbohydrate is absorbed more quickly by your muscles than it would be at other times. Feed your body with the right nutrients after exercise, and your muscles will be able to repair and recover far more quickly - which means bigger, stronger arms for you.
Give your arms a head start on muscle growth by taking a rapidly absorbed protein drink (such as Promax) before hitting the weights, and a high-carbohydrate protein drink (like Progain or Recovermax) after a workout.
The Routine
Here's a basic biceps routine that you can use to blast your arms to more mass quickly and effectively. This programme calls for performing just 2 sets of 3 exercises. After warming up your arms with a couple of light to moderate sets, jump right in.
- Standing Barbell Curl - 2 sets x 6-8 repetitions
- Incline Dumbbell Curl - 2 sets x 8-10 repetitions
- Standing Hammer Curl - 2 sets x 10-12 repetitions
- Triceps Dip - 2 sets x 6-8 repetitions
- Lying Triceps Extension - 2 sets x 8-10 repetitions
- Triceps Pressdown - 2 sets x 10-12 repetitions
