Grow Amazing Biceps with Bodyweight Workouts
Today, I want to start with the first episode of the series “Getting Aesthetic With Basic Calisthenics. Here, I will not be talking about bodybuilding or ways to maximize muscular size, but the goal here is to enhance overall athleticism and create a toned, muscular appearance using basic calisthenics exercises.
Many individuals have reached out to me seeking advice on how to target specific areas of their body and improve their overall fitness. So, I decided to create this series to address these concerns and provide guidance on how to achieve aesthetic goals through calisthenics.
Growing your Biceps with basic Calisthenics
We will be discussing how to build bigger biceps using calisthenics exercises. Before we dive into specific exercises, let’s first understand the anatomy of the bicep and how it functions. The bicep is responsible for flexing the elbow and bringing the hand towards the shoulder against resistance. It also helps in the supination of the forearm, turning the palm towards the body.
Chin-up
To effectively build your biceps with calisthenics, the chin-up is a highly recommended exercise. The standard shoulder-width chin-up is an excellent way to target and strengthen the biceps. But don’t just think about building up to like three sets of eight or something with chin-ups and things, you’ve maxed out your bicep growth. Aim to work towards three sets of twenty-five really good reps and you will have amazing biceps and really good-looking arms, when you get to that level of strength. Don’t think that It’s a short road, It will definitely take a while to work your way up there especially If you’re a beginner.
Variation 1&2
Let’s go through a couple variations of chin–ups and talk about how you can use them and structure them into a program to enhance your bicep growth. Now, here’s the thing, some people will have genetics such that any pulling they do, whether it’s a pull–up or a wide grip pull–up or a neutral grip pull–up, doesn’t really matter, but their biceps just grow.
And other people are going to want to incorporate a little more chin–up work relative to bicep work or relative to pull–up work. So, for people who struggle growing their biceps, they might want to incorporate a three–to–one ratio of chin–up work to pull–up work.
The close grip chin–up is another variation that I like a lot. Many people say that the close grip chin-up hits their biceps the hardest. It’s a common anecdote that you’ll hear. I actually really like this movement in general for the back and biceps, it definitely does allow you to get a really good squeeze at the top. So, it definitely hits the biceps in a very productive way.
Variation 3
The movement that you don’t see that often but I really like is this one: the wide grip chin–up. And it really challenges your supination, so your ability to maintain your palm towards you as you’re doing your chin-up. And at the top, I get a really, really good bicep squeeze. This one is a very productive one for hitting the biceps as well.
Weight Variation
Weighted chin-ups are another effective variation to add in. With a weighted vest or a buckle dip belt, It incorporates some variation in training load which can help recruit a wider range of fibers and can overall help your muscular growth and specifically in the bicep. All these movements can be done weighted to add some variation in training load of course after you’ve gotten pretty strong with just your body weight and want to level it up. But you’re gonna get that growth from doing hard sets and progressing them over time.
One Useful Movement; Rows
Incorporating row variations into your routine can also help target the biceps and improve overall arm strength. By supinating the rings during rows, you can focus on engaging the biceps and maximizing muscle recruitment.
Incorporating Rings
Now, I like ring pull-ups too or ring chin-ups rather. And it’s important that at the top of the ring chin-up, you turn your palms over or squeeze them really hard toward the top to get that maximum bicep recruitment. And these variations are going to be the most productive thing you can do to emphasize the biceps.
Structuring your Program
In the way I would structure this, let’s assume you’re on sort of a higher frequency program and doing some sort of chin-up or pull-up or row work five days a week. I would really just focus on these movements that have your palm facing you during your pulling movement.
So on Monday, you might do a weighted chin-up. On Tuesday, you might do a row with that supinated grip. On Wednesday, you might do a close grip chin-up. Thursday, you might change it up and do a wide grip pull-up just to let the biceps sort of recover a little bit more. And Friday, you might do a wide grip chin-up. So you can vary your training day to day to kind of hit the biceps from a variety of different angles.
In conclusion, building bigger biceps with calisthenics is achievable with consistent training and proper exercise selection. By incorporating a variety of chin-up and row variations into your routine, you can effectively target the biceps and enhance overall arm strength. Stay tuned for upcoming episodes where we will discuss other body parts and provide tips on achieving aesthetic goals through calisthenics training.
