Building bigger arms

[TheAnonymous]

Hey can someone give me a good routine for building bigger arms? I go to the gym tomorrow and it is an alright gym. It has dumbbells and a the barbell attached to the smith machine for squats and benching. I know that SL recommends you not to use the smith machine but right now I have no other choice. Anyone have an ideal routine?

[Cleave]

Do not use the smith machine. Substitute with dumbbells just to start if you must but it sounds like you need a better gym. Have you read the ebook yet? StrongLifts eBook

Don't worry about bigger arms. Work on overall strength and bigger arms will come.


Cleave

[TitanUnleashed]

Yes, i agree with cleave. Keep up with the " 3 Big Lifts" - The Bench press, Squats and Deadlifts. Add in great compound exercises like pull ups and dips. The pushing motion kick starts your triceps growth while the pulling motion aids in biceps development.
Good luck, eat right and train hard bro.

[Sarge]

Chin-ups and inverted rows hit them pretty hard also.

[americanadian]

Preacher curls and dumbell kickbacks.

[TitanUnleashed]

Preacher curls and dumbell kickbacks.

Hmmm, dumbell kickbacks? It does help mass to your tris? Maybe it does work for you... but, i feel that it adds more definition instead of mass.

[Sarge]

Americanadian is right about the tricep exercises.

Since the tricep is the largest muscle in the arm, something like 65% of the size (google it). If you want bigger arms and not just bigger biceps then hit the triceps. Of course, still work the biceps to keep a balance.

Close grip bench press, overhead barabell tricep extensions and dips for triceps.

Standing barbell curls and seated dumbell curls for biceps.

[David]

The advice on building the triceps is sound. Triceps are the bigger part of the upper arm with three muscles as opposed to two for the biceps. My current program is a four rep progression i.e. 4,8,12,16 x 3 sets of each. The 4 reps are a heavy compound movement, 8 reps are also a compound for the larger body parts for mass building, 12 reps usually with an isolation for mass and endurance and 16 rep isolation for pump (getting blood moving to remove muscle waste and get oxygenated blood to the area;

For triceps (3 sets of each)
Weighted dips x4
Skull crusher x8
French DB curl x12
Triceps press down x16

For biceps (2 sets of each)
EZ bar curl x4 (BB strains my forearm, personal preference)
Incline DB curl x8
Concentration curl x12
Preacher curl x16

DB hammer curl x8-12
Reverse curl x8-12

The hammer curl works the muscle under the bicep, the reverse curl is great for the forearm as well as the upper arm.

Although this program will build strength, it is more of a body building program overall (I'm training for a competition). I'm doing this for each body part once per week (or at least 5 days apart). As with anything, it is good to change up ever now and then. SL's will build the arm like a PL'er, the above will build in more like a BB'er. Again, personal preference and goal dependent. Good to switch back and forth periodically.

[Portillo]

Dips for triceps. Dip while keeping your body upright and make sure your elbows point behind you not out to the side, in order to hit the triceps as much as possible.

[rere]

Building big arms Squat and Deadlift more i'd say.

[Dada]

As mentioned by numerous posters, if you seek overall bigger arms then triceps is the key. It's been my experience that the traditional strength training routines (including the stronlifts programs) does a good job of building the triceps. For biceps, chins and rows will help but if you want more then just add some straight bar curls. Chins (especially with a close grip) IMO are still the best bicep builder though.

[JasonLB]

I think you should just focus on getting your core lifts up. When you can bench a shitload and chin a shitload, you'll look like you bench and chin a shitload, if you know what I mean. (You'll have big arms!) And if you have to ask someone which exercises to use to build bigger arms, I'm guessing your time would be much, much better spent focusing on the big lifts, IMHO.

[Akio]

I think it depends on how well you are at the basic lifts.

If you're a begginer (like me - only 2 years since I discovered SL and fullbody routines), IMO you should focus on the big lifts like JasonLB said.

After 2 years concentrating on big lifts, I ended up with the sime size but better (shoul I say "firmer") bicpes than the previous 5 years doing lots of bicpes routines.

But if you already have a good basis, I think David knows what he's saying.

Today the only execise I do which seems to hit the biceps realy hard is the close grip chin up. Don't need curls to get some pump on those bicpes!!! OH press, bench press for the triceps (for me, right now, but I'd add dips if you want to hit triceps harder).

Just my two cents.

[Doo]

Akio basically "stole my thunder". You need compound lifts for base and then you can add more isolated movements. I believe the "just do big lifts" crowd oversimplifies things. The big lifts can go a long way to increasing arm size but it is not the only solution. I increased arm size doing SL5x5 for 1st nine months. Note that includes the chin-up, pull-up and dip assistance exercises. After that, growth stalled although weights continued to increase.

Since then, I have been doing the following one day per week:

• Barbell Curls - 3x8
• Weighted Chin-ups - 3x8
• Standing Cable Curls - 2x5

and this two times per week:

• Lever Lifts to Front - 3x8
• Lever Lifts to Back - 3x8
• Wrist Curls/Plate Curls - 3x8
• Gripper work or other grip exercises

This latter routine is for grip and forearms and has helped me do heavy deadlifts without straps.

For last four or five weeks, I have also been doing extra Chin-ups 6 days per week as part of a HFT (a.k.a. "Grease the Groove") program.

[killerdude494949]

Building big arms Squat and Deadlift more i'd say.

+1