There are two main training errors people make that keep their biceps from growing. These are overtraining the biceps (often unintentionally) and a lack of variation in training techniques. Adding additional biceps focused workouts and trying multiple biceps exercises doesn't work.
Poor nutrition can prevent your biceps from growing. Muscles need fuel to grow, and this comes from a balanced diet with enough protein and overall calories. If you're not eating enough, your body won't have the resources it needs to build muscle.
To get bigger biceps, start by doing biceps-specific exercises like dumbbell curls, concentration curls, and chin-ups to build muscle. Next, build the muscles that surround your biceps by incorporating pectoral fly exercises, push-ups, and daily stretching into your exercise routine.
First, the biceps are smaller muscles than the triceps. This means that they require less stimulation to grow, which could be why they seem to grow slower. Additionally, the biceps tend to grow more slowly in people who are genetically predisposed to having smaller muscle mass, so that could also be a factor.
If your arms aren't growing despite working out, several factors could be at play: Insufficient Volume or Intensity: Ensure you're doing enough sets and reps with a challenging weight. Aim for 3-4 sets of 8-12 reps for hypertrophy.
The biceps muscle is a small muscle group and limited to elbow flexion only. Clients can experience issues when trying to build bigger biceps because they simply do too much. This happens as a result of adding too many isolation exercises on top of the main compound exercises of each workout.
To build muscle, aim to eat 1.4– 2.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight each day, says Cynthia Sass, RD, a registered dietitian and board-certified specialist in sports dietetics based in Los Angeles. (To calculate your approximate weight in kilograms, divide your weight in pounds by 2.2.)
No body part grows by trashing it every day—you need to rest to let your arms recover. In the hours after a workout, your muscles lose strength and power as they heal; after 36 to 48 hours, the muscle actually gets stronger, a process called "supercompensation." Bottom line: give yourself rest.
Now, 15 inches might sound like a magic number, but remember, it looks different for everyone. Factors like height, weight, and overall body composition play a big role in how those 15 inches appear. For some, 15 inch arms might be the pinnacle of their fitness journey, while for others, it might be a stepping stone.
The best exercise for growing the bicep muscle is any variation of the curl. Curls are best done using a barbell and weights or a set of dumbbells. If you're training in the gym, sitting at a bench or using the preacher curl machine can help to further concentrate tension on the bicep muscle, leading to bigger gains.
Training too little or too often will result in little bicep growth. This is because excessive training will not allow your arms to recover and rebuild. Therefore, you must give yourself enough time to recover in between your bicep workouts. Generally, a 24-48 hour resting period is sufficient to avoid any injury.
Pull ups and chin ups are a multi-joint movement, meaning that they engage multiple muscle groups (lats, biceps, shoulders, and upper back). They promote overall upper body muscle development and can lead to some serious strength gains.
The lats tend to be one of the hardest muscles to develop.
Typically, muscle mass and strength increase steadily from birth and reach their peak at around 30 to 35 years of age. After that, muscle power and performance decline slowly and linearly at first, and then faster after age 65 for women and 70 for men.
Typically, it takes around 6-8 weeks for you to start noticing changes in the appearance of your arms. At around the 12 week mark, this is typically when you can expect to see more significant changes, especially if you didn't already have a large amount of muscle mass in the area!
There are two main training errors people make that keep their biceps from growing. These are overtraining the biceps (often unintentionally) and a lack of variation in training techniques. Adding additional biceps focused workouts and trying multiple biceps exercises doesn't work.
If your goal is endurance and lean muscle, use a lighter weight and perform one to three sets of 12 to 16 reps with at least one day of rest in between. For maximum results, switch up your workouts. Don't do the exact same routines every session.
Protein is important, to be sure. After all, your muscles are made of protein, and your body requires adequate protein in your diet in order to have the building blocks it needs to build up muscle mass.
It's simple: The more you move, the more protein your muscles need to recover and grow. If you don't do frequent intense workouts, 80 to 100 grams of protein will be sufficient. You may need a bit more if you weigh more than 250 pounds.
Research suggests that bodybuilders who are trying to gain substantial muscle growth or increased body mass should consume about 5-6 grams of carbohydrates per kilogram of body weight per day (Slater, 2011).
Can too much protein be harmful? The short answer is yes. As with most things in life, there can be too much of a good thing and if you eat too much protein, there may be a price to pay. For example, people that eat very high protein diets have a higher risk of kidney stones.