bicep head

[typsu32]

i realized a few mins ago that my bicep is getting much thicker, but peak isnt going anywhere. I haven't changed my routine, well i did, but i use the same basic exercise as normal..can anyone explian while i down a protien shake?

[rab91787]

umm... my best guess would be that you aren't getting enough motion in your bicep exercises. the peak comes from squeezing at the very top of the motion when doing something such as barbell curls. try doing some 21's

[Khaine]

Or... You can't manipulate growth to a specific portion of the same fiber length... The muscle contracts as a whole... Obviously, the Muscle Section Isolation debate is far from over, but I've yet to see a study indicating that you can force localised growth to muscle fiber...

Worry about the mass for now... The peak may or may not appear, if your biceps are big enough, nobody will notice...

[ebon00]

Your best bet for getting a decent "peak" is to work on the brachialis which lies underneath the biceps. This will push the biceps up a little which will create the illusion of a peaked biceps. And the conventional wisdom passed down from the old-timers is that free concentration curls build peak.

[Vas85]

Originally Posted by Khaine

Or... You can't manipulate growth to a specific portion of the same fiber length... The muscle contracts as a whole... Obviously, the Muscle Section Isolation debate is far from over, but I've yet to see a study indicating that you can force localised growth to muscle fiber...

Worry about the mass for now... The peak may or may not appear, if your biceps are big enough, nobody will notice...

I would agree with Khaine, generally what I have noticed is that skinny people (new to training 5-6months in) and experienced lifters on a side view bicep pose may appaer to have similar sized arms, but the width and thickness is what really seperates the rail thin arm to muscle mass. Width is what makes the bicep look beefy and dangerous, the height I believe is genetically determined, not by certain exercises.

Oh and instead of the usual 21's, which are 7reps bottom half, 7reps top half, 7 reps full of the barbell/dumbell curl.

Try doing 7 reverse db curls, 7 hammer curls, 7 db curl standing all one after the ohter. I find that really pumps me up and I use it as a finisher, works really well for me.

[armorforsleep]

Originally Posted by Khaine

Or... You can't manipulate growth to a specific portion of the same fiber length... The muscle contracts as a whole... Obviously, the Muscle Section Isolation debate is far from over, but I've yet to see a study indicating that you can force localised growth to muscle fiber...

Worry about the mass for now... The peak may or may not appear, if your biceps are big enough, nobody will notice...

you misunderstand the all-or-nothing principle... I am thinking of making a post about this because it seems to be very common thinking that the all-or-nothing principle applies to an entire muscle.

[ebon00]

Originally Posted by armorforsleep

you misunderstand the all-or-nothing principle... I am thinking of making a post about this because it seems to be very common thinking that the all-or-nothing principle applies to an entire muscle.

Yes, we know that it deals with motor units but the bottom line for this thread is still the same: you can't "isolate" any top fibers of the biceps.

[armorforsleep]

Originally Posted by ebon00

Yes, we know that it deals with motor units but the bottom line for this thread is still the same: you can't "isolate" any top fibers of the biceps.

you can certainly put a focus on them

[EliteLift]

i find that doing bicep curls with dumbbells on and incline bench so your arms hang behind your body work great, also always twist your forearm so that your pinkie is in towards your shoulder at the top of the movment for maximum mucle contraction. i never go super heavy with these just try and focus on going really slow and useing a full range of motion you will most likely find them much more challenging than regurlar sitting dumbell curls.

[Vas85]

Originally Posted by armorforsleep

you misunderstand the all-or-nothing principle... I am thinking of making a post about this because it seems to be very common thinking that the all-or-nothing principle applies to an entire muscle.

Armorforsleep, i'm onthe opposite end I am against the whole theory of 'all-or-nothing'. Doing just 'flat bench press' wont make the upperchest grow as much as doing incline bench presses complementing flat bench.

http://education.yahoo.com/reference.../figure?id=410

As you can see from that picture there is the Clavicular, and Sternal portions, which is why doing Flat Bench and Incline have its purposes to building a full 'chest'. As we are talking about bodyparts here being all or nothing. Therefore by doing Flat Bench you are isolating the Sternal portion, and by doing Incline bench you are isolating the Clavicular portion.

[Khaine]

The pectoralis has insertion points over a 120 degree area, so contraction of fibers will change depending on shoulder placement... The bicep does not... Furthermore, the shoulder is a ball-and-socket joint, allowing for motion, and subsequent contraction, in different planes... The elbow does not...

[gymgirl]

Originally Posted by Vas85

Oh and instead of the usual 21's, which are 7reps bottom half, 7reps top half, 7 reps full of the barbell/dumbell curl.

Try doing 7 reverse db curls, 7 hammer curls, 7 db curl standing all one after the ohter. I find that really pumps me up and I use it as a finisher, works really well for me.

ooooh. i'll have to try that. i love 21's becuse they get me pumped, but i need to switch it up a bit. i'll try your suggestion next time i work biceps.

[typsu32]

i'll try the 21's for a few weeks. thats 7 at the bottum half of the curl, 7 at the middle, and then 7 at the top right?
and for the reference, im not a newbie to this at all, its just that my peaks havent grown in some time, but the overall mass has.

[rab91787]

^yup.

[maverick]

^nope, vas described it correctly, quoted in gymgirl's post