How to Get Bigger Arms: Bicep and Tricep Workouts

Do you work out day in and day out but your arms refuse to grow? Unfortunately, doing dozens or hundreds of curls won’t help too much. The bicep is only a small part of your arm. 

Ask any guy what he wants to improve about his physique and he’ll most likely mention his arms. Although this is the most popular muscle group to train, few guys actually do it right. It’s not uncommon to see folks who spend most of their gym time doing curls. 

Building bigger arms isn’t that easy, though. It takes a combination of training, clean eating, and proper rest to get there. Furthermore, it’s crucial to keep your workouts varied and challenge your muscles into growth. 

The triceps, for example, make up about two-thirds of your arm. Therefore, you need to work this muscle even more than you train your biceps. You also need to hit your shoulders from all angles to make your arms appear larger. 

Below we’ll discuss how to get bigger arms that look amazing, whether you’re wearing a suit or a tank top. Beware, though — there is no one-size-fits-all approach. The results depend largely on your genetics, somatotype, diet, and workout routine. 

Let’s cut to the chase and explore the best ways to make your arms bigger and stronger! 

Anatomy of the Upper Arms 

First things first, make sure you know a thing or two about the anatomy of your upper arm. After all, these are the muscles you’re trying to grow. 

Your upper arm consists of several muscles, including the biceps, brachialis, and triceps.

Both the long and short head of the biceps, as well as the brachialis and coracobrachialis (a smaller muscle), are located in the anterior compartment. The triceps, on the other hand, is found in the posterior compartment. 

In addition to these muscles, several bones and joints allow your upper arm to move and generate force:

• Humerus — a long bone located between the scapula and the elbow joint
• Collarbone (clavicle) — which connects your arm to the torso
• Shoulder blade (scapula) — like the collarbone, it attaches your arm to the torso

The main joints in this area include the sternoclavicular, glenohumeral, and acromioclavicular joints. 

Upper arm muscles are responsible for flexion, abduction, adduction, and extension. The biceps brachii, for example, allows you to flex your arm and move it away from the torso, among other functions. The brachialis makes it possible to flex your forearm. 

The triceps, which accounts for two-thirds of your upper arm, stabilizes the shoulder joint and enables forearm extension and flexion. 

If you’re wondering how to get bigger arms, you need to hit these muscles from all angles. It’s not enough to work only on your biceps or triceps. Furthermore, there are some workout strategies you may use to stimulate hypertrophy and get better results in less time. 

Your biceps, for instance, works together with the anterior forearm muscles and front deltoid. The best way to fully activate it is to perform exercises that include supination and flexion. 

Arm Training Mistakes That Are Killing Your Gains

Let’s say you’re training your arms every other day, but you barely see any results.

Although workout frequency matters, it’s not the only factor involved in hypertrophy. In fact, less is more when it comes to arm training. 

Common mistakes, such as doing the same workouts over and over again, thinking biceps are more important than triceps, and overtraining, can hamper your gains. 

Take biceps curls, for instance. We’re not saying that this exercise is useless. On the contrary — it has its role in any training plan. 

However, this doesn’t mean that you should do endless sets of curls to grow bigger arms. It’s a waste of time. 

First of all, your muscles to adapt to this exercise and stop making progress. Second, you risk overtraining, which can lead to fatigue, loss of motivation, diminished performance, and injuries. On top of that, you may end up neglecting other muscle groups and develop muscle imbalances. 

If you want bigger arms, you must constantly change your workouts to keep your body guessing. This principle is known as progressive overload.

Challenging Your Muscles 

Besides trying new exercises, you can challenge your muscles into growth by:

• Increasing the weight
• Completing more reps
• Doing more sets
• Training more often
• Decreasing the rest time between sets

For example, if you’re already training your arms three times a week, it doesn’t make sense to increase workout volume. 

What you can do is to complete fewer reps with heavier weights or more reps with lighter weights. Another strategy is to take shorter breaks between sets to help your body become more metabolically efficient. 

Increase the load as soon as you can do 12 reps or so with perfect form. As you progress, try more advanced lifting techniques, such as supersets, pyramid sets, giant sets, drop sets, and partial reps. But we’ll discuss that later, so stay tuned. 

In the meantime, check out these common arm training mistakes that are killing your gains:

1. Using the Same Training Volume for Biceps and Triceps 

A common training mistake is using the same number of sets for the biceps and triceps. The latter requires a little bit more work because it has three heads and accounts for a larger part of the upper arm. The bicep is smaller and has only two heads. 

Add up to four additional sets to your triceps workout. Complete about six to eight sets for the biceps. 

2. Neglecting the Triceps 

As mentioned earlier, the triceps usually get less attention than the biceps. If you’re trying to build massive arms, work your triceps once or twice a week.

Use a variety of exercises to hit this muscle from various angles. 

Here are some examples:

• Close-grip bench press
• Triceps dips
• Skullcrushers
• Overhead triceps extension
• Decline EZ bar triceps extension
• One-arm dumbbell triceps extension
• Cable overhead extension with rope
• Triceps pushdowns with a rope attachment

If you’re short on time, try the following triceps exercises at home:

• Close-grip pushups
• Diamond pushups
• Bench dips
• Classic press-ups
• Dumbbell floor press

The close-grip bench press, for example, is one of the few compound movements for the triceps. 

According to an older study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, performing this exercise on a decline or flat bench activates the long head of the triceps to a greater extent than using an incline bench. 

Another great movement is the bench dip — which you can easily do at home. An EMG study conducted by the University of Wisconsin compared several triceps exercises. 

As it turns out, triceps dips, kickbacks, and diamond pushups are the most effective at targeting this muscle. 

For best results, go heavy on your first two sets of each exercise and reduce the load while increasing the number of reps during the next sets. Ideally, try to squeeze in a few forced reps on the heaviest sets; use a spotter if necessary. 

3. Not Focusing on the Contraction 

Many folks rush through the reps, trying to get everything done as quickly as possible. That’s a big mistake, especially when training the biceps. 

Lift the weight with a slow, controlled motion. Flex your biceps and keep it contracted for a second or two before lowering the barbell or dumbbells. If you’re moving too fast, you may end up using your front delts and back muscles more than your biceps. 

4. Ignoring Compound Movements

Isolation exercises are the go-to choice for those trying to get bigger arms. Trips extensions, hammer curls, cable curls, and skullcrushers are just a few to mention. 

These movements allow you to target specific muscles and while resting others. When done right, they can help you prevent and fix muscular imbalances and recover from injuries. Plus, they make it easier to isolate small groups that are often neglected during compound work. 

In a 2015 study conducted on 29 untrained men, isolation exercises have been shown to be just as effective as compound movements. However, the study participants had no prior resistance training experience. 

Someone who is just starting out will find it easier to build mass and strength compared to an experienced lifter, regardless of exercise selection. 

Other studies, though, show that compound movements are more efficient for improving muscle strength and VO2 max (maximal oxygen consumption). 

Multijoint (compound) exercises recruit a larger number of muscle fibers and create greater mechanical tension than isolation movements. They also target your biceps, triceps, and other small muscles indirectly, building size and strength. 

The bench press, for example, works your chest muscles, but it also engages the triceps, biceps, and anterior deltoids. The barbell military press targets your shoulders. However, your chest, traps, and triceps get a good workout too. 

Furthermore, these movements allow you to lift heavier weights than you do with isolation exercises. As a result, they increase muscle strength and trigger the release of anabolic hormones, leading to hypertrophy. 

Without a doubt, isolation exercises can give you insane pumps and improve muscle definition. But they are not the best choice for building mass. Therefore, your arm workouts should include both isolation and compound movements. 

5. Using Poor Lifting Form 

Pro bodybuilders emphasize the importance of using correct lifting form for good reason. Common mistakes, such as flaring your elbows on triceps exercises and swinging your arms when training the biceps, can stall your gains. 

Leave your ego at the door and don’t sacrifice form for volume. Learn how to perform each exercise correctly and increase the load gradually. 

Check out our training videos or work with a personal trainer to learn proper form. Look in the mirror when working out to assess your lifting technique. 

How to Get Bigger Arms in Less Time 

Now that you know what NOT to do when training your arms, it’s time to learn the best strategies for building bigger guns. 

First of all, keep your workouts organized. Determine how much time you can dedicate to arm training, what exercises you’ll do, and how many reps and sets you’ll perform for each muscle group. 

Also, decide whether you want to work biceps and triceps on the same day or combine them with larger muscle groups. Back and biceps or shoulders and triceps, for instance, are popular combos. 

However, if your goal is to get bigger arms, it’s better to dedicate a full workout to the biceps and triceps. This way, you’ll have the energy and strength needed to exhaust these muscles and give your best. 

Start with two arm workouts per week, alternating between heavy and light training days. 

For example, you can go heavy on Mondays and use a combination of rest-pause sets, supersets, and drop sets with lighter weights on Fridays. 

How to Split Arm Workouts

Here’s a weekly workout split to try out:

• Monday: Heavy arm training
• Tuesday: Legs
• Wednesday: Rest
• Thursday: Chest and abs
• Friday: Light arm training
• Saturday: Shoulders and abs
• Sunday: Rest 

Another option is to work two muscle groups — like your back and biceps — the same day. In this case, your arm workouts should come first. 

As a rule of thumb, lift the weight quickly, pause at the top of the movement, and execute the eccentric (lowering) phase with slow, controlled motion.

Stretch your biceps and triceps after every workout to loosen up and elongate the fascia, a layer of fibrous tissue surrounding your muscles. 

And, of course, a surefire way to quicken your gains is to use quality protein supplements. We recommend our very own Vintage Brawn™ as the perfect post-workout addition to any routine that aims to build muscle fast.

It is a protein powder blend of three sources: eggs, milk, and beef. Complete with amino acids, it tastes great and can even be used as a meal replacement.

Try More Advanced Lifting Techniques

Whether you want to get faster results or break through plateaus, there are a couple of things you can to reach your training goals. 

We have already mentioned supersets, drop sets, giant sets, and other advanced lifting techniques. These strategies can take your workout to a whole new level and speed up your progress. 

Using Supersets in your workout

Supersets consist of two or more exercises performed one after another with little or no rest between them. Depending on your goals, you can do these exercises for agonist or antagonist muscle groups. 

When used right, this training method can supercharge muscle growth and help you get better results in less time. 

For example, you can do three sets of preacher curls followed by three sets of seated triceps presses. This way, you’ll target both the biceps and triceps in a more effective manner. 

These supersets are just as effective:

• Tricep push-ups (3 sets) and cable hammer curls (3 sets)
• Tricep dips (5 sets) and chin-ups (5 sets)
• Incline EZ-bar skullcrushers (3 sets) and incline dumbbell biceps curls (3 sets)

According to a 2017 study featured in the European Journal of Applied Physiology, both supersets and tri-sets can make your workouts more efficient and reduce training time. Tri-sets consist of three exercises performed consecutively with no rest between them. 

As the researchers point out, these lifting methods are taxing on the body and central nervous system. Therefore, you may need to get more rest to ward off fatigue and recover from training. 

Beware that supersets induce greater neuromuscular fatigue than other advanced lifting techniques. 

In addition to supersets, you can experiment with forced reps, negative reps, partial reps, cluster sets, giant sets, drop sets, and more. 

Using Drop Sets in your Workout

Drop sets involve performing at least three consecutive sets with no rest between them. With this approach, it’s necessary to lower the weight from one set to the next. 

Let’s say you typically do 12 reps of barbell biceps curls with 80 pounds. After you can no longer perform any reps, reduce the load by about 10 percent and do a few more reps.

Decrease the weight once again and continue to perform the exercise until you reach muscle failure. 

Note, though — these strategies should not be used for each exercise in your workout routine. If do so, you may end up overtraining or get an injury. 

Supercharge Your Workouts for Bigger, Stronger Arms 

Now you know how to get bigger arms, so go ahead and tweak your workouts! If you have trouble building mass, start bulking to fuel your muscles into growth. 

Remember that what you eat is just as important as your training plan. De-junk your diet, fill up on protein and take the best supplements for your goals. Try our muscle-building protein blend to maximize your workouts and recover faster!

What does your arm workout look like? Are there any exercises you’d recommend? Share your favorite training tips below or ask any questions you may have!