Most of the calisthenics exercises are compound exercises, which means many muscles are working together at the same time to execute a single movement or skill. For example, doing a chin-up will work your lats, biceps, abdominals, anterior deltoids, etc. This article will show you the best 8 calisthenics bicep curl exercises starting with easier variations, followed by intermediate and advanced levels.
The primary muscles worked are the biceps and latissimus dorsi. The secondary muscles worked are pectoralis major, rear deltoids, traps, teres major, abdominals, obliques, forearms, and posterior and anterior deltoid.
The article will start with beginners variations, and progress towards intermediate, and finally toadvanced level exercises. Therefore, all fitness levels can choose the best exercises that suit their needs and practice it in their training regimens.
Ring Curls are great for beginners to hit their biceps using just bodyweight as resistance. They are similar to the bicep curls with weights, but the main is that you’ll be standing at an angle whilst utilizing gymnastics rings. To do ring curls:
As you get stronger, you should position at a steeper angle to increase the load on your upper body.
This exercise is similar to ring curls but the only difference is that it will be performed on a straight bar. You will need a low bar or a side of a dip bar. This will predominantly target your biceps. To perform this, you will:
Same as ring curls, beginners should start with a higher bar so that your body will be at a steeper angle. This will take the load away from your upper body to your feet which makes it easier to perform more reps. Gradually progress to lower the bar to increase difficulty.
Hefesto Pull-Ups can be performed both on the bar and on rings. This is a reverse of bar curls where you will pull from behind rather than from in front of you. To perform this, you will:
Slowly return to starting position and repeat. Aim to perform this between 5-10 reps, for 4 sets.
Chin-Ups are bodyweight pulls that utilize the supinated grip. It will give you the most bicep activation followed by your lats. This grip trains your forearms, and you will use your core through the movement to control your body. To perform this you will:
Similar to chin-ups, commando pull-up recruits more biceps and chest than pull-ups. The key difference is that the commando pull-up requires you to engage your core to keep your body in the right position, as you would have to deviate your body from one side of the bar to the other. To perform this you will:
Head Bangers is a variation of the chin-ups, where you pull your body up to a bar, maintain yourself in the upper position then push yourself away from the bar by attempting to straighten out your arms. This is an unusual exercise that develops your biceps, as well as builds endurance and strength. To do this you will:
There are two levels to this exercise. Beginners to this exercise should start with level 1 and eventually move onto level 2 as it actives your core muscles more.
This exercise will give you the feeling of doing the one arm chin-up. You will pull predominantly from one arm with the assistance of your fingers on the other. The major muscles worked are your biceps, lats, and chest. To perform this, you will:
Reduce down to using three fingers on the pronated grip hand to increase the resistance of the working arm. Your goal is to reduce down to one finger followed by doing a one arm chin-up.
One arm chin-up is one the most difficult bodyweight pulling exercises, which requires a lot of upper body strength and core control to execute this movement. You will need to be able to do 20 chin-ups before attempting this. To perform this you will:
These exercises are crucial if you want to have bigger arms. Your biceps are important, highly visible muscles therefore, your training regiment will have a large impact on the appearance of your arms. Working on your biceps through Bicep Curls will help to increase your biceps size.
The action of flexing your arms is performed many times a day, from picking up your bag or carrying groceries back home. Doing bicep curls will make these daily tasks easier. It will also boost your athletic performance, which will assist you when it comes to compound exercises such as deadlifts, or hitting the ball harder in racket sports such as tennis and squash
Bicep curls are mainly elbow flexors, which especially isolate your bicep muscles. However, they have a secondary function in shoulder flexion as it also isometrically recruits your anterior deltoid, lats, rhomboids, lower traps, and abdominals to impede the shoulder from rolling forward while performing curls. Thus, It utilizes these major muscles as stabilizers.
My name is Pat Chadwick, I am a calisthenics coach with over 4 years of experience in helping people from all backgrounds to achieve their calisthenics goals. My goal is to become the number one calisthenics coach in the world as it is my passion to help people change their lives through inspiring bodyweight movements. I believe everyone deserves the right to feel good about their health, body, and be delighted inside and out.
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