Elbow Flexors

When we perform a biceps workout, we rarely just work the biceps. The brachioradialis and brachialis are also involved in elbow flexion, and developing all three muscles is important for maximizing arm size and aesthetics. We can typically emphasize one muscle over the other by modifying our forearm position as this can help us target the biceps or brachioradialis depending on what forearm position we choose. In addition, changing shoulder angle isn’t going to emphasize one muscle over the other, per se, but it can help activate specific portions of the biceps. Therefore, a wide range of elbow and shoulder angles is necessary to train the elbow flexor group. The easiest muscle to hit here is the brachialis – the brachialis is the only “pure” elbow flexor muscle, meaning it’s activated in all curl variations, but using a neutral or reverse grip position might make it easier to target over the biceps.
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▪️ Based on: Kohn, S., Smart, R. R., & Jakobi, J. M. (2018). Voluntary activation and twitch potentiation of the elbow flexors across supinated, neutral, and pronated forearm orientations. Physiological Reports, 6(1), e13560.