Tip: The Curl You Can't Handle Search Skip to content Menu Menu follow us Store Articles Community Loyal-T Club Loyal-T Points Rewards Subscribe to Save Search Search The World s Trusted Source & Community for Elite Fitness Training Tip The Curl You Can t Handle But try anyway because it' ll add some extra bang to your guns fast by Christian Thibaudeau October 8, 2020August 26, 2022 Tags Training The Stato-Dynamic Curl This is awesome if you have problems feeling your biceps when doing curls. Why is that important? Because there's a strong correlation between feeling a muscle when training it and the growth you get. In fact, when someone has a lagging muscle group, the first thing I want to work on is his or her capacity to feel that muscle when training it. My favorite method to do that? The stato-dynamic pre-fatigue method. Sounds complicated, but it's just doing one long isometric hold before your regular reps. You'd focus on contracting the target muscle as hard as you can. The position of the hold should be the one where you naturally have the most tension. For a free-weight curl, this is at the mid-range position, or when the forearm is parallel to the floor. I go with three work sets using this method. Use it with any standard curl, reverse curl, or hammer curl variation. Curl the weight up until your forearm is parallel to the floor. Then hold this position for 15-30 seconds (I like to progress by five seconds per week) while focusing on the tensing the biceps as much as you can. After the hold is done, bring the bar back down under control, then immediately start doing your reps. Do 8-12 reps after the hold. You have 15-30 seconds to practice contracting a muscle. Contracting a muscle is a motor skill; the more your practice it, the better you get. And just like pretty much any skill, it's easier to do it statically or very slowly than with a dynamic action. You sensitize the neuromuscular junction which will immediately improve your capacity to recruit the biceps during your reps. You pre-fatigue the biceps during the hold so that even if you're not yet efficient at contracting the biceps, you'll still get a greater training effect than what you'd get by simply doing reps. During the hold you accumulate lactate in the muscle. This leads to the release of local growth factors, which can help trigger growth. You'll immediately feel the muscle more after the hold. If you feel the muscle more during your reps, you'll be able to improve your capacity to use your biceps properly. Get The T Nation Newsletters Don' t Miss Out Expert Insights To Get Stronger, Gain Muscle Faster, And Take Your Lifting To The Next Level related posts Training Tip Stop It With The Obsessive Counting Here's how "over-quantification syndrome" leads to poor results with training and diet. Tips, Training Scott Abel October 27 Training An Explosive Squat Is a Bigger Squat 12-week squat program that's all about through-the-roof explosiveness. Squat, Training Chad Wesley Smith January 4 Training You Should be Doing Face Pulls Face pulls done right fix your posture, build your rear delts, and heal your shoulders better than anything. Here’s how to do them. Bodybuilding, Powerlifting & Strength Bryan Krahn May 2 Training Tip The Chin-Up for Newbies AND Pros It's the perfect variation for beginners and even hardcore lifters looking for an even greater challenge. Check it out. Training Gareth Sapstead October 24