Incline Barbell Curl

Execution

1. Keep your back and shoulders pinned to the pad for the whole set, without lifting yourself up to cheat the weight.
2. Exhale and curl the bar up toward your shoulders, keeping your elbows pinned in place.
3. Squeeze the biceps hard at the top without letting the wrists bend.
4. Inhale and lower the bar slowly until the arms are fully straight, feeling the stretch in the biceps.
5. Do not let the shoulders round forward as the bar reaches the bottom.

Quick cues

• Shoulders and back pinned to the pad.
• Elbows stay fixed in place.
• Lower to a full stretch every rep.
• Wrists stay straight, no bending.

Common faults

• Fault: Lifting the shoulders off the pad to heave the bar up

  Fix: Drop the weight and press the shoulders into the pad before each curl.

• Fault: The elbows drifting forward as the bar rises

  Fix: Imagine the elbows nailed to one fixed point at your sides.

• Fault: Cutting the descent short instead of reaching a full stretch

  Fix: Lower until the arms are completely straight before curling again.

• Fault: The wrists bending backward under the bar's weight

  Fix: Grip the bar firmly and keep the wrists in line with the forearms throughout.