Arm Workout At Gym (With Workout Routines)

Ever wonder why 95% of people at the gym have chicken arms?

It’s not because they’re lazy. And it’s definitely not from lack of trying.

The truth? Most people are following outdated arm workout advice that flat-out doesn’t work. There are countless sets of bicep curls, tricep pushdowns, and concentration curls that you saw some dude doing on Instagram.

After reviewing over ten scientific studies on arm development and talking to elite bodybuilding coaches, I found something shocking.

The secret to massive arms isn’t about doing more exercises. It’s about doing the RIGHT exercises in the RIGHT way.

Today, I’m going to show you my battle-tested arm workout system, which has helped thousands of my students pack serious size onto their biceps and triceps. There is no fluff, no bro-science, just evidence-based techniques that actually work.

15 Best Arm Exercises To Do at the Gym To Build Bigger Bicep and Tricep

I’ve compiled a list of the 15 most effective arm exercises that actually work. No bro-science. No Instagram gimmicks. Just pure, result-driven movements.

I’ll first break down the 7 most powerful bicep exercises that’ll reveal tricep exercises that’ll add serious mass to your arms.

Each exercise is backed by science and proven in the trenches. Ready to finally build those arms you’ve been dreaming about?

1. Barbell Curl

Barbell curls are a popular gym arm exercise for building muscle.

First off, you can move SERIOUS weight with barbell curls. We’re talking 20-30% more than dumbbells. Why does this matter? Because progressive overload is the name of the game for muscle growth.

In addition to training the biceps, it also engages the forearms and provides a total arm workout.

• A wide grip focuses effort on the inner biceps (short head),
• Whereas, a narrow grip arks the outer biceps (long head).

How To Do

1. Stand tall with your feet about shoulder-width apart. Grab a barbell with both hands, palms facing up (that’s called a supinated grip).
2. Let the bar hang down in front of your thighs, keeping your elbows close to your sides.
3. Before you start curling, tighten your core.
4. Now, slowly curl the barbell up towards your shoulders. Keep your upper arms still; you want to ensure your biceps do all the work.
5. When the barbell reaches shoulder level, pause for a second and really squeeze those biceps.
6. Slowly lower the barbell back to the starting position, fully extending your arms. Take your time—don’t let it drop quickly.

Read More: Barbell Bicep Exercises and Workout For Mass & Strength

2. Incline Dumbbell Curl

Most people are familiar with exercises that work the bicep, such as barbell curls or dumbbell curls. But if you want to add variety and target your biceps from a different angle in the gym, you must add incline dumbbell curls.

They will do a great job of targeting your long-head bicep. This position will have your elbows down at your side’s behind you, which means your long head will be working from a stretched position.

It is an excellent full-range exercise for building massive peaked biceps and adding variety to your gym arm training.

How To Do

1. Adjust the bench to a 30-45 degree angle. This angle helps isolate the biceps and allows for a greater range of motion.
2. Grab a pair of dumbbells with an underhand grip (palms facing upward).
3. Sit back on the incline bench with your back firmly against it. Let your arms hang straight down at your sides.
4. Slowly curl the dumbbells up towards your shoulders. Squeeze your biceps at the top of the movement
5. Gradually lower the dumbbells back to the starting position.

3. Preacher Curl

The preacher curl isolates the biceps muscles by eliminating momentum and limiting the involvement of other muscles. This allows for a more targeted and intense bicep workout.

With a preacher curl, you get a lot of benefits that don’t come with regular bicep curls. Do preacher curl with a wider grip to impart more load on short-head biceps.

There are many ways to do preacher curls, each of which has its own benefits.

• Dumbbell Preacher Curls
• Reverse Grip Preacher Curls
• Preacher Curl Machine

How To Do

1. Sit on the preacher’s bench with your feet flat on the ground. Grasp the barbell with an underhand grip (palms facing up)
2. Curl the bar toward the shoulder and get the most contraction at the top.
3. Pause for a few seconds at the top, then slowly lower the bar.
4. Keep the motion slow and controlled throughout the set.

4. Hammer Curl

Unlike traditional bicep curls, where the palms are positioned upward, hammer curls require a neutral grip with the palms opposite each other.

A Hammer Curl is an arm exercise that works the biceps, brachialis, and brachioradialis muscles. It is named after the grip used during the exercise, which resembles holding a hammer.

Here are some good ways to do hammer curl to make your arms bigger and stronger.

• Cross Body Hammer Curls
• Seated Hammer Curls
• Incline Hammer Curls
• Hammer Cable Curls
• Hammer Preacher Curls

How To Do

1. Stand upright with a dumbbell in each hand with a neutral grip (hammer grip). Keep the natural arch of the back and your torso stationary.
2. Exhale and slowly curl the dumbbells upward by contracting your biceps.
3. Continue to curl until the dumbbells are close to your shoulders.
4. Hold the contracted position for a moment and squeeze your biceps.
5. Inhale and slowly lower the dumbbells back down to the starting position.

5. Chin Up

One of the best bodyweight exercises for your biceps is the chin up. 

The Chin-Up is a compound exercise that primarily targets the muscles in your upper back, including the latissimus dorsi (lats), rhomboids, rear deltoids, and biceps.

In this exercise, the palms are faced towards the body. As the lifter utilizes their own bodyweight, the biceps are typically subjected to loads heavier than what can be lifted with a barbell.

How To Do

1. Grip the pull-up bar with your palms facing towards you and use a narrow grip.
2. Pull your body up towards the bar by bending your elbows.
3. Continue pulling until your chin is above the bar.
4. Slowly lower your body back to the initial position with utmost control.
5. For an easier variation of the chin, you can start with assistance bands or an assisted chin-up machine.

6. Zottman Curl

Want to know the most underrated bicep exercise that 99% of gym-goers ignore?

Enter the Zottman curl – the mutant offspring of a regular curl and a reverse curl that’ll make your arms EXPLODE.

TWO EXERCISES, ONE MOVE: You’re hitting your biceps on the way up AND destroying your forearms on the way down.

Most people execute this exercise by:

• Rushing the negative portion
• Using too much weight
• Missing the rotation technique

INSIDER TIP: Start with 50% of your regular curl weight. Trust me, your ego can handle it, and your gains will thank you later.

How To Do

1. Hold a pair of dumbbells to your sides. Choose a lighter weight and focus on perfecting your form.
2. Keep your palms facing up as you curl the weights up to your shoulders.
3. Slowly rotate your grip, so your palms are facing downwards.
4. Slowly lower the dumbbells back to the starting position using an overhand grip.
5. When the dumbbells are close to your thighs, again turn your hands while returning to the starting position.

7. Reverse Curl

If you’re not doing reverse curls, you’re leaving SERIOUS arm gains on the table.

Why? Because while everyone’s obsessing over their biceps, they’re completely ignoring the hidden key to impressive arms – the brachioradialis and forearms.

A reverse grip automatically engages 23% more muscle fibers in your forearms. I’m not making this up – it’s pure science.

The barbell reverse curl is a non-negotiable component of a barbell arm workout that primarily targets the brachioradialis and brachialis muscles.

You can try several different ways to do reverse curls to keep your workouts effective.

• Reverse Dumbbell Curl
• EZ Bar Reverse Curl
• Cable Reverse Curl

How To Do

1. Grab the bar with a shoulder-width grip with your hands on top of the bar (pronated grip).
2. Curl the bar up to shoulder level by bending your elbows. This MEANS motion should occur at the elbow.
3. Your body should remain fixed. Only your biceps should be used to move the weight.
4. Lower the bar back down to the arms’ extended position.
5. If you swing your body during reverse curls, you’re doing it wrong, period. Drop the weight and focus on feeling every rep.

Know More: 25 Best Forearm Exercises For Muscle Mass And Strength

8. Parallel Bar Triceps Dip

If you’re serious about building horseshoe triceps, parallel bar dips aren’t just an option – they’re MANDATORY.

Dips let you load your triceps with your entire body weight PLUS additional weight.

Dips hit ALL THREE heads of your triceps simultaneously. That means more muscle fibers recruited = more growth potential.

It is one of the most effective compound movements for the upper body, pushing muscles, especially the chest and triceps.

How To Do

1. Stand between the parallel bars and grip each bar firmly, ensuring your palms face downward.
2. Your arms should be fully extended and your feet slightly off the ground. Keep your torso upright and avoid leaning forward excessively.
3. Bend your elbows and lower your body until your upper arms parallel the ground.
4. When you reach the end of the movement, pause briefly
5. Then push through your palms to extend your arms and return to the starting position. Do not lock out your elbows at the top of the movement.
6. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Read More: 15 Bodyweight Triceps Exercises: Beginner to Advanced

9. Lying Triceps Extension

To strengthen and sculpt your triceps, you should incorporate lying triceps extensions, also known as skull crushers, into your arm gym workout routine.

The exercise can be performed while lying on a flat bench, utilizing either a flat barbell, EZ bar, dumbbell, or two dumbbells.

• A wide grip emphasizes the inner tricep (long head),
• Whereas a narrow grip targets the outer tricep (lateral head).

How To Do

1. Lie on a flat bench with your feet on the floor.
2. Hold a barbell at full arm extension over your chest.
3. Keep your upper arms stationary, then slowly lower your lower arms to bring the bar down to your forehead.
4. Then push it back up to the starting position. Repeat.
5. This exercise should be done slowly and carefully under good control.

10. Tricep Pushdown

If you’re looking for straightforward arm exercises to add to your gym routine, triceps pushdowns are a great staple exercise to get you started.

Unlike barbell or dumbbell exercises, the cable provides a uniform resistance throughout the movement, where the resistance varies during the lift.

• Using the straight bar, a pronated grip (palms down) emphasizes the outer lateral head of the triceps,
• A supinated grip (palms up) focuses effort on the inner long head.
• An angled V-shaped bar switches the hands into a neutral grip (thumbs up), equally targeting all three triceps heads.

How To Do

1. Stand facing a high-pulley cable with a short straight bar attached to it.
2. Slightly bend your knees and feet, which should be about shoulder-width apart.
3. Hold the Short bar at chest level with your elbows at your sides.
4. Keep your elbows still and straighten your arms until they are fully extended.
5. You can pause at full arm extension and then slowly return the bar to its original position.

11. Overhead Triceps Extension

The overhead tricep extension is a weight-training exercise that targets the tricep muscle, located at the back of the upper arm. It is especially good at targeting the long head of the triceps.

Here are some ways to do overhead tricep extensions at the gym to build bigger arms.

• Single-arm overhead tricep extension
• Dumbbell overhead tricep extension
• Cable overhead tricep extension
• Overhead tricep extension with a band

How To Do

1. Attach a rope to the bottom pulley of the cable machine and face away from the pulley. Use a weight that is challenging but not too heavy.
2. Hold the rope with both hands, palms facing each other (neutral grip). Extend your arms until your hands are directly above your head.
3. Inhale as you perform this movement, and pause when your triceps are fully stretched.
4. Slowly return to the starting position and do as many sets and reps as you want.

12. Dumbbell Kickback

Studies show kickbacks create the highest peak contraction of ANY tricep exercise.

Unlike pushdowns or dips, kickbacks completely isolate your triceps. No help from your chest. No shoulder assistance. Just pure tricep pain (the good kind).

How To Do

1. Place your right knee and palm on a flat bench so that your torso is parallel with the floor.
2. Hold a dumbbell in your left hand. Put your left foot on the floor and press your arm against your side. Keep your arms parallel to the floor.
3. You should extend your elbow until it is straight back and fully extended.
4. Flex the triceps hard for a second, then return to the starting position.
5. Complete all reps on the left arm and then repeat them on the right.

13. Close-Grip Bench Press

Most people think the regular bench press is all about the chest. But switch to a close grip, and you’ve just unlocked a tricep-building MONSTER.

You can load this exercise with SERIOUS weight. We’re talking 2-3 times more than any tricep isolation exercise. And more weight = more growth potential.

Now, here’s where 90% of people mess up:

They go TOO close with their grip. Plot twist: You don’t need your hands touching. Shoulder width is your sweet spot.

How To Do

1. Lie on a bench-press bench with your feet flat on the floor.
2. Hold the barbell with your hands closer than shoulder-width apart.
3. Unrack the bar and slowly lower it to your lower chest.
4. At the end of the movement, your elbows should be slightly lower than your shoulders.
5. Then, press the bar back up to the starting position.

14. Machine Tricep Dip

The machine tricep dip is a variation of the traditional tricep dip that uses a machine instead of body weight to provide resistance. 

It provides a more controlled and isolated environment than a parallel bar dip and minimizes chest, shoulder, and back use.

It is an excellent exercise for beginners who want to bigger and stronger arms.

How To Do

1. Sit down on a dip machine and place your feet on the footrests.
2. Ensure that when you sit, your hands are level with your shoulders or slightly below.
3. Keep your elbows close to your body and grasp the handles with a neutral grip.
4. Some machines might offer different grip variations; choose the most comfortable one.
5. Push the handles down by extending your arms. Ensure the motion is controlled and steady.
6. Focus on squeezing your triceps hard to get a good contraction.
7. Slowly bend your elbows until they are close to parallel to the floor.
8. Complete another repetition by extending your arms down again.

15. Single Arm Triceps Pushdown

It is a variation of the straight bar tricep pushdown, in which an underhand grip focuses effort on the inner long head of the triceps.

Taking an underhand grip can minimize the involvement of the forearms and help to place less stress on the elbows. You must add these exercises to your gym arm workout.

How To Do

1. Stand facing a high-pulley cable with a short straight bar attached to it.
2. Grasp the short bar with a supinated grip (Palm up) and hold the bar at chest level with your elbows tight against your sides.
3. Keep your elbows stationary, and straighten your arms until they are fully extended.
4. Pause at full arm extension and slowly return the bar to the starting position.

ARM Workout Routine For Beginner

Arm Workout Routine Using GYM Machine

Arm Workout Routine For Advance

Conclusion

Gym Arm exercises are a great way to sculpt your biceps and triceps using gym equipment or weights.

These arm exercises are highly recommended for anyone interested in building bicep and tricep muscles and gaining strength.

Exercises such as tricep dips, barbell curls, push-downs, and hammer curls can help improve arm and upper body strength, increase muscle endurance, and achieve a more toned body.

If done consistently, the results will speak for themselves.

Thanks for reading, enjoy your workout.

References

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• Lopez P, Radaelli R, Taaffe DR, Newton RU, Galvão DA, Trajano GS, Teodoro JL, Kraemer WJ, Häkkinen K, Pinto RS. Resistance Training Load Effects on Muscle Hypertrophy and Strength Gain: Systematic Review and Network Meta-analysis. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2021 Jun 1;53(6):1206-1216.
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Manish Kumar

Manish is a NASM-certified fitness and nutrition coach with over 10 years of experience in weight lifting and fat loss fitness coaching. He specializes in gym-based training and has a lot of knowledge about exercise, lifting technique, biomechanics, and more.

Through “Fit Life Regime,” he generously shares the insights he’s gained over a decade in the field. His goal is to equip others with the knowledge to start their own fitness journey.