Biceps and Triceps Workout Supersets to Gain Arms Size

Supersetting is a fantastic way to work out your biceps and triceps simultaneously. It might be tough, but the results are totally worth it.

You’ll feel an amazing pump in your whole arm, and you’ll effectively activate all the muscles.

Arnold often worked his biceps and triceps together in the same workout, switching between exercises for each. He did the same for other opposing body parts, like his chest and back.

Let’s work on our arms with this superset workout.

What Are Superset Workouts?

Superset is performing two different exercises back-to-back with little to no rest in between. You only take your designated rest period after you’ve completed both exercises.

It shortens the rest intervals, increases workout intensity, and burns more calories than traditional workouts. This is the best way to increase your arm strength and endurance.

There are several types of supersets. Learn more about the types of superset workouts and how they can help you gain even more strength.

Antagonist superset (True Superset)

An antagonist superset is when you do one exercise for one muscle group and another for the opposite muscle group.

Alternating supersets alternate back and forth between a bicep and a tricep set without taking any rest breaks in between.

For example, you might combine a set of bicep curls, which work the biceps, with a set of tricep extensions, which work the triceps. This allows one muscle group to rest while the other is working.

Agonist superset

In this variation, both exercises focus on the same muscle group. Giant sets involve performing two or more exercises in succession with no rest periods in between sets.

A classic example is doing a bench press immediately followed by dumbbell flies. Both exercises target the chest muscles.

For antagonist supersets, pick exercises like bicep curls and hammer curls.

Superset 1: Barbell Curl With Lying Triceps Extension

S1 (a): Barbell Curl

It is one of the most fundamental and effective exercises for building biceps size and strength. I’ve used it across all levels of training, from beginners learning form to advanced lifters chasing arm thickness.

You can use different grips on the same and get different muscle stimulation.

A wide grip focuses effort on the inner biceps (short head), whereas a narrow grip targets the outer biceps (long head).

How To Do

1. Grip the barbell with an underhand (supinated) grip, hands roughly shoulder-width apart (or slightly wider if comfortable).
2. Keeping your elbows pinned tight to your sides, exhale and curl the barbell upwards towards your chest.
3. Squeeze your biceps hard at the top of the movement. Don’t let the bar rest on your chest; maintain tension.
4. Inhale and slowly lower the barbell back down the same path. Lower until your arms are fully extended but avoid locking out your elbows.

S1 (b): Lying Triceps Extension

The lying tricep extension is an isolation exercise to build the triceps muscle group in the upper arm.

It is an overhead extension performed while lying on a flat bench and using a flat barbell, EZ bar, dumbbell, and two dumbbells.

A wide grip emphasises the inner tricep (long head), whereas a narrow grip targets the outer tricep (lateral head).

How To Do It

1. Lie on a flat bench with your feet on the floor
2. Hold a barbell at full arm extension over your chest.
3. Keeping your upper arms stationary, slowly lower your lower arms to bring the bar down to your forehead, then push it back up.
4. Do not lock your elbows out, and repeat for desired reps.

Read More: 7 Best Barbell Triceps Exercises For Mass And Strength

Superset 2: Standing Dumbbell Curl With Two-Arm Dumbbell Extension

S2 (a): Standing Dumbbell Curl

The Standing Dumbbell Curl is a fantastic exercise for building those biceps. It’s a tried-and-true move that focuses on your main bicep muscle and the brachialis and brachioradialis. 

This study shows that increasing weight does increase muscle force and internal stress. However, form and control become even more important as weight increases, ensuring that the bicep handles the load correctly.

How To Do It

1. Stand straight, keeping feet shoulder-width apart, and grab a pair of dumbbells by your side.
2. Your palms should be facing upward. Tension should be on the biceps.
3. Slowly curl the dumbbells up as far as possible. Do not swing the body back as you curl up the weight.
4. Then, slowly lower the dumbbells back down to the starting position.

Read More: 15 Best Biceps Exercises With Dumbbells For Mass & Strength

S2 (b): Two-Arm Dumbbell Extension

 The seated dumbbell tricep extension is a fantastic way to isolate all three heads of the triceps muscle, building size and strength for that horseshoe shape.

With your arms extended overhead, the Long Head of the triceps brachii is put into a stretched position because it originates from the shoulder blade and crosses both the shoulder and elbow joints

How To Do

1. Sit on a flat bench, grab a dumbbell with both hands.
2. Lift the dumbbell until your arms are fully extended, with palms facing the roof and elbows pointing forward.
3. Keep the head in a fairly neutral position.
4. Bend at the elbows and, squeeze your triceps, slowly lower the dumbbell behind your head.
5. Slowly return to the starting position.

Read More: 10 Best Triceps Workout With Dumbbells For Mass & Strength

Superset 3: Concentration Curl with Dumbbell Kickback

S3 (a): Concentration Curl

The concentration curl is a fantastic exercise for really isolating your biceps. It’s great for building strength and adding definition to your arms.

According to ACE study, the concentration curl resulted in a higher activation of the biceps than standard curls. It maximizes biceps tension through a full range of motion by bracing the arm and reducing body movement.

How To Do

1. Sit on a bench with your knees bent at a 90-degree angle and your feet flat on the floor. Pick up a dumbbell.
2. Place the back of your right upper arm against the inside of your right thigh.
3. Ensure you extend your arm fully, then lift the weight toward your shoulder while keeping your upper arm still.
4. Squeeze your biceps at the top of the movement, then lower the weight back down with control.
5. Do 8–12 reps, then switch to your left arm and repeat.

S2 (b): Dumbbell Kickback

The dumbbell kickback is a classic triceps isolation movement. Despite its simplicity, it requires precision and strict form to be truly effective.

The movement itself is pure elbow extension. Your triceps contract to straighten your arm behind you. Since the elbow is kept fixed while the forearm extends backward, the long head of the triceps is highly engaged

How To Do

1. Grab a dumbbell in one hand. Hinge forward at your hips, keeping your back straight (think tabletop position). Y
2. You can support your non-working arm and knee on a bench for stability if you like.
3. Let the dumbbell hang down towards the floor.
4. Now, pull your elbow upwards until your upper arm is roughly parallel to the floor and your elbow is bent at about a 90-degree angle.
5. At the top of the movement, when your arm is fully (or nearly fully) extended behind you, squeeze your triceps hard for a count of one second.
6. Slowly lower the dumbbell back to the starting position (elbow at 90 degrees).

Superset 4: Cable Curl with Reverse-Grip Triceps Pushdown

S4 (a): Cable Curl

The experience with a Cable Curl is often described as smooth and consistent. You feel that tension locked onto your biceps from start to finish.

There’s less of a “dead spot” compared to the bottom of a free weight curl. This constant resistance contributes to a rapid build-up of metabolic stress and a significant, lasting pump.

How To Do

1. Stand facing a low pulley cable machine. Attach a straight bar or EZ bar attachment.
2. Grasp the bar with an underhand (supinated) grip, hands about shoulder-width apart. 
3. Step back a foot or two from the machine to create tension on the cable. Stand tall with a slight bend in your knees, shoulders back, and core braced.
4. Curl the bar up toward your shoulders by bending at the elbows.
5. Lower the weight down to the arms extended position.

Read More: Bicep Cable Workout To Build Mass And Strength

S4 (b): Reverse-Grip Triceps Pushdown

Coming off the Cable Curl, your arms are already warm and full of blood flow. Immediately transitioning to the Reverse-Grip Pushdown will intensify that pump and metabolic stress in the triceps rapidly.

You’ll likely feel a very direct, almost isolating burn in the back of your arm.

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, 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, flex your triceps, and slowly return the bar to the starting position.

Superset 5: Incline Dumbbell Bicep Curls with Incline Dumbbell Tricep Extension

S5 (a): Incline Dumbbell Curl

This exercise is primarily focused on the biceps brachii, but the incline angle significantly strains the long head of the biceps.

The Incline position places the biceps in a significantly more stretched state at the bottom compared to standing curls. Training a muscle in a stretched position is a powerful stimulus for hypertrophy (muscle growth).

How To Do It

1. Set an adjustable incline bench to an angle of approximately 45 to 60 degrees. Anywhere in this range works well; steeper is more challenging for the stretch.
2. Lean back against the bench, allowing your arms to hang straight down towards the floor, fully extended but not locked out.
3. Keeping your upper arms stationary and pinned back against or alongside the bench, exhale and curl both dumbbells upwards towards your shoulders.
4. Slowly lower the dumbbells back down along the same path, resisting gravity.

S5 (b): Incline Dumbbell Tricep Extension

Excellent, without missing a beat, let’s maintain that incline position and immediately train the triceps with the second exercise (incline dumbbell tricep extension) in Superset

The benefit of doing extension movements is that you can get a deeper stretch in the muscle to hopefully activate more muscle fibers.

It can be used by both those looking to build bigger triceps and those looking to increase their tricep strength.

How To Do It

1. Grab a dumbbell in each hand and lie against an incline bench.
2. Extend your arms over your shoulders with your palms facing each other,
3. And then slowly lower the dumbbells behind your head by bending your elbows.
4. Hold this position for a count and then with a controlled motion raise your arms back up to the starting position.

Superset 6: One Arm High-Cable Curl with Incline Dumbbell Tricep Extension

S6 (a): One-Arm High-Cable Curl

It is a great exercise for hitting the biceps’ short (inner) head, which builds the muscle’s width and thickness.

The high cable curl has two main versions: one-arm and two-arm.

Both variations are effective, but the one-arm version allows you to use more relative weight for potentially greater gains in biceps size and strength.

How To Do

1. Begin by standing sideways next to a high pulley machine and gripping the handle with one of your hands.
2. Slowly curl the cable towards your head, until you feel tension, and hold for a count.
3. Return to the starting position and repeat for as many reps and sets as desired.
4. Repeat the exercise with your opposite arm.

S6 (b): Cable One Arm Reverse Grip pushdown

The cable one-arm reverse-grip tricep push-down is an isolation exercise that builds muscle and strength in all three tricep heads.

Now, push-downs are excellent regardless of the variation used, but the reverse grip may allow you to emphasize more of the outer tricep head.

How To Do It

1. Stand near the cable apparatus and grasp the single-grip attachment with an underhand grip.
2. Keeping your elbows at your body’s sides, press the weight downward while exhaling throughout the movement.
3. Slowly allow the weight to rise until your forearms parallel the ground, inhaling throughout the negative motion.

Beginner Arm Superset Workout Plan

1. Dumbbell Curls: 3 sets of 8–10 reps, superset with,
   • Two Arm Dumbbell Extension: 3 sets of 8–10 reps.
2. Hammer Curl: 3 sets of 8–10 reps, superset with,
   • Kick Back: 3 sets of 8–10 reps.

Intermediate Arm Superset Workout Plan

1. Barbell Curls: 4 sets of 8–10 reps, with,
   • Lying Triceps Extension: 4 sets of 8–10 reps.
2. Hammer Curl: 3 sets of 8–10 reps, with,
   • Two Arm Dumbbell Extension: 3 sets of 8–10 reps.
3. Concentration Curl: 3 sets of 8–12 reps, with,
   • Dumbbell Kick Back: 3 sets of 8–12 reps.

It is easy to do and requires no more scientific details. If done consistently, the results will speak by themselves.

Thanks for reading, enjoy working.

Stay Fit, Live a Happy and Healthy Life

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.