The Best Bodyweight Bicep Exercises You Can Do Anywhere

Why Do It: Chin-ups require a supinated close grip that not only hits the upper back and lats but also requires the biceps to pull your body weight to the bar. The biceps go through a larger range of motion with the chin-up for improved muscle-building potential. It is a great biceps and back exercise. 

RELATED: What Muscles Do Chin-Ups Work?

How to Do It:

1. Grip the chin-up or pull-up bar with an underhand grip, palms facing you, and your hands shoulder-width apart. 
2. Get into the dead hang position and start the chin-up by pulling your shoulder blades down and back.
3. Pull your upper chest to the bar using your biceps, lats, and upper back.
4. Once you have reached lockout, slowly lower back down to the dead hand position.
5. Reset and repeat.

Form Tips: Controlling your eccentric (descent) is healthier on your elbows and gives you more muscle-building tension. If you cannot perform multiple repetitions of the chin-up, using one of the best resistance bands for assistance will help.

Why Do It: Push-ups are a fantastic exercise to build muscle in your upper body, like your triceps and chest. But with a slight adjustment, it trains the biceps, too. Rotating your wrists and forearms until your fingers point backward when your hands are on the floor increases elbow flexion (and biceps activation) with this push-up variation. 

RELATED: What Muscles Do Push-Ups Work?

How to Do It:

1. Get on your hands and knees and rotate your wrists until your fingers point backward.
2. Extend your legs behind you and squeeze your glutes to set your push-up position.
3. Lean your torso slightly forward and lower into your push-up.
4. When your chest almost touches the floor, your upper arm will be by your torso.
5. Extend your elbows until you’re back in the lockout position, reset, and repeat.  

Form Tips: This push-up requires good wrist flexibility, so if you feel any discomfort, discontinue and work on your wrist flexibility.

Why Do It: If you have trouble doing multiple reps of the chin-up, the horizontal angle of the inverted row makes it easier to pull your body weight while still training your biceps hard and heavy. 

How to Do It:

1. Set a barbell in one of the best squat racks at a height where your body doesn’t hit the floor when your elbows are extended. 
2. Lay underneath the bar and align it with your lower chest.
3. Grip the barbell with your preferred grip, with your hands slightly wider than shoulder-width apart.  
4. Straighten your legs and lift your glutes to get into position.   
5. Pull your lower chest toward the bar by bending your arms and bringing your shoulder blades together.
6. Slowly lower down to the starting position and reset and repeat.  

Form Tips: Gripping the barbell with a supinated (underhanded grip) emphasizes the biceps even more.

Why Do It: Isometric towel biceps curls allow you to control your curl’s intensity. The harder you pull, the more muscle-building tension you will place on your biceps. 

How to Do It:

1. Sit on the ground upright, holding a long towel with an overhand grip on each hand.
2. Hook the towel evenly over your feet and bend your knees slightly. 
3. Get a firm grip on each hand, bend your elbows, and pull until you feel a contraction in your biceps.
4. Perform for 5 to 10 seconds, then rest and repeat.

Form Tips: Ensure a firm grip so the towel doesn’t slip out of your hands.

Why Do It: Plank exercises are great for improving your core stability, but with a slight tweak to your standard plank, you can turn it into an exercise that attacks the biceps. The best of both worlds, right? 

How to Do It:

1. While lying prone on the ground, place your elbows underneath your shoulders.
2. Tuck your toes and push up into an elbow front plank.
3. Squeeze your fists and pull your elbows toward your toes to feel a biceps contraction.
4. Hold for desired time.  

Form Tips: Ensure your elbows are underneath your shoulders and pull your elbows toward your feet while squeezing your fists.

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Why Do It: Side planks are not the first exercise you think of when it comes to biceps training, but with a little intention, they can work the biceps. Because your biceps are flexed and support your body weight, actively flexing them while in the side plank works the biceps and strengthens your core at the same time.

RELATED: Best Ab Exercises

How to Do It:

1. Lie on your side with your elbow under your shoulder and legs stacked on each other.
2. Use your opposite hand to push up into the side plank position.
3. Engage your glutes, press your elbow into the ground, and actively flex your biceps.
4. Hold for the desired time, then repeat on the other side. 

Form Tips: Intention is the key here; focus on flexing those biceps hard.

Why Do It: You’re working your biceps muscles with the TRX biceps curls, but it is a full-body exercise because of all the muscles involved in fighting the instability of the TRX suspension system. 

How to Do It:

1. Set up the TRX on the mid-length setting and grip the handles with an underhand grip.
2. Walk your feet to your desired intensity; closer to the anchor point is harder, and further away is easier. 
3. Extend your arms back to full extension, squeeze your glutes, and get your shoulders down and chest up to ensure your body is in a straight line.
4. Curl the handles toward your temples while keeping your elbows high.
5. Lower to the starting position and reset and repeat. 

Form Tips: Keeping your elbows at shoulder height is key.

Why Do It: Many exercises here involve equipment, but the isometric biceps curl is all you. You’ll feel your biceps churning and burning by squeezing your hands and focusing on the mind-muscle connection between you and your biceps.  

How to Do It:

1. Stand upright and keep your upper arms by your side. Bring your elbows to a 90-degree angle. 
2. Squeeze your hands into a fist and flex your biceps as hard as possible without moving your arms.
3. Once you start to lose tension, rest, reset, and repeat. 

Form Tips: When you lose maximum tension, stop and rest, and then go again.

RELATED: Wrist Mobility Exercises