The EZ bar curl is a significant strength training exercise to help grow and strengthen the biceps, triceps, and shoulders. Follow along with this tutorial and tips that I use to teach my clients to learn the perfect technique for an EZ bar curl
How To Do An EZ Bar Curl
- Place the EZ bar at your feet with the desired amount of weight loaded on it.
- Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, grab the bar with a supinated grip (palms facing you), and stand straight up, keeping your back straight and head looking forward. Your arms should be hanging with the bar at your waist. This is your starting position.
- Slowly curl the bar up only using your bicep muscles, do not sway your upper body to bring the weight up.
- Pause at the top for one to two seconds, then slowly drop the weight down in a controlled manner until you’re back at the starting position.
- Repeat until your remaining reps are done.
Tips To Safely And Effectively Perform An EZ Bar Curl
When you perform an EZ bar curl, you want your biceps to do as much as the work as possible.
Follow these tips to perfect your technique for the fastest results.
Keep your elbows tight to your side.
When you do a rep with a curl bar, you want your elbows and upper arms to be making contact with the side of your body in the concentric and eccentric part of the curl.
If your elbows flare out, move up, or protrude forward, you will start to move the tension away from your biceps and begin to use your upper back and shoulders.
This will hinder your results and cause injury.
Maintain correct posture
It would be best if you stood up completely straight, with your chest out, shoulders back, and head looking forward.
If you keep your body completely straight and don’t slouch, it makes it impossible for your biceps not to do the work, and it will also limit unnecessary stress on your shoulders and neck.
Lock your wrists
A big reason why people gravitate towards an EZ curl bar is due to having a wrist injury or wanting to prevent themselves from receiving one.
You want your wrists and forearms to be straight, don’t angle your wrists up or down during the move.
Your wrist is made up of 7 different bones.
- Hamate
- Lunate
- Triquetrum
- trapezoid
- trapezium
- capitate
- Scaphoid
The scaphoid and the luna bone runs horizontally along the ulna and the radius bone of your forearm.
Most wrist injuries from lifting are within this area since this is where the majority of your wrist articulates.
If you keep angling your wrist over time, you will weaken the ligaments around these bones and cause inflammation, arthritis, or a tear.
Keep in g your wrists straight will help avoid this from happening.
Squeeze your biceps
You want to eliminate any movement from your body while doing your EZ bar curl.
When you’re about to raise your bar squeeze your biceps so that you initiate the move with the muscle group that you’re targeting.
When you are at the top, please don’t bring the bar all the way to your chest; this will take the stress from your biceps and move it to your shoulders.
Instead, you want to stop about three to four inches away from your chest so that your biceps are at peak tension. Hold it for a second, and then start to bring your bar back down.
Don’t Forget About The Eccentric Part Of The EZ Bar Curl.
The eccentric portion of an exercise is just as significant as the concentric part.
Concentric- The concentric portion of any exercise is when the muscle is shortening while it’s contracting. During a biceps curl, this would be when you’re bringing the weight up.
Eccentric- The eccentric portion of a move is when the muscle is lengthening while contracting. This would be when you’re lowering the curl bar during an EZ bar curl
for some reason, the concentric duration of any exercise has received all of the credit for building muscle when, in reality, the eccentric part holds equal importance or even more recognition.
Make sure that when you’re bringing the bar down, you do it in a slow controlled manner to work your biceps even more.
A good rule of thumb is to take twice as long going down as you do to bring the curl bar up.
Look straight ahead
I see many shoulder and neck injuries being a trainer and the vast majority of them are due to improper form and poor posture.
When you’re doing a curl, make sure your shoulders are back, and your head is looking straight ahead.
This will make sure that the delicate muscles in your neck aren’t stressed.
Keep your shoulders back
You want to make sure you’re getting the full range of motion out of your curl to help fatigue your biceps as much as possible.
If your shoulders are slumped, this will bring your chest and your back forward, and it will make the bar able to travel a shorter distance then if you were standing straight up.
The Best EZ Bar Curl For Bicep Curls
- Versatile Target the Biceps, Triceps, Back and Chest Muscles With This Super Curl Bar; Used for Triceps Extensions, Curls, Skull Crushers, and More
- ️SPECS: 1210mm in length; Bar weighs 16.75 pounds; 51,000 PSI tensile strength steel; Shaft length of 33.25”; Knurling of 6” on each side; Loadable sleeve length of 7.5”; Shaft diameter of 25.4mm; 30 day manufacturer’s warranty ; For home use
- Construction Made of solid steel with a chromed finish; medium depth diamond knurling for non slip grip; Accommodates Olympic plates (2 inch center hole)
- ️FEATURES Super angled shaft is designed to reduce discomfort when lifting weights; Revolving sleeves also help to reduce pressure on wrists and forearms and prevent bar from warping; Ring collars are included
- ️TRUST Trust experience; CAP has been a pioneer in the fitness industry for over 30 years and has locations worldwide; Chance are, if you have ever worked out before, you have used a CAP product
Prices pulled from the Amazon Product Advertising API on:
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
- 【Rugged & Durable Structure】Our bar is made of high-quality Q235 steel with cold forging and quenching technology, and the surface is chrome-plated. The rugged construction allows it to withstand a weight of 400 lbs. And it will not rust and deform within 1 year after normal use.
- 【Knurling & Curve Design】Made to facilitate for easy workout sessions, this workout bar features a cambered design. Knurled handles for improving grip and help avoid any un-due tension in the wrists and forearms. Besides, they can increase the safety of your exercises and ensure a comfortable, consistent feel.
- 【Sufficient Length & Weight】This bar is 47’’ long, weighs 19lbs, 28mm grip and has a maximum load capacity of 400lbs. Sufficient length allows you to do more movements, and a certain weight can help you build muscle. This bar is really the great option for you to do the strength training.
- 【Copper Sleeve & Bearing】The use of 2PCS copper sleeves and 2PCS bearings increases the lubrication of the sleeve and reduces stress on your wrists and elbows to ensure your safety. They can resolve inertia and make the snatch more smooth.
Prices pulled from the Amazon Product Advertising API on:
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
Benefits Of Using An EZ Curl Bar
Like anything in life, there are pros and cons to everything. Here are some ways the EZ bar will make your fitness routine easier and more effective.
Ergonomic grip
Lewis G. Dymeck invented the angled grips on the curl bar.
He injured his wrist while using a straight bar and had to develop a piece of equipment that allowed his wrist to stay in its more natural position.
Not only does it keep your wrists from getting injured, but it also makes it easier to keep your elbows tight and your biceps in to make your upper arms generate the lift to target your triceps and biceps effectively.
Helps isolate smaller muscles
The EZ bar curl is so effective because of the tool you’re using; as long as you stand up straight while performing your reps, the bar puts your wrists, forearms, and biceps in the perfect alignment to blast your upper arms.
EZ bars are more practical
It’s a lot easier to maneuver and store an EZ bar than a seven-foot-long 60-pound Olympic straight bar.
I know this doesn’t have anything to do with the actual workout, but making an activity easier will help you stick with it, and having the right tools or, in this case, the right equipment can definitely make a difference.
What Muscle Do EZ Bar Curls Work
Your biceps are the apparent target during this exercise, but there are secondary muscles that you will also stimulate.
The muscles that help strengthen and articulate your elbow, known as the Brachioradialis and the brachialis, are used.
Is An EZ Bar Curl Effective
Many questions in the fitness industry will stir debate, but this isn’t one of them.
The EZ bar curl is the most effective exercise that you can do to stimulate growth in your biceps muscle.
Whether you’re doing a standing biceps curl or on a preacher bar, you can’t help but notice the stimulation you get when you see your biceps tighten and swole up with each move of your reps.
Are EZ Bar Curl Bars Better Than Straight Bars
The answer is yes if you’re talking about bicep and tricep training.
The EZ bar is the perfect tool to train and isolate your biceps, triceps, and shoulders.
It also allows you to keep your wrists ergonomically correct way to prevent injury.
The straight bar, however, is the correct tool to use for training more extensive muscle groups like your chest, back, and legs.
For a complete workout, you need both bars to safely and effectively train your entire body.
EZ Bar Weight
A curl bar without any weight on it will vary in weight depending if you have an Olympic bar, standard bar, or a rackable bar.
Olympic curl bar
Olympic EZ curl bars weigh on average around 18 pounds; they have a 2″ shaft that can only be used for Olympic weights.
Standard curl bars
These bars average around 12 pounds, are made to hold a lighter amount of weight, and can only be used with 1″ weights. Do not try to use Olympic weights with a standard bar. You will only get injured.
Rackable curl bars
These bars are a lot longer than standard curl bars and weigh around 30 pounds
EZ Bar Length
Whether you’re using an Olympic, standard, or super curl bar, the length will be around 48.”
If you’re using a rackable EZ curl bar, it will be around 60.”
What Is An EZ Curl Bar Used For
It’s used to grow the biceps, triceps and shoulder muscles.
Its unique design allows you to hit both heads of the biceps muscle (Biceps brachii and the biceps femoris)
The triceps muscle has three different heads(medial, lateral, and long heads)
Your shoulders have eight muscle that help stabilize it when performing various actions these are the deltoids, infraspinatus, triceps brachii, teres major, Latissimus dorsi, subscapularis, and the supraspinatus.
All of these different muscle groups can be targeted either as primary or secondary muscles when using the EZ bar.
Which Exercises Will Help Develop An EZ Bar Curl
Reverse Curls
Zottman curls
Rotating dumbbell curls
Hammer curls
Conclusion
The EZ bar curl is an extremely effective exercise when it’s performed correctly.
As long as you follow the tips in this article, use the correct amount of weight nd are consistent with your workouts and your diet you’ll see great results in no time.
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