Train Like an Athlete by ATHLEAN-X (Video Podcast)

If you thought the only way to get bigger biceps was to lift heavy weights, then this is the video for you. Here I’m going to show you how you not only can build big biceps with light weights but how you must lift lighter weights at some point in your training if you want to have maximum bicep development.

The roots of this video were covered in the one I did on hypertrophy and the three main methods of building muscle. In that, I discussed how there are three main ways of eliciting muscle growth from your workouts. The first is progressive overload. This can be achieved through either adding more weight to the bar or by increasing the volume of work that you perform in a given workout or workouts. The problem with progressive overload however is that you ultimately run into a wall and cannot continue to add weight or volume without failing to be able to do so or incurring unwanted overuse.

Similarly, you can use eccentric overload training. Here you rely on the increased strength that you have in an eccentric muscle contraction that you don’t have in a concentric contraction to your advantage. The slow lowering of the heavier weights act to cause a mechanical disruption to the muscles that you are training and cause a stimulus for that muscle (in this case the biceps) to be built up bigger and stronger during the recovery process.

The most overlooked tool for increasing muscle size however is the metabolic training method. Here, the goal is to increase the production of metabolites, the biproduct of muscle contraction. As you continue to rep out even when the lactic acid burn has caused you to want to give up, you are providing an incredible stimulus for muscle growth. This occurs due to the influx of water into the muscle cell in order to reduce the concentration of metabolites inside the working muscle cell.

If you want your biceps to grow bigger you not only will want to do more of this type of training but you must do more of it. The first place to start is to take regular bicep exercises and start incorporating constant motion to them. Instead of taking even a brief rest at either the top or the bottom of the exercise, you will lighten the weights and work within the middle 90 percent of the rep. By eliminating the top and bottom you are able to stay in the middle of the rep and keep working until the burn is almost unbearable.

The second way to use light weights to build bigger biceps is to pick peak contraction exercises like the spider curl and stick within the contracted position and rep out. Here, you are not only using constant motion but you are relying on the occlusive effect that you are creating by abbreviating the top half of the movement. The burn will once again be crazy, but this is what you need to resist and realize that every rep done with the burn present will deliver more and more of the size and growth response that you are after.

If you are looking for a program that puts the science back in strength and makes sure that you never overlook any important element of your training, be sure to head to http://athleanx.com and use our program selector to get the workout that is most aligned with your goals. Use the same workout programs that pro athletes use to get in their best shape ever by training smarter and harder.

For more videos on how to build big arms and get bigger biceps with light weights and heavy weights, be sure to subscribe to our channel here on youtube at http://youtube.com/user/jdcav24