Huge arms

[BIGTIG]

hey guys,
i jus saw the iron asylum with mike liberatore. His arms are huuuuuugggggeeeee!!!!!! What i want to understand is the proper approach on how to get huge arms like that. So far ive been doing bicep curls close grip chin ups preacher curls 5-6 reps for 3 sets. those were for biceps. for triceps i do skull crushers dips and push ups for 5-6 reps 3 sets. Any ideas anyone for improvement plzzz. I wanna get huge arms for the summer time!!!!

["Rodz"]

Welcome Bro!, nice to see another Canadian here. Where are you from?

As for arms, you would be surprised how much you will gain from heavy back and chest workouts, Lift heavy for those and youll see some goos results in your arms!!!!






51955

[ArabMuscle]

That video made all of us feel like pansies for sure.

I prioritized cable work for my biceps and I'm seeing great results.

[whatdayaknow]

Do your curls inside a power cage. Keep your elbows in line with your shoulders. I see so many people doing curls with their elbows out in front of their body. Doing your curls inside a power cage prevents you from breaking form so much.

[spritz0]

hey guys,
i jus saw the iron asylum with mike liberatore. His arms are huuuuuugggggeeeee!!!!!! What i want to understand is the proper approach on how to get huge arms like that. So far ive been doing bicep curls close grip chin ups preacher curls 5-6 reps for 3 sets. those were for biceps. for triceps i do skull crushers dips and push ups for 5-6 reps 3 sets. Any ideas anyone for improvement plzzz. I wanna get huge arms for the summer time!!!!
I found that super-setting biceps with triceps one for one keeps you FRESH and ready to hit the next set hard, and with conviction... you can use a different biceps and triceps exercise for each super-set workout as well, just for variety and muscle confusion! Give it a try!

[BIGTIG]

That video made all of us feel like pansies for sure.

I prioritized cable work for my biceps and I'm seeing great results.


hmm cables eh i thought that was for making definition ill definetly give it a try

[BIGTIG]

i also notice too that these bodybuilders arent using a lot of weight relative to their size. For example, in the video mike was only using i think 40-50 pound dumbells. im pretty sure he can doo waaaaaaay more than that. Do bodybuilders build big arms from that kind of training or he was already big and is jus maintaining

[The Big Sexy]

hmm cables eh i thought that was for making definition ill definetly give it a try

There really isn't an exercise for making definition... that's more what you eat.

If you want big anything - all of the advice above is good. Make sure you take the time to actually FEEL it in the muscle - it is easy to get momentum going on biceps or triceps and not really contract it. That means a full extension on the triceps movements and same with the biceps. Also, remembering to SQUEEZE and contract it.

You might even try to go lighter so you can get the feel of the exercise and really squeeze it. Don't worry about your ego... when your arms start to grow, your ego won't have a problem with it haha

[whatdayaknow]

No, most of the time smaller muscles are pre-exhausted.

[The Big Sexy]

i also notice too that these bodybuilders arent using a lot of weight relative to their size. For example, in the video mike was only using i think 40-50 pound dumbells. im pretty sure he can doo waaaaaaay more than that. Do bodybuilders build big arms from that kind of training or he was already big and is jus maintaining

They can do a lot of weight - but maybe not with the right kind of form. I did arms with Brandon Curry and was like "hey man, where is the big weight?" - he just squeezes and uses "light" weight... I say light because it's still kind of heavy, but nothing what you would expect a guy with Brandon Curry's arms to be doing. But man, if he doesn't go nice, slow, controlled movements with full ROM and a squeeze at the concentric top of the motion.

[Shariff Abel]

Don't forget his Trainer is Dave and his motivator is Mr G. with those 2 guys pushing you together its abomination .

[The Big Sexy]

Don't forget his Trainer is Dave and his motivator is Mr G. with those 2 guys pushing you together its abomination .

http://www.bosskillers.com/pix/bbguild/feature/abomination.jpg

Like this? Or do you mean it gets really smelly with Mr.G? :)

[anabolic fyre]

hey guys,
i jus saw the iron asylum with mike liberatore. His arms are huuuuuugggggeeeee!!!!!! What i want to understand is the proper approach on how to get huge arms like that. So far ive been doing bicep curls close grip chin ups preacher curls 5-6 reps for 3 sets. those were for biceps. for triceps i do skull crushers dips and push ups for 5-6 reps 3 sets. Any ideas anyone for improvement plzzz. I wanna get huge arms for the summer time!!!!


I think its a lil unrealistic to think ur arms are gonna look like liberatores by summer time lol, are you a natty?? if u are then its very unrealisticc.

[BIGTIG]

I think its a lil unrealistic to think ur arms are gonna look like liberatores by summer time lol, are you a natty?? if u are then its very unrealisticc.

well obviously not to mike's size lool. i want to get there eventually however i do want size on my arms before summer at least an inch

[BIGTIG]

They can do a lot of weight - but maybe not with the right kind of form. I did arms with Brandon Curry and was like "hey man, where is the big weight?" - he just squeezes and uses "light" weight... I say light because it's still kind of heavy, but nothing what you would expect a guy with Brandon Curry's arms to be doing. But man, if he doesn't go nice, slow, controlled movements with full ROM and a squeeze at the concentric top of the motion.

i know exactly what you mean for bicep excerises. but for triceps i find it really hard to get that 'burn'. what are the best movements for triceps. I also heard that triceps are 2/3 your arm or something like that. does that mean i have to train them more than biceps?

[The Big Sexy]

i know exactly what you mean for bicep excerises. but for triceps i find it really hard to get that 'burn'. what are the best movements for triceps. I also heard that triceps are 2/3 your arm or something like that. does that mean i have to train them more than biceps?

Typically... but not always (do more than biceps)

You may not be going out to full extension of your triceps. It makes a big difference when you are actually locking out and squeezing/contracting the muscle as opposed to just rocking through it - and stopping just short.

[whatdayaknow]

A great exercise to isolate your triceps is to turn your hands so your palms are facing you when performing skull crushers.

[powergraham]

A great exercise to isolate your triceps is to turn your hands so your palms are facing you when performing skull crushers.

Dude, that sounds shockingly dangerous. The only thing stopping your face and some weights getting personal would be your thumbs, and I wouldn't wana take that risk.

To do a similar exercise to that, go on the cables, get a straight bar, and pull the bar down towards you with your palms up. It'll hit a different area of your tricep, and it's a good one to learn full contraction, because it's hard to go heavy.

For my triceps, I always prioritise cable work. I prefer to have constant contraction on the muscle, whereas with a lot of free weight work, it's hard to find that. I usually do rope pulldowns with extensions at the bottom, where you pull your hands out and away, for that extra contraction, close grip bar pushdowns, to simulate close grip bench pressing, and then I either finish with kickbacks, or unilateral (one hand at a time) pulldowns back on the cables, with my palms up.

With your arms, more is rarely better. I do between 6-9 working sets, and you really don't need more. Your arms are involved in every workout, bar legs, so, you really need to focus on the contraction in your arm workouts, with excellent form.

[whatdayaknow]

Dude, that sounds shockingly dangerous. The only thing stopping your face and some weights getting personal would be your thumbs, and I wouldn't wana take that risk.



You don't use as heavy of a weight first off, secondly you also have all of your fingers wrapped around the bar, and third I am a woman not a dude. :) I have been using that exercise for close to 15-18 years now without incident.

[powergraham]

haha, sorry, always make the assumption that everyone is a man.

I'm not criticising the exercise, it's great, but personally I would do it on the cables. I'm getting my qualificiations to be a personal trainer soon, and I don't like the idea of somebody not understanding what they are doing and dropping the weight on them, but, each to their own ;).

[BIGTIG]

Dude, that sounds shockingly dangerous. The only thing stopping your face and some weights getting personal would be your thumbs, and I wouldn't wana take that risk.

To do a similar exercise to that, go on the cables, get a straight bar, and pull the bar down towards you with your palms up. It'll hit a different area of your tricep, and it's a good one to learn full contraction, because it's hard to go heavy.

For my triceps, I always prioritise cable work. I prefer to have constant contraction on the muscle, whereas with a lot of free weight work, it's hard to find that. I usually do rope pulldowns with extensions at the bottom, where you pull your hands out and away, for that extra contraction, close grip bar pushdowns, to simulate close grip bench pressing, and then I either finish with kickbacks, or unilateral (one hand at a time) pulldowns back on the cables, with my palms up.

With your arms, more is rarely better. I do between 6-9 working sets, and you really don't need more. Your arms are involved in every workout, bar legs, so, you really need to focus on the contraction in your arm workouts, with excellent form.

would doing the cables get more of that split in the arm?

[joelster]

i also notice too that these bodybuilders arent using a lot of weight relative to their size. For example, in the video mike was only using i think 40-50 pound dumbells. im pretty sure he can doo waaaaaaay more than that. Do bodybuilders build big arms from that kind of training or he was already big and is jus maintaining

Mike Liberatore is not growing in that video. He is in full-on pre contest mode. That workout he is doing is simply getting a good pump and maintaining his size while he is on his strict pre-contest diet. They do all of their growing in the off season and their workouts may be a lot different. If you listen to the interview you can hear him tell Dave that he can go a lot heavier usually but the pump is intense with whatever lighter weight he is using in that video.

[powergraham]

would doing the cables get more of that split in the arm?

As in triceps ? Well, you've got three heads, hence the name, but the central head always stays flat (I can't remember why, I think it's something to do with it's attachment point on the arm, hence it doesn't flex when you tense).

The two things that are going to give you a more pronounced "horseshoe", are getting your triceps bigger, and having low bodyfat levels. I'm guessing your new to training ?

Cables in paticular are just my preferred exercise for triceps, because of the constant tension effect you can't get with dumbells and barbells.

[BIGTIG]

So guys tomorrow is my arm day. Any good workouts to really get my arms wrecked?

[Curt James]

Do your curls inside a power cage. Keep your elbows in line with your shoulders. I see so many people doing curls with their elbows out in front of their body. Doing your curls inside a power cage prevents you from breaking form so much.

Hasn't helped. :p

UvfRSQvw968

To the OP, I'm fairly convinced that arms like Liberatore's are gifts from God, Mother Nature, or Fate. Certainly he works hard, but he also stated he's always had good arms, didn't he? He has great attachments and some serious triceps to go along with those freaky biceps.

Start doing back work, squats, curls, and close-grips and see if you get swole. Summer will be here before you know it!

Hey, a question for Liberatore - if you're readiing - or Colette Nelson (listed as site designer), is Liberatore's name spelled Michael or Micheal? Because his bio offers "Michael Anthony Liberatore" but other areas on the site and at least the one graphic shows...

http://michael-liberatore.com/Graphics/topbar.jpg

[Curt James]

I am a woman not a dude. :)

You're a woman? Well... whatdayaknow?

Nyuk nyuk nyuk! http://www.famouswhy.com/pictures/people/curly_howard_thumb_small.jpg





(Sorry, I couldn't resist. :o)

[s2h]

hey guys,
i jus saw the iron asylum with mike liberatore. His arms are huuuuuugggggeeeee!!!!!! What i want to understand is the proper approach on how to get huge arms like that. So far ive been doing bicep curls close grip chin ups preacher curls 5-6 reps for 3 sets. those were for biceps. for triceps i do skull crushers dips and push ups for 5-6 reps 3 sets. Any ideas anyone for improvement plzzz. I wanna get huge arms for the summer time!!!!if i'm correct Mike was a heavly involved in gymnastics for a long time and he credits alot of his arm size/deveopment to that!!

[Foreman_Rules]

5-6 reps for biceps are worthless and a good way to get injured. better to run 10-15 reps on isolation stuff and if you want low reps use them on big compound movements. Variety is best so do not get hung up on the idea one rep range is best.

[whatdayaknow]

[quote=Curt James;869490]Hasn't helped. :p

only works if you are using a barbell

[anabolic fyre]

barbell curls till your forearms are falling off, its the best thing for growin biceps as long as your not swingin like a douche.

[raging pitbull]

hey guys,
i jus saw the iron asylum with mike liberatore. His arms are huuuuuugggggeeeee!!!!!! What i want to understand is the proper approach on how to get huge arms like that. So far ive been doing bicep curls close grip chin ups preacher curls 5-6 reps for 3 sets. those were for biceps. for triceps i do skull crushers dips and push ups for 5-6 reps 3 sets. Any ideas anyone for improvement plzzz. I wanna get huge arms for the summer time!!!!

train with an 8-10 rep range 3-4 exercises per small muscle. try concentrating on more volume to stretch out that fascia.
vary exercises. there is no one "mass exercise". vary rest periods 30-90 sec. in bet sets. use correct form; usually 2 seconds on the concentric portion and 2 seconds on the eccentric portion.

[DBowden]

hmm cables eh i thought that was for making definition ill definetly give it a try

Even better, try cable curls on a preacher bench.

[tankcraft]

How do you guys feel about cable bicept and hammer curls?

[DBowden]

How do you guys feel about cable bicept and hammer curls?

I rotate cable curls and hammer curls with barbell curls.
On back day I do barbell curls.
3 days later I do higher rep range cable curls followed by hammer curls.

[BIGTIG]

hey guys,
thx for all your help. my arms were hurtin baadd it felt great. plus i got a few looks from sum chicks too ;) hopefully they were good ones!!!!

[toymr2trd]

a GREAT tip that was given to me by Brandon some time ago was to work out the bi's and tri's on the same day and take no more then 10sec rest. hold it at the peak and squeeze... but he has this very cool tip using a smith machine i believe he calls it "the 4 stage ladder" it's amazing! Remembering him telling me what he looks for is pain when building biceps so if you stick with less weight and focus on the muscle you'll get the gains you're looking for.

good luck

[Michael K. Scott]

I find that heavy close grip pulldowns and seated rows do wonders for your arms as well!

You might want try supersetting Alternating DB curls with barbell curls or a cable curl!

Deadlifts are another good thing to add since that really stretches your arms out

forgot to mention, Lying cable curls!!

[Lann1011]

Make sure you are eating enough to grow....

you can do all the exercises that you can.. if you are not taken in the calories and the protein, it won't help much..

[bodyhard]

There are so many mistakes and misconceptions with the biceps and I will never be able to cover all. But I will try my best to cover the ones that I see on a daily basis in the gym and what I hear people talk about.

1) Your biceps are lagging do more. WRONG The bicep is such a small muscle doing more would not help your bicep grow, if that were the case every curl jockey you see would have huge biceps. Yes some people do respond better with higher reps, but that doesn't mean if your biceps are lagging for you to go and start doing more exercises for the bicep. If you are working your back extremely hard your bicep will be getting targeted as a secondary muscle (all pulling movements require bicep interaction), therefore your biceps are already getting adequate stimulation. Adding direct bicep movements, i.e. BB curls, Incline curls, Hammer curls, will improve your biceps. But when I say adding these I do not mean everyone of them. Pick 2-3 and and then change them every 3 months or so.

2) Form HORRIBLE Way too many times I see bad form when performing curls.
One Lifting your elbows when you are curling: Your elbows should not come up when curling, when you lift your elbows you bring the front shoulder into play. Your elbows you be parallel with your torso, the only part of your body that should be moving is your forearm.
Two Knees locked, too much back movement,shoulders droopy when performing standing curls When performing a standing BB or DB curl, you need to, stand with shoulders back, chest high, knees slightly unlocked and as little movement with your back as possible. (Too much momentum and the bicep stops doing the work) Of course when you are getting to those last reps there is going to be some movement, but try to keep the focus on the bicep. Also there is a time and place to use movement example when doing cheat curls but that is after you have already gotten some nice size arms.
Three Bending the wrist at the top of the movementThere is no need to bend your wrist at the top of the movement, that only brings your forearm more into play.
Four Coming up too high When you are performing a curl there is no need to come up so high that your forearm touches your bicep, as a matter of fact when you do this, you have release the tension on the bicep itself, giving it rest. You should come to a stop just before the bicep and elbow touch, this will keep the bicep under constant tension throughout the movement.

[BIGTIG]

hey guys thanks for alll your help my arms ACTUALLY GREW!!! they aren't HUGE but i filled out my ed hardy t-shirt nd my v-neck shirts so im getting there thanks yall!!!!