Top Guns of the Olympia!
Arm Training With the Best in the World

By Ron Harris

The Mr. Olympia contest is where the top guns of pro bodybuilding do battle every year to determine who rightfully deserves to be recognized as the very best-built man alive. It’s only fitting that we bring you arm training routines and tips from this elite group of iron warriors as this year’s showdown in Las Vegas draws closer. Read on and learn how some of the most impressive arms ever built got that way!

Big Ramy

Latest workout in Egypt
Barbell Curls 3 x 15, 12, 10
Skull-Crushers (straight bar) 2 x 10, 15
EZ-Bar Curls (close grip) 3 x 10, 12, 8
Triceps Pushdowns 3 x 10 slow, 10 fast = 20
Alternate Dumbbell Curls 2 x 15
(5 for left, 5 for right, 3 for left, 3 for right, 3 for left, 3 for right, then alternate for 4 final reps with each arm)
Rope Pushdowns, triple drops 3 x 7, 7, and 7 reps plus 3 forced reps
Hammer Curls 2 x 16 (8 reps up to deltoid, then 8 across body)
(8 reps up to delt, then 8 reps across body – does all 16 reps for one arm, then all 16 for the other)
Workout at Oxygen Gym, Kuwait
Preacher Machine Curls 4 x 10-15
Rope Pushdowns 4 x 10-15
EZ-Bar Curls 3 x 10-15
Seated Cable Triceps Extensions 3 x 10-15
Incline EZ-Bar Curls 3 x 10-15
Lying Triceps Extensions 3 x 10-15
One-arm Machine Curls 3 x 10-15
Underhand Pushdowns 3 x 10-15

Alternating bi’s and tri’s

Ramy doesn’t worry about using heavy weights for arms, because he does plenty of heavy pressing for chest and shoulders, and back day involves pulling serious poundage. The goal on arm day is to fill the biceps and triceps with as much blood as possible, which is why Ramy alternates biceps and triceps movements. “I think this is better than working them separately, doing all the exercises for one and then the other,” he says. “You can also get the whole arm pumped and full of blood, not just get a good biceps pump, then lose it as you start working on triceps.”

Hadi Choopan

Arm Workout
Dumbbell Curls 2 x 10 + 10
(10 reps are done with the left arm, then 10 with the right)
EZ-Bar Curls 2 x 20, 15
Rope Curls From High Pulley 2 x 10
(elbows at shoulder level, upper arms parallel to floor)
Alternate Dumbbell Hammer Curls 2 x 10
(curls across body toward opposite shoulder)
Rope Pushdowns 2 x 10
One-Arm Reverse Pushdowns 2 x 10
One-Arm Overhead Dumbbell Extensions 3 x 10 each, arm
(with pause in stretch position at start of each rep)
Overhead Rope Extensions 2 x 12
(Ropes are spread apart for first 4-5 reps, held together for remainder)
Close-Grip Push-ups 2 x failure
Pullover/Skull-Crushers 3 x 12
(Done with arms lowered behind head, elbows lowered, third and final set goes into a close-grip press)

2 Different Workouts Per Week

Hadi likes to perform two different types of workouts each week for all body parts. The first is strength training, with heavier weights, lower reps, and 2-3 minutes rest between sets. On the other day, it’s all about hypertrophy. The reps and volume are both higher, and rest periods are limited to 30-60 seconds. “This faster pace also gets my heart rate up and burns more bodyfat,” he says.
Brandon Curry

Arm Workout
Incline Curls 3-4 sets x 12-20 Drag Curls 3-4 x 12-20 Preacher Curl Machine 3 x 12-20
Smith Machine Close-Grip Bench Press 3-4 x 12-20 Machine Dips 3-4 x 12-20Preacher Curl Machine 3-4 x 12-20
EZ-bar Triceps Extensions 3-4 x 12-20
Notes from Brandon:

Incline Curls. “I’m a fan of incline curls because of the stretch position. I really believe in overloading a muscle in the lengthened part of the range of motion for maximal muscle growth.”

Drag Curls. “Drag curls, where the bar stays in constant contact with the front torso and the elbows are drawn back, allow me to provide maximal tension and focus on contraction of muscle without shoulder flexion, aka swinging the arms in front of the body.

Preacher Curl Machine. “I prefer preacher machines over the standard preacher curl for the constant tension throughout the full range of motion. If the cam or pulley system is just right, then it will give you more tension where you are strong and less where you are not.”

Triceps Extensions. “I prefer to start the movement with the bar in back of my head, as in a pullover. If you ever did a dumbbell pullover and got sore triceps, you probably used your triceps to help get the reps up. I take advantage of this by doing triceps extension in a pullover position, attacking the long head of the triceps with a deep stretch.”


Derek Lunsford

Arm Routine
Cable Pushdowns Warm-up: 2 x 15-20; Straight sets: 4 x 12-15
Close-Grip Bench Press Warm-up: 1 x 15; Straight sets: 4 x 8-12
Overhead Cable or Dumbbell Extensions 4 x 12-15
One-Arm Cable or Dumbbell Curls 4 x 12-15
Alternate Dumbbell or Preacher Curls 4 x 8-10
Machine Curls 4 x 12-15

2 Tips for Great Guns From Derek

1. Perfect form isn’t always ideal. “For a while I was training with people who stressed that you had to keep your form textbook perfect from the first rep of every set to the last. Eventually I came to the realization that even though perfect form is a good idea most of the time, if you never allow yourself to stray from it, you will be missing out on going a little heavier and getting a few more reps out of the muscle. It makes more sense to me to tax the muscle with perfect form until it can’t do any more, and then use a little bit of heave to force that muscle even deeper past its limits. That’s been working very well for me.”

2. Do exercises that are best for you. “You need to figure out which exercises are suited to your particular needs, instead of just doing what someone else is doing. For my biceps, that turned out to be dumbbell curls, hammer curls, preacher and EZ-bar curls, and concentration curls. The triceps movements I found worked best for me were rope pushdowns, overhead cable extensions, close-grip bench presses, and plate-loaded dip machines.”

William Bonac

Biceps Workout*
EZ-Bar Curls 3 x 15-20
Superset with
Seated Two-Arm Dumbbell Curls 3 x 15-20
Concentration Curls 2 x 15-20
Superset with
Standing Preacher Curls 2 x 15-20
*William performs a 3-second negative on all reps of all sets listed. He rests 90 seconds between rounds of supersets.



Akim Williams

Arm Routine
Biceps
Preacher Curl Machine 6 x 8-20
“Opposite” Preacher Curl Machine 6 x 8-20*
“Front Double Biceps” Cable Curls 4-5 x 15-20
Triceps
Rope Pushdowns 4-5 x 8-20
V-Bar Pushdowns 4-5 x 8-20
Seated Triceps Extension Machine 4-5 x 8-20

*After doing his sets the standard way on the preacher curl machine, Akim gets up and out of the machine, positioning himself as if he were giving someone else forced reps on it. There, he does several sets of partial reps.

Machines for This Mutant’s Biceps

“I’ve always done exclusively machine curls for biceps,” says Williams, a Brooklyn, NY, native who now lives in New Jersey. “I don’t believe in free weights for this muscle group. I think free-weight curls mess up your joints more than anything, and you don’t isolate the biceps muscle as well as with machines. With free weights, you’re able to cheat and swing the weight up, whereas machines make it a little easier to keep strict form.”

Ron Harris got his start in the bodybuilding industry during the eight years he worked in Los Angeles as Associate Producer for ESPN’s “American Muscle Magazine” show in the 1990s. Since 1992 he has published nearly 5,000 articles in bodybuilding and fitness magazines, making him the most prolific bodybuilding writer ever. Ron has been training since the age of 14 and competing as a bodybuilder since 1989. He lives with his wife and two children in the Boston area. Facebook Instagram


DISCUSS ON OUR FORUMSSUBSCRIBE TO MD TODAYGET OFFICIAL MD STUFFVISIT OUR STORE

ALSO, MAKE SURE TO FOLLOW US ON:

FACEBOOKTWITTERINSTAGRAM YOUTUBE








Top





Top Guns of the Olympia!


Arm Training With the Best in the World





By Ron Harris





The Mr. Olympia contest is where the top guns of pro bodybuilding do battle every year to determine who rightfully deserves to be recognized as the very best-built man alive. It’s only fitting that we bring you arm training routines and tips from this elite group of iron warriors as this year’s showdown in Las Vegas draws closer. Read on and learn how some of the most impressive arms ever built got that way!



Big Ramy





Latest workout in Egypt


Barbell Curls 3 x 15, 12, 10


Skull-Crushers (straight bar) 2 x 10, 15


EZ-Bar Curls (close grip) 3 x 10, 12, 8


Triceps Pushdowns 3 x 10 slow, 10 fast = 20


Alternate Dumbbell Curls 2 x 15


(5 for left, 5 for right, 3 for left, 3 for right, 3 for left, 3 for right, then alternate for 4 final reps with each arm)


Rope Pushdowns, triple drops 3 x 7, 7, and 7 reps plus 3 forced reps


Hammer Curls 2 x 16 (8 reps up to deltoid, then 8 across body)


(8 reps up to delt, then 8 reps across body – does all 16 reps for one arm, then all 16 for the other)


Workout at Oxygen Gym, Kuwait


Preacher Machine Curls 4 x 10-15


Rope Pushdowns 4 x 10-15


EZ-Bar Curls 3 x 10-15


Seated Cable Triceps Extensions 3 x 10-15


Incline EZ-Bar Curls 3 x 10-15


Lying Triceps Extensions 3 x 10-15


One-arm Machine Curls 3 x 10-15


Underhand Pushdowns 3 x 10-15





Alternating bi’s and tri’s





Ramy doesn’t worry about using heavy weights for arms, because he does plenty of heavy pressing for chest and shoulders, and back day involves pulling serious poundage. The goal on arm day is to fill the biceps and triceps with as much blood as possible, which is why Ramy alternates biceps and triceps movements. “I think this is better than working them separately, doing all the exercises for one and then the other,” he says. “You can also get the whole arm pumped and full of blood, not just get a good biceps pump, then lose it as you start working on triceps.”





Hadi Choopan





Arm Workout


Dumbbell Curls 2 x 10 + 10


(10 reps are done with the left arm, then 10 with the right)


EZ-Bar Curls 2 x 20, 15


Rope Curls From High Pulley 2 x 10


(elbows at shoulder level, upper arms parallel to floor)


Alternate Dumbbell Hammer Curls 2 x 10


(curls across body toward opposite shoulder)


Rope Pushdowns 2 x 10


One-Arm Reverse Pushdowns 2 x 10


One-Arm Overhead Dumbbell Extensions 3 x 10 each, arm


(with pause in stretch position at start of each rep)


Overhead Rope Extensions 2 x 12


(Ropes are spread apart for first 4-5 reps, held together for remainder)


Close-Grip Push-ups 2 x failure


Pullover/Skull-Crushers 3 x 12


(Done with arms lowered behind head, elbows lowered, third and final set goes into a close-grip press)





2 Different Workouts Per Week





Hadi likes to perform two different types of workouts each week for all body parts. The first is strength training, with heavier weights, lower reps, and 2-3 minutes rest between sets. On the other day, it’s all about hypertrophy. The reps and volume are both higher, and rest periods are limited to 30-60 seconds. “This faster pace also gets my heart rate up and burns more bodyfat,” he says.


Brandon Curry





Arm Workout


Incline Curls 3-4 sets x 12-20

Drag Curls 3-4 x 12-20

Preacher Curl Machine 3 x 12-20


Smith Machine Close-Grip Bench Press 3-4 x 12-20

Machine Dips 3-4 x 12-20

Preacher Curl Machine 3-4 x 12-20


EZ-bar Triceps Extensions 3-4 x 12-20


Notes from Brandon:





Incline Curls. “I’m a fan of incline curls because of the stretch position. I really believe in overloading a muscle in the lengthened part of the range of motion for maximal muscle growth.”





Drag Curls. “Drag curls, where the bar stays in constant contact with the front torso and the elbows are drawn back, allow me to provide maximal tension and focus on contraction of muscle without shoulder flexion, aka swinging the arms in front of the body.





Preacher Curl Machine. “I prefer preacher machines over the standard preacher curl for the constant tension throughout the full range of motion. If the cam or pulley system is just right, then it will give you more tension where you are strong and less where you are not.”





Triceps Extensions. “I prefer to start the movement with the bar in back of my head, as in a pullover. If you ever did a dumbbell pullover and got sore triceps, you probably used your triceps to help get the reps up. I take advantage of this by doing triceps extension in a pullover position, attacking the long head of the triceps with a deep stretch.”






Derek Lunsford





Arm Routine


Cable Pushdowns Warm-up: 2 x 15-20; Straight sets: 4 x 12-15


Close-Grip Bench Press Warm-up: 1 x 15; Straight sets: 4 x 8-12


Overhead Cable or Dumbbell Extensions 4 x 12-15


One-Arm Cable or Dumbbell Curls 4 x 12-15


Alternate Dumbbell or Preacher Curls 4 x 8-10


Machine Curls 4 x 12-15





2 Tips for Great Guns From Derek





1. Perfect form isn’t always ideal. “For a while I was training with people who stressed that you had to keep your form textbook perfect from the first rep of every set to the last. Eventually I came to the realization that even though perfect form is a good idea most of the time, if you never allow yourself to stray from it, you will be missing out on going a little heavier and getting a few more reps out of the muscle. It makes more sense to me to tax the muscle with perfect form until it can’t do any more, and then use a little bit of heave to force that muscle even deeper past its limits. That’s been working very well for me.”





2. Do exercises that are best for you. “You need to figure out which exercises are suited to your particular needs, instead of just doing what someone else is doing. For my biceps, that turned out to be dumbbell curls, hammer curls, preacher and EZ-bar curls, and concentration curls. The triceps movements I found worked best for me were rope pushdowns, overhead cable extensions, close-grip bench presses, and plate-loaded dip machines.”





William Bonac





Biceps Workout*


EZ-Bar Curls 3 x 15-20


Superset with


Seated Two-Arm Dumbbell Curls 3 x 15-20


Concentration Curls 2 x 15-20


Superset with


Standing Preacher Curls 2 x 15-20


*William performs a 3-second negative on all reps of all sets listed. He rests 90 seconds between rounds of supersets.







Akim Williams





Arm Routine


Biceps


Preacher Curl Machine 6 x 8-20


“Opposite” Preacher Curl Machine 6 x 8-20*


“Front Double Biceps” Cable Curls 4-5 x 15-20


Triceps


Rope Pushdowns 4-5 x 8-20


V-Bar Pushdowns 4-5 x 8-20


Seated Triceps Extension Machine 4-5 x 8-20





*After doing his sets the standard way on the preacher curl machine, Akim gets up and out of the machine, positioning himself as if he were giving someone else forced reps on it. There, he does several sets of partial reps.





Machines for This Mutant’s Biceps





“I’ve always done exclusively machine curls for biceps,” says Williams, a Brooklyn, NY, native who now lives in New Jersey. “I don’t believe in free weights for this muscle group. I think free-weight curls mess up your joints more than anything, and you don’t isolate the biceps muscle as well as with machines. With free weights, you’re able to cheat and swing the weight up, whereas machines make it a little easier to keep strict form.”





Ron Harris got his start in the bodybuilding industry during the eight years he worked in Los Angeles as Associate Producer for ESPN’s “American Muscle Magazine” show in the 1990s. Since 1992 he has published nearly 5,000 articles in bodybuilding and fitness magazines, making him the most prolific bodybuilding writer ever. Ron has been training since the age of 14 and competing as a bodybuilder since 1989. He lives with his wife and two children in the Boston area. Facebook Instagram






DISCUSS ON OUR FORUMS

SUBSCRIBE TO MD TODAY

GET OFFICIAL MD STUFF

VISIT OUR STORE





ALSO, MAKE SURE TO FOLLOW US ON:



FACEBOOK

TWITTER

INSTAGRAM

YOUTUBE










Top
















Click here to view the article.