7 Best Brachialis Exercises to Add to Your Workout

The brachialis is a primary muscle in your upper arm that lies between your biceps and triceps [1].

While people tend to give more attention to the biceps brachii (aka biceps), the little muscle underneath it actually generates about 50% more power and is mainly responsible for elbow flexion [2].

The effectiveness of this hammer curl has to do, in part, with your hand position.

Since this hammer curl workout will have your palms facing inward, you’ll be able to work the brachialis directly rather than sharing the weight with your biceps.

How To

1. Stand with your body straight.
2. Grab a pair of dumbbells in each hand with your palms facing each other.
3. Engage your core and flex your elbows to bring the dumbbells up toward your shoulders, keeping your wrists straight.
4. Squeeze your arm muscles at the top of the movement for a full second, then slowly lower the weight down to starting position.

The cable hammer curls place extra tension on the brachialis, making it a great addition to your arm workout.

How To

1. Hook a rope attachment to a cable machine.
2. Grab one end of the rope attachment in each hand.
3. Extend your arms and hold them out in front of you with your palms facing inward.
4. Flex your elbows and pull the rope attachment toward your chest, keeping your wrists straight.
5. Squeeze your arms at the top of the movement, then slowly lower the rope attachment back to starting position.

Also Read: Hammer Curl Variations

This exercise increases the stress in your brachialis as you curl your arms.

How To

1. Stand on the resistance band with your body upright.
2. Grip the band just below the handles with your palms facing up.
3. Contract your biceps and curl your hands up to shoulder height.
4. Squeeze your biceps at the top and twist your hands so that your palms face downward.
5. Slowly lower your hands to the starting position and turn them again so that your palms are facing forward.

Related: Best Bicep Exercises With Resistance Bands

You can either use a straight barbell or an EZ bar for this exercise. You can minimize wrist strain using the latter, but it will still do an excellent job of activating your brachialis muscle.

How To

1. Stand straight and grab the barbell with your hands roughly shoulder-width apart.
2. Hold it with your hands facing down.
3. Curl the bar up towards your chest.
4. Squeeze your biceps at the top and slowly lower the bar down.

Dumbbell incline curls are a great isolation exercise for training the brachialis muscle. The incline position ensures that you can’t take advantage of momentum to lift the weight.

How To

1. Adjust your incline bench to about a 30 to 40-degree angle.
2. Hold a dumbbell in each hand with your palms facing up.
3. Face the bench so that your chest is pressed against it.
4. Keep your feet flat on the floor, and make sure your shoulders and the head of the bench are at the same level.
5. Flex your elbows and curl the dumbbells upward.
6. Squeeze your arms at the top and slowly bring them back down.

This brachialis exercise is one good way to target each arm independently.

How To

1. Stand with your torso straight.
2. Grab a kettlebell with one hand with your palm facing down.
3. Curl the kettlebell upwards.
4. Squeeze your bicep hard at the top and slowly bring your arm back down.

The Reverse Dumbbell Zottman Curl hits three areas, i.e., your brachialis, biceps, and forearm muscles.

How To

1. Stand with your feet roughly hip-width apart and your body upright.
2. Grab a pair of dumbbells with your palms facing up.
3. Curl the dumbbells up toward your shoulders.
4. Squeeze your biceps, then rotate your wrist so that your palms face down.
5. Lower the weights back down to the starting position and twist your hands so that your palms are facing upwards again.