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biceps

EZ Barbell Preacher Curl

Seated with your upper arms resting on an angled pad, you curl an EZ bar. The pad stops you cheating, so the biceps do all the work.

beginnerez barpreacher benchplates

EZ Barbell Preacher Curl, start position
START
EZ Barbell Preacher Curl, end position
END
BEFORE YOU START2
  1. Set the seat so the top of the pad sits under your armpits.
  2. Load the bar and rest it in the bench's holder.
HOW TO DO IT

Get into position

  1. Sit down and rest the backs of your upper arms flat on the pad.
  2. Hold the bar on the angled parts with your palms facing up, hands shoulder-width apart.
  3. Lift the bar out of the holder and lower it until your arms are almost straight.

Check: Your upper arms are flat on the pad, your armpits are at the top edge, and your arms are almost straight.

Curl up

  1. Curl the bar up until your forearms are upright.
  2. Squeeze for a second at the top.

Check: The bar is near your shoulders and the backs of your upper arms are still flat on the pad.

Lower slowly

  1. Lower the bar slowly until your arms are almost straight.

Check: Your arms are almost straight with a slight bend left in the elbows and your upper arms still on the pad.

That is one rep. Repeat for your set.

Breathe out as you curl up in about 1 second; squeeze; breathe in as you lower over 2 to 3 seconds.

MUSCLES WORKED
EZ Barbell Preacher Curl: muscles worked, front view
EZ Barbell Preacher Curl: muscles worked, back view

biceps

Red marks the muscles doing the work; amber the assisting ones. Same body for every exercise, so guides compare at a glance.

COMMON MISTAKES4
  • Swinging the body or the elbows forward to lift the weight. Momentum and the shoulders do the work instead of the biceps. Fix: Keep your elbows pinned at your sides and your trunk still; use less weight.
  • Dropping the weight back down. Fix: Lower over 2 to 3 seconds; the lowering half builds the muscle too.
  • Straightening the arms completely at the bottom. A fully straight arm under load strains the elbow and biceps tendon. Fix: Stop just short of straight.
  • Lifting the upper arms off the pad. Fix: Press them into the pad for every rep.
SAFETY2
  • Keep your wrists straight; do not let them bend back under the weight.
  • Never let your arms lock out straight at the bottom; stop just short.
EQUIPMENT SETTINGS
  • preacher bench · pad height: top of the pad under your armpits when seated
  • plates Same weight on both sides, clipped on.
RELATED EXERCISES

variants: ez barbell curl, dumbbell concentration curl

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