Dumbbells and machines shouldn’t be the only weapons in your bicep and tricep armoury. You can very easily build big arms with kettlebells. This school weights will spur growth in your biceps and triceps by curling and pressing kettlebells instead of bars. Morphing wet noodle arms into cannons isn’t a matter of barbell curling until your arms go numb.  Yes, barbell curls are a potent mass builder, but neglecting to train the triceps and relying solely on barbells won’t give your arms that extra pop. Your gym has plenty of lifting tools that’ll help you train the arms aside from barbells. Due to their unique design, kettlebells promote instability that recruits more muscle fibres as you curl or press. Their shifting weight distribution also increases the amount of time a muscle is kept under tension. And upping the time under tension (TUT) translates into greater muscle and strength gains.

Why it works

Along with increasing TUT, standing curls with kettlebells can prevent overcurling, which reduces stress from the biceps and shifts it to the delts. Subbing in kettlebells on moves like skull crushers and close-grip bench presses  allows your limbs more freedom. This, along with your wrists not being locked into place as they would be if using barbells or dumbbells, should help alleviate joint  discomfort and provide for a more comfortable lift.

What to do

For every exercise, you should adhere to a 3-2-0-2 tempo. The first number is the lowering phase and the second number is how long you should pause at the bottom of the move. The third number is the lifting phase and the fourth number is the pause at the apex of the move. If that proves too difficult for you, you can adjust the weight if necessary. You should rest 30 seconds after each exercise and 90 to 120 seconds between supersets.

Your big arms kettlebell workout

Perform this workout to build bigger guns.

1A)Standing kettlebell biceps curl

  • 2-4 sets
  • 5-8 reps

1B)Decline kettlebell skull crusher

  • 2-4 sets
  • 6–8 reps

2A)Incline dumbbell curl

  • 3 sets
  • 8–10 reps

2B)Close-grip bench press

  • 3 sets
  • 6, 6, 8 reps

3A)Kettlebell hammer curl

  • 2 sets
  • 8 – 10 reps

3B)Kettlebell hammer curl

  • 2 (per arm)
  • 5 – 6 reps

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