The Must-do Biceps and Chest Workout for Muscle Gain

Highlights:

• Can you train your biceps and chest on the same day?
• The advantages of training your chest and biceps together.
• Chest and bicep workout routine: The Basics
• Warming up for powerful chest and bicep exercises.

Are you looking for a bicep and chest bodybuilding routine to help you grow stronger and bulk up? Don't look any further! Few muscles attract as much attention as your chest and biceps. A well-defined chest and muscular biceps announce to the world that you have been hustling hard in the gym. Every athlete and lifter aspires toward bigger biceps and chest muscles. Today, we’re going to guide you through an excellent chest and bicep workout routine that will help you create more prominent and muscular pecs and arms.

Can you train your biceps and chest on the same day?

Absolutely! You may be more familiar with the chest and triceps combo, which involves working your chest, shoulders, and triceps all on the same day. However, strengthening your chest and biceps at the same time is also a fantastic approach when planning your exercises. One of our most popular training articles divides the biceps and shoulders exercise program and combines shoulder and bicep training in the same session. Consider an isolated chest and bicep workout to be a more concentrated version. Using ISOFLEX as a bodybuilding supplement will help you achieve maximum results

The Advantages of Training Your Chest and Biceps Together

Implementing a bicep and chest workout on the same day has many advantages.

1. The chest and biceps don’t compete with one other. When training the chest and triceps simultaneously, you will be fatigued when it comes time to exercise the second muscle. Combining chest and biceps training helps you work each muscle when it is strong and rested, allowing you to use heavier weights and induce more substantial growth.
2. When you train your chest and biceps on the same day, you can concentrate on the muscle that requires the most attention. It's best to exercise the muscle group you want to focus on first in your workout—when you feel your strongest and have the most power. Combining the chest and biceps allows you to accomplish that. Because your biceps aren't directly engaged in your chest training, you may start with either muscle and still finish strong.
3. It’s simply not possible to complete multiple sets for each muscle group when you exercise your entire body in a single session—unless you spend most of your day in the gym. Conversely, if you only worked on one muscle group in each workout session, you'd have to work out nearly every day to cover your whole body. Combining chest and biceps is a wonderful compromise that allows you to exercise each muscle group once or twice per week, depending on your preferences.

 

Chest and Bicep Workout Routine: The Basics

In this routine, you'll focus on your chest first, then your biceps. Feel free to start with the biceps if you choose, but exercising the chest before the biceps often feels more natural. According to research, performing multi-joint movements, like the bench press, initiates a workout session that provides higher-strength development. Everyone wants to bench heavier, which is why starting with the bench press—as opposed to saving them for later—is a good strategy. This chest and biceps workout routine begins with a bench press and progresses to lighter, isolated work. You'll primarily be working with free weights, performing compound movements, and isolation workouts with rep ranges of between six and twelve. This workout requires only a barbell, an adjustable bench, and a set of dumbbells. A cable crossover machine is useful, but not necessary.

Workout for the Chest

• Bench press — four sets of 6–10 repetitions
• Dumbbell incline press — four sets of 8 repetitions
• Standing chest fly with a cable — three sets of 10 repetitions
• Push-up — 3 sets x maximum repetitions

Biceps Exercise

• Curl with a barbell — four sets of 8 repetitions
• Hammer curl — four sets of 8 repetitions
• Incline dumbbell curls — four sets of 10 repetitions

In total, you’ll have completed 14 sets of chest exercises and 12 sets of bicep exercises. A recent study suggests that 12–20 weekly sets can significantly improve muscle development. That means that just one weekly session of the chest and bicep exercise program is sufficient for outstanding gains. Of course, you can also perform it twice a week to ensure you're receiving more than enough resistance for optimum muscle growth.

Warming Up

A proper warm-up prepares your body for intense activity and guarantees that you perform to your full potential. Warming up has several advantages, including improving blood flow to your muscles, elevating your body temperature, and psychologically preparing you for the physical work ahead. Warming up may also lower your chance of sustaining an injury. Consider performing 5–10 minutes of light to moderate-intensity exercise on a treadmill or a bike to get your blood flowing, elevate your heart rate, and raise your body temperature. The goal is to warm up and prepare, not exhaust yourself, so there’s no need to go all out. If you're short on time or dislike cardio, you may skip the aerobic portion of the warm-up and head right to the weights. Once you’re fully warmed up, you're ready to begin the hard work—starting with the bench press.

The Bench Press

The barbell bench press is the first exercise in the training routine. The bench press works all of your pecs' muscle fibers and is one of the finest chest workouts for strength and muscle building. With good reason, it is known as the "King of Upper Body Exercises." Starting your activity with a barbell exercise guarantees that you will be able to employ heavier weights for optimal gains. For the bench press, you'll use the pyramid training approach. The pyramid approach begins with low weight and gradually increases the weight with each set, progressing from ten reps in the first set to six in the final. Alternative Exercises: Machine chest press and/or dumbbell chest press Before performing the dumbbell incline, rest for 2–3 minutes.

Dumbbell Incline Press

The dumbbell incline press is an excellent muscle-builder for the whole chest but focuses primarily on the upper region. According to one study, incline press results in more substantial muscle gain in the upper chest than flat bench presses. This is why, in the chest and bicep training regimen, you perform both flat and incline presses: a comprehensive workout for a complete chest. Using dumbbells instead of a barbell allows for a greater range of motion, improving muscular hypertrophy. Furthermore, many individuals use dumbbells instead of a barbell for incline chest presses, making it easier to get into position and feel the precise mind-muscle connection. Alternative Exercises: Incline Bench Press and/or Incline Smith-Machine Bench Press Give yourself another 2–3 minutes of recovery. Next, it's time to fly!

Standing Cable Chest Fly

The cable chest fly sustains muscular tension throughout the exercise, stimulating your pecs over the entire range of motion. The end result is not only muscular gain but also a great pump. Get a long stretch at the peak of the action and aggressively compress your chest muscles at the bottom. Alternative Exercise: Chest Fly with Dumbbells Rest for 2–3 minutes before proceeding to the last chest exercise: the good old push-up.

Push-Up

The push-up is a classic exercise that fitness enthusiasts have performed for over a century to create a solid and toned chest and upper body. You may not even think of the push-up as a mass and strength-building exercise, but you'd be mistaken. Research has shown that push-ups and bench presses are equally helpful for muscular development and strength gain. You're performing these as a finisher in this exercise. Go all-in and complete as many as you can in three sets. You should rest for just a minute between each set to work your pecs. Alternative Exercise: Push-Ups on the Knees Your chest workout is now complete! Rest up and get ready for your bicep exercises, beginning with the classic barbell curl.

Barbell Curl

Again, you’ll begin with a barbell exercise, this time the barbell curl. The barbell curl is the foundation for many bicep exercises and is among the finest bicep workouts for building bigger and stronger arms. It allows you to lift heavier weights than dumbbells. Ensure you maintain excellent form throughout the exercise; don't swing your wrists, arms, or torso to get the bar moving for most reps. You want your biceps performing the majority of the effort. However, on the last repetition of your sets, feel free to use a bit of momentum. This will help you push through any stumbling block and get in that one extra rep. When used judiciously, the "cheat curl" is an excellent strategy to overload your biceps and drive them to expand. Alternative Exercise: Curl using Dumbbells. After 2–3 minutes of rest, it's hammer time!

Hammer Curl

The hammer curl is a variant of the bicep curl. Hammer curls are unique in the way that they work your forearms intensely, particularly the massive brachioradialis muscle on the inside of your forearm. Hammer curls combine the long head of a bicep and your forearms into a single exercise, making it ideal for creating thick, enormous arms. Take a 2–3-minute break before finishing your workout with the incline dumbbell curl.

Incline Dumbbell Curl

You made it! You’ve reached the culmination of your bicep workout and your entire workout routine. Let's get that final pump in with an incline dumbbell curl. When performing incline dumbbell curls, you press your biceps into a stretched and extended position by maintaining your arms behind your torso. This can result in more extensive muscle development, as well as a great muscle pump. One of the essential training strategies in bodybuilding is making a lightweight seem heavy. Use a lighter weight than you would use for a standard dumbbell curl. With your arms in this posture, you'll be astonished at how heavy even a lightweight feels. In addition to an appropriate exercise regime, you must follow a well-balanced diet that includes proper amounts of protein, vitamins, and other nutrients. Getting enough of these crucial nutrients will help you achieve top results while boosting recovery, gaining strength, and building endurance. The easiest and most efficient way to achieve this is through high-quality supplementation. At Allmax, we provide a comprehensive collection of professional-grade workout supplements, including whey protein,  essential vitamins, and both weight loss and weight gain supplements. You can find the most refined protein supplements, and much more, on our website—allmaxnutrition.com.

References:

• Ratamess NA, Chiarello CM, Sacco AJ, Hoffman JR, Faigenbaum AD, Ross RE, Kang J. The effects of rest interval length manipulation of the first upper-body resistance exercise in sequence on acute performance of subsequent exercises in men and women. J Strength Cond Res. 2012 Nov;26(11):2929-38. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0b013e318270fcf0. PMID: 22964859.
• Gérard R, Gojon L, Decleve P, Van Cant J. The Effects of Eccentric Training on Biceps Femoris Architecture and Strength: A Systematic Review With Meta-Analysis. J Athl Train. 2020 May;55(5):501-514. doi: 10.4085/1062-6050-194-19. Epub 2020 Mar 27. PMID: 32216654; PMCID: PMC7249279.

• Yasuda Y, Kato Y, Sugimoto K, Tanaka S, Tsunoda N, Kumagawa D, Toyokuni Y, Kubota K, Inaba H. Muscles used for chest compression under static and transportation conditions. Prehosp Emerg Care. 2013 Apr-Jun;17(2):162-9. doi: 10.3109/10903127.2012.749964. Epub 2013 Jan 17. PMID: 23327531.
• Teschler M, Heimer M, Schmitz B, Kemmler W, Mooren FC. Four weeks of electromyostimulation improves muscle function and strength in sarcopenic patients: a three-arm parallel randomized trial. J Cachexia Sarcopenia Muscle. 2021 Aug;12(4):843-854. doi: 10.1002/jcsm.12717. Epub 2021 Jun 9. PMID: 34105256; PMCID: PMC8350212.