Dumbbell Standing Inner Biceps Curl (version 2)

How to do the Dumbbell Standing Inner Biceps Curl (version 2)

1. 1Stand tall with your feet shoulder-width apart and a dumbbell in each hand, arms hanging at your sides.
2. 2Rotate your wrists so your palms face forward (supinated grip) and let your hands turn slightly outward, away from your body.
3. 3Brace your core and pin your upper arms against your sides with your elbows pointing down and slightly out to the sides.
4. 4Curl both dumbbells up toward your shoulders, squeezing the biceps as your hands travel up and slightly inward.
5. 5Pause briefly at the top with your elbows fixed and the biceps fully contracted.
6. 6Lower the dumbbells under control back to the starting position until your arms are nearly straight.
7. 7Complete your reps, then set the dumbbells down with control.

Form tips

• Keep your elbows turned slightly outward throughout the set to bias the inner (short) head of the biceps.
• Move only at the elbows — keep your upper arms still and your torso upright so the biceps do the work.
• Lower the weight slowly (2–3 seconds) to keep tension on the muscle through the full range.
• Choose a weight you can curl with a full supinated grip; ego-lifting forces the elbows to drift and shifts work away from the inner biceps.

Common mistakes

• Swinging the torso or using momentum to heave the weight up, which steals tension from the biceps and strains the lower back.
• Letting the elbows drift forward in front of the body, which turns the curl into a partial front-raise and reduces biceps work.
• Not fully supinating the wrists, which lessens the inner-head emphasis this version is meant to create.
• Failing to straighten the arms at the bottom, cutting the range of motion and the muscle's time under tension.

Frequently asked questions