So i have been on cut for like 8 months at this point and i have been progressing very litte (I have tried a lot of different styles PPL, bro splits and experimenting with weight and reps)

However, there’s something i have noticed is that in bicep curls, i will not progress until i forcefully add weight and perform like 4-5 reps for a high no. Of sets (4-5), i am usually able to get them up-to 10-12 reps after 3-4 weeks (i follow 6 day PPL)

However, i have also read that doing heavy sets of accessories can damage your joints, i do barbell and dumbbell curls and never felt like there was any tension on my joints, and my back remains quite straight and elbows locked

So should i stop doing these kind of curls and wait until i can bulk? Or should i keep doing this if it works for me

I have also been in the gym for 8 months if that is of any use

Edit; not in the gym but have been hitting the gym ⚆ _ ⚆

  • Anony MooseEnglish
    3•1 year ago

    I’m only an beginner-intermediate lifter, so take all of what I’m saying with a grain of salt.

    Ultimately your gains will depend on Time under tension, assuming you’re getting enough rest and nutrition, especially protein. You don’t necessarily have to keep adding weights since there’s other variables you can adjust like rest time, reps, speed (slower), etc. I can’t stress rest and nutrition enough, any time I plateau it’s usually because I’m not getting enough protein. Also make sure not to overwork your muscles, they need rest to recover and grow.

    If you’re focusing on strength (and not hypertrophy or endurance), then you could add other exercises which work your biceps. For instance, deadlifts put a lot of load on your biceps and will shoot up your strength much more when used alongside your curls. To put it bluntly, with an example you’re often going to get more bicep gains from a 200lb deadlift than a 30lb curl (MASSIVELY oversimplifying here!). Of course, this only applies if you have already trained extensively on these lifts, they can lead to injury otherwise.

    Additionally, there are often bottlenecks to a particular muscle’s growth if its supporting muscles, tendons, etc. aren’t strong enough. Focusing on the supporting muscles around your biceps should help unlock some gains too.

    Another thing to consider is the principle of progressive adaptation. If you’re consistently going to the gym and focusing on perfect form, you should always progressively increase your load to prevent your muscles from hitting a wall. This does not mean you have to keep increasing weights, rather adding different movements, playing with rest time in between sets, etc. If you hit a hard wall, don’t shy away from reducing your weights and starting a ramp up again, this lets your overworked tendons rest, any weak spots to catch up and builds momentum.

    Hope this helps!