EZ-Bar Curl
Biceps mass
How to do it well
The set-up and the rep in full, then the cues the app shows on the exercise card — the short version, for the moment you are standing in front of the bar.
Set-up
Hold an EZ-bar on the angled grips with the palms facing forward and slightly in, hands about shoulder width. Stand tall with the elbows at your sides and the arms straight.
The rep
Keeping the elbows pinned to your sides, curl the bar up towards the shoulders by bending only at the elbow. Squeeze the biceps hard at the top without letting the elbows drift forward, then lower slowly to straight arms. Breathe out on the way up.
On the exercise card
- No swinging
What goes wrong, and the fix
| What goes wrong | The fix |
|---|---|
| Swinging the body to lift the bar | If the hips or back are moving, the weight is too heavy. Stand with your back against a wall if you need to. |
| Elbows drifting forward | That brings the shoulders into it. Keep the elbows at your sides throughout. |
| Cutting the bottom of the rep short | Lower all the way to straight arms, every rep. |
| Dropping the bar fast | Take two or three seconds to lower it. |
Make it easier, or harder
- Easier
- A lighter load, or a cable curl.
- Harder
- A slower lowering, a pause halfway up, or a preacher curl, which removes any swing.
How Train Smart prescribes it
The sets and reps below are the authored starting point. The actual weight you see is calculated from your own last top set and the week you are in within your four-week block.
It is in the bodybuilding program for biceps size, on the shoulders and arms day, at four sets of ten. Many people find the angled grip easier on the wrists than a straight bar, which suits the higher-volume work.
| Program | Session | Sets × reps | Load |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bodybuilding | Shoulders + Arms | 4 × 10 | Moderate |
What it trains, and who trains it
- Muscles worked
- Biceps
- Region
- Upper body
- Prescribed in
- bodybuilding
If you cannot do this one
Rack taken, kit missing, or it does not suit you. These are the swaps the app offers, matched by movement pattern and body region — each with the reason it is a fair substitute.
| Alternative | Why it works as a swap |
|---|---|
| DB Hammer Curl | Brachialis + forearm thickness |
| Incline DB Curl | Long-head stretch for a peak |
| Cable Curl | Constant-tension finisher |
| Preacher Curl Machine | Machine: strict biceps isolation, no cheat |
| Spider Curl | Strict bench-supported biceps isolation |
| Concentration Curl | Seated single-arm biceps peak |
This exercise, in a program that knows why it is there
Train Smart puts this movement in the right session, at the right point in your block, at a weight calculated for you — and swaps it automatically if you do not have the kit.
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