8 Best Bodyweight Bicep Exercises

If you're travelling or prefer a no-equipment workout, then we have a few bodyweight biceps exercises to help grow your arms.

Sure, doing regular dumbbell curls at the gym is always a good option but you don't always have time to go to the gym, and you might not have any dumbbells at home.

Today, we're going to provide you with a variety of biceps exercises that require just your body weight.

This way, you can get those big guns you’ve been dreaming of, all without spending hours at the gym doing biceps curls. Let’s talk bodyweight biceps exercises. 

 

Best Bodyweight Bicep Exercises

Without further ado, let's get to it and take a look at some of the best bodyweight biceps exercises that you can do at home.

 

1. Reverse Hand Push-ups

If you thought that diamond push-ups were difficult to do, just wait until you do reverse and push-ups. Reverse hand push-ups, while still exercising all of the traditional muscles of other push-up exercises, place even more emphasis on your biceps, more so than the diamond push-up.

Follow the steps listed below to do the reverse hand push up.

1. Once again, start in a regular push-up position.
2. However, instead of your hands facing forward, you're going to rotate your arms outward until your fingers are pointing towards your toes.
3. To maintain a good level of comfort, you can move your hands a bit closer to your feet, but they should stay straight.
4. While engaging your core, slowly lower yourself down to the ground. However, keep in mind that this movement is quite difficult for the risks and requires great flexibility, so start slow.
5. Hold this position for a couple of seconds and then push yourself back up to the starting position, aiming to do up to 10 repetitions and three sets.

Related Post: Guide to Lateral Head Tricep Exercises

 

2. Pull-ups

Yes, of course, we could not leave the pull-up out of the equation.

Now, you do need some kind of equipment to do a pull up, although it is strictly speaking a bodyweight exercise.

Here's how to do pull-ups to best target your biceps.

1. Hold the pull-up bar with your hands at shoulder width and your palms facing forward.
2. Lift up your legs so that you're hanging on the bar, while keeping your core engaged.
3. Move your upper back muscles closer together and pull your elbows down to pull yourself up until your chin passes the bar.
4. Hold this position for a couple of seconds and then gradually lower yourself back down.
5. Aim to do up to 10 repetitions and three sets.

Related Post: See The Complete Breakdown Of Muscles Worked By Pull Ups

 

3. Chin-ups

Here we have another bodyweight biceps exercise, with this one being closely related to the one above, the pull-up.

However, the difference here is that instead of your hands facing forward, your hands face you. This puts more emphasis on your biceps than a regular pull up.

Here's how to do a chin-up to best target your biceps.

1. Hold on to the pull-up bar with your hands a bit closer than shoulder width, and your palms facing you.
2. Lift up your legs so that you are hanging on the bar, while keeping your core engaged.
3. Tighten your biceps and pull your elbows down to pull yourself up until your chin passes the bar.
4. Try to hold this position for a couple of seconds, and then gradually lower yourself back down.
5. Aim to do up to three sets of 10 repetitions.

Related Post: Long Head Bicep Exercises

 

4. Side Plank

Now, while it may seem like the side plank is only ideal for targeting your core, this is actually not the case.

By doing a side plank, and by using only one arm to support yourself, you force your bicep to work overtime.

Let's go over a step by step tutorial on how to do a side plank.

1. Start by taking on the regular push up position.
2. Now, you're going to turn your body to one side, raising up your arm until you're pointing straight upwards.
3. While doing this, keep both arms aligned, straight, and virtually perpendicular to the ground.
4. Maintain this position for at least 30 seconds, and aim to repeat this at least two or three times per side.

 

5. Plank Up-Down

Next on the list, another plank variation, we have the plank up-down. It might sound like a odd exercise for biceps, but it's a great one for training a variety of muscles in your upper body, including your biceps. If you do it quickly enough, it also serves as a great cardiovascular workout.

Below, we've listed the steps on how to do a plank up-down.

1. Start by entering the plank position, starting with the lower plan position, which means that all of your weight should be on your forearms.
2. You're now going to straighten one of your arms so that your palm is flat on the ground.
3. Now, do the same with your other arm, until you are in standard push up position.
4. Moving in the other direction, now you're going to lower an arm until your forearm is on the floor, and do the same with the other.
5. Move through this cycle at least 12 times, and aim to do up to three sets.

 

6. Diamond Push-ups

While it is true that regular push-ups are best for targeting your shoulders, chest, and abs, you can make a few small changes to target your biceps.

What we're talking about here are diamond push-ups. Diamond push-ups get their name from the fact that your hands take the shape of a diamond while you are doing these push-ups, and this act forces your biceps to work harder.

Here's how to do the diamond push-up.

1. Start with a regular push-up position, which means that your back should be parallel to the ground and flat.
2. While keeping your arms straight, place your hands together and then rotate them inwards roughly 45° and extend your thumbs. Allow your pointer fingers and your thumbs to touch each other, therefore effectively forming a triangle or diamond in the open space between your hands.
3. Before lowering yourself, engage your core, and then slowly really lower yourself down to the ground until your chest is close to the ground, but not touching it.
4. Hold this position for a couple of seconds before returning to the starting position, and aim to do roughly 10 repetitions and three sets.

Related Post: 6 of the Best Bodyweight Shoulder Exercises

 

5. One Arm Push-ups

If it seems like these exercises are getting harder and harder, then you're totally right. What we're talking about here is the one arm push-up, and this is an absolutely excellent one for your biceps. Your biceps have to do a lot of work and compensate for the missing support, because you're only using one hand.

Here's how to do a one arm push-up.

1. Again, just like with the other exercises, start in the standard push-up position.
2. However, instead of leaving two hands on the ground, you're only going to leave one on the ground, while putting the other behind your back.
3. While making sure that your core is engaged, slowly lower yourself down until your chest is almost at the ground. Make sure that your body stays parallel to the ground and that your back stays straight. Of course, in the beginning, you might not be able to do very many of these.
4. Try to hold this position for a couple of seconds and aim to do at least 8 repetitions and three sets for each arm.

8. Wall Handstand

Although doing a handstand might not be the first exercise you think of as far as training your biceps is concerned, it's actually quite a good one. Of course, you might not have the best balance, which means that using a wall to support yourself is recommended.

Here's how to do a wall handstand.

1. While standing a few feet from the wall, bend at your waist and put your hands on the ground roughly shoulder width.
2. Raise both of your feet and put them on the wall, and then walk up the wall until your arms are straight above your head with your toes touching the wall. You should be virtually fully extended.
3. Aim to spend as long in this position as you can.

Related Post: Bodyweight Back Exercises for Strength and Stability

 

Final Thoughts on Bodyweight Biceps Exercises

As you can see, there are plenty of great bodyweight bicep exercises out there. Which ones you do simply depend on what feels the most comfortable for you.

All of that said, if you have a pull up bar at your disposal, doing both chin ups and pull-ups is something we strongly recommend, as they're excellent for training biceps and the muscles in your upper back.

Plus, you can always look to pick up objects to use them as a dumbbell for bicep exercises such as a backpack. Although, these aren't technically bodyweight exercises.