Dépense estimée selon votre poids
Mouvement d'isolation · 3 s par répétition
| Répétitions | Dépense estimée |
|---|---|
| 1 | 0,23 kcal |
| 10 | 2,3 kcal |
| 20 | 4,6 kcal |
| 50 | 11,5 kcal |
| 100 | 23,0 kcal |
Estimation à partir des équivalents métaboliques (MET) du Compendium of Physical Activities. La charge, le tempo et la durée des repos font varier le résultat du simple au double : à lire comme un ordre de grandeur, pas comme une mesure.
What the dumbbell curl actually trains
The dumbbell curl bends the elbow against a free weight. It's an isolation exercise: one joint moves, and the rest of the body just anchors you.
Three muscles share the work. The biceps brachii, with its two heads (short and long). Underneath it, the brachialis, which works no matter how your hand is turned. Then the brachioradialis, heavily involved in a hammer grip.
- Biceps brachii: elbow flexion and supination
- Brachialis: pure flexion, active on every grip
- Brachioradialis: dominant with a neutral grip
- Forearms and core: keeping the weight steady
How to perform a dumbbell biceps curl correctly
Stand with your feet hip-width apart, two dumbbells at your sides. Elbows tucked against your ribs, shoulders down, back neutral: that's the starting position.
Lift the weight by bending the elbow, without letting the shoulder drift forward. Finish the rep in full supination (palm facing up). That final bit of rotation puts the biceps in its strongest contraction. Half a second at the top, then three seconds to lower.
The lowering phase counts as much as the lift. Plenty of people just drop the weight and throw away half the muscular work. Stay in control until the elbow is almost fully extended.
In the gym, nine out of ten people stuck on curls aren't short on strength: they go too heavy and compensate with the back.
Alternating, seated or standing dumbbell curls
Alternating dumbbell curl
One arm lifts while the other stays down. Time under tension goes up and you focus better on each arm. One arm weaker than the other? This is the variation I'd point you to.
Seated dumbbell curl
Sitting on an upright bench, dumbbells in hand, your hips are locked in. No way to drive the weight up with your legs. The seated curl is therefore the most honest way to test your real working load.
Incline dumbbell curl, on an incline bench
Bench set between 45 and 60 degrees, arms hanging behind the line of your body. The long head of the biceps starts pre-stretched, which makes the exercise harder with less weight. The same bench settings work for the incline dumbbell press, which makes it easy to run the two back to back. For a full breakdown of angles and variations, see our page on the incline curl.
Dumbbell curl: supinated or hammer grip
These two grips don't replace each other. Supination targets the biceps, while a neutral grip shifts the load toward the forearm.
| Criteria | Supinated | Hammer grip |
|---|---|---|
| Main muscle | Biceps | Brachioradialis |
| Load you can handle | Moderate | +10 to 20% |
| Wrist stress | Moderate | Low |
| Builds arm thickness | Yes | Yes |
| Suits sensitive wrists | No | Yes |
The hammer curl also works standing or on an incline. Rotate the two grips across the month: supinated early in the cycle, hammer after that.
Load, sets and reps
For the biceps, the curl responds to medium to long sets. Three to four sets of 8 to 12 curl reps, with 60 to 90 seconds of rest, cover most of what you need.
A rough load benchmark: a male lifter after a year of consistent training often handles 12 to 16 kg per arm (about 26 to 35 lb) for 8 strict reps. An experienced female lifter is frequently between 6 and 10 kg. These are ballpark figures, not targets.
- Beginner: 2 sets of 12, technique before load
- Intermediate: 3 to 4 sets of 8 to 12
- Advanced: add one long set at the end of the session
Don't automatically chase heavy weights. On an isolation exercise, two extra kilos always cost you range of motion.
Common mistakes to fix
An elbow that drifts forward turns the curl into a shoulder movement. Keep it fixed. Only the forearm should move.
Swinging your torso is just a way to launch the weight: cut the load by 20% and redo the set seated. Finally, cutting the rep short at the bottom limits tension on the long head.
Fitting curls into a workout
Put curls at the end of the session, after back or pulling work. The biceps are already warm and you won't compromise your heavy lifts. Twice a week is enough for most people.
Planning exercise order, load progression and set tracking by hand takes time. MUSCU builds the schedule from your profile and films every variation in the catalogue, including the ones described here; the progress tracking features show how your loads move week after week.
One last note on wording: a curl with dumbbells always means arm work. The leg curl targets the hamstrings and has nothing to do with this exercise.