Doing a dumbbell arm workout at home can be simple and effective. Notice I didn’t say easy, but simple. You just need a pair of dumbbells, some lighter weights and maybe some heavier weights.
You don’t need fancy machines or big equipment that takes up a lot of floor space. Regardless of fitness level, you can get a lot done with even just one set of dumbbells.
With a few weights and a lot of focus, you can develop aesthetically pleasing and strong arms right from home.
Read on for 10 of the best dumbbell arm exercises.
Biceps and Triceps Exercises
Note that I am referring to true arm work, which involves the biceps brachii and triceps brachii. Most of these movements are biceps curls, and triceps extensions. They will work the forearm muscles, but are primarily for the upper arms. Additionally, this is not a full upper body workout. I am not referring to all the major upper body muscle groups, so I won’t be listing my favorite back chest or shoulder exercises. Bench press, pulldowns, etc, will all be covered in another post. This is just arms.
Ok grab your dumbbells! Here we go!
Top 5 Dumbbell Biceps Exercises
- Dumbbell Biceps Curl – A classic exercise for the biceps. Hold a dumbbell in each hand and curl the weights towards your shoulders.
- Hammer Curl – Similar to bicep curls, but with your palms facing each other, working the brachialis muscle and forearms more.
- Concentration Curl – Seated with your elbow resting on your thigh, curl one dumbbell at a time to focus deeply on the biceps.
- Incline Dumbbell Curl – Lie back on an incline bench and curl the dumbbells. This variation adds a deeper stretch to the biceps.
- Zottman Curl – Curl the dumbbells up with a standard bicep curl, then rotate your wrists to a pronated grip (palms down) at the top before lowering. This targets both the biceps and forearms.
Top 5 Dumbbell Triceps Exercises
- Overhead Dumbbell Triceps Extension – Hold a dumbbell overhead with both hands and lower it behind your head, extending it back up to work the triceps.
- Dumbbell Triceps Kickback – Bend at the hips and extend your arm behind you while holding a dumbbell to isolate the triceps.
- Close-Grip Dumbbell Press – Similar to a chest press, but with your hands close together to engage the triceps more.
- Dumbbell Skull Crushers – Lie flat on a bench and lower the dumbbells towards your forehead, keeping your elbows steady to focus on the triceps.
- Dumbbell Tate Press – Lying on a bench, hold the dumbbells with your palms facing forward and lower them towards your chest, then press up.
Biceps Exercises:
- Dumbbell Biceps Curl:
- How to do it: Stand with a dumbbell in each hand, arms fully extended, and palms facing forward. Keep your elbows close to your torso and curl the dumbbells up towards your shoulders. Squeeze your biceps at the top, then slowly lower the weights back down to the starting position. If you’re standing, keep your feet shoulder-width apart and knees not locked out, slight bend.
- As you do curls, think about using your latissimus dorsi (back) and other back/chest musculature to stabilize your shoulder joint and shoulder blades. In other words, don’t be swinging your shoulder all over the places to get the dumbbell moved.
- (There’s a joke meme that says, “any exercise can be a lower back exercise if you do it wrong enough!” 😂 don’t make this a lower back exercise! Learn how to do it well before you try to break the rules).
- Muscles targeted: This exercise isolates the biceps brachii, the large muscle in the front of the upper arm, and engages the brachialis and brachioradialis for stabilization.
- Hammer Curl:
- How to do it: Hold the dumbbells at your sides with your palms facing your torso. Curl the weights as you would in a regular curl but keep your palms in a neutral position (facing each other) throughout the movement. Slowly lower the dumbbells to the starting position. Same standing positioning as I mentioned above where you can and hip with or feet hip-width.
- Muscles targeted: This movement emphasizes the brachialis, a muscle underneath the biceps, helping to add thickness to the arm. It also engages the brachioradialis in the forearm.
- Concentration Curl:
- How to do it: Sit on a bench with your legs spread apart. Hold a dumbbell in one hand and rest your elbow on the inside of your thigh. Curl the dumbbell towards your shoulder, concentrating on squeezing the biceps at the top of the movement, and lower it slowly. If you stabilize well, you can really see how this is considered one of the most common isolation exercises.
- Muscles targeted: This highly focused curl isolates the biceps brachii, minimizing the involvement of other muscles to help build peak contraction strength and enhance bicep definition.
- Incline Dumbbell Curl:
- How to do it: Sit on an incline bench with your back fully supported and hold a dumbbell in each hand, allowing your arms to hang straight down. Curl the weights towards your shoulders, keeping your elbows tight to your body, and slowly lower them back down.
- Muscles targeted: This exercise stretches the long head of the biceps, allowing for a greater range of motion and engagement. The incline position puts extra tension on the biceps throughout the curl.
- Zottman Curl:
- How to do it: Perform a regular bicep curl by lifting the weights with your palms facing up. At the top, rotate your wrists so your palms face down, and slowly lower the weights in this pronated grip. Reverse the rotation on the way up.
- Muscles targeted: This curl variation targets both the biceps and the forearms (specifically the brachioradialis), offering a balanced arm workout. The downward portion of the lift strengthens the forearms.
Triceps Exercises:
- Overhead Dumbbell Triceps Extension:
- How to do it: Stand or sit and hold one dumbbell with both hands overhead. Keep your elbows close to your ears, and lower the weight behind your head by bending your elbows. Extend your arms back up to the starting position.
- Muscles targeted: This exercise targets all three heads of the triceps (long, medial, and lateral), with a particular focus on the long head due to the overhead position.
- Dumbbell Triceps Kickback:
- How to do it: Bend at your hips with your torso nearly parallel to the ground and hold a dumbbell in one hand. Keeping your upper arm stationary and close to your torso, extend your forearm backward until your arm is fully straight. Slowly return to the starting position.
- Muscles targeted: This movement isolates the triceps, especially the lateral head, and works on elbow extension, which is the primary function of the triceps.
- Close-Grip Dumbbell Press:
- How to do it: Lie on a flat bench holding two dumbbells close together directly over your chest. Lower the weights towards your chest, keeping your elbows tucked in, and then press them back up.
- Muscles targeted: The close grip emphasizes the triceps more than a regular chest press, particularly engaging the medial and lateral heads, while also working the chest and shoulders as secondary muscles.
- Dumbbell Skull Crushers:
- How to do it: Lie flat on a bench with a dumbbell in each hand. Extend your arms straight up toward the ceiling, then slowly lower the dumbbells towards your forehead by bending your elbows. Extend your arms back up to complete the rep. Your elbows will bend approximately in a 90-degree angle, give or take a few.
- Muscles targeted: This exercise targets the triceps brachii, especially the long head, and is excellent for building mass and strength in the upper arms.
- Dumbbell Tate Press:
- How to do it: Lie on a flat bench with a dumbbell in each hand, palms facing forward. Bend your elbows and lower the dumbbells towards your chest while keeping them angled inward. Push them back up to the starting position.
- Muscles targeted: The Tate Press is an effective isolation exercise for the triceps, emphasizing the medial head and improving overall arm definition.
How to Incorporate These Dumbbell Arm Exercises
First things first, aim for great mind-muscle connection and proper form. With arm work, you’ll sometimes hear people say, “make light weight feel heavy.” This means that you’re focused on the muscular connection and recruiting as many motor units (muscle fibers and they nerves that innervate them) as possible. The lifters who get the best arm workouts are really great at focusing on the muscles, not the movement.
Next, remember to still add in other appropriate strength training for your arms. As you can, add in body weight exercises, resistance bands, and barbell work and machines.
Remember also to get a full upper body strength program. Add in your chest, back and shoulder work to get your other upper-body muscles. Chest muscles and back muscles need love too, especially if you’re trying to fully develop your upper body.
Dumbbell Arm Workout for Home Summary
There you have it! Some of the best dumbbell exercises for a well-rounded workout for your arms, hitting the major muscles and offering a variety of movements to build both strength and muscle tone.
If you are looking for specific shoulder exercises like the shoulder press, front raise, overhead press, lateral raise, check out this blog post for dumbbell shoulder workouts at home.
Finally, don’t forget to also work lower body. For the best case muscular development and fitness, you’ll want to work your whole body. Here’s a great leg and glute workout that you can do with your home gym.
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About the author
Kathryn Alexander is a strength coach and personal trainer in Austin, Texas. She loves hiking, college football, and the feel of a perfectly knurled barbell. Read more about Kathryn here.
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