Resistance bands are an exceptional training accessory. You can even complete full workouts just using resistance bands, this makes them perfect for using at home or in the gym.
We regularly use resistance bands in our training, they are great for adding constant tension to lifts, really burning the muscles.
First of all.. We need to warm up!
Warming Up
One of the most essential parts of working out is the warmup. Preventing injury, strengthening tendons and activating your muscles prior to working out. It can only take a couple of minutes, but you really should start warming up if you’re not already.
For these warmups you should be using a low resistance band, preferably our 30lb resistance band.
Vertical Extensions
Take the band, one hand either side,
- Hold your arms out in front of you
- Using your back, pull the band outwards
- Return to the starting position and repeat 10 times
You can adjust the position of your hands to increase / decrease the tension provided.
Shoulder Circles
Grabbing the band, one hand at either side:
- Stretch your arms out to the side, trying to keep them straight,
- Keeping it stretched, move your arms above your head and over,
- Slowly push your arms back as far as you feel comfortable to go,
- Remember to try to keep tension in the band at all times,
- Return back to the starting position and repeat 10 times,
Face Pulls
Hook the resistance band onto the wall or around something around head height. Grab the band, one hand either side:
- Take a few steps backwards to increase tension,
- Pull the band towards you keeping arms at shoulder height
- Return to the starting position whilst keeping tension on the band
- Repeat the motion 10 times,
Top 5 Best Resistance Band Exercises For Big Arms
Are you ready to build some serious arm muscle? If you're up to the challenge then these exercises will certainly help.
1. Wrist Curls
Starting out with our favorite. There are so many variations of wrist curls you can perform with resistance bands.
These are excellent for strengthening wrists, forearms and building muscle. Wrist strength is actually key to a huge number of sports (so underrated!).
To perform this exercise you should simply hook one end of the resistance band under your foot whilst grabbing the other end in your hand,
- Tuck your elbow into your side, holding your arm horizontally,
- Tilt your wrist down, then slowly curl up the band using your wrist,
- Perform this motion 10 times per hand, for 3 sets,
The key to this exercise is keeping a nice tension on the band at all times. Really helping to strengthen your wrists whilst burning up your forearms!
Another variation of this curl is performed by placing the band across the palm of your hand, palm facing upwards.
Once in position you should perform the same motion ensuring a good range of motion in the wrist. This variation will help improve wrist mobility too! The more you perform this exercise the more you should notice improved wrist flexibility and mobility.
2. Hammer Curls
One of the major keys for huge forearms. Hammer curls are an excellent exercise and they can be performed in a variety of ways. Also using different equipment, dumbbells, cable machines and of course, resistance bands.
For this we would recommend using a heavier resistance band, this is to really help develop muscle and strengthen your arms.
There are a few different ways you can perform hammer curls with resistance bands.
Hook the band under both of your feet, shoulder width apart, then grab one side of the resistance band with each hand, near the top making sure to tuck your elbows into your sides,
This should create a rectangle shape, try locking in your back and legs, ensuring a good posture. This will help with the movement and allow you to focus more on the forearms and biceps.
- Keeping your elbows by your side, curl the resistance band up,
- With a slight twist outwards at the top, this helps further engage the biceps,
- Release back down to the starting position and repeat 10 - 14 times,
- Perform 3 - 5 sets with around 90 seconds rest in-between sets,
Another way to perform this exercise is to do it one arm at a time, this allows you to focus more on the curl and increase the weight (resistance). The beauty of performing these one handed also allows you to ‘cheat’, using your body to assist curl the band and achieve higher levels of muscle fatigue.
You want to hook one end of the resistance band onto the floor, this can be done by attaching it to the rack or using weights. This way you will be able to exert much more force without it pulling out from under your feet.
Standing with the resistance band near the big toe of your lifting arm, grab the band and lock into your position with the elbow tucked in,
- Take a breath and aggressively curl the weight up,
- You want to achieve a high range of motion with a squeeze at the top,
- Perform this movement for up to 8 reps per arm,
- 3 sets with around 2 minutes rest in between sets,
This movement focuses more on building strength as the previous movement focuses more on muscle growth.
3. Biceps Curl
The final movement focuses on the biceps, the unbeatable bicep curl. The go to movement for bicep size and strength. Resistance bands are perfect for providing a good time under tension throughout the movement, this helps further breakdown the muscle enhancing growth.
Starting off you should be standing, arms by your sides and palms facing forwards:
- Place one foot on the middle of each band
- Hands hooked through the bands,
- Keep your elbows pinned to your sides,
- Bring your hands up towards your chest, stop before touching,
- Slowly release the hands back down,
There we go, that's a bicep curl with your resistance bands. Depending on your height and strength you can adjust the amount of resistance you need, either provide more or less slack on the band, or simply move up a level.
We would recommend performing at least 15 repetitions per set for around 3 - 5 sets in total.
4. Triceps Extension
This exercise is best performed with a lower resistance band. It can get hard real fast, especially if you’re on the taller side.
The triceps actually make up ⅔ of the muscle in your arm, the average muscle size is twice the size of your bicep! If you really want big arms, you need to focus on the triceps.
To start off, try performing this movement with one resistance band. On your preferred side, stand on the resistance band, towards the back of your foot. Take your hand behind you and grab the resistance band.
- Bring your hand up towards your head, your arm should create an upside down L
- This is the starting position for the extension
- Slowly extend your arm, raising up from the elbow,
- You should feel a flex in the triceps,
- Release back down to the L shape,
- Perform 10 repetitions per side for 3 - 5 sets
5. Banded Press Ups
Finishing off with a bang. This is a great exercise for building strength and triceps size.
Press ups have long been one of the go to exercises for home training.
Adding a resistance band into this exercise makes them tougher, helping to build more strength and muscle.
Take the resistance band behind your mid back, hold one end of the band with each hand. You want to leave a little bit of slack, this is so when you perform the movement, you're not trapped on the ground!
- Position the band as above,
- Tuck your elbows by your side,
- Press up, fully extending the arms,
- Release back down just before your chest touches the ground,
- Press back up again,
- Perform this as many times as possible
If you’re completing more than 20 reps per set, you should look at increasing the tension of the band or even moving up to a thicker band.
There we go. That’s our top 5 exercises for building big arms with resistance bands. If you’ve got any other exercises you think we’ve missed, let us know in the comments!
