Bicep curls for OAC

[irongymnast]

Would bicep curls with weights help towards the OAC/OAP ?

If yes, how much weight should I put on? Should I put on the needed weight it takes me to complete a max of 5reps?

[John Dalton]

I think weighted chin-ups will be your weapon of choice coz the lats will be the main muscle in the OACU. Get you 3RM weighted chin for an additional 75% BW and work the hell outta your grip.

[Evilllamas]

weights are never the answer! (in a dumbell style)

I've got allot closer to ones with different pull up variations:

Uneven chin ups- one hand about 60cm below bar

chin ups where one hand has only pinky finger over bar

chin ups where one arm is totally straight, out to the side of you, and hand is over bar in a fist

chin ups where you hang on to your forearm

[WitnessTheFitness]

Those two responses are spot on. Bicep curls are better than nothing for training the OAC, but the biceps are only one part in the puzzle for performing a OAC, and should never be your primary exercise. Weighted chin ups, and or assisted one arm chin ups should be your main focus.

[Daniel Burnham]

I agree that doing just bicep curls will probably not get you a OAC. However if you are weak specifically in the bicep, then curls when used as an assistance exercise will definitely help.

Generally when I do assistance exercises I do them in the 7-10 range with 2-4 sets depending on how hard they are. I generally go pretty light on the first two sets then may do a few more reps and weight in the last set. I haven't gotten my OAC yet but am getting pretty close. I usually use weighted chins as the primary exercise. Right now I can do a few negatives slowly but haven't been able to perform the concentric movement yet.

[Joshua Naterman]

You guys are all right, the biceps curls are not a big part of OAC.

In fact I have noticed that the lack of any direct biceps curling in my routine may have been partially responsible for my current arm strain, despite the fact that I have gotten quite a bit stronger in my OAC work. I got hurt during some extraordinarily hard and sustained eccentric work (fighting off an arm bar from a guy my size) though I didn't notice it for a few days.

Anyways, I want to point out that OAC work by itself won't keep your elbow flexion as strong as it needs to be, and this suggests that the biceps are simply not all that important for OAC which makes a lot of sense. They are probably not ever a limiting factor, so biceps curls are a good idea but are probably not going to make a difference in your OAC progress. They WILL make a difference in other areas, but probably not OAC. The weighted chins and, when appropriate, assisted OAC work are going to be what matter.