Zottman Curl

A standing dumbbell curl that lifts with a supinated grip, rotates to palms-down at the top, and lowers in pronation to combine biceps work with a forearm-heavy eccentric.

How to do it

1. Stand with your feet about hip-width apart, arms extended at your sides, and a dumbbell in each hand with the palms facing forward.
2. Keep your upper arms beside your ribs and curl both dumbbells toward your shoulders without swinging the torso.
3. At the top, keep the elbows bent and rotate the forearms until the palms face down.
4. Lower the dumbbells slowly with the pronated grip until the arms are straight.
5. Turn the palms forward again at the bottom and repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Tips

• Use less weight than for a standard dumbbell curl; the palms-down lowering phase is usually the limiting part.
• Rotate through the forearms while keeping the wrists straight rather than bending them around the handles.
• Keep the elbows close to the ribs and avoid turning the curl into a shoulder swing.

Muscles

Primary: Biceps

Secondary: Brachialis, Brachioradialis, Forearm extensors