Best Bicep Finisher: Sarcoplasmic PUMP
Garage Strength
How do you get the best Bicep gainz?!
You are fatigued heading into the gym. You have smashed your legs all week. Squats have gone well, your gains have continued throughout your training, you have been eating clean and your goals are lining up well. You don’t want to miss a day at the gym but you want to listen to your body while still having fun in the gym. Maybe it’s time to smash some bize and trize? Maybe it’s time to get the craziest pump you have ever chased?!?! Find out how to salvage a session at the gym with a sweet pump session finisher today!
Squats for Arm Size?!?!
Many people forget that squats are one of the best ways to increase muscle mass. It’s an incredibly challenging full-body movement that uses hundreds of muscles throughout the full range of motion. Squats help increase strength in a multitude of ways. There is the neurological firing that enhances motor unit recruitment, there is the hormonal response that squats trigger to help with recovery and there is also some Golgi tendon organ desensitization.
Squats do indeed help with arms size BUT, the main reason they have helped me gain size on my biceps lately has been the break they provide me from my squat sessions. Five days a week I have been smashing big squats to try and hit a lifetime PR of 600lbs ass to grass. To aid in recovery, both mental and physical, my Friday’s have simply been a bize and trize slam sesh.
THE PUMP
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This past week I decided to bring back one of my favorite bicep finishers of all time. When I think of a finisher, my main goal is to achieve an incredible sarcoplasmic PUMP.
Typically, my arm session will be based around some compound movements, pushing me to the verge of failure but without actually failing. I will hammer a system similar to this:
1A) bench 5 x 12
1B) Pull-ups 5 x 12
60 seconds rest
Many athletes and bodybuilders have asked for examples of my own personal arm based training. That’s why I created Bize and Trize 1 and 2! I threw together a ton of our crazy movements along with the freaky rep schemes and goals that run through my mind in training and have shared it with you here!
This will ensue until the sets are complete and I move onto the next pairing. The next pairing is typically a slightly easier compound press with a moderately difficult compound pulling motion.
2A) DB Incline 5 x 17
2B) Barbell chest row 5 x 17
60 seconds rest
After I finish the two pairings, I like to give myself some recovery. Usually about 7-10 minutes setting up my finisher, bullshitting with the weightlifters and mentally preparing for 5-7 minutes of hell. The 5-7 minutes of work contributes incredibly to growing my arms.
Because I have spent some time early in my session pushing some strength gains, trying to hit a 10-12RM on the bench press, just over 350lbs, I have stimulated my satellite cells. Most coaches do not believe that sarcoplasmic hypertrophy can lead to strength gains BUT that is where my approach differs.
The satellite cells are prepared to work and the last 10 minutes of my session are devoted to achieving a massive pump by bringing a ton of extracellular water into my biceps. My hope is that as my cell membrane stretches, satellite cells are activated to protect the muscle membrane. I do this by using the following movements.
3A) Simple Barbell Bicep Curl 4 x 17-30 reps
3B) Banded KB Curls Hold Isometric at top 4 x 17+ reps
Rest 30 seconds
I like to use the simple barbell curl to pre-exhaust the biceps and bring in a bit more water to the cells. When I hit the banded curls, there is a significant amount of pulsation on the bicep and forearm muscles. These pulses lead to great recruitment and a tremendous amount of fatigue. By throwing in the isometric hold at the top of the lift, there is even greater recruitment that leads to impressive growth.
This finisher has added ¾ of an inch PUMP in a matter of 10 minutes. That pump leads to growth over time as long as my post-workout nutrition is on point and my general recovery is prioritized.
By stimulating the nervous system and satellite cells early on in the training session, I prepare my CNS to operate as effectively as possible. As the workout progresses, I focus on the big goals at hand. That big goal is entirely based around the last 10 minutes of training. Embracing the sarcoplasmic PUMP is what can lead to massive SIZE and STRENGTH! The isometric contraction of 2-3 seconds is a final nail on the coffin for growth.
Hammer out this finisher and comment below with the size gains you captured from this incredible ten minute finisher!
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Dane Miller
Dane Miller is the owner and founder of Garage Strength Sports Performance. He works with a select handful of elite athletes building comprehensive programs for strength and sports performance. Several times a year he leads a seminar for coaches, trainers, and athletes.