Lying Barbell High Bench Curl

Setup

1. 01Set a flat bench high enough that your arms hang straight down without the bar touching the floor.
2. 02Lie chest-down with the head past the end of the bench.
3. 03Grip the barbell underhand at shoulder width and let the arms hang fully extended.

Execution

1. 01Curl the bar up by bending the elbows, keeping the upper arms hanging vertical.
2. 02Continue until the biceps are fully contracted near the bench.
3. 03Squeeze at the top for a second.
4. 04Lower the bar all the way back to a dead hang under control.

Checkpoints

• -Chest stays glued to the bench with zero torso movement.
• -Upper arms hang straight down; the elbows do not swing forward.
• -Every rep starts from a complete dead-hang stretch.
• -The bar moves smoothly with no swinging or bouncing.

Common mistakes

• -Lifting the chest off the bench to heave the weight up.
• -Swinging the bar out of the bottom position.
• -Cutting the lowering phase short of full extension.
• -Using loads better suited to standing curls; this position is much stricter.