Weight lifters: What to do about sore biceps?

davemunger
davemunger Posts: 1,139 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I'm a runner who is new to weight training and am looking to build upper body strength, but I have a persistent sore right bicep which affects me when I do rows or curls. Is it best to just avoid those exercises until it gets better, or to reduce the weight and keep working? Any other advice?

Replies

  • astronomicals
    astronomicals Posts: 1,537 Member
    dont work through pain/injuries. especially when its non-symmetrical so you know its very unlikely is DOMS
  • jzammetti
    jzammetti Posts: 1,956 Member
    dont work through pain/injuries. especially when its non-symmetrical so you know its very unlikely is DOMS

    I agree.

    Stay off those exercises and focus on full body/full motion type exercises like squats (definitely can) and deadlifts (if you can).
  • davemunger
    davemunger Posts: 1,139 Member
    Thanks guys! Much appreciated advice. Fortunately it only seems to affect two of the exercises I do, so it shouldn't be too hard to stay away from them.
  • Sarge516
    Sarge516 Posts: 256 Member
    If it is still sore after 72 hours, you may have an injury.

    If it is only sore the next day (DOMS) then you're likely OK. Is this a sharp pain that comes on suddenly, or a delayed onset that is more "achy?"

    Very hard to diagnose over the web (keep that in mind), but it COULD be that those exercises (row and curl) are just the two that cause the most micro trauma to the muscle, which is a good thing. In other words, those exercises could just be the most effective for you.
  • froeschli
    froeschli Posts: 1,292 Member
    could be a pulled muscle too. make sure your lifts are controlled, not jerky.
    DOMS is supposed to grow less as you adjust to the exercise. and a proper warm up may even prevent it (or so i've read. i'm still not past it...)
  • jimbo2180
    jimbo2180 Posts: 66 Member
    Slow and controlled curls are critical to good form. look for 6 secs per rep. Go easy and start with a low weight and see how you go on.
  • davemunger
    davemunger Posts: 1,139 Member
    It's not just sore the next day. I work out every other day and it is sore as I do the exercise and continues to get worse as I do more reps. I always do quite a bit of warm up -- usually running plus some dynamic stretching. So sounds like laying off for a while is what I need to do. I guess I should also think about some kind of medical consultation if it doesn't get better...
  • Skip2mylou
    Skip2mylou Posts: 7 Member
    Dont focus so much on biceps exercises, its such a small muscle (only 1/3 of the arm). The biceps can easily be stimulated while training other huge and massive muscle groups such as the back, the chest or the shoulders. F. example; strongmen dosent focus on biceps when they are training because it get stimulated as a co-muscle when they are working out the upper body, and they still have big arms.
    And when you are training your biceps, keep the reps high, like 15-20. Its more of a endurance and hypertrophy muscle, like the abs and the hamstrings. That way you can focus on form and technique, and get a good pump :)
  • davemunger
    davemunger Posts: 1,139 Member
    Dont focus so much on biceps exercises, its such a small muscle (only 1/3 of the arm). The biceps can easily be stimulated while training other huge and massive muscle groups such as the back, the chest or the shoulders. F. example; strongmen dosent focus on biceps when they are training because it get stimulated as a co-muscle when they are working out the upper body, and they still have big arms.
    And when you are training your biceps, keep the reps high, like 15-20. Its more of a endurance and hypertrophy muscle, like the abs and the hamstrings. That way you can focus on form and technique, and get a good pump :)

    That is good to know. As I mentioned, there are only two exercises that seem to hurt the bicep, the curl and the row. Sounds like the bicep curl is not such a big deal but I would like to figure out a replacement for the row if possible. I am doing dips which seem to work similar muscles. One possibility may be to use a different grip on the row (currently I use a wide-grip bar). Any other ideas?

Categories