How to Do Spider Curl: Muscles Worked & Proper Form

Muscles Worked in Spider Curls

Primary Muscles Worked

• Biceps

Secondary Muscles Worked

• Forearm Flexors

How to Spider Curl

1. Lie down on your chest and stomach on a 45-degree bench, holding a pair of dumbbells in an underhand (supinated) grip.
2. With your upper arms vertical, lift the dumbbells with control, by flexing your elbows.
3. Don’t let your upper arms travel back or forwards during the curl. Keep the movement to your forearms only.
4. Reverse the movement and lower the dumbbells back to the starting position.

Commentary

For the best training effect on your arm flexors (i.e., biceps), you should probably maintain a strict form, where your muscles are under constant tension. To accomplish this, you could try to avoid letting your elbows travel backward during the lift, and also keep tension in the muscles in the bottom position.