How can I increase bicep width?

Question

How can I increase bicep width?

I am happy with my bicep peak, but I am having trouble increasing the width of my biceps. My arms look rather big from the side but when you look at them head on they are quite narrow/skinny. I have heard that hammer curls improve width, but I haven't seen much of an improvement in the last couple of months.

Currently, I work arms once a week (as I do every muscle group) on Tuesdays. My routine usually consists of 3 bicep workouts followed by 3 tricep workouts. I don't have a set routine because I like to switch it up and hit different workouts each week. I will give a sample workout below, again, this is different each week.

Biceps:
  Warmup: Alternate dbell curls, 8 reps w/ light weight
    Alternate dbell curls,       4 x 8 (to failure)
    Alternate dbell hammercurls, 4 x 8 (to failure)
    Preacher curls,              4 x 8 (to failure)
Triceps:
  Warmup: 15 bench dips
    Rope Pulldowns,   4 x 10 (to failure)
    Skull Crushers,   4 x 8  (to failure)
    Tricep Kickbacks, 4 x 10 (to failure)

Note: When I am doing any excercise I make sure my form is always as good as possible and my reps are generally slow and controlled with an emphasis on negative resistance (i.e. letting the weight down slowly.

All sets are to failure because I am trying to build mass.

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Edit: Elaborating on the improvement I have seen in arm growth in general - About 3 months ago my arms measured around 15.5" and have increased to 16+ (They vary, sometimes up to 16.5 without a pump). My arms have been getting bigger, triceps and bicep peak are increasing, but bicep width remains stagnant.

Answer 1

Technically, only genetics can increase your width. In the sense that, though there are exercise that are geared towards stimulating certain fibers in the muscle to increase its size in said area, if your genetic code does not contain the 'sequence' for bicep width, then it won't come as you may hope.

I am of an athletic build and i can curl 50lbs, yet I do believe my biceps are scrawny and my arms are toothpicks. I too am lacking the 'width' you desire. So its best to just do the exercises that you know will grow your arms, but you can do little about how your muscles will shape up. These articles may help to provide some more insight into 'shaping' muscles vs. Genetic code

http://www.musclebuildingshortcuts.com/mind-strength/the-role-of-genetics-in-muscle-building-and-what-to-do-if-youre-a-hardgainer

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=3750561

Answer 2

I would have to disagree with lonecrusader1989's answer.

From the workout you've described you're only doing 3 bicep movements. In my opinion this doesn't seem enough, especially when preacher is focussing on the peak rather than width.

I would include some variation into your workout and include a standing barbell curl with a shoulder width grip. Narrowing your grip (Which is quite common when doing preacher curls) will concentrate on the peak of the muscle, rather than the width. I would also include include standing cable curls and chin ups (wide grip) to focus on the width you desire.

http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/finder/lookup/filter/muscle/id/15/muscle/biceps

Answer 3

I am an Personal trainer for several years in Europe.

Part of it is genes, and part is your workout routine.

Some people have more fast twitch muscle fibers, and some have more slow twitch muscle fibers. These can also vary between the upper and lower body. That said, you can increase your width of your biceps, but it will require much more effort than someone who maybe has better "genes".

A trick I do with many of my clients, is that if there is a certain body part that needs more work than another, I let them train that muscle 3 times a week.

And, I make an split program for that muscle. What I would call program A, and program B.

For example, with biceps, on program A I would focus of the peak, and on program B on the width.

You need to find the logic in what you are doing. The Biceps ( BI = 2) have two muscle heads, this means that with different angles, you can focus more on one side than the other.

If you lack width, you need to play with the holding width (pardon if my English is not perfect). Most of the time when people say they have an lack of width in their biceps, it is the inner biceps area that is not really devolved. I would then provide you with many exercises with wide grip and normal grip. Wide grip focuses more on the inner biceps, and normal grip on both. Also, a big mistake made by many people is not training the brachialis, which you can activate with a hammer curl for example.

Answer 4

It depends on your genetics and workout. You must train both bicep heads and brachialis muscle. Hidden muscle but it's really important for wider biceps.

Look into this https://biceptricep.com/how-to-get-wider-biceps-scientific-method/

Answer 5

change your routine every 6 to 10 weeks and work on progressive overload, you cant curl the same weight and expect the muscle to grow.. go to www.musclehack.com . you can thank me later. I know this is old but Im guessing your arms haven't improved much?