How many sets and reps of the drag curl should you do when you are new to the exercise?

Load noticeably lighter than your regular curl, maybe 60 to 70 percent of it, and work up to 3 sets of 8 to 10 reps once you can keep the bar dragging against your body the whole way.

What can replace the drag curl if you don't have a barbell?

The cable drag curl trains the same elbows-back path with a smoother line of pull, or the smith machine drag curl offers a guided version if free-weight balance is the issue.

What is the drag curl good for, and when should you pick a different curl?

It builds the biceps long head and peak through a shoulder-extended range that standard curls skip. It's a poor choice for someone still learning basic curl mechanics, since keeping the bar tight to the body takes more coordination than a standard curl.

Intermediate

Drag Curl

Instead of arcing the bar away from you, you drag it straight up your body while your elbows slide behind the torso. Pulling the elbows back puts the shoulder into extension, which loads the biceps long head and gives a different feel from a standard curl. It is a strict accessory that rewards control over heavy weight.

Equipment: Barbell
Body part: Biceps
Type: Strength
Browse by muscle: Biceps Brachii Long Head
Browse by movement: Elbow Flexion

How to do it

1
Hold a barbell with an underhand, shoulder-width grip, arms hanging.
2
Brace your core and keep the bar close to your torso.
3
Curl the bar upward while pulling your elbows back behind your body.
4
Let the bar drag up along your stomach and chest rather than swinging out.
5
Squeeze at the top, then lower the bar back down the same path.
6
Exhale as you drag up, inhale as you lower.

Tips

Think about leading with the elbows moving back, not the hands moving up.
Keep the bar in light contact with your body throughout the drag.
Load lighter than a standard curl; the range and leverage are less forgiving.

Variations

Common mistakes

The bar drifts an inch or two off the body as it rises, which turns a drag curl back into a normal arcing curl and erases the entire point of the exercise.
The shoulders round forward and up to help wrench the elbows back, recruiting the traps and rear delts instead of isolating the long head.
Leaning the torso back to create clearance for the bar lets the lower back do part of the pull that the elbows should be doing.
The wrists curl into flexion to help scoop the bar up the body instead of staying locked, adding wrist strain to a movement that shouldn't need it.
Once the weight matches a normal curl's load, the short, elbows-back range and awkward leverage turn the last reps into a wrestling match instead of a clean pull.

Frequently asked

How many sets and reps of the drag curl should you do when you are new to the exercise?: Load noticeably lighter than your regular curl, maybe 60 to 70 percent of it, and work up to 3 sets of 8 to 10 reps once you can keep the bar dragging against your body the whole way.
What can replace the drag curl if you don't have a barbell?: The cable drag curl trains the same elbows-back path with a smoother line of pull, or the smith machine drag curl offers a guided version if free-weight balance is the issue.
What is the drag curl good for, and when should you pick a different curl?: It builds the biceps long head and peak through a shoulder-extended range that standard curls skip. It's a poor choice for someone still learning basic curl mechanics, since keeping the bar tight to the body takes more coordination than a standard curl.

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