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

Start with 3 sets of 6 to 8 reps at a weight noticeably lighter than your regular curl, since the reduced leverage from the thick grip fatigues the forearm well before the biceps. Progress by adding a rep or two before adding weight, and expect slower load progression than a standard curl.

What can I use instead of a thick bar or Fat Gripz for this curl?

A towel wrapped once or twice around a regular barbell gets you most of the way there, or thick-handled dumbbells if your gym has them. Without any of those, a regular barbell curl with a deliberately hard grip squeeze still trains grip strength, just with less overload than a true thick bar.

What is the thick-bar curl good for, and when should you use a regular curl instead?

It's built for grip-focused training, forearm size, and crush strength that carries over to any lift where a thick or slippery bar comes up, more than pure biceps growth. Reach for a regular curl instead if grip fatigue is limiting your biceps work before the muscle itself is challenged, since the thick bar will only make that gap worse.

Intermediate

Thick-Bar Barbell Curl

Thickening the bar shifts a big share of the work onto the brachioradialis and the entire forearm because a wider grip cannot fully close. It is a favorite of grip specialists and armwrestlers who want thicker, stronger forearms alongside biceps size. Program it in place of a regular curl when grip is the priority, and expect to use less weight than usual.

Equipment: Barbell
Body part: Biceps, Forearms
Type: Strength
Browse by muscle: Brachioradialis
Browse by movement: Elbow Flexion

How to do it

1
Wrap Fat Gripz around a barbell or load a dedicated thick bar, then take a shoulder-width underhand grip.
2
Stand tall with the bar resting against your thighs, elbows pinned to your sides.
3
Squeeze the bar hard and curl it up by flexing the elbows, keeping the upper arms still.
4
Pause briefly at the top without letting the elbows drift forward.
5
Lower under control back to full extension, maintaining a crushing grip the whole way.
6
Breathe out as you curl up and in as you lower.

Tips

Grip the bar as hard as you can from the first rep; the forearm tension is the point.
Drop the load 20 to 30 percent versus your normal curl to keep clean form.
Do not swing or lean back; if you cannot control it, the bar is too heavy.

Variations

Common mistakes

The elbows drift forward at the top of the curl to eke out extra range, breaking the still upper-arm position the lift is built around.
Using a grip wider than shoulder width because the added bar thickness feels awkward defeats the reason to use a thick bar at all.
The wrists cock back to compensate for the bar's girth, taking tension off the crushing grip and putting it on the wrist joint instead.
Letting the same working weight carry over from a normal curl straight to the thick bar overloads a grip that hasn't adapted to the wider diameter yet.
The bar swings away from the thighs on the way up, using hip drive to help the arms instead of leaving the curl to the elbows alone.

Frequently asked

How many sets and reps of the thick-bar curl should you do when you are new to the exercise?: Start with 3 sets of 6 to 8 reps at a weight noticeably lighter than your regular curl, since the reduced leverage from the thick grip fatigues the forearm well before the biceps. Progress by adding a rep or two before adding weight, and expect slower load progression than a standard curl.
What can I use instead of a thick bar or Fat Gripz for this curl?: A towel wrapped once or twice around a regular barbell gets you most of the way there, or thick-handled dumbbells if your gym has them. Without any of those, a regular barbell curl with a deliberately hard grip squeeze still trains grip strength, just with less overload than a true thick bar.
What is the thick-bar curl good for, and when should you use a regular curl instead?: It's built for grip-focused training, forearm size, and crush strength that carries over to any lift where a thick or slippery bar comes up, more than pure biceps growth. Reach for a regular curl instead if grip fatigue is limiting your biceps work before the muscle itself is challenged, since the thick bar will only make that gap worse.

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