Seated Cable Curl

How to Perform the Seated Cable Curl

Position a flat bench or adjustable seat in front of a low cable pulley and attach a straight bar or EZ bar handle.
Sit on the bench facing the cable machine with your feet flat on the floor.
Grasp the handle with an underhand (supinated) grip at shoulder width, arms fully extended toward the pulley.
Keeping your upper arms stationary and elbows at your sides, curl the handle upward toward your shoulders.
Squeeze your biceps at the top of the movement for a one-second hold.
Slowly lower the handle back to the starting position, fully extending your arms while maintaining tension.
Repeat for the desired number of repetitions without swinging or using momentum.

Swinging the torso to generate momentum

Keep your back straight and torso stationary; the seated position should help, but focus on only moving at the elbow joint.

Letting the elbows drift forward during the curl

Pin your elbows to your sides throughout the movement to keep the work in the biceps.

Using too fast a tempo on the lowering phase

Control the eccentric (lowering) portion for 2-3 seconds to maximize bicep tension and muscle fiber recruitment.

✓Constant cable tension provides superior muscle stimulation compared to free-weight curls.
✓Seated position eliminates cheating and momentum for stricter isolation.
✓Easy to adjust weight incrementally for progressive overload.

●Sit upright with good posture to maximize bicep engagement.
●Try different handle attachments (straight bar, EZ bar, rope) to vary the stimulus.
●Focus on the squeeze at the top and the stretch at the bottom for full range of motion.

Strength

4-5 sets of 3-5 reps at 80-90% 1RM

Hypertrophy

3-4 sets of 8-12 reps at 65-75% 1RM

Endurance

2-3 sets of 15-20 reps at 50-60% 1RM

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