Grasp two moderately weighted dumbbells and lie back on a 30-45 degree incline bench. Allow the arms to hang downward from your shoulders with the wrists facing inward at the beginning of the movement. Hold the upper arms motionless throughout the set. Use biceps strength to curl the dumbbells directly forward and upward to shoulder level. Hold this peak contracted-position for a moment while intensely squeezing

your biceps and then slowly return to the starting position. It is effective to twist the dumbbells on the way up so that the thumbs rotate away from the body and then rotate towards the body on the way down.

(primary muscles: biceps, brachialis, and forearm flexors)

Shaun Karp is a certified personal trainer in Vancouver. For further information call his office at 604-420-7800.