SportStarter: Exercise spotlight: Bicep curl 28’s

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Hey there!

Today I thought I'd shine a spotlight on an exercise that I was one of the first to popularise. I call them bicep curl 28's, and as the name states they train your biceps. Here's a video featuring a younger version of me.

Perform 7 partial reps in the bottom half of the movement
Perform 7 full-range of motion reps
Perform a 7-second pause (isometric hold) in the mid-range position
Perform 7 partial reps at the top half of the movement to finish

About Bicep Curl 28's

You might have heard of the 21's method for bicep curls. You perform 7 reps at the bottom range of a curl, 7 at the top, and then 7 full reps to finish. It's pretty exhausting!

When I came up with 28's back in about 2012, it was because these 21's just didn't make sense to me. Don't get me wrong they're hard, but as an exercise they don't make much sense mechanically.

21's as they are traditionally performed are in the wrong order - it would surely make sense to perform the exercise in the hardest range of motion FIRST before finishing with the easiest (by this time your biceps are pretty fried anyway). This way it becomes a little like a drop-set, as the muscles become fatigued further in each change in movement.

That's exactly what 28's are - 21's done in a better order.

But where does the extra 7 come from? It's from the extra nastiness I threw in there. The 7 second isometric hold before the partial top reps to finish. Again, this also makes good sense mechanically.

Try 28's in your next arm workout, or just to get a quick biceps pump before the beach, night club, Vegas, Vegas, or Vegas……

If you have any questions about this exercise, or your own training then feel free to reach out as always.

Gareth