# my arm hurts when doing curls



## jjpeters4 (Apr 27, 2010)

my forearm hurts when curling heavy weight, mostly when doing heavy barbell curls, its feels like my arm is gonna break in half, i have a big frame and i'm 6' 235 at about 12% bodyfat, could it be a lack of some kind of nutrient? oh its mainly my right arm


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## GearsMcGilf (Apr 27, 2010)

Give it a rest.  Prolly tendonitis.  Give it some time off to heal.  And, since it's the righty, try to employ more LHJO while you're laying off the curls or a coupla weeks.


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## GFR (Apr 27, 2010)

jjpeters4 said:


> *my arm hurts when doing curls*


Stop doing curls.


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## theCaptn' (Apr 27, 2010)

jjpeters4 said:


> my forearm hurts when curling heavy weight, mostly when doing heavy barbell curls, its feels like my arm is gonna break in half, i have a big frame and i'm 6' 235 at about 12% bodyfat, could it be a lack of some kind of nutrient? oh its mainly my right arm


 


GearsMcGilf said:


> Give it a rest. Prolly tendonitis. Give it some time off to heal. And, since it's the righty, try to employ more LHJO while you're laying off the curls or a coupla weeks.


 


GeorgeForemanRules said:


> Stop doing curls.


 
Ive had this, tendonitis is what it is. I dont use a straight bar anymore, just aggrevates it. Try an easy curl instead, and definately keep up the LHJO


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## juggernaut (Apr 28, 2010)

I will only do arm work during contest prep (5-6 sets maximum) and very, very minimal (like 3 sets max) in my offseason. My arms grow like weeds and I'm certain some of it is genetic, but I get tendonitis too. So by backing off and letting the arms get the share of work from pullups, deads, benches and presses, they will grow regardless. All too often many individuals will do too much arm work.


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## Zaphod (Apr 28, 2010)

Ice the shit out of it to the point it hurts from the cold.  Seriously.  Also get a tennis elbow strap.  Ice it every day and give the curls a break for a couple of weeks.


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## juggernaut (Apr 29, 2010)

and dont freak thinking your arms will shrink. Very rarely do I give my clients any REAL arm work and their arms still manage to grow, because of the above mentioned exercises.


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## FMJ (Apr 29, 2010)

juggernaut said:


> and dont freak thinking your arms will shrink. Very rarely do I give my clients any REAL arm work and their arms still manage to grow, because of the above mentioned exercises.


 
I agree with this. But if you simply MUST do arm work, find something that will hit it differently. Try doing chin ups. I had the same issue while doing skull crushers. I switched to tri extensions and even though similiar, the change in the angle allows me to do them just as heavy and pain free.


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## sassy69 (Apr 29, 2010)

The primary thing w/ bis & tris is getting a good contraction of the muscle w/ full ROM. I've got throbbing tendonitis in both wrists, forearms & elbows. 10 yrs ago I was doign 45 lb DB curls, and these days I can't handle more the 30-35.  My "genetic gift" is my bi peaks but conversely, my triceps suck (and look that much smaller because of my better biceps). 

I tend to do bis after back & tris after chest - i.e. its already being worked , so I don't need to do a lot of accessory work specific to those muscle groups. My workouts consist of:

Bis:
super of ezbar curls (for same reason as above w/ straight bars) + DB hammer curls - the angle doesn't hurt as much as std curls
-- for ezbar curls, if I can't go heavy, I can increase volume with something like 21's instead of heavier full ROM sets.
seated full ROM DB curls - because it hurts, at least seated I can hold elbows close and focus more on the ROM than the weight.

Tris:
- tri dips or skull crushers + close grip press if I can handle the pain. 

If not:
- super - cable tri pressdowns + cable OH tri extensions
---- here again, if you can't go heavy, you can do the full extension, hold it for a count and do a slow negative (i.e. time under tension aka TUT is the focus vs flapping out heavy sets)
DB kickbacks, again focusing on the extension.


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## ceazur (Apr 29, 2010)

I suggest taking Ibuprofen for it. Tendonitis is usually accompanied by inflammation. So it will help.


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## MyK (Apr 29, 2010)

sassy69 said:


> The primary thing w/ bis & tris is getting a good contraction of the muscle w/ full ROM. I've got throbbing tendonitis in both wrists, forearms & elbows. 10 yrs ago I was doign 45 lb DB curls, and these days I can't handle more the 30-35. My "genetic gift" is my bi peaks but conversely, my triceps suck (and look that much smaller because of my better biceps).
> 
> I tend to do bis after back & tris after chest - i.e. its already being worked , so I don't need to do a lot of accessory work specific to those muscle groups. My workouts consist of:
> 
> ...


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## HeavyBomber (Apr 30, 2010)

ceazur said:


> I suggest taking Ibuprofen for it. Tendonitis is usually accompanied by inflammation. So it will help.



Yep, Aleve works great too.


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## sassy69 (Apr 30, 2010)

MyK 3.0 said:


>



That only works for tri contraction if you're long enough. Otherwise you run the risk of just shortening what you are trying to grow.


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## MyK (Apr 30, 2010)

sassy69 said:


> That only works for tri contraction if you're long enough. Otherwise you run the risk of just shortening what you are trying to grow.


 

and DB kickbacks are only good for using as an excuse to stick your ass out at the entire gym....

let me know if you need a spotter.....


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## jjpeters4 (Apr 30, 2010)

thanks for the help guys, i did heavy curls with the preacher bar the last time, and it helped alot, i do the barbell looking for thickness, so I'll go back to it as soon as the pain goes down alittle.


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## ffstink (Jul 15, 2011)

Tendinitis. And remember, when you feel like it is healed and you can return to what you used to do without pain, you are probably only 50% healed. Take it slow or it will return. Been battling this for a while now


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## SloppyJ (Jul 15, 2011)

Ice bath then a hot water bath. Trust. It works wonders.


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## apex1 (Jul 15, 2011)

SloppyJ said:


> Ice bath then a hot water bath. Trust. It works wonders.


That way you're clean after the mess (LHJO).


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## sassy69 (Jul 15, 2011)

MyK 3.0 said:


> and DB kickbacks are only good for using as an excuse to stick your ass out at the entire gym....
> 
> let me know if you need a spotter.....



Oh damn! Missed opportunity. I always save my deadlifts for that. And good mornings! Hot Damn. Yea dat's my ass baby!

I also like to pull out my preacher curl so I layout my D-cup boob job on the pad and squeeze 'em together for a good E approximation while I do my curls. Of course I only use the preacher curl bench that faces the mirror.




Dude seriously? Did you have an ex-girlfriend do that to you to make you jealous or something?


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## SloppyJ (Jul 15, 2011)

SloppyJ said:


> Ice bath then a hot water bath. Trust. It works wonders.


 
Let me clear that up, excuse me. Just put your arms in the ice bath and hot water bath. Not your entire body. 



Go on sassy....... I liked where that was going


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