Reduce Your Risk of a Devastating Biceps Tear by Avoiding These Exercises

When I'm about to put someone through a workout for the first time, be they a beginner or someone with previous training experience, I'll often ask, "What do you think is the most important consideration when training?"

The question tends to stump them, even if they've had previous training experience. It's not a question they were expecting, and there are countless possible answers.

If you were to walk into a gym and begin asking people the same question, and give them time to think about it, you might get answers like "training hard," "feeling the muscle that you're working," "eating plenty of protein," and "don't eat beans before a squat session."

All worthy answers - but all wrong.

The most important consideration by far when training is safety.

Because it's hard to make progress when you're sidelined by injury.

One of the most dreaded injuries is the distal biceps tendon rupture. This is when the biceps tendon crossing your elbow joint tears, and your biceps roll up your arm like a shutter. It's a nasty injury that requires surgical reattachment and around 4-5 months of healing time.

Often, the muscle will never look the same as it did before the injury, and your upper arms will be somewhat asymmetrical.

Obviously, it's a scenario you want to avoid at all costs.

Today I'm going to discuss some popular exercises that greatly increase your risk of a biceps tear. All involve subjecting the biceps to inordinate strain when it is in the supinated (palms up) position. It's a position that doesn't play well with excessive weight or sudden jolts.