The Dumbbell Curl is a beginner-friendly dumbbell strength exercise that targets the biceps. Here's how to do it right — and what to stop doing.
Primary musclesBiceps
Secondary muscles—
EquipmentDumbbell
LevelBeginner
TypeStrength
3D demo in the EGON app
01 Execution
How to do the Dumbbell Curl
Stand tall with a dumbbell in each hand at your sides, palms facing forward.
Set your feet shoulder-width apart, brace your core, and pull your shoulders back and down.
Curl both dumbbells up toward your shoulders by bending at the elbows, keeping the upper arms pinned to your sides.
Squeeze the biceps hard at the top with the dumbbells close to your shoulders for a brief pause.
Lower the dumbbells slowly to full arm extension over 2 to 3 seconds.
Reset at the bottom with the arms straight and the shoulders set, then repeat for reps.
02 The payoff
Why it earns its spot
Builds biceps size and arm strength with a simple, scalable lift.
Trains both arms independently to prevent left-right strength gaps.
Works at any level with any pair of dumbbells, anywhere.
03 Don't do this
Common mistakes
Swinging the torso back to throw the dumbbells up, which removes the biceps from the lift.
Letting the elbows drift forward on the way up, turning the curl into a partial front raise.
Cutting the range short at the bottom by never fully straightening the arms between reps.
Dropping the dumbbells fast on the way down and skipping the slow lowering phase where most growth lives.
EGON Put it on record
Track it in EGON.
Log every set of the Dumbbell Curl, get your PRs detected automatically, earn aura for the work — and climb five leagues of statues, from Stone to Ego.
