The Dumbbell Incline 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 Incline Curl
Set a bench to about a 60 degree incline and sit back with a dumbbell hanging from each hand.
Let the arms fully extend straight down, palms facing forward, and pull the shoulder blades back into the bench.
Keep the elbows pinned at your sides and resist letting them swing forward as you start the rep.
Curl both dumbbells up by bending at the elbow only, squeezing the biceps as the weights rise.
Stop the curl just shy of the elbows traveling forward, then squeeze hard for a brief pause at the top.
Lower the dumbbells under control over 2 to 3 seconds back to the fully stretched bottom position.
02 The payoff
Why it earns its spot
Builds the long head of the biceps for visible peak development.
Loads the biceps through a deep stretch for hypertrophy stimulus.
Removes momentum cheating through the seated, anchored position.
03 Don't do this
Common mistakes
Letting the elbows drift forward at the top, which removes the long-head stretch the lift is designed for.
Rolling the shoulders forward off the bench, swapping biceps work for front-shoulder strain.
Rushing the lower portion and skipping the stretched bottom where most of the growth comes from.
Going too heavy, which forces a swinging cheat curl and loses the strict isolation.
EGON Put it on record
Track it in EGON.
Log every set of the Dumbbell Incline Curl, get your PRs detected automatically, earn aura for the work — and climb five leagues of statues, from Stone to Ego.
