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Exercises

Dumbbell arm exercises for biceps, triceps and forearms

Published October 19, 2026

The best dumbbell arm exercises are the curl and the hammer curl for the biceps and brachialis, the overhead extension, skullcrusher and kickback for the triceps, and the Zottman curl and farmer's walk for the forearms. A complete arm session uses one or two biceps moves, one or two triceps moves and one forearm move, 2 to 4 hard sets each, ending 0 to 2 reps short of failure. Give the triceps at least as many sets as the biceps, since it is the larger muscle.

  1. Dumbbell Curl Biceps
  2. Hammer Curl Biceps, Forearms
  3. Incline Dumbbell Curl Biceps
  4. Seated Dumbbell Overhead Triceps Extension Triceps
  5. Dumbbell Skullcrusher Triceps
  6. Triceps Kickback Triceps
  7. Single-Arm Dumbbell Floor Press Chest
  8. Zottman Curl Biceps, Forearms
  9. Farmer's Walk Forearms, Traps, Shoulders

Dumbbell arm exercises for biceps

The biceps bends the elbow and turns your palm up, so palms-up curls train it most. Use one standing curl and, if you have a bench, the incline curl for the stretched position; the concentration curl finishes the shortened end.

Biceps, the base curl

Dumbbell Curl

Biceps

If you learn one arm exercise with dumbbells, make it this one. Curling with your palms up makes the biceps the prime mover, and going one side at a time keeps the rest of your body honest.

How to do it

  1. Stand with a dumbbell hanging by each thigh, palms turned out to the front.
  2. Keep the elbow still and bend one arm until the dumbbell is close to your shoulder.
  3. Lower it the whole way down to a straight elbow.
  4. Do the same with the other arm and continue switching.

Cues

  • Still elbows
  • All the way down
  • No hip drive

Common mistakes

  • Throwing the weight up with a lean back: the set is over once you need it.
  • Half reps near the top: a curl starts from a straight arm.

Swap for: Cable Curl, EZ-Bar Curl

Build a session with Dumbbell Curl

Biceps from a stretch

Incline Dumbbell Curl

Biceps

Reclining puts your arms behind your body, so every rep starts with the biceps stretched, a position that standing curls never reach. Use a lighter pair than for standing curls.

How to do it

  1. Lie back on a bench tilted to about 45 degrees.
  2. Let your arms drop straight toward the floor, slightly behind your torso.
  3. Curl both dumbbells up, keeping your upper arms where they are.
  4. Lower them slowly until the arms are straight and stretched again.

Cues

  • Arms stay behind you
  • Slow down
  • Head on the pad

Common mistakes

  • Sitting up off the pad mid-set: stay reclined, or the stretch disappears.
  • Starting too heavy: drop a dumbbell size or two from your standing curl.

Swap for: Dumbbell Curl, Spider Curl

Build a session with Incline Dumbbell Curl

Biceps, strict and fully shortened

Concentration Curl

Biceps

With your elbow braced on your thigh, nothing but the biceps can move the weight, which makes this curl a clean way to finish an arm session.

How to do it

  1. Sit on a bench or chair with your feet wide and one dumbbell in hand.
  2. Rest the back of that arm against the inside of your thigh, arm straight down.
  3. Curl the dumbbell toward your shoulder and hold the squeeze for a second.
  4. Lower all the way, finish your reps, then do the other arm.

Cues

  • Arm locked to the leg
  • Pause up top
  • Straight at the bottom

Common mistakes

  • Pulling the elbow away from the thigh: it should stay in contact.
  • Leaning your torso back to help: keep your chest over the dumbbell.

Swap for: Spider Curl, Preacher Curl

Build a session with Concentration Curl

Dumbbell arm exercises for triceps

The triceps makes up about two thirds of the upper arm, so it deserves at least as many sets as the biceps. Pair one close-grip press with one or two extensions: the overhead extension for the long head and the skullcrusher or kickback for the rest of the range.

Triceps long head

Seated Dumbbell Overhead Triceps Extension

Triceps

Arms overhead is the position where the long head, the biggest of the three triceps heads, is most stretched. One dumbbell held in both hands is all you need.

How to do it

  1. Sit upright and hold one dumbbell by its top end with both hands, cupping the plate.
  2. Press it straight above your head.
  3. Bend your elbows and lower the dumbbell behind your neck as far as is comfortable.
  4. Straighten your arms to bring it overhead again.

Cues

  • Elbows point up
  • Deep behind the neck
  • Abs tight

Common mistakes

  • Flaring the elbows wide to get the weight up: keep them narrow.
  • Arching to finish the rep: brace or use a lighter dumbbell.

Swap for: Overhead Cable Triceps Extension, Dumbbell Skullcrusher

Build a session with Seated Dumbbell Overhead Triceps Extension

Triceps, heaviest extension

Dumbbell Skullcrusher

Triceps

Lying flat removes your lower back from the movement and lets the triceps handle more weight than overhead. Lowering the dumbbells beside your ears keeps it easy on the elbows.

How to do it

  1. Lie on a flat bench and press the dumbbells over your shoulders, palms in.
  2. Angle your upper arms back toward your head slightly and hold that angle.
  3. Bend at the elbows to lower the dumbbells next to your ears.
  4. Straighten your elbows to bring the dumbbells back up.

Cues

  • Upper arms fixed
  • To the ears
  • Control the bottom

Common mistakes

  • Pulling the dumbbells back over your head on each rep: only the elbows bend.
  • Grinding low reps: 10 to 20 per set is kinder to the elbows.

Swap for: Seated Dumbbell Overhead Triceps Extension, Triceps Kickback

Build a session with Dumbbell Skullcrusher

Triceps, straight-arm finish

Triceps Kickback

Triceps

The kickback is hardest with your arm straight, where overhead extensions get easy. A light dumbbell and a hold at the lockout is all it takes.

How to do it

  1. Lean forward with one hand braced on a bench or chair and your back flat.
  2. Bring the working upper arm in line with your torso, elbow bent at a right angle.
  3. Straighten the elbow until the dumbbell points behind you, and hold a second.
  4. Bend back to 90 degrees, upper arm still, and repeat.

Cues

  • Upper arm level
  • Pause straight
  • Light dumbbell

Common mistakes

  • Using the shoulder to swing the dumbbell up: lighten it.
  • Not fully straightening: lockout is the point of the exercise.

Swap for: Cable Triceps Kickback, Seated Dumbbell Overhead Triceps Extension

Build a session with Triceps Kickback

Triceps-heavy press, no bench

Single-Arm Dumbbell Floor Press

Chest

The floor stops your elbow partway down, so the press is mostly its top half, where the triceps does most of the work. One dumbbell at a time doubles what a light pair gives each arm.

How to do it

  1. Lie on the floor, knees bent, one dumbbell held straight up over your shoulder.
  2. Let it down until your upper arm settles on the floor, elbow tucked at about 45 degrees.
  3. Rest the elbow there for a moment.
  4. Press back up to a locked elbow. Finish the set, then switch arms.

Cues

  • Tucked elbow
  • Settle on the floor
  • Hard lockout

Common mistakes

  • Bouncing off the floor: pause, then press.
  • Flaring the elbow out to 90 degrees: it shifts the work to the shoulder.

Swap for: Flat Dumbbell Press, Close-Grip Push-Up

Build a session with Single-Arm Dumbbell Floor Press

Triceps-heavy press with a bench

Incline Dumbbell Squeeze Press

Chest

Pressing the dumbbells together keeps your elbows in, the dumbbell take on a close-grip bench press, and lets you load the triceps heavier than any extension.

How to do it

  1. Set a bench to a low incline and lie back with both dumbbells touching over your chest, palms in.
  2. Squeeze them together hard.
  3. Press up until your elbows lock, keeping the dumbbells in contact.
  4. Lower back to your chest, elbows grazing your ribs.

Cues

  • Dumbbells stay touching
  • Elbows in
  • Full lockout

Common mistakes

  • Letting the dumbbells separate: that turns it back into a chest press.
  • Stopping before lockout: finish every rep.

Swap for: Close-Grip Bench Press, Close-Grip Push-Up

Build a session with Incline Dumbbell Squeeze Press

Dumbbell exercises for forearms and arm thickness

The brachialis and brachioradialis sit between the biceps and the forearm and give the arm its width from the front. Palms-in and palms-down curls train them; a wrist curl and a heavy carry cover the rest of the forearm.

Brachialis and forearm

Hammer Curl

Biceps, Forearms

With your palms turned in, more of the load goes to the brachialis, which lies under the biceps and widens the arm, and to the forearm. It is the strongest curl for most people.

How to do it

  1. Hold the dumbbells by your legs with thumbs to the front.
  2. Bend both elbows and raise the dumbbells, knuckles facing out, until they are near your shoulders.
  3. Keep the wrists rigid and the elbows at your sides.
  4. Lower to full extension and go again.

Cues

  • Thumbs forward
  • Elbows parked
  • Rigid wrists

Common mistakes

  • Letting the elbows travel forward: that turns the curl into a shoulder raise.
  • Loosening your grip: hold the handle firmly for more forearm work.

Swap for: Alternating Hammer Curl, Cable Rope Hammer Curl

Build a session with Hammer Curl

Biceps and forearm in one

Zottman Curl

Biceps, Forearms

Up with palms up, down with palms down: the curl trains the biceps, and the slow lowering trains the brachioradialis and wrist extensors. It covers two muscles when time is short.

How to do it

  1. Hold the dumbbells at your sides with palms facing forward.
  2. Curl both up to shoulder height.
  3. Flip your hands so the palms face down.
  4. Lower over three seconds, then turn the palms up again for the next rep.

Cues

  • Turn at the top
  • Slow way down
  • Elbows still

Common mistakes

  • Lowering fast: the slow palms-down part is what trains the forearm.
  • Using your heaviest curl weight: the lowering limits the load, so go lighter.

Swap for: Hammer Curl, Reverse Curl

Build a session with Zottman Curl

Wrist extensors

Reverse Wrist Curl

Forearms

Curls work the front of the forearm, but the extensors on the back get almost nothing. A few sets of light reverse wrist curls fill that gap.

How to do it

  1. Sit with your forearms resting on your thighs, palms down, hands hanging past your knees.
  2. Let the dumbbells tip your knuckles down.
  3. Lift your knuckles up as high as they go, moving only at the wrist.
  4. Lower slowly and repeat.

Cues

  • Forearms stay down
  • Only the wrist moves
  • Smooth reps

Common mistakes

  • Lifting your forearms off your legs: keep them pinned.
  • Going heavy: this small muscle does best with 15 to 25 reps.

Swap for: Cable Wrist Extension, Zottman Curl

Build a session with Reverse Wrist Curl

Grip, traps and forearm flexors

Farmer's Walk

Forearms, Traps, Shoulders

Walking with heavy dumbbells trains your grip harder than any curl, and it works the traps and core too. It is the quickest way to build the inner forearm.

How to do it

  1. Lift the heaviest pair you can hold with a flat-back hinge.
  2. Stand tall with shoulders down and the dumbbells at your sides.
  3. Walk with short steps, holding the dumbbells still.
  4. Set them down the same way you picked them up.

Cues

  • Crush the handles
  • Tall posture
  • Short steps

Common mistakes

  • Rounding the shoulders forward: choose a pair you can carry upright.
  • Ending the walk before your grip is challenged: go until the handles start to slip.

Swap for: Dumbbell Suitcase Carry

Build a session with Farmer's Walk

Put them together: example sessions

Each session below picks from the exercises above for one situation, with the sets, reps, rest and RIR filled in. Open one in the session builder to change a pick, price it from a recent set, and add it to RIRLift.

Session 1

One pair of dumbbells, no bench, 30 minutes

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets24 a week
  • Per workout~20 min
  • EquipmentDumbbells

You train at home with one pair and a chair, and want both arms done in half an hour.

Without a bench, each session supersets a curl with a triceps move that also works standing or on the floor: the floor press for heavy triceps work, the overhead extension on a chair, the kickback braced on its seat. Supersetting opposite muscles saves time without hurting either one, since the biceps rests while the triceps works. A pair that does not get heavier calls for higher reps and sets taken to 0 to 1 RIR. Each session has 12 sets, 6 for each muscle.

Arms A
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
A1 Single-Arm Dumbbell Floor PressPer arm. Elbow tucked. 3 × 8–15 1 30 s
A2 Dumbbell CurlAlternate arms. 3 × 8–15 1 75 s
B1 Seated Dumbbell Overhead Triceps ExtensionOn a chair. 3 × 10–20 0 30 s
B2 Hammer CurlStrict. 3 × 10–20 0 75 s

Open Arms A in the session builder

Arms B
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
A1 Triceps KickbackPer arm. Hand on a chair. 3 × 12–20 0 30 s
A2 Zottman Curl3 s down, palms down. 3 × 8–15 1 75 s
B1 Seated Dumbbell Overhead Triceps ExtensionDeep stretch. 3 × 10–20 1 30 s
B2 Dumbbell Curl3 s down. 3 × 10–20 0 75 s

Open Arms B in the session builder

How to run it
Do Arms A and Arms B on two separate days each week. Go from the first exercise in a pair to the second with a short rest, then rest longer before the next round.
How to progress
Add reps until all sets reach the top of their range at the target RIR, then slow the lowering to three seconds. Buy a heavier pair when that also tops out.
Open in the session builder

Session 2

Bench and a full set of dumbbells, dedicated arm day

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts1× a week
  • Working sets19 a week
  • Per workout~45 min
  • EquipmentDumbbells, Incline Bench, Flat Bench

You have an adjustable bench and dumbbells in small jumps, and want one session a week built around arms.

A bench adds the moves that load each muscle at its longest: the incline curl for the biceps and the skullcrusher and squeeze press for the triceps. The session starts with the heavy squeeze press while you are fresh, then alternates between triceps and biceps so each gets rest. Presses stop at 1 to 2 RIR; isolation work goes to 0 to 1. That is 17 sets, about 8 for biceps and 9 for triceps, plus forearm work. If you also train push and pull days, that is a full week of arm work in one session.

Arm Day
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Incline Dumbbell Squeeze Press2 warm-up sets firstDumbbells touching. 3 × 6–12 1 2 min
Incline Dumbbell Curl45° bench. Arms behind you. 3 × 8–12 1 90 s
Dumbbell SkullcrusherTo the ears. 3 × 8–15 1 90 s
Concentration CurlPer arm. 3 × 10–15 0 1 min
Triceps KickbackPer arm. Hold the lockout. 3 × 12–20 0 1 min
Hammer Curl 2 × 8–12 1 1 min
Reverse Wrist Curl 2 × 15–25 0 45 s
How to run it
Do it once a week on its own day, two or more days away from your heaviest pressing and pulling.
How to progress
Once the squeeze press reaches 12 reps at 1 RIR, go up a dumbbell size. On the curls and extensions, add reps until you reach the top of each range, then add weight.
Open in the session builder

Session 3

New to lifting, two short sessions a week

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets16 a week
  • Per workout~15 min
  • EquipmentDumbbells

You are starting out with a few dumbbells and want to learn the basic arm moves before adding more.

A beginner grows from fewer exercises done well, so each session has only three: one biceps curl, one triceps move and one forearm move, learned at 2 RIR so form holds on every rep. Sets are moderate, 8 per session, and rest is generous. The farmer's walk is in because it teaches you to hold heavy weight, which helps with everything else.

Session 1
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Dumbbell CurlAlternate arms. 3 × 10–15 2 75 s
Seated Dumbbell Overhead Triceps ExtensionOne dumbbell, both hands. 3 × 10–15 2 75 s
Farmer's WalkReps are steps. 2 × 20–30 2 90 s

Open Session 1 in the session builder

Session 2
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Hammer Curl 3 × 10–15 2 75 s
Triceps KickbackPer arm. 3 × 10–15 2 1 min
Reverse Wrist Curl 2 × 15–20 2 45 s

Open Session 2 in the session builder

How to run it
Do Session 1 and Session 2 twice a week each, alternating, with a day off between. Use a weight you could lift for two more reps at the end of every set.
How to progress
Add reps each session. When all sets hit the top of the range at 2 RIR, go up the smallest dumbbell step. After 6 to 8 weeks, move to 1 RIR or to one of the other plans.
Open in the session builder

Make it fit you

Questions

Which dumbbell exercise is best for arms?

No single one covers the whole arm. If you had to pick, the hammer curl does the most for the front of the arm and forearm, and the overhead extension does the most for the triceps. Do both and you have trained most of your arm.

Can I build arms with just dumbbells?

Yes. Dumbbells cover every arm movement: curls with three grips, extensions overhead, lying and bent over, close-grip presses and carries. As long as you take your sets close to failure and add reps or weight over time, your arms will grow. The limit is how heavy your dumbbells go.

What are the 5 best arm exercises with dumbbells?

The incline curl, the hammer curl, the overhead triceps extension, the skullcrusher and the farmer's walk. That covers the biceps, the brachialis, the triceps in two positions and the forearms.

Are 4 exercises enough for arm day?

Yes: two for biceps and two for triceps, 3 sets each, gives you 6 hard sets per muscle in one session. Do that twice a week, or add a forearm exercise and more sets if arms are a single weekly session.

How heavy should dumbbells be for arm exercises?

Heavy enough that you finish each set with 0 to 2 reps left in the rep range. That is usually lighter than people expect: 10 to 25 lb for curls and extensions for most lifters, less for kickbacks and wrist curls, much more for carries.

How often should I train arms with dumbbells?

Two sessions a week, 6 to 10 hard sets per muscle each time, works for most people. If you also do pushing and pulling, one arm session a week is often enough.