Incline Hammer Curls
Incline Hammer Curls have you lean back on an angled bench and curl a pair of dumbbells straight up while keeping your palms facing each other the whole rep. That neutral grip shifts some of the work from the biceps onto the brachialis, a muscle underneath the biceps that adds thickness to the upper arm, plus the forearms. The incline position stretches the arm further at the bottom than a standing hammer curl does, which makes the same weight feel noticeably harder.
Why it works
Keeping your palms facing each other instead of turning them up changes which muscles do most of the lifting. A standard curl relies heavily on the biceps, which twists the forearm as it flexes the elbow. A neutral grip removes that twisting job, so more of the load shifts to the brachialis and to the forearm muscles that don't care which way your palm faces. Leaning back on the incline bench also pulls your shoulder behind your hip, which puts your arm in a longer starting position than it would have standing straight up, adding a deeper stretch before the curl even begins.
Set up
- Set an incline bench to a moderate angle, around 45 to 60 degrees.
- Sit back with your shoulders and upper back against the pad, holding a dumbbell in each hand.
- Let your arms hang straight down, slightly behind your torso, with palms facing each other.
How to do it
- Curl both dumbbells straight up toward your shoulders, keeping your palms facing each other the whole way.
- Keep your upper arms still, without letting the elbows drift forward.
- Squeeze briefly at the top of the curl.
- Lower the dumbbells slowly back to a full arm extension before starting the next rep.
- Repeat for the target number of reps.
Form cues
- Keep your palms facing each other the entire rep.
- Let your upper arms stay still, curl only from the elbow.
- Keep your shoulders pinned to the backrest.
- Lower all the way to a full stretch each rep.
Breathing: Exhale as you curl the dumbbells up, inhale as you lower them back down.
Common mistakes
Letting the wrists rotate so the palms turn upward during the curl.
Fix: Keep a firm neutral grip with your palms facing each other for the whole set, or the exercise turns into a standard curl and loses its point.
Letting the elbows drift forward as the dumbbells rise.
Fix: Keep your upper arms fixed against your sides through the whole rep; forward drift shortens the range and lets the shoulders take over.
Using a bench angle so shallow it barely differs from standing.
Fix: Set the bench closer to 45 to 60 degrees so your arms actually hang behind your torso for a real stretch.
How to program it
- Two or three sets of 10 to 12 reps is a solid range for this arm exercise.
- Twice a week works fine if you give it a day or two of rest between sessions, since it's a light, single-joint movement.
- Use lighter dumbbells than your standard curl the first time you try this angle, since the added stretch catches most people off guard.
- Pairs well with a triceps exercise on an arm-focused day, working opposite muscle groups back to back.
Safety notes
- Set the bench angle gradually rather than jumping to the steepest setting, since a deep stretch under load feels different than it looks.
- Ease off the weight if you feel a sharp pull at the front of the shoulder instead of a stretch through the arm.
Exercise profile
- Force
- Pull
- Mechanics
- Isolation
- Category
- Strength
Frequently asked questions
How many reps should I do for incline hammer curls?
Two or three sets of 10 to 12 reps is a good starting point. Use less weight than your usual curl, since the deeper stretch on an incline bench makes it feel harder.
What's the difference between this and a regular incline dumbbell curl?
The neutral grip in a hammer curl keeps your palms facing each other the whole rep, which shifts more work onto the brachialis and forearms instead of the biceps alone.
What can I do without an incline bench?
Standing hammer curls train the same neutral-grip pattern without needing a bench.
Why do my forearms get tired faster with this variation?
The neutral grip recruits your forearm muscles more directly than a standard curl does, so grip fatigue often shows up before your biceps feel fully worked.