ilovebenching
Member
1. Give arms their own training day
"As much as they get a good workout from compound exercises like presses and rows, I feel that if you truly want your arms to grow, they need direct attention without being fatigued first," he explains. "I rotate between biceps and triceps exercises, one after the other, during an arm session. I prefer to let one muscle group rest after an exercise [by switching back and forth] in order to get the best from it on the next."
2. Treat your arms like everything else you train
"Including at least one failure set with each arm exercise will be beneficial to increasing your hypertrophy," says Panda. "Aside from failure sets, each set should be challenging, allowing you to perform only the number of reps you intend to complete."
3. Intensify your efforts
While Panda doesn't believe in overdoing intensity-boosting techniques, he does recommend dropsets for intermediate- to advanced-level trainees on arm day. In a dropset, you choose a weight you can do for 10-12 reps. Once you hit positive failure—in which you can no longer lift the weight without compromising your form—quickly drop the weight about 25 percent and resume the set until you reach muscle failure once again. From there, you can continue with further drops as you please.
4. Remember the basics
"Barbell curls are a fundamental arm exercise everyone should be doing, from amateur to seasoned pro," he says. "If you're a beginner, I highly recommend bodyweight exercises for triceps, which can be extremely effective in increasing your arm strength and growth. I fully exhausted my triceps with multijoint exercises like dips and close-grip push-ups during my first few years of training, and that laid a foundation for further development."
5. Don't get caught up in the numbers
Say you've been focused on adding 1-2 inches to your arms for the last six months, with little luck. What should you do next?
Don't panic, says Panda. "I personally do not confine myself to time constraints—in all honesty I just don't like them. Everyone is in a rush and too concerned with stats and figures, which can cause you to lose sight of what's really important."
"As much as they get a good workout from compound exercises like presses and rows, I feel that if you truly want your arms to grow, they need direct attention without being fatigued first," he explains. "I rotate between biceps and triceps exercises, one after the other, during an arm session. I prefer to let one muscle group rest after an exercise [by switching back and forth] in order to get the best from it on the next."
2. Treat your arms like everything else you train
"Including at least one failure set with each arm exercise will be beneficial to increasing your hypertrophy," says Panda. "Aside from failure sets, each set should be challenging, allowing you to perform only the number of reps you intend to complete."
3. Intensify your efforts
While Panda doesn't believe in overdoing intensity-boosting techniques, he does recommend dropsets for intermediate- to advanced-level trainees on arm day. In a dropset, you choose a weight you can do for 10-12 reps. Once you hit positive failure—in which you can no longer lift the weight without compromising your form—quickly drop the weight about 25 percent and resume the set until you reach muscle failure once again. From there, you can continue with further drops as you please.
4. Remember the basics
"Barbell curls are a fundamental arm exercise everyone should be doing, from amateur to seasoned pro," he says. "If you're a beginner, I highly recommend bodyweight exercises for triceps, which can be extremely effective in increasing your arm strength and growth. I fully exhausted my triceps with multijoint exercises like dips and close-grip push-ups during my first few years of training, and that laid a foundation for further development."
5. Don't get caught up in the numbers
Say you've been focused on adding 1-2 inches to your arms for the last six months, with little luck. What should you do next?
Don't panic, says Panda. "I personally do not confine myself to time constraints—in all honesty I just don't like them. Everyone is in a rush and too concerned with stats and figures, which can cause you to lose sight of what's really important."
