How to Do the Spider Curl

How to do it

1. Set an adjustable bench to roughly 45 degrees and position yourself face-down so your chest rests against the pad and your arms hang straight down toward the floor, each holding a dumbbell with a supinated (palms-forward) grip.
2. Before you begin the first rep, let your arms extend fully so the dumbbells hang at arm's length. This is your starting position, and it should feel like the biceps are already under a mild stretch.
3. Without allowing your elbows to drift backward or forward, curl both dumbbells upward in a controlled arc, focusing on rotating the forearm so the pinky side of your hand leads slightly as the weight rises.
4. Continue curling until your forearms are as vertical as your elbow position allows. Because your upper arms are pinned against the bench, you will not get the same peak angle as a standing curl, but the tension on the biceps at this point is very high.
5. Pause for a full count at the top of the movement. This brief isometric hold increases time under tension and prevents you from bouncing the weight back down.
6. Lower the dumbbells slowly, taking at least two to three seconds on the way down. The eccentric phase on this exercise is particularly valuable because the stretch under load is pronounced once the arm approaches full extension.
7. Return to a completely straight arm before initiating the next rep. Cutting the range of motion short at the bottom is one of the most common ways to reduce the exercise's effectiveness.
8. After completing all reps, carefully set the dumbbells down or rest them on the floor beneath you before dismounting the bench to avoid straining your shoulder while in an awkward position.

Form cues

• Elbows stay glued to the pad. Any drift and you're cheating the movement.
• Lead with the pinky on the way up, not the thumb.
• Full stretch at the bottom, every single rep.
• Squeeze and pause at the top. Don't just touch and go.
• Control the descent. Two seconds minimum on the way down.

Common mistakes

• Letting the elbows swing backward as the weight rises: this effectively turns the curl into a partial row and takes load off the biceps. Keep the upper arm perpendicular to the floor and pressed firmly into the bench.
• Using too much weight and cutting the range short at the bottom: if the dumbbells don't reach full extension on each rep, you lose the stretched position that makes this exercise distinctive. Drop the weight until you can reach a dead hang between reps.
• Rushing the eccentric: most lifters drop the weight back down quickly because the lowering phase feels uncomfortable. That discomfort is the point. A slow negative here produces significant muscle stimulus.
• Flaring the elbows outward: wide elbows shift stress toward the outer bicep and can place undue load on the elbow joint. Keep elbows roughly shoulder-width, pointed straight at the floor.
• Bench angle set too steep or too flat: an angle that's nearly vertical puts you in almost the same position as a preacher curl without the pad support. An angle that's nearly horizontal strains the shoulder. Around 45 degrees gives you the best mechanical advantage for this specific movement.

Why do the Spider Curl?

• The fixed upper arm position produces tension on the biceps even at the fully contracted top position, which is the phase where most free-standing curls go slack due to the changing torque curve.
• Because the bench supports the torso, there is no opportunity to drive the hips forward or shrug the shoulders to complete a rep. The biceps truly have to do all the work without help from body English.
• The pronounced stretch at the bottom of each rep, under load, is associated with greater muscle fiber recruitment through the full length of the muscle, making this a strong choice for lifters focused on bicep development.
• Performing the movement prone also reduces involvement from the anterior deltoid, which tends to assist at the start of a standard curl. The spider curl forces the biceps to do the initial work from a dead hang without that deltoid contribution.

Spider Curl variations

Barbell Spider Curl

Using a barbell instead of dumbbells increases loading potential and forces both arms to work in unison, which is useful for advanced lifters looking to add more total weight to the movement.

Cable Spider Curl

Attaching a low cable pulley through the face hole of the bench creates continuous tension throughout the entire arc rather than the slight slack a dumbbell produces at the top. Good for lifters who want a more consistent resistance curve.

Alternating Spider Curl

Curling one arm at a time allows you to focus on supination and full contraction on each side independently, which can help identify and address left-to-right strength imbalances.

Incline Dumbbell Curl

A less demanding regression where you sit upright on an incline bench rather than lying prone. The stretched starting position is similar but you retain some ability to control elbow position, making it a good stepping stone before moving to the prone version.

How to program it

The spider curl is almost always used as an accessory or isolation movement placed after compound pulling exercises like rows or pull-ups, not as an opener. Many lifters use it in the 8 to 15 rep range to prioritize muscular endurance and hypertrophy rather than max strength, since the fixed position makes very heavy loading awkward and potentially hard on the elbow joint. Some programs use it as a finisher with lighter weight and higher reps to fully exhaust the biceps after heavier work has already been done. Because of the significant eccentric stretch involved, starting with a lighter load than you'd use for a standard dumbbell curl is common practice until the movement pattern feels natural.

Spider Curl alternatives

Barbell Curl

Barbell · Isolation

Cable Curl

Cable · Isolation

Preacher Curl

Barbell · Isolation

Dumbbell Curl

Dumbbell · Isolation

Hammer Curl

Dumbbell · Isolation

Incline Dumbbell Curl

Dumbbell · Isolation