Flat-Bench High-Pulley Grip Curl

Pressure Cascade · Mechanism

Alright, this one's a mouthful, but the Flat-Bench High-Pulley Grip Curl is worth every syllable. This is the exercise where you lie on a flat bench, reach up overhead to grab a bar attached to the high pulley, and curl it down toward your face like you're pulling a chandelier toward your forehead at a very fancy gym party. It's a bicep exercise, it's beginner-friendly, and it's about to make your arms feel things they didn't know were possible.

You lie on your back on a flat bench that's positioned between two high pulleys — or under a single high pulley, depending on your setup. Your arms are extended overhead, grabbing the bar or handles. From there, you curl the weight down toward your face by bending your elbows, keeping your upper arms perpendicular to the floor. The cables provide constant tension from the fully extended position all the way through the curl, which means your biceps are under siege from start to finish with no relief, no breaks, and no mercy. It's like a regular curl that went to law school and came back more relentless.

The unique angle of this exercise — pulling from overhead rather than from in front of your body — hits the biceps in a way that standing curls can't, stretching the long head of the bicep under load and stimulating growth in that hard-to-reach area. After a few sets, your biceps will be so pumped that you'll have trouble bending your arms to check your phone. Lie back, reach up, and curl down. It's the most relaxing position for the most exhausting bicep workout. Fitness is full of contradictions, and this one is beautiful.