---
title: "EZ bar biceps exercises"
description: "EZ bar curls, preacher curls and spider curls. The angled bar takes the strain off your wrists - see the technique on video and pick a grip."
locale: en
url: "https://hi.fitness/exercises/muscles/biceps/ez-bar"
count: 7
type: combo
muscle: BICEPS
equipment: EZ_BAR
---

# EZ bar biceps exercises

The EZ bar is a simple answer to one specific problem: wrist pain in barbell curls. The waved bend
lets you set your hands in slight pronation instead of full supination, so the wrist joint is never
pushed into an end position under load.

Past that it behaves like a barbell. You will curl only a little less on it, you track progress the
same way with plates, and every variation - preacher, spider, close grip and wide grip - works
exactly as it does on a straight bar.

## When should you pick an EZ bar over a straight one?

When barbell curls give you a pulling feeling on the inside of the wrist or in the elbow. That is the
most common reason and it is usually reason enough - swapping the bar fixes a problem that stretching
and warming up do not touch, because the source is a forced joint position under load.

If your wrists give you no trouble, a straight bar stays a marginally better choice for strength,
since full supination puts the biceps in its most favorable working position. The difference is small
enough that it is not worth training in discomfort for.

## Close grip or wide grip?

On an EZ bar the grip changes more than which head of the biceps does the work - it also changes the
angle of your wrist. A closer grip sets the hands more vertical and tends to be kinder to a sensitive
joint; a wider one moves the position back toward a straight bar. Try both for a few sessions and
stay with the one that does not hurt, because with this bar that is the criterion that matters.

Spider curls and the preacher bench are worth adding for a reason other than comfort: both pin the
torso, so heaving the weight becomes impossible and you see straight away how much your biceps
actually lifts.

## Common mistakes

- **Gripping the wrong part of the bar** - Put your hands on the inner angles, not on the straight sections. On a straight stretch an EZ bar stops being any different from a regular one.
- **Treating it as a lighter barbell** - The difference in load is small. If you are putting on half as much, the limit is your technique, not the equipment.
- **Too much weight** - A comfortable grip tempts you to load more than the elbow on its own can move. Keep the torso locked.

## Progress the movement

1. **Write the grip down** - Same grip and same weight twice a week. Note which angle your hands sit on - it changes how the set feels more than you would expect.
2. **Close out the range** - Get every set to the top of the rep range before you start adding plates.
3. **Add plates** - 2.5 kg is a sensible jump. After you add it, drop to the bottom of the rep range and build the reps back up.

## All EZ bar biceps exercises

- [EZ Barbell Curl](https://hi.fitness/exercises/ez-barbell-curl) - Biceps · EZ bar
- [Preacher Curl EZ Bar](https://hi.fitness/exercises/preacher-curl-ez-bar) - Biceps · EZ bar
- [Spider Curl EZ Bar](https://hi.fitness/exercises/spider-curl-ez-bar) - Biceps · EZ bar
- [EZ Barbell Close Grip Curl](https://hi.fitness/exercises/ez-barbell-close-grip-curl) - Biceps · EZ bar
- [EZ Bar Biceps Curl Wide Grip](https://hi.fitness/exercises/ez-bar-biceps-curl-wide-grip) - Biceps · EZ bar
- [Preacher Curl EZ Bar Close Grip](https://hi.fitness/exercises/preacher-curl-ez-bar-close-grip) - Biceps · EZ bar
- [Preacher Curl EZ Bar Wide Grip](https://hi.fitness/exercises/preacher-curl-ez-bar-wide-grip) - Biceps · EZ bar