Barbell Drag Curl
Barbell curl variation where the bar drags up the torso with elbows tracking back, emphasizing the long head of the bicep.
How to do it
- Stand tall, holding the barbell with an underhand shoulder-width grip and your arms fully extended.
- Brace your core and draw your shoulders down and back to lock in your upper body.
- Drag the bar straight up along your torso, driving your elbows back behind you.
- Stop the bar at your upper chest with your elbows pulled back, feeling a strong biceps contraction.
- Slowly lower the bar down along your body, keeping it in contact with your torso.
- Finish with your arms fully extended and your elbows under your shoulders before the next rep.
Key technique cue
Drag the bar up along your torso, elbows going back, not forward.
Common mistakes
- ✕ Letting the elbows drift forward as in a regular curl, which removes the emphasis on the long head.
- ✕ Going too heavy, which makes the body swing and breaks the drag path of the bar.
- ✕ Cutting the bottom of the range short and not fully extending the arms between reps.
- ✕ Rounding the shoulders forward to chase the bar, which loads the front delts.
Benefits
- ✓ Emphasizes the long head of the biceps for a more pronounced peak.
- ✓ Builds top-end biceps contraction strength that regular curls miss.
- ✓ Locks in strict technique by removing front-delt cheating.
Progression: from easier to harder
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Step 1 You are here - Step 2
About the exercise
The barbell drag curl flips the standard curl pattern. Instead of the bar travelling out in front of the body, the lifter drags it straight up along the torso while the elbows move back behind the body. This shifts the load onto the long head of the biceps and delivers a strong peak contraction without help from the front delts. It's an intermediate curl variation for hypertrophy and bodybuilding. Include it in advanced arm-day blocks, slot it straight after the barbell curl and use it as an accessory in physique work.
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