Close-Grip Barbell Curl

Muscles worked by the Close-Grip Barbell Curl

Primary

BicepsBiceps Brachii

Secondary

BrachialisBrachioradialis

Also called: bicep, biceps brachii, biceps muscle, guns.

Equipment

Barbell

Also called: bar, olympic barbell, straight bar, olympic bar, power bar.

How to do the Close-Grip Barbell Curl

1. Stand holding a barbell with an underhand grip, hands closer than shoulder-width apart.
2. Start with the bar at the thighs, arms extended, elbows tucked to the sides.
3. Curl the bar up to the shoulders by flexing the elbows.
4. Squeeze the biceps at the top, then lower under control.
5. Repeat for the recommended number of repetitions.

Form tips

• Keep the elbows pinned to the sides — do not let them drift forward.
• If the narrow grip bothers your wrists, use an EZ-bar.

At a glance

Close-Grip Barbell Curl in German & Spanish

Descriptions, instructions and tips ship in all three languages in the JSON.

Related exercises

• Drag Curl
• Barbell Curl
• Barbell Preacher Curl
• Cable Curl
• Cable Hammer Curl
• Cheat Curl
• Close-Grip EZ-Bar Curl
• Concentration Curl

Exercise data (JSON)

The record below is exactly what exercises.json ships for this exercise — names, descriptions, instructions and tips in English, German and Spanish.

{
  "id": "close-grip-barbell-curl",
  "name_en": "Close-Grip Barbell Curl",
  "name_de": "Langhantel-Curl enger Griff",
  "name_es": "Curl de Barra con Agarre Cerrado",
  "description_en": "A standing barbell curl with a narrow grip, biasing the long head of the biceps and the brachialis.",
  "description_de": "Ein stehender Langhantel-Curl mit engem Griff, der den langen Bizepskopf und den Brachialis betont.",
  "description_es": "Un curl de barra de pie con agarre estrecho que enfatiza la cabeza larga del bíceps y el braquial.",
  "category": "strength",
  "force_type": "pull",
  "mechanic": "isolation",
  "difficulty": "beginner",
  "equipment": "barbell",
  "body_part": "upper_arms",
  "primary_muscles": [
    "biceps_brachii"
  ],
  "secondary_muscles": [
    "brachialis",
    "brachioradialis"
  ],
  "goals": [
    "hypertrophy"
  ],
  "tags": [
    "pull_day",
    "arm_day"
  ],
  "variation_group": "barbell-curl",
  "is_unilateral": false,
  "is_bodyweight": false,
  "instructions_en": [
    "Stand holding a barbell with an underhand grip, hands closer than shoulder-width apart.",
    "Start with the bar at the thighs, arms extended, elbows tucked to the sides.",
    "Curl the bar up to the shoulders by flexing the elbows.",
    "Squeeze the biceps at the top, then lower under control.",
    "Repeat for the recommended number of repetitions."
  ],
  "instructions_de": [
    "Stehe mit einer Langhantel im Unterhandgriff, Hände enger als schulterbreit.",
    "Starte mit der Stange an den Oberschenkeln, Arme gestreckt, Ellbogen seitlich angelegt.",
    "Curle die Stange durch Beugen der Ellbogen zu den Schultern.",
    "Spanne den Bizeps oben an, dann kontrolliert absenken.",
    "Wiederhole für die empfohlene Anzahl an Wiederholungen."
  ],
  "instructions_es": [
    "De pie, sujeta la barra con un agarre supino con las manos más juntas que la anchura de los hombros.",
    "Comienza con la barra a la altura de los muslos, brazos extendidos y codos pegados a los costados.",
    "Sube la barra hasta los hombros flexionando los codos.",
    "Aprieta los bíceps en la parte superior y luego baja de forma controlada.",
    "Repite el número de repeticiones recomendado."
  ],
  "tips_en": [
    "Keep the elbows pinned to the sides — do not let them drift forward.",
    "If the narrow grip bothers your wrists, use an EZ-bar."
  ],
  "tips_de": [
    "Halte die Ellbogen seitlich fest angelegt — nicht nach vorne driften lassen.",
    "Wenn der enge Griff die Handgelenke belastet, nutze eine SZ-Stange."
  ],
  "tips_es": [
    "Mantén los codos pegados a los costados; no dejes que se desplacen hacia adelante.",
    "Si el agarre estrecho molesta las muñecas, usa una barra Z."
  ],
  "met": 5.0,
  "images": {
    "flat": {
      "start": "images/flat/close-grip-barbell-curl-start.webp",
      "peak": "images/flat/close-grip-barbell-curl-peak.webp"
    }
  }
}

Fetch just this exercise

const { exercises } = await fetch(
  "https://exercise-dataset.com/exercises.json"
).then(r => r.json());
const ex = exercises.find(e => e.id === "close-grip-barbell-curl");

Free for personal and commercial in-app use with attribution (“Exercise data by RepDB”) — see the license and ready-made attribution snippets. Redistributing the data as a dataset or API is not permitted.