Biceps of a Beast

It's time to showcase the one muscle more responsible for the entire race of men taking up the old iron than any other body part in existence. Unfortunately, in light of his obscene delts, thighs and calves, Jay Cutler's arms are often underrated. They shouldn't be. His biceps are full, round and peaked to the ceiling. So, arm yourselves for a full-blown biceps battle and without further ado, here's how Iron Jay built his 22-1/2-inch pythons of peaked steel.

Feel This

Jay goes by feel during all his workouts. This determines the movements, their order, the amount of weight and whether or not he'll use high-intensity techniques, such as drop sets or forced reps. He might start a session with alternate dumbbell curls one day and end with them the next time around. He could pump out a quick 22 sets one day and only do a paltry 18 the next. How he feels dictates the moment. A training session with Jay Cutler is an a la carte selection of mass destruction- pick a gun, any gun.

Standards   

Having defined the chameleon nature of his workouts above, we do need to outline the few rules that apply to all his workouts. Take notes.

Rep Range: Generally, he tries to stick with an eight to 10 rep range for most of his upper body and arm movements. Jay feels this is the best range for using heavy enough weight to hypertrophy the muscle while providing a skin-busting pump.

He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother: This one is paramount. Instead of ego lifting- you've been there, basically doing curl grip cleans when you're supposed to be doing barbell curls- Jay makes his muscles do all the work.  It's about proper form and impeccable mechanics.

But it goes just a little deeper. Cutler understands that the greatest stress-inducing point for most lifts is the in-between phase; it's the area that breathes between the beginning and the end. Let's dissect the mechanisms of a simple biceps curl.

Jay starts at the bottom and brings it up just short of full completion.  Yes, he doesn't finish with the bar or dumbbell resting at the top, near his shoulder. He stops just prior to this point to keep the biceps fully contracted and working. You guessed it!  It's harder. The biceps don't get a breather. They're forced to grind out that final squeeze. 'Nuff said!

The Mind Muscle Link: Related to the principle above, this standard is all about using very subtle tricks to get the most from an exercise. Whether it's visually looking at each arm on alternate dumbbell curls or planning his workouts in advance, he uses the most potent weapon in his arsenal- his mind- to his utter advantage. Jay never lumbers into the gym to throw weights around in a haphazard fashion. He plans each workout in advance. Things may change once he gets to the gym, depending on feel, but the general structure and principles of the workout remain static.

Trust Yourself: This is a tough one. For one thing, it takes years of trial and error to reach this level. You have to pay attention to what you've been doing from day one of your journey. Jay has been very meticulous about every aspect of his profession. It shows in his contest preparations, the manner in which he conducts business and the way he carries himself as a representative of the sport.

            To this end, he has learned that preconceived notions of the right and wrong way to do things are subject to change with the times and the situations.  After three years of training, he discovered that high volume was his express ticket to disturbing mass. He ditched low volume after giving it due attention.  Being in vogue did nothing for his progress.

He keeps an open mind to discover what works best for him. Along the way, if he comes upon a superior method, he'll employ it. Use whatever's at your disposal to complete the mission.

Take the Field, if You Dare

OK, on with the actual ball-busting biceps workout. Before we begin, just a few more things. This is it, promise!

By now, even alien intelligence is familiar with Jay's "Feel Sets." I won't go into detail here, other than to say they're more than mere warm-up sets.  They're performed with a lighter weight to get into the groove, if you will. Refer back to past issues of MD for a thorough definition. After his feel sets, he tries to get two to three working sets, pyramiding up in weight.

High volume. Yes, he is the antithesis of Dorian Yates and the late Mike Mentzer, with their abbreviated high-intensity training methods. Jay loves lots of sets- anywhere from 18 to 25. As stated previously, reps fall between eight and 10. 

If you're still with me, here's your reward. The actual biceps workout of Iron Jay Cutler:

Barbell curls                                      4 x 8-10

Hammer curls                                   3 x 8-10

Preacher curls                                  3 x 8-10

Alternate dumbbell curls                3 x 8-10

Machine Hammer curls                  3 x 8-10

Dumbbell Preacher curls               3 x 8-10

Barbell Curls

This tried and true mass blaster almost always finds its way into Jay's rotation. There's good reason, too. You can load that bar to bending for extreme overload. It destroys the belly of the beast known as the biceps. In his more exuberant youth, he piled on the plates, getting as high as 225 pounds. Of course, he found out the hard way that his delts were doing more than their fair share of the work. It was only after he lightened up that his arms began to sprout into their current manifestation. Take a lesson all you would-be Samsons- make the biceps do the work.

            Usually he'll use an EZ-curl bar. The angle is a lot easier on the wrists.  However, he's not averse to using whatever's available. Today it's an Olympic bar. He starts with a shoulder-width grip. It's just the bar to loosen up and stretch the muscle.

He's strict, in a manner of speaking. No, he doesn't curl with his back plastered to the wall. There is a slight swing to his body. He's not super-slow like Lee Priest. It's best described as a loose-yet-strict style. Obviously, his biceps are getting the thrashing, 100 percent. The rest of the swinging is incidental body momentum.

After a couple of feel sets, he slaps on a pair of quarters to start the fun.  By his final work set, he's got a 45 on each side. At rep number nine, he nearly throws the bar back on the racks. "The burn just holding the barbell is a torcher," he wheezes between gulps of air. He stomps over to the dumbbell rack, dropping his gallon of water on the floor with a thud. The fun's just starting.

Hammer Curls

            Hammer curls are next on the obstacle course. He hefts a pair of 40s and puts them back with disdain; too light. He grabs the 50s. He does these in a curious fashion, though I've seen Flex Wheeler perform them in a similar way. Jay curls each dumbbell across the front of his body. That is, his right hand ends up close to his left chest. However, unlike Flex, he doesn't bring it as far across. Jay stops at about the mid- or inner-line of the opposite pec. To each his own.

Obviously, each version worked wonders for each man. "These are a different angle of attack," Jay explains as he flexes each arm between sets. "They really bump up the brachialis." It looks like a foreign growth has just attached itself to the outside of Jay's arm. He does his last set with 70s for 10 reps, a deep rumbling in his chest matching the pain etched on his face. With barely a breath and sip of H₂0, it's off to worship.

Preacher Curls

            Before taking an EZ-curl bar from the rack, Jay notes, "Preacher curls really slam that lower portion. Gives the arm fullness in any pose where it's outstretched. It's also a great peak contraction move." He starts just short of full extension. When asked why he doesn't start at full stretch, he says, "A lot of guys have strained their joints or torn biceps extending too far on these. I'm not gonna be another statistic. Besides, the biceps is plenty stretched even at this level. Any more would just be stress on the joint." Makes sense. He really works that contraction at the near finish point, squeezing all the juice out of his grapefruit-sized biceps. A final work set with 90 pounds for nine reps and he's forced to let out a groan of sweet pain. A quick drink and Cutler the roadrunner returns to the dumbbell rack.

Alternate Dumbbell Curls

            He grabs a pair of 50s and breezes through 10 reps. On each repetition, he turns his head toward the arm that's doing the curling.  "Just one of my mental tricks to focus more on the muscle," he says. He starts with both palms facing each other, similar to his starting position for hammer curls. Midway, he supinates his wrists so his palms are facing his body at the top. He's able to work up to 70s on his last set, finishing at eight reps.

Hammer Curls on Preacher Machine

            These are performed on a machine preacher curl apparatus. However, Cutler grips the handles so his palms are facing each other. In this way, he performs hammer curls on the preacher machine. It's a unique movement. To date, Jay's the only one I've seen utilize the machine in this manner. He starts at near full extension and brings the handles up just enough to maintain peak contraction. He obviously believes in thorough brachialis work. Three blistering sets and it's time to put the icing on the cake.

Dumbbell Preacher Curls

            Can you believe he's able to get nine reps with 50s at the bottom of the ninth? That's a testament to his will. He'll endure absolute hell to succeed. It's one arm at a time, all the way down to a full stretch for this round. Jay says he's able to lean into it with his shoulder, allowing for a safer extension. Again, he brings it up just short of reaching the apex. He squeezes the hell and brimstone out of those juicy fruits before lowering it slowly.

            On the final set, he gets help from a spotter for two forced reps. Finished, he rests the two sides of beef hanging from his shoulders on top of the bench.

            "That's it," he says. "They're finished! Now it's time for some light calves. Just getting a little blood in them."

            I don't know if I can follow him to the finish line.

It's Your Turn

That's a typical biceps session for Iron Jay. Does this mean you should follow this exact arm routine and bust out close to 20 sets? If you can answer yes to the following, by all means proceed:

You have Jay Cutler's genetics.                                                               Yes     No

You have Jay Cutler's numerous years of training experience.         Yes     No

You are preparing to defend your title at the 2005 Arnold Classic.     Yes     No

            If you didn't cut it, don't follow this routine to the letter. Instead, do the following. Take the principles and three of the exercises for about three working sets. Start there (or with even less, depending on your level) and see how it goes. If you aren't lying in the ICU sipping your meals through tubes, gradually progress. Give it time and patience. Great bodies are never built overnight.  Even genetic mutants like Jay, Ronnie and Dexter took years of blood-curdling effort and mind-numbing dedication to reach their current incarnations.