Cross-Body Hammer Curl
Trains the Biceps, Brachialis and Brachioradialis.
- Equipment
- Dumbbells
- Mechanic
- Isolation
- Force
- Pull
- Level
- Beginner
How to do it
- Stand with a dumbbell in each hand, palms facing your thighs — a neutral grip.
- Keeping that palm facing inward, curl one dumbbell diagonally across your body toward the opposite shoulder.
- Keep the elbow tucked against your side. The upper arm stays still; the forearm travels across.
- Stop when the dumbbell reaches the opposite collarbone, then lower along the same diagonal.
- Alternate arms, or finish one side before starting the other.
Common mistakes
- Bringing the elbow across the body to shorten the path. The diagonal comes from where the hand finishes, not from swinging the upper arm inward.
- Letting the palm rotate upward on the way across. The neutral grip is what puts the biceps at a disadvantage and gives the brachialis and brachioradialis the larger share; rotating the hand hands the work straight back.
- Expecting the cross-body path to do the work. The grip is what changes which muscles are loaded; the diagonal mostly changes how the movement feels at the shoulder, and some people simply find it more comfortable than a straight-up hammer curl.
- Leaning away from the working arm to help it up. The torso should stay square; if it has to move, the dumbbell is too heavy.