Preacher curl
The preacher curl is a curl with your upper arms resting on an angled pad. The pad stops the elbows from drifting and the body from swinging, so it is one of the strictest biceps exercises in the gym. It also loads the biceps hardest when the arm is nearly straight, which is the part of the rep people most like to skip.
Updated September 2026
- Equipment
- Barbell
- Primary
- Biceps
- Secondary
- —
- Level
- Beginner
How to do it
- To perform this movement you will need a preacher bench and an E-Z bar. Grab the E-Z curl bar at the close inner handle (either have someone hand you the bar which is preferable or grab the bar from the front bar rest provided by most preacher benches). The palm of your hands should be facing forward and they should be slightly tilted inwards due to the shape of the bar.
- With the upper arms positioned against the preacher bench pad and the chest against it, hold the E-Z Curl Bar at shoulder length. This will be your starting position.
- As you breathe in, slowly lower the bar until your upper arm is extended and the biceps is fully stretched.
- As you exhale, use the biceps to curl the weight up until your biceps is fully contracted and the bar is at shoulder height. Squeeze the biceps hard and hold this position for a second.
- Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions.
Instructions from free-exercise-db, public domain — the same text the app shows on this exercise.
Saying it out loud
Any of these logs a set of preacher curl in SayLift. Say the whole session in one go if you want — weights, reps and sets in whatever order they come out.
- “Preacher curl, three sets of ten at 60”
- “Barbell preacher curl 70 for 8, 8 and 6”
- “Preacher curl 50, four by twelve”
Set the seat so the pad fits
Adjust the seat so the top of the pad sits just under your armpits, with the backs of your upper arms flat on it. Too low and you end up reaching over the pad. Too high and your shoulders round forward to get your arms down.
Most gyms use an EZ bar here. Grip the inner angled handles, so your palms face up and turn slightly in.
SayLift logs your whole workout from one spoken sentence. iPhone only, 873 exercises built in, 3 days free then $49.99 a year.
Start the free trialOwn the bottom of the rep
Lower the bar until your arms are almost straight, and stop just short of locking out. On this exercise the biceps works hardest near the bottom, and that is also where a heavy bar pulls the arms straight fastest.
Many people only do the top half, with a weight they could not control lower down. A lighter bar through the full range is the better trade, and it is the reason to use the pad at all.
- Lower for two or three seconds. A slow bottom half is the point of the exercise.
- Start each rep without a bounce from the bottom.
- Keep your upper arms on the pad. If they lift, your shoulders are helping.
- Stop when your forearms are about vertical. Past that point the biceps gets a rest.
Logging small jumps
EZ bars differ in weight from gym to gym, and some people log only the plates. Decide once whether your number includes the bar, and keep it that way. A history that switches halfway through shows a jump that never happened.
Weight goes up slowly on any curl, so reps carry most of the progress. Log each set, including the last one that fell short. With SayLift you can say "preacher curl, 60 for 10, 9 and 8" on the walk back from the bench.
Frequently asked questions
Preacher curl vs barbell curl?
The standing barbell curl lets you use more weight, and some body swing creeps in. The preacher curl locks the upper arm in place and loads the stretched bottom of the rep harder. Many people do one heavier curl and one strict curl each week.
Can I do preacher curls with dumbbells?
Yes. One-arm dumbbell preacher curls let you train each side on its own and are handy when the EZ bar is taken. Log them as a separate exercise, because the weights will not line up with the bar version.
Why are preacher curls so much harder than standing curls?
The pad takes away every way to cheat. There is no hip swing and no elbow drift, and the hardest part of the rep sits where the arm is straightest. Expect to use less weight than on a standing curl.
Stop typing between sets
Say what you lifted. SayLift writes down every set, rep and weight, then tells you what to lift next time. iPhone only, 3 days free then $49.99 a year.
Download on the App Store
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