Lying High Cable Curl

Plop onto the bench like a cozy bear in a den, grab that close-grip bar, and curl with steady paws. The high cable keeps tension like a honey jar that never gets lighter. Keep elbows tucked and let your biceps do the foraging, not your shoulders or hips.

Instructions

1. Set a cable station with the pulley at the highest position and attach a close-grip straight bar.
2. Place a flat bench a short distance in front of the cable machine, aligned with the pulley.
3. Lie on the bench on your back with your head closer to the cable, feet planted for stability.
4. Reach back/overhead and grasp the bar with a close, supinated (palms-up) grip.
5. Start with arms extended toward the pulley, elbows slightly bent, and elbows pointed upward.
6. Curl the bar toward your forehead/upper chest by flexing at the elbows while keeping upper arms relatively fixed.
7. Pause briefly and squeeze the biceps at the top without letting elbows drift excessively.
8. Lower the bar under control back toward the pulley until you feel a full stretch in the biceps.
9. Repeat for reps, keeping tempo smooth and shoulders down.

Benefits

• Strong biceps isolation with consistent cable tension
• Reduced cheating compared with standing curls due to bench support
• Emphasizes peak contraction and controlled eccentric
• Can be easier on wrists/forearms than some free-weight variations for some lifters

Key Points

• Keep elbows tucked and mostly fixed; move at the elbow joint.
• Maintain cable tension throughout; avoid resting at the bottom.
• Use a controlled eccentric (lowering) to maximize biceps loading.
• Keep shoulders depressed and avoid shrugging as you curl.
• Choose a bench distance that keeps the cable pulling in line with your forearms.

Common Mistakes

• Letting elbows flare or drift, turning it into a shoulder movement
• Using momentum by arching the back or shifting on the bench
• Shrugging shoulders up toward ears during the curl
• Cutting range of motion short at the bottom and losing stretch
• Using too much weight and turning reps into partials