CrossFitters need to train arms more. Here's a free pass to do a little bit of biceps and triceps work at the end of your session.
Just wanting bigger arms should be reason enough. But there's a real performance benefit too.
The Performance Case for Arm Training
Someone's capacity to do upper body gymnastics or upper body work in general is a massive separator in CrossFit. If you're someone who can hold on to big sets of chest-to-bar pull-ups or handstand push-ups, that can make a massive difference in workouts.
Having strong and enduring biceps and triceps is a big factor in your ability to do big sets of gymnastics.
Yet because we feel that doing bicep and tricep work "isn't really CrossFit," we often steer away from it. I think that's a mistake.
Injury Prevention Benefit
We also see quite a lot of elbow overuse injuries in CrossFit. Having stronger biceps and triceps can actually help you avoid some of those issues.
How to Program It
Once or twice a week, pick a bicep movement and a tricep movement. Do those for 2 to 4 sets in a higher rep range, anywhere from 8 to 15 reps for each.
This way you're working on muscle, strength, and endurance , all of which will benefit your performance the most.
You can do them separately, but I like to pair them up as a superset to be more time efficient.
Over time this is really going to help you get bigger arms while also giving you a boost to your gymnastics capacity.
Key Takeaways
Arm strength supports gymnastics. Stronger biceps and triceps directly improve your ability to do big sets of pull-ups, HSPU, and other upper body work.
Higher reps build useful endurance. 8-15 rep ranges develop the combination of strength and endurance you need in workouts.
Supersets save time. Pairing a bicep and tricep movement is an efficient way to add this work without extending your session much.
It can reduce elbow issues. Stronger arms around the elbow joint can help protect against common overuse injuries in CrossFit.
Frequently Asked Questions
How often should I add biceps and triceps work?
Once or twice a week is plenty for most CrossFitters. Add it at the end of your session so it doesn't interfere with your main lifts or gymnastics.
Which exercises work best?
Simple movements like barbell curls, dumbbell curls, skull crushers, and tricep pushdowns or extensions are effective. Pick variations you can do with good form for higher reps.
Will this make me too bulky for CrossFit?
No. The volume and rep ranges here are moderate. You're adding targeted work to support performance, not bodybuilding-level arm training.