ARNOLD'S ARM WORKOUT

Arnold's guns were his calling cards, and his mental visualization of his biceps as mountain peaks reflected his larger-than-life approach. Arnold frequently did up to 20 sets for biceps, split evenly between mass-builders and those he did for definition.

He commonly supersetted biceps and triceps movements, which served to flush his arms with blood. Combined with his high-volume approach, his shirt-sleeve-busting routine included movements that sought to isolate the three triceps heads, which he achieved by manipulating arm position.Here are some of Arnold's best arm-training tips, culled from the many articles he wrote and interviews he gave over the years.

• Arnold ranked the standing barbell curl as the top mass builder, but often did the incline bench dumbbell curl as well, which emphasizes the long head a bit better.For Arnold, a mass-building movement meant three things: He could push heavy weights; he'd ensure the movement was taken from full extension to full contraction; and he'd use a weight at which he could barely do 6-8 good reps.
• Definition-building movements, on the other hand, were done with lighter weights for sets of 8-12 reps. Here the focus was on squeezing and contracting the muscle, and holding the peak contraction for a long count. Concentration curls, preacher curls, and alternating dumbbell curls were among his favorites here.
• Arnold wrote that he always included at least one dumbbell movement in his routine. Supinating his hand (turning it upward as he curled) created a greater peaking effect because the brachialis was recruited into the motion.
• While "The Oak" took his curls to failure, he didn't stop there. Once he reached a sticking point, he'd use just enough momentum to keep the set going. Such cheat curls allowed him to complete an extra couple of reps.