StrengthIn review

Dumbbell Preacher Curl

A one-arm dumbbell curl with the upper arm supported over the back pad of an incline bench.

This page is a working draft. A coach has not reviewed it, so read it as a starting point, not as checked instruction.

Pattern: Elbow flexion
Modality: Strength
Difficulty: Beginner
Mechanic: Unknown
Force: Unknown
Laterality: Unilateral
Impact: Low
Trains where: Gym, Home
At home: Yes

How to do it

Set up

Set an incline bench so its back pad can support the working upper arm.
Stand behind the bench with the whole upper arm resting over the pad and hold one dumbbell with the palm up.

Do the rep

Curl the dumbbell while the upper arm stays on the pad.
Lower slowly to a straight arm without forcing the elbow. Complete the set before changing sides.

What counts as a rep

A rep counts when the dumbbell curls up and returns to a straight arm with the upper arm on the pad; count each side.

Breathing

Exhale as you curl; inhale as you lower.

Cues

Keep the upper arm on the pad.
Do not bounce at the bottom.
Lower under control.

Common mistakes

Torso swings
What you seeThe hips or shoulders move to start the curl.
FixReduce the load and keep the torso still.
A still torso keeps the load at the elbows.
Wrists bend under the load
What you seeThe hands fold forward or backward during the rep.
FixUse less weight and keep the wrists aligned with the forearms.
Aligned wrists help the user control the dumbbells.

Stop the set if

Stop if you feel sharp pain.
Stop if the grip slips or you must swing the torso to lift the weight.
End the set when you cannot complete the stated rep under control.

General educational content, not individual coaching or medical advice.

Muscles worked

Prime movers

Biceps · moderate confidence
Brachialis · moderate confidence

Assisting

Forearms and grip · moderate confidence

Equipment

Dumbbell + Bench

Set an incline bench so its back pad can support the working upper arm. Stand behind the bench with the whole upper arm resting over the pad and hold one dumbbell with the palm up.

In the app

You log this by hand. The camera coach does not watch this movement yet.

Tracking: Manual

How this page was checked

Draft. A editorial reviewer has not signed this off yet.

Draft text is original copy for Wave 2 batch 10, written from the blueprint CSV row and the owner rules approved on 2026-10-12 in #340. No human review is complete.
Technique, cues, rep standard, breathing, stop cues, and error corrections need independent sources and the assigned review tier (blueprint two-source rule).
Programming roles, skill tier, failure cost, timed use, goal fit, and equipment follow the owner rules; the switch-on PR must confirm them.
Anatomy uses the CSV planning hints unless an exception is stated; the assigned review tier must confirm it.
Legacy relations and engine edges stay empty until the progression ladder lane and S2-CAT-005.
Rule 4 skips no aliases in this batch. All 21 rows remain separate draft records; the owner can make overlaps aliases in the switch-on PR.
Timed use and goal fit copy ex_dumbbell_biceps_curl, the closest Wave 1 record. Timed use remains disallowed; no Wave 1 review evidence is claimed for this draft.
Rule 2 assigns secondary_pull, isolation_target by movement, as ex_dumbbell_biceps_curl.
Skill tier beginner (rule 3): a new user can perform one clean rep in the first session with a suitable load.
Failure cost low (rule 3): the user stops by lowering the dumbbells, as ex_dumbbell_biceps_curl and ex_dumbbell_lateral_raise.
Exception to the CSV bilateral laterality (rule 1): use unilateral and each_side; complete and count each side separately, as ex_one_arm_dumbbell_row.
Exception to CSV bench-optional (rule 1): require bench because the body or working arm rests on it. The bench picker id covers flat and adjustable benches; angle is setup text.
Rule 1 sets dumbbell quantity 1: one arm works at a time, as ex_one_arm_dumbbell_row.
Exception for the equipment picker (rule 1): there is no preacher bench id. Require bench and rest the upper arm over the back pad of an incline bench; the owner must confirm this setup.
Prescription uses load-and-reps with load in kg (rule 1), as ex_one_arm_dumbbell_row and ex_dumbbell_biceps_curl. The load_unit constraint states the unit explicitly; load basis and rep range still need review.
Bench angle, pad height, arm support, and the bottom elbow range need review. This draft uses an incline bench because the picker has no preacher bench.

All instruction and editorial text in this record is original draft copy written for Allena. Planning metadata comes from the internal Wave-2 blueprint CSV.

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