Short vs Long Biceps: Anatomical Differences, Workout Impact & More

ACE certified personal trainer Monica Morris also explains what short & long head biceps are & how to develop them for bigger peaks

Co-authored by Monica Morris and Elaine Heredia, BA

Last Updated: November 27, 2025 Fact Checked

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Anatomy & Appearance

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Determining Length

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Strength Impact

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Training Tips

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Arm Size Impact

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Short Biceps & Bodybuilding

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Video

For bodybuilders and people who weight train religiously, knowing if you have short or long biceps is extremely important. It's not just about how your biceps look—it's also about how easy it is to build muscle mass and lift heavier weights. In this article, we'll explain the anatomy of short vs long biceps, how to tell which one you have, its impacts on your workout and arm size, and whether short biceps are good or bad for bodybuilding, with expert insights from ACE certified personal trainer Monica Morris and certified personal trainer Jason Whalen. Let's go!

Long vs Short Biceps

ACE certified personal trainer Monica Morris says the biceps is made up of two muscles: the short head and the long head. Long biceps appear to extend all the way from the elbow to the forearm. Short biceps appear to stop midway between these points and form a noticeably bulging peak.

Section 1 of 6:

Short vs Long Biceps Anatomy

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The biceps is made of 2 sections of muscle: the short and long heads. Morris says the short head bicep and the long head bicep are both “part of the bicep muscle, but both are two heads within that muscle.” She explains that the “short head is the one responsible for the egg shape that becomes more visible with focused training.” On the other hand, “the long head goes from [the] elbow up to [the] shoulder” and “is responsible for shoulder stability.”^{[1]
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Monica Morris
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- Both heads originate in different parts of the scapula, or the shoulder blade. At the other end, they connect to one of the forearm bones, called the radius, via a piece of connective tissue called a tendon.^{[2]
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Meet the wikiHow Experts

Monica Morris is an ACE (American Council on Exercise) certified personal trainer with over 15 years of fitness training experience.

Jason Whalen is a certified personal trainer and owner of JWWFitness with over 10 years of experience.
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A short biceps has a long muscle belly, a high peak, and a short tendon. When you flex a short biceps, the short and long head bulge upward noticeably and form what fitness experts and bodybuilders call a peak. It also appears somewhat heart-shaped when you look at it from the front. This is because both the short head and the long head of the biceps are flexed.^{[3]
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- Did you know? The muscle belly is the thickest part of a muscle!^{[4]
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A long biceps has a long muscle belly, a low peak, and a short tendon. When you flex your arm, your biceps appears to extend all the way down to your forearm. It almost looks like the tendon isn't there, but it is—it's just short. The muscle belly also doesn't "peak" as prominently as it does on a short biceps.^{[5]
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- Did you know? Whether you have long or short biceps depends on your genetics and where your biceps naturally attach to your forearm bone. Exercising short biceps won't make them longer, and vice versa.
- According to Morris, genetics also dictate whether you have a more pronounced short head or long head biceps.^{[6]
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Section 2 of 6:

How to Tell If You Have Long or Short Biceps

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If you can fit at least 1-2 fingers between your biceps and forearm when you're flexing, you likely have short biceps. If you can't fit any fingers into this area, then you have long biceps.^{[7]
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Section 3 of 6:

How Short vs Long Biceps Impact Your Strength

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Both the short and long biceps can exert the same amount of force when properly trained. It's important to note, however, that people with long biceps may have an easier time lifting weights to build strength and mass. That's because the point where their bicep inserts into the forearm is further away from their elbow. This gives them more leverage when picking up heavy objects.^{[8]
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Section 4 of 6:

Short & Long Bicep Training Tips

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Do curls to enhance your peak and increase arm size. Curls are a go-to for bodybuilders and anyone else who wants to build muscle mass, and they work whether you have short or long biceps!^{[9]
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Research source} Any exercises you do to increase your biceps' size will also help build your short biceps peak, if you have one. Morris recommends doing bicep curls, like preacher curls, W curls, hammer curls, full range cable rope curls, and reverse grip cable curls (with a short bar).^{[10]
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Monica Morris
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- “If genetically, you are one of the few who also doesn’t have a naturally pronounced short bicep head,” Morris says, “I recommend, in addition to these exercises, add[ing] in tempo training [and] going really slow for the concentric phases of each exercise.”^{[11]
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Do compound exercises to build thickness in your whole arm. Whalen recommends doing compound exercises that target both your biceps and your triceps. Together, these are known as a muscle group. This will build mass in your arms more than exercises that target the biceps alone.^{[12]
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- Compound exercises for arms include pull-ups and some dumbbell exercises like bent-over rows.
- To develop the long head bicep, Morris recommends exercises like incline bench curls and wide, easy bar curls.^{[13]
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- Morris adds that the long head bicep “should be trained with just as much frequency and intensity as the short head of the bicep.” She says, “It’s important to train both heads, otherwise, an injury will likely occur over time because of the muscle asymmetry.”^{[14]
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Section 5 of 6:

How Long & Short Biceps Impact Arm Size

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Arms with short biceps have a taller peak closer to their shoulder when flexed. But other than that, they can be equally as thick as arms with long biceps!
People with long biceps can build a more consistent thickness from their shoulder to their forearm than those with short biceps. On the other hand, they have a shorter peak.

Section 6 of 6:

Are short biceps bad for bodybuilding?

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Short biceps aren't better or worse for bodybuilding than long biceps. Some of the most famous bodybuilders in history have short biceps! Back in his bodybuilding days, actor and former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger had extremely prominent short biceps. Other great examples are Ronnie Coleman, who's won the Mr. Olympia bodybuilding contest 8 times, and 3-time Arnold Classic Sports Championship winner Kai Greene.
- Regardless of whether your biceps are long or short, Morris notes that “the bicep head that will get the eye of the judges, more often is the short head.” She says the judges tend to “look at how well the competitor has built it up.”^{[15]
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