It feels weird to talk about pain in the middle of your back when doing bicep curls.
I mean, you’re training your biceps, so obviously you should be feeling it in your biceps.
Okay, I’ll admit that there are times when you may feel bicep curls in your forearms, wrists, elbows, and even shoulders.
But, surely not in the mid-back region?
However, you know as well as me that this does occasionally occur.
So, allow me to explain the reasons why and how you can fix this.
If you’re feeling pain in the middle of your back during bicep curls, this typically comes down to using momentum, hunching your back, rounding your shoulders, or having weak upper back muscles. If this is the case it’s likely that you’re trying to curl too much weight. You can counteract this by reducing the weight, performing bicep curls with your back against a wall, or using a staggered stance.
You’re Using Momentum During Bicep Curls
The most common reason that you experience mid-back pain during biceps curls is because you’re using momentum.
More specifically, you’re also using your back to curl the weight up.
This generally occurs if you’re not properly warmed up or if you’re trying to curl more weight than you can handle.
Firstly, most people typically perform a few lighter sets of bicep curls as a warm-up.
However, in truth, this is nowhere near enough.
Plus, once your biceps start to fatigue you’ll often use other muscles in order to curl the weight up.
Therefore, it makes sense to perform a full-body warm up, even if you are only training your biceps for that specific day.
Furthermore, you have to remember that your shoulders, traps, and back all need to stabilise when you’re holding a load in your hands.
So, it makes sense to warm these muscles up beforehand too.
With that being said, even if you have warmed up correctly, you may still be trying to curl too much weight.
If this is the case, you’re probably not using your biceps anymore to get the weight up, and it’s also likely that you’re swinging and using momentum.
You may not even notice it yourself, but I would hazard a guess that you’re rocking your torso forwards and backwards.
And unfortunately, this can eventually lead to straining your mid-back.
You’re Hunching Your Back
Hunching your back during bicep curls can be a major contributor to mid-back pain for several reasons:
Strain on muscles: When you hunch, your upper back muscles, particularly the rhomboids and middle trapezius, are forced to work overtime to pull your shoulders back and counteract the weight. This constant tension can lead to fatigue, soreness, and eventually pain.
Postural imbalance: Hunching disrupts the natural alignment of your spine, putting undue stress on the discs and other supporting structures in your mid-back. This misalignment can also lead to muscle imbalances, further exacerbating the problem.
Pinched nerves: The rounded posture associated with hunching can compress the nerves in your upper back and neck, causing radiating pain, tingling, or numbness.
Reduced core engagement: Hunching often involves disengaging your core, which leaves your back unsupported and vulnerable to injury. A strong core helps stabilize your spine and distribute the force of lifting more evenly, protecting your mid-back.
Decreased shoulder mobility: Rounded shoulders, a common consequence of hunching, can limit your shoulder’s range of motion during bicep curls. This reduced mobility forces other muscles, like your upper back muscles, to compensate, increasing the risk of strain and pain.
Tips to Prevent Hunching During Bicep Curls
Maintain a tall posture: Keep your spine straight, with your shoulders down and back. Imagine lengthening your neck as you stand tall.
Engage your core: Breathe deeply and tighten your abdominal muscles to provide stability and support for your back.
Focus on your back muscles: As you perform the bicep curl, actively engage your upper back muscles by squeezing your shoulder blades together.
Control the weight: Choose a weight that allows you to maintain proper form throughout the entire exercise. Avoid using momentum to swing the weights.
Stretch and strengthen: Regularly stretch your chest muscles and strengthen your upper back muscles to improve your posture and prevent hunching.
You’re Rounding Your Shoulders
Rounding your shoulders during bicep curls is a common form error with several disadvantages:
Reduced bicep activation: When your shoulders are rounded forward, the biceps are placed in a less optimal position for contraction, limiting their ability to generate force and fully engage during the curl. This can lead to decreased muscle growth and less effective exercise.
Increased risk of shoulder impingement: Rounding your shoulders compresses the space between your upper arm bone (humerus) and the bony structures of your shoulder joint (acromion and coracoid process). This can pinch the rotator cuff tendons, leading to inflammation, pain, and potential long-term injury.
Decreased stability: Rounded shoulders contribute to poor posture and instability in the shoulder joint. This makes it harder to control the weight during bicep curls, increasing the risk of dropping the weight or using momentum to compensate, which can further exacerbate the problem.
Postural imbalances: Chronic rounding of the shoulders can pull your head forward and tighten your chest muscles, further disrupting your natural spinal alignment and leading to additional aches and pains in the neck, upper back, and even lower back.