| Detail November 1, 2006
"Mindi Curls"
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All About Mindi 1
is SeriousAboutFitness.com's first DVD production. The video is one hour long and stars
Mindi O'Brien, Canada's top fitness competitor. In it, Mindi describes body-sculpting
secrets she uses to shape your body the way you want. |
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All About Mindi 1 is our first
SeriousAboutFitness.com DVD production. This hour-long video features Canadian fitness
star Mindi O’Brien and is jam-packed with great training information that can help
rev up any workout. There are literally dozens of tips and tricks in there that we feel
more than justify the asking price.
Still, while there’s plenty of information crammed
into it, one exercise in particular seems to generate a lot of interest for those who have
seen it. In fact, many women have written to tell me how successfully they’ve
incorporated this exercise into their own training routines. It’s Mindi’s
variation of the incline dumbbell curl, something we now call the "Mindi Curl,"
and it’s a very effective way to train the biceps.
Mindi’s position and form for this exercise is unique.
She does the exercise on an adjustable seated incline bench, except she doesn’t sit
on the seat as someone normally would. Instead, she puts her feet on the seat so that she
can get herself much higher on the bench than usual. The bench is tilted back a lot more
than it would be for a typical incline dumbbell curl – my best guess is that in the
video she sets the bench to have about a 30-degree angle. As a result, her butt sits about
halfway up the bench, her shoulders actually go past the top of the back of the bench, and
she’s lying way back so she can’t possibly cheat when she lifts the weight. (See
the shot below from the video which will give you clearer idea of how Mindi does the
curls.) Frankly, this position might seem awkward and some people in the gym might stare
at you the first time you do it, but if they ask, smirk, or make some silly comment,
simply say, "Mindi says so," and that should silence any naysayers. After all,
how many people in any gym can say they’ve competed in the Olympia for three years
straight like Mindi has? Case closed.
Getting into the right position for this exercise is
crucial, but you do have to be careful. As a matter of fact, Mindi emphasizes caution in
the video as she’s setting up to do this movement herself, since once in position you
are in a more precarious position than for the standard seated incline dumbbell curl.
Basically, you have to watch that you don’t strain your neck in this position, since
you don’t have the top of the bench to support your head. As with any exercise, be
careful.
Mindi in the starting position with the biceps stretched. Take note of Mindi's
foot, head and hand positions. (Actual screenshot from All About Mindi 1.)
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The amount of weight used is important as
well. Basically, you don’t want to, nor can you, use very much weight –
certainly not as much as with typical dumbbell curls. The "Mindi Curl" is an
isolation-type movement that puts all the force directly on the biceps and, as such, the
weight has to be adjusted accordingly, and caution must be taken when lifting so you
don’t strain or tear anything.
You want to use just the right amount of weight that allows
the movement to be done in a slow, controlled, deliberate fashion for a decent number of
reps – this is in contrast to doing an exercise with too much weight, heaving and
jerking the weight from one point to the other by using every muscle in the body to get
the weight up. For "Mindi Curls," I found that a weight that allowed me 10-12
controlled reps was ideal. The actual weight used to achieve the reps will be different
for everyone.
You’ll also see in the video that Mindi squeezes her
biceps hard at the top of each rep, maximizing the contraction. Then she let’s the
weight down slowly until her arms are completely straight and her biceps are getting a
good stretch. Doing it this way keeps Mindi free from injury and works the biceps through
a full range of motion.
Mindi raises the dumbbells in a controlled fashion and squeezes her biceps hard.
(Actual screenshot from All About Mindi 1.)
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Finally, it’s important to mention that
this exercise can be done in an alternating style, with one dumbbell coming up as the
other is going down, or, as Mindi does in the video, with both dumbbells coming up at
once. Myself, I prefer doing both at once, although alternating is fine for a change from
time to time.
After you see Mindi do these curls in the video, it will
probably be much clearer exactly why she has such amazing arm development. Quite simply,
"Mindi Curls" are one of the most effective exercises for the biceps that
we’ve tried, and if you try them, you’ll know why too.
...Doug Schneider
das@seriousaboutfitness.com
To learn more about All About Mindi 1 and where you can buy
your own copy, please visit www.AllAboutMindi.com. |
