What the angled grip changes
Hold a straight bar underhand and your forearms are turned fully palm-up; hold it overhand and they are turned fully palm-down. An EZ bar's bends tilt each hand partway towards the thumbs-up position of a hammer grip, whichever way you hold it. The same muscles do the same work; what changes is the angle at the wrist and forearm, and many lifters find it more comfortable than the fully turned positions a straight bar locks them into.
That is a trade-off, not an upgrade. The bar is much shorter than an Olympic bar, so it takes fewer plates, and its bends decide how wide you can hold it. For heavy squats, presses and rows, the straight barbell in a rack remains the tool. The EZ bar's place is the arm and shoulder work that follows them. This page is one of the gym equipment guides.
Fixed and loadable EZ bars
Gyms usually have one kind or both. They train the same exercises; they differ in how you change the weight.
| Type | How it works | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Fixed EZ bar | Plates welded or bolted on, with the total weight printed on the end; stored on a rack in steps | Quick changes between exercises, supersets, and anyone who would rather not load plates |
| Loadable EZ bar | Sleeves that take plates and collars; the empty bar weighs less than a 20 kg Olympic bar, and its weight varies by maker | Small, exact jumps in load, and sets heavier than the fixed rack goes |
If a loadable bar's weight is not marked, ask the staff rather than guessing, and count the bar in your total. Fixed bars climb in set amounts, so at the light end one step can be a big jump for a small muscle.
Choosing the bends for each exercise
Most EZ bars have two pairs of bends: an inner pair near the middle and an outer pair nearer the sleeves. Which pair you hold, and which way your palms face, sets the exercise up.
| Grip | Where the hands go | Use it for |
|---|---|---|
| Underhand, outer bends | About shoulder width, palms up and tilted slightly in | EZ-bar curls, preacher curls, drag curls, 21s |
| Underhand, inner bends | Narrower than the shoulders | A close-grip curl, if your wrists and elbows are comfortable with it |
| Overhand, inner bends | About a fist or two apart | Skull crushers, overhead extensions, the close-grip press |
| Overhand, outer bends | About shoulder width, palms down and tilted slightly in | Reverse curls, upright rows, front raises |
Bars differ, so check before every set that both hands sit on matching bends at the same distance from the centre. A lopsided grip tilts the bar as you lift.
EZ bar exercises by muscle
The table groups the movements most worth learning. Those with a step-by-step page are linked beneath it.
| Muscle | EZ bar exercises | Start with |
|---|---|---|
| Biceps | EZ-bar curl, preacher curl, drag curl, 21s | EZ-bar curl |
| Triceps | Skull crusher, overhead extension (French press), close-grip press | Skull crusher |
| Forearms | Reverse curl, wrist curl with the forearms on a bench | Reverse curl |
| Shoulders and traps | Upright row, front raise | Upright row on the outer bends |
| Back and chest | Pullover on a flat bench; a light bent-over row | Pullover |
Step by step: bicep curl, preacher curl, skull crusher, overhead tricep extension, close-grip bench press, upright row and pullover.
EZ bar exercises for the triceps
The skull crusher is the classic: lying on a flat bench, overhand on the inner bends, lower the bar towards your forehead and straighten your arms. Held overhead, seated or standing, the same grip becomes the French press, which works the long head of the triceps more stretched. The close-grip press below adds heavier work.
EZ bar exercises for the biceps and forearms
The EZ-bar curl is many lifters' main curl: it handles loads close to a straight bar's, at a wrist angle more people are comfortable with. Turn your hands over for the reverse curl, which shifts the work to the brachioradialis and the top of the forearm, with clearly less weight. The biceps guide shows how to combine them.
EZ bar exercises for the shoulders and back
Overhand on the outer bends, an upright row to shoulder height, not the chin, trains the side shoulders and upper traps; the upright row page has the grip details. A front raise works the front shoulders. For the back the EZ bar is a supporting tool: a pullover takes the lats through a long arc, but heavy rows belong on a straight bar.
The close-grip press on an EZ bar
Lie on a flat bench, take the inner bends overhand and press the bar from your lower chest to straight arms with your elbows tucked close to your sides. The angled grip suits wrists that dislike a narrow grip on a straight bar, and the triceps do much of the work, as in the close-grip bench press.
The catch is getting the bar into position. Without a rack, you sit on the end of the bench with the bar on your thighs and lie back with it, or have a partner hand it to you, so keep the load moderate and the reps around eight to fifteen. To press heavy, move to a straight bar in a rack with the safeties set. Many lifters use the EZ press straight after skull crushers, once the triceps can no longer lower the bar to the forehead under control.
EZ bar or straight bar?
A 2018 study had 12 participants do one set of ten curls with dumbbells, a straight bar and an EZ bar, at the same relative load, while their muscle activity was recorded. Biceps and brachioradialis activity were both higher on the EZ bar than with dumbbells, and the difference between the EZ bar and the straight bar was small; the authors concluded that choosing between those two is a matter of comfort. It was a one-session test of muscle activity, not a training study, so it says nothing about growth.
| Compare | EZ bar | Straight bar |
|---|---|---|
| Wrist position | Hands tilted partway towards a thumbs-up grip | Fully palms-up or fully palms-down |
| Load | Fewer plates fit on its shorter sleeves | Takes the heaviest loads |
| Racks | Often too short to sit securely on rack hooks; lifted from the floor or the fixed-bar rack | Fits the hooks and safeties for squats and presses |
| Suits | Curls, extensions, reverse curls, upright rows | Squats, deadlifts, bench and overhead presses, heavy rows |
If a straight bar bothers your wrists or elbows on curls or extensions, try the EZ bar; if discomfort carries on with any bar, stop and see a doctor or physiotherapist. If both feel fine, use either, and switch between them across training blocks.
An arms session with one EZ bar
Triceps and biceps with one bar and a flat bench
| Exercise | Sets × reps | How hard |
|---|---|---|
| Close-grip EZ press | 3 × 8–10 | Two reps left; elbows tucked |
| EZ-bar curl | 3 × 8–12 | Elbows still, no lean back |
| Skull crusher | 3 × 10–12 | A slow lowering to the forehead |
| Reverse curl | 2 × 12–15 | Light, with the wrists straight |
| 21s on the EZ bar | 1 set | Optional finisher |
Rest about a minute and a half after the press and about a minute after the rest. The hypertrophy volume calculator counts these sets alongside your pressing and pulling.
Do it once a week, or use the last three exercises as the arm block of an upper-body day. On fixed bars, add reps until every set reaches the top of its range, then move up one bar; on a loadable bar, add the smallest plates.
Mistakes with the EZ bar
| Mistake | What it looks like | The fix |
|---|---|---|
| The wrong pair of bends | Curling on the inner bends because they are nearest, with the elbows squeezed in | Take the bends that put your hands where the exercise needs them |
| Uneven hands | One hand on an inner bend and the other on an outer one | Match the bends and check before each set |
| No collars on a loadable bar | Plates creep along the short sleeves during the set | Fit a collar on each end, every set |
| Wrists bent back | On skull crushers the bar rolls into the fingers and the wrists fold | Hold it low in the palm with the wrists straight |
| One bar for everything | Using the same fixed bar for curls, extensions and reverse curls | Choose by reps: a skull crusher or reverse curl bar is far lighter than a curl bar |
EZ bars at RPM
RPM's floor photos show a rack of fixed barbells that includes EZ bars, flat benches and multi-station cable towers on the training floor in Al Manhal, so the curls, extensions, rows and press on this page can all be done with a fixed bar. The photos do not show whether loadable EZ bars that take plates are on the floor too, or a preacher bench for the preacher curl, so ask about both on a free guided tour. To learn the curl, skull crusher and press grips with a coach watching, book personal training.
Sources
Questions, answered.
How much does an EZ bar weigh?
It depends on the bar. A fixed EZ bar has its total weight printed on the end. An empty loadable EZ bar weighs less than a 20 kg Olympic bar, but the exact figure varies by maker, so check the label or ask the staff, and count it in your total.
Is an EZ bar better than a straight bar for curls?
Neither wins on muscle activity: in the 2018 study above the difference was small, and the authors put the choice down to comfort. If a straight bar suits your wrists, it does the same job.
Can you bench press with an EZ bar?
Only the close-grip press. The bar is too short and its bends too narrow for a normal-width bench press, and it is often too short to sit securely on rack hooks, so heavy pressing belongs on a straight bar in a rack.
Is the EZ bar good for beginners?
Yes. Fixed bars need no loading, the bends show you where to put your hands, and the curl and skull crusher are among the first free-weight arm exercises most people learn. Start light, because one step up the fixed rack can be a big jump.