You guys are all missing the boat. The secret to great arms are to do bis and tris together, finishing up with forarms after everything is said and done. Incredible pump and massive gains, not to mention one of the most important muscle groups that ties in symetry (not to mention one of the most obviously seen-by-the-general-public muscles).
You can't do any stage poses without utilizing an arm pose.
I ran into an article by Charles Poliquin on 7 tips for massive arms which I thought was great. Here is Showdown's condensed version of the article:
Tip #1
Don't train biceps with back and triceps with chest. Poliquin's theory is that there is a lot of residual fatigue in the elbow flexors from the heavy sets used with other large muscle groups. Set aside a day just for arms.
Tip #2
Train your arms using the double station system. Basically put, you're supersetting biceps and triceps. Extending rest periods between sets is always recommended when exercising agonist with antagonist muscle groups.
Tip #3
To gain arm strength, pause between reps. Pausing between reps helps offset the oxygen debt associated with sustained contractions (recommended 10-15 seconds between reps).
Tip #4
Don't neglect the forearms or the traps.
Forearm strength is directly associated with bicep and tricep strength, therefore if the forearms are strong, you can load up on weight when doing bicep/tricep mass exercises.
Train your traps. And I quote "the stability of the cervicothoracic junction is critical for optimizing the neural and vascular supply to the upper arms". In English, if you're arm muscles are big but not in proportion to deltoid and trapezius development, you can end up cutting off blood circulation or nerve endings. This will cause problems maintaining or gaining more mass.
Tip #5
Give the 6-12-25 method a try. For those not familiar, the 6-12-25 refers to the number of reps done in a triple-set with 10 second rest in-between each exercise. (6 reps first exercise, rest, 12 reps second exercise, rest, 25 reps third exercise.) Try 2-3 sets of this method with at least a two-minute rest between sets.
Tip #6
Use specific brachialis training. On every great pair of arms, you always notice great brachialis development. To work this muscle, use Scott curls (wide or narrow, low pulley, or EZ bar) hammer curls, Gaspari bar curls, and Zottmann curls.
