A quick Google search for the term ‘biceps’ pulls up a revealing result from Encyclopedia Britannica. “The size of the biceps brachii is a conventional symbol of bodily strength.”

But that superficial line doesn’t even begin to cover the extent of our societal – okay, mainly men’s – obsession with this particular piece of anatomy, or explain it.

Perhaps the reason is simply that the biceps brachii is, thanks to its position on the front of the upper arm, one of the most “prominent” muscles, as the entry points out. Certainly far fewer of us fetishise the biceps femoris on the back of our thigh.

Whatever its primitive, possibly evolutionary origin, the belief exists that, to borrow a phrase from Ron Burgundy, the only way to bag a classy lady is to give her two tickets to the gun show. Curls for the girls, as the gym bro saying goes – or bis for the guys.

Biceps are also important for pulling in a more literal sense. So if you want bigger, stronger arms, incorporate more pulling exercises into your workout routine. “Movements like rows, deadlifts or loaded carries will make a cumulative difference,” says Artur Zolkiewicz, manager of Workshop Gymnasium at the Bulgari Hotel in London’s Knightsbridge, and a fitness model who has bared his arms on magazine covers.

Before you start hitting the heavy hammer curls, size and strength don’t necessarily go hand in hand like Dutch and Dillon. “Using lighter weights and practising intense contraction can be more beneficial for your aesthetic goals,” says Zolkiewicz. Plus you’ll mitigate the risk of inflamed joints (the bad kind of swole), pain and injury.

While any pulling movement will employ your biceps, you still need to focus on them – in the sense of exercise selection and mind-muscle connection. Arnold Schwarzenegger famously thought of his biceps as mountains, which he believed helped them grow to Himalayan proportions, and non-bro science backs up his assertion. “Be conscious of the movement throughout and maximally contract the muscle at the peak point,” says Zolkiewicz.