Forearm workouts for bigger and stronger arms

Forearm workouts (Photo via Anastase Maragos/Unsplash) — Forearm workouts (Photo via Unsplash/Anastase Maragos)

Forearm workouts are significant for developing strong arms and building an aesthetic upper body.

While the forearm muscles are used in compound exercises, as each of them requires a proper grip, it’s important to add exercises to the workout routine that specifically targets these muscles.

Forearm workouts you should be aware of

Forearm workouts (Photo via Gordon Cowie/Unsplash)

Whether you’re searching for the forearm workouts with dumbbells or with barbells, the following exercises will help in building strength and size of the forearms.

Farmer’s walk

Hold a heavy dumbbell or a weight plate in each hand.
Stand straight with your legs shoulder-width alert.
Keep a strong grip on the free weight, and begin walking across the gym (or a distance of at least 10-12 steps).
Walk back to the starting position.
Keep your core engaged, and grip as strong as possible.

Wrist curl

Hold a dumbbell in one hand, and sit on a bench.
Keep your forearm on your thighs.
The wrist and knee should be aligned.
Bend your wrist backwards while holding the dumbbell.
Bring it all the way inwards by moving the dumbbell towards the forearms.
Repeat at least 15-20 times before switching hands.

Reverse wrist curl

Hold a dumbbell in one hand, and sit on a bench.
Keep your forearm on the thigh with the palms facing downwards.
Keep your wrist and knee joints aligned.
Bend the bend downwards, and push it all the way backwards.
The entire movement should be from the wrist.
Do the movement at least 15-20 times before switching.

Plate pinch

Hold a weight plate between your fingers and thumb.
Squeeze them together for a certain amount of time.
Relax for a couple of seconds before repeating.

Forearm workouts at home

Push-ups (Photo via Unsplasg/Fortune Vieyra)

If you’re more comfortable working out at home, you should know the exercises you can do at home, and even work out a proper home gym setup:

Towel wring

Take a towel, and soap it in water.
Twist the towel as much as possible to wring out the water
Keep going as hard as possible with the twists.

Hand gripper

Take a hand gripper or a tennis ball.
Squeeze it as hard as you can multiple times.
Ensure you engage the forearms throughout the exercise.

Forearm plank

Assume the plank position.
Rest your body on your forearms by lowering them to the ground.
Hold the plank for 30 seconds before relaxing.

Finger push-up

Take the push-up position.
Rest your bodyweight on your fingers.
Proceed to do push-ups.

Bodyweight row

Find a horizontal surface like a sturdy table.
Lie underneath the surface.
Hold the surface, and pull yourself towards it.
Ensure that your forearms are engaged during the exercise.

Benefits of strong forearms

One of the primary reasons for adding specific exercises to your routine is to target specific muscles. Forearm workouts have their own set of benefits as well. Here are the following:

Improves grip strength

Forearm workouts are primarily aimed at enhancing grip strength. They help with several everyday activities like opening jars, holding objects and others.

Prevents injuries

Strong forearms help with stabilizing the joints during movements like throwing, gripping and lifting.

Improves athletic performance

Performance in sports that require strong grip strength like rock climbing, tennis and golf can benefit from strong forearms.

Improves muscle endurance

Strong forearms help with enhancing muscle endurance and enable you to perform activities that require better grip strength.

Better aesthetics

Forearms are an important part of overall arm and give the upper body the development it requires to become an aesthetically pleasing lean physique.

Forearm workouts do not need to be done every day, as compound exercises add stress and tension to the muscle group. However, a mixture of primary and secondary muscle groups stands to benefit from these exercises.