I was wondering what are some of the testosterone readers favorite forearm workouts.
I always looking for new and better ways to build this part of the arm which can give you such a dominant look. My current routine is
Reverse barbell Curls (10, 8, 6)
Standing Barbell Wrist Curls (10, 8, 6).This is done right after a bicep workout.
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Also reverse wrist curls, behind the back wrist curls, wrist curls off the knees, Ironmind grippers, and wrist rollers. Build core forearm strength and size by ditching straps, doing deadlifts, pull-ups etc. Try a dif rep range occasionally too. Go heavy on the wrist curls and do 5 x 5 or 8 x 3, then do a back-off set of 20. Try strip sets with little to no rest between sets. Work forearms every other day if you don’t already. Start your workout with forearm work. Paddle the pooch a lot.
Do deadlift holds with both hands pronated (facing down). I’ve tried bar hangs, but they make my arms feel like they’re going to pop out of their sockets so I don’t like them. I pinch plates between sets of other stuff. I’ve also got a sandbag that I like to manhandle.
Hammer Curls, heavy with a pause at the top. Curl it to 50 degrees, keep your elbows pointing down. 3-4 sets after bis, or before anything else, if you really want to blast them, but prepare for pain if you do them before a regular workout.
This is from my days under Vince Gironda but it has always worked.
PRIORITY !
If my forearms are lagging relative to my upper arms, I start my arm days with the following:
Light wrist curls, rolling from finger tips
4 x 25
Heavy middle 1/3 wrist curls
4 x 8
Reverse wrist curls
5 x 12
Reverse curls- pause at top
3 x 8
Zottman curls
4 x 12
Now start uper arms- yes the forearms give out first . .but how quickly they grow being trained first directly and then indirectly with the uper arms
ps: forget chins that day
Mike D
I do functional strength crap. Towel Chins, fisted and fingertip pushups are the best. Also dumbbell or barbell power holds are great. Doing them consistently has added more meat to my forearms plus a butt-load of strength.
One little tip that I’ve used through the years to maintain forearm and grip strength was to do most of my “pull” exercises i.e. pull ups, chins, barbell curls, rows, etc with the thumb on the same side of the bar as the rest of the fingers as opposed to hooking the bar and contacting with the index finger. It forced me to use a crushing grip and incidentally use more forearm. Hope this helps.
Sorry this isn’t an exercise, but it’s a little thing that can possibly help in the long run.
Hey Ive tried them all and what I’ve found the most effective are dumbell farmers walks for time. (at least 5 minutes working up to 10-15 minutes). Do this twice a week and a more conventional forearm workout once or twice/week. On the farmers walks the pain will be excrutiating but the results quickly show themselves.
Also, buy a thicker bar, like an Apollon Axle. Do all you lifts (deads, benches, curls, etc) with it.
the thicker bar thing is another great tip…
if you can’t get a thicker bar, use a towel or some type of rubber or foam pad to wrap around bars that you grasp.
Do plate wrist curls. Hook your thumb overtop of the plate & have the smooth side down. 25lbs is above average, 35lbs is excellent & 45lbs is world-class.
This may not be the exact names of the exercises, but ulnar and flexion exercises~where you take a dumbell bar, with a plate or more one one end, grab the bell bar at the end without the plate, and for the front, you raise your wrist upward, lifting the weight in front of you. For the rear, the plate is behind you, and your wrist facing forward, actually presses down, lifting the weight facing behind you in the air. These are very small movements!!