Strong forearms mean more upper body strength, so why do forearm workouts tend to fall into the background? Ignoring building the forearms in favor of growing the pecs, lats, traps, and biceps has resulted in many less-aware gym enthusiasts having to play catch up with this part of their body.
That’s because no set of killer pectorals, fantastic lats, wide and muscular shoulders, and bulging biceps can mask underdeveloped forearms. Plus, when everything else looks good, it’ll just emphasize how weak and tiny your forearms are.
Not to mention, this would actually affect your upper body strength at a certain point.
Your forearms hold a significant amount of carrying strength. While you may unknowingly grow your forearms doing other exercises, there will come a point when you would need to work on them separately.
So, without further ado, we’ll walk you through 11 of the best forearm exercises for a complete upper body program that could have you rivaling Sly Stallone’s upper body physique.
11 Best Forearm Workouts for Men
Here’s our recommended forearm workout routine to get great circulation going in those forearms and flex those extensors like you mean business:
| Forearm Workout | Reps |
| Dumbbell Wrist Flexion | One set (train to failure) |
| Dumbbell Wrist Extension | One set (train to failure) |
| Reverse Curl | Three sets of 10 to 12 |
| Hammer Curl | Three sets of 10 to 12 |
| Zottman Curl | Three sets of 10 to 12 |
| Farmer’s Walk | 10 sets of 12 to 15 |
| Chin Up | Three sets of eight to 12 |
| Pull-Up Bar Hang | Five sets of 30 secs |
| Towel Pull-Up Bar Hang | Five sets of 30 secs |
| Behind-the-Back Cable Curl | Three sets of eight to 10 |
| EZ-Bar Preacher Curl | Three sets of eight to 10 |
How to Do the Best Forearm Workouts for Men
Follow these great forearm moves for muscle growth and development. Remember to stop if you feel any pain in the wrists, elbows, or joints when performing these exercises.
1. Dumbbell Wrist Flexion
The movement for this exercise may be relatively straightforward, but that doesn’t make it less vital an addition to your workout routine. The dumbbell wrist flexion targets and strengthens the wrist flexors, boosting grip strength as a result.
How to Perform the Exercise
To do the dumbbell wrist flexion correctly, follow these steps:
- Grab a dumbbell and sit on the edge of a bench.
- Hold the dumbbell with your dominant hand (in this case, the right) and lay your right forearm on your right thigh. Make sure the back of your wrist is above the kneecap so that the palm closing over the dumbbell is facing up.
- Focusing on isolating your hand, bring the dumbbell as low as you can, maintaining a solid grip on the dumbbell throughout the motion.
- Curl the dumbbell towards your thigh without creating distance between your arm and your thigh.
- Repeat for the left (or right) side. Train to failure.
2. Dumbbell Wrist Extension
The dumbbell wrist extension is the counterpart of the previous exercise. It requires a subtle movement change in the previous to target the wrist extensors and build forearm strength effectively.
Like its inverse, the dumbbell wrist flexion, the dumbbell wrist extension is an isolation movement that focuses on a specific muscle group. Hence, it is best to scatter around the different exercises in your routine rather than fixate on them constantly.
How to Perform the Exercise
You can accurately perform the dumbbell wrist extension by following these steps:
- Grab a dumbbell and sit on the edge of a bench.
- With the dumbbell on your right hand, place your right forearm on your right thigh, positioning the back of your wrist above the kneecap.
- Focusing on isolating your hand, curl the dumbbell towards you without breaking the contact between your forearm and your thigh. Maintain a good grip when executing each rep.
- Carefully return to the starting position.
- Repeat for the other side. Train until failure.
3. Reverse Curl
Many of us are aware of the barbell curl’s full impact on our biceps. But did you know a similar movement that involves mere flipping can hold the same level of impact for the forearms?
That’s what the reverse curl can do when executed correctly. It can increase circulation around the forearm area, helping you grow and develop the muscles in your forearms and boost grip strength as a result.
How to Perform the Exercise
This exercise calls for light weights, so don’t let ego lifting get in the way of you doing things right. Speaking of doing things correctly, here’s a step-by-step guide on how to correctly perform the reverse curl:
- Grab hold of the bar at shoulder width using an overhand grip.
- With your upper arms positioned firmly against your sides, curl the bar carefully towards you.
- When the top of your hands level with the deltoids, squeeze.
- Lower the bar back to a neutral position, feeling the tension as you do.
Do three sets of 10 to 12 reps.
4. Hammer Curl
We know the hammer curl to be a bicep exercise, but it also impacts specific muscles on your forearms.
You feel the pain in your forearms during those latter sets, don’t you? This is especially the case when you train to failure.
Make the hammer curl a staple in your arm routines because it can help you develop killer biceps and turn your forearms thick and veiny—just the way you like them!
How to Perform the Exercise
Here’s how you perform the hammer curl correctly:
- While in a standing position, hold one dumbbell in one of your hands. Keep your arms straight and positioned at your sides.
- Raise one arm until the forearm is positioned vertically and the back of the thumb faces the shoulder. Hold the movement, feeling the tension on your biceps.
- Carefully lower the dumbbell to starting position.
Repeat the steps with the other arm. Perform three sets of 10 to 12 reps with this exercise.
5. Zottman Curl
The zottman curl is a compound exercise that can work those forearms to build great grip strength.
How to Perform the Exercise
To perform the zottman curl effectively, here’s what you do:
- In a standing position, hold a dumbbell with each hand with palms facing inward.
- Curl the weights inward, keeping your upper arms neutral.
- At the top of the lift, carefully rotate your palms so they face your biceps.
- Return to the neutral position, feeling the tension as you lower the weights.
Do three sets of 10 to 12 repetitions for the zottman curl.
6. Farmer’s Walk
Remember how we said one can sometimes unknowingly work their forearms doing an exercise meant for another body part? This is one of those instances.
When you do the Farmer’s walk, you don’t just build leg muscles but also wrist and finger muscles. It’s basically a whole-body exercise that greatly impacts the flexors on your fingers and wrists.
How to Perform the Exercise
To do the Farmer’s walk accurately, follow these steps:
- Stand with your feet a shoulder’s breadth apart, while grabbing hold of a pair of heavy dumbbells, palms facing your body.
- Walk in a straight line, engaging your shoulders and glutes and keeping your spine upright throughout the exercise.
- Repeat nine more times.
Perform 10 sets of 12 to 15 reps of this exercise.
7. Chin Up
Normally you do chin-ups for the biceps and the back, particularly the lats, but it can work the arms and forearms just as well. It’s a great exercise for building several muscle groups. Plus, all you need is a decent pull-up bar to do it at home.
How to Perform the Exercise
To correctly do the chin up, you must:
- Grasp the bar with both your hands, positioning them shoulder-width apart, palms facing you.
- Engage your core and contract your shoulder blades to pull yourself up, not stopping until your chin is above the bar.
- Hold your position for a few seconds at the top.
- Lower yourself carefully to starting position, feeling the tension in those target muscles as you do so.
You can perform chin-ups with an assistance band or a machine until you’re finally strong enough to pull your entire body weight.
Complete at least three sets of eight repetitions of this exercise.
8. Pull-Up Bar Hang
This is a similar exercise to the chin-up (except there is no actual pulling required), with subtle changes making it target those lower arm muscles and finger and wrist flexors specifically. It is one of the best forearm exercises you can easily do at home.
How to Perform the Exercise
Here’s how you do the pull-up bar hang:
- Grab onto the bar with both your hands using an overhand grip, positioning your hands shoulder width apart with forward-facing palms.
- Hang for at least 30 seconds, keeping your arms straight and your ankles crossed and positioned behind you.
- Repeat
If you can’t hit 30 seconds, do every set until failure. Complete at least five sets of the exercise.
9. Towel Pull-Up Bar Hang
You can probably guess the difference between this and the previous exercise—yes, it’s the towel. That said, this variation focuses on the wrist adductors instead.
How to Perform the Exercise
To do the towel pull-up bar hang the right way, follow these steps:
- Drape two towels over a part, positioning them a shoulder’s breadth apart.
- Grip a towel in each hand tightly.
- Engage your core and lift your body up, positioning your feet behind you with your ankles crossed for as long as you can manage.
Try to maintain your position for at least 30 seconds. If not, you can train to failure. Repeat for five sets.
10. Behind-the-Back Cable Curl
As a forearm exercise that promotes healthy circulation through the contraction of the brachioradialis, the behind-the-back cable curl is a must-incorporate in your arm and forearm workout routines.
You may need a setup to perform it at home, but you should be able to do it easily at the gym. Its movement is similar to the standard curl but with an over-directed starting position. It means there’s an emphasis on elbow contraction to create more forearm engagement.
How to Perform the Exercise
Here’s how you do a cable curl behind the back:
- Grab a D-handle and attach it to a cable station’s low-set pulley.
- Hold on to the handle with your left hand and step forward, making sure your arm is positioned slightly behind your body and there is tension on the cable.
- Slowly curl the handle, but don’t let your elbow face forward.
Do three sets of 8 to 10 repetitions of the behind-the-back cable curl.
11. EZ-Bar Preacher Curl
A staple in bicep workout programs, the EZ-bar preacher curl should also make a great addition to any forearm workout routine.
Its movement creates significant elbow contraction, which adds tension to the lower arm’s primary muscle groups. As a result, the exercise lets you gain muscle and build mass effectively.
How to Perform the Exercise
You can execute this curl exercise correctly by following these simple steps:
- Seat yourself on a preacher bench with an EZ-curl bar positioned at the front and grab onto the bar using an underhand shoulder width grip.
- Maintaining a slight elbow bend, curl the bar towards you carefully, resting the backs of your arms on the bench throughout the movement.
- Hold the top position for a couple of seconds, so you feel the tension on your biceps.
- Carefully lower the EZ-bar to starting position.
Do three sets of at least eight reps of this exercise.
Building a Forearm Exercise Routine
The first step to building great forearm muscles is to create an effective exercise routine. It can be a bit tricky because not only are we built differently, but each of us has different circumstances surrounding our fitness journey.
That said, certain tips may help overcome this, namely:
- Creating a routine that we would actually enjoy
- Making sure our muscles recover
- Using a wide variety of techniques to address muscle soreness, which is particularly important for beginners
Why It’s Important to Grow Your Forearms
As mentioned, the forearms hold a significant amount of carrying strength. The lower half of it, specifically, is a region that houses a lot of tension and provides the avenue between the upper arm and hands. This link delivers the resistance control required to lift heavy things.
Of course, we’re not just talking about everyday lifting tasks. We’re also referring to the killer workouts you do at the gym.
Those 300-lb deadlifts are no easy feat, but the right forearm training may help you do them relatively easily.
There comes a point in your weightlifting journey when doing separate workouts for the forearms becomes critical for improving grip strength. You just can’t expect any significant growth to occur from there if you don’t.
Plus, there’s no arguing that thick, veiny forearms look good. A typical gym junkie can have stand-out pecs and a great back, but it’s the real strongmen who leave no stone left unturned and have legs and forearms just as amazing as the rest of them.
So, build those forearms and develop a grip that could actually help you live longer by incorporating any of the best forearm exercises into your workout routine.
The Forearm Muscles
The forearm has 20 muscles in total, but we’ll only cover the eight that play a primary role in lifting movements.
All the forearm’s 20 muscles are grouped into two: anterior and posterior muscles. The flexor or anterior muscles are housed within the arm and function for flexing the fingers and wrists and twisting the forearms. These muscles can be further classified as deep, intermediate, or superficial.
On the other hand, the posterior or extensor muscles are positioned on the outside and function mainly for wrist and finger extension. They can either be deep or superficial muscles.
It’s important to have some level of understanding of the forearm anatomy to know how to use these muscles to their full advantage when lifting and to prevent injury-causing movements.
So, what are the eight main muscles that comprise the forearms?
Extensor Carpi Radialis Brevis
Located in the superficial layer of the posterior forearm, you’ll find the extensor carpi radialis brevis on the posterior forearm as a superficial layer. It functions hand-in-hand with the extensor carpi radialis longus for wrist abduction and extension.
Extensor Carpi Radialis Longus
The extensor carpi radialis longus works in tandem with the extensor carpi radialis brevis to extend or abduct the wrist. It is basically a longer, thinner version of its counterpart.
Extensor Carpi Ulnaris
This superficial layer of the forearm muscle functions to extend the wrist and abduct the hand.
Flexor Carpi Radialis
Situated within the anterior forearm’s superficial layer is the flexor carpi radialis, a long, fairly thin muscle that supports wrist flexion and abduction.
Flexor Carpi Ulnaris
Further out to the right of the anterior forearm sites the flexor carpi ulnaris. It functions mainly for flexing the hand and adducting the wrist.
Flexor Digitorum Superficialis
The largest of the primary forearm muscles is the flexor digitorum superficialis. It belongs to the anterior group and is the only one classified as an intermediate layer.
It is also divided into four tendons that run through the fingers and is responsible for finger and wrist flexing.
Brachioradialis
This muscle in the posterior compartment assists in elbow flexing related to the upper arm’s biceps brachii and brachialis movements.
Pronator Teres
Finally, there’s the pronator teres or the forearm’s inward rolls. It can be found in the anterior forearm’s superficial layer.
Forearm Exercise Health Benefits
Any kind of resistance training might improve an individual’s health. Not only could it boost muscle endurance and strength, but it could also enhance the density of the bones.
Furthermore, physical activity of any kind might help a person handle more physically demanding tasks. A 2020 study showed that a great forearm exercise routine could improve bone mass in the forearms.
The Risks of Forearm Exercises
While forearm exercises might hold significant health benefits, they still put one at risk of injury.
Let’s say you perform these exercises correctly. There is still a chance your chosen exercises or any exercise may not be right for you. This could be especially true for strenuous exercises involving considerable weight.
People who have been operated on or have a history of physical injuries or medical conditions tend to be most at risk.
That’s why not enough emphasis can be placed on the importance of choosing a challenging program that doesn’t push people too far. More often than not, you will need to work with trusted healthcare professionals and professional trainers to devise such a program.
And That’s a Wrap!
There is no shortage of forearm strength workouts. These exercises may require machines, dumbbells, or simply one’s body to execute. By choosing the set of exercises that work for you, you can build those forearms safely and see improvements in terms of forearm strength and build in time.
Incorporate the ideal forearm routines into your upper body program and see yourself develop ferocious grip strength in no time!
Forearm Exercises FAQs
1. How do you build bigger forearms?
Grow your forearms by integrating forearm and grip-strengthening exercises into your workout routine at least once a week.
From dedicated forearm exercises to compound exercises, like the towel cable row and farmer’s walk that strengthen glute muscles and forearm muscles, there’s a broad range of workouts to boost forearm growth.
2. Why do you need to have strong forearms?
A good percentage of your carrying strength depends on your forearm strength. From everyday tasks like lifting your kids and carrying your groceries to fitness-centered activities like lifting weights and doing pull ups, the forearms play a huge role in so many of the things we do.
Like muscular legs, muscular forearms can do a great job of balancing the rest of your physique.
3. What helps you develop your forearms?
All the exercises mentioned can grow all forearm muscle groups or specific muscles on your forearm.
Dumbbell wrist flexions and extensions, reverse curls, zottman curls, and hammer curls are especially effective. Farmer’s walks are great for building forearm and glute strength while giving a thorough workout to the rest of the body.
