It is no exaggeration to say that the forearms are the most prominent of all male muscles, yet they are the hardest to train. Many people with a “thin arm” complex probably have trouble with their thin forearms. If they had strong forearms, they would be able to roll up their sleeves and wear short-sleeved tops with confidence. In this issue, personal trainer Mr. Taizan Matsuura shows us how to easily strengthen our forearms using dumbbells and other items we have at home.
In 2016, he began working as a trainer as a member of Beyond Gym’s start-up staff. Served as store manager of the Horie store in Osaka, Japan; in 2017, he reached the pinnacle in the Mr. Japan contest, after which he went independent. In October 2022, he founded Waffle Gym in Tachikawa, Tokyo. He is always ready to propose muscle training menus that meet the needs of customers.
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Before we can train the forearms, we must first do some preparatory exercises!
Forearm training basically involves repetitive wrist flexion and dorsiflexion. In addition to this, the wrists are often used in daily activities, which can easily accumulate fatigue and cause pain. Therefore, preparatory exercises are essential before training the forearms. Stretching is a must, as it relieves muscle tension, improves flexibility, increases the range of motion of the joints, and improves training performance.
You can do it at home! Forearm Training with Dumbbells
Let’s start with forearm training with dumbbells. From those that can be done standing to those that can be done while sitting on a chair or a platform, we introduce a menu that is a classic forearm workout!
Forearm training you can do at home: 1) “Radial flexion”
Radial flexion trains the forearm flexor group, which is a group of eight forearm muscles. This is also recommended for those who want to improve their performance in back-training pull-type exercises, as training the forearm flexor muscles will make the forearms bigger and improve grip strength.
In an upright position, start by holding one of the dumbbells. Without moving your elbow, lift the dumbbell using only your wrist and stop for one second when it is fully raised. Then slowly lower the dumbbell. Start with 3 sets of 10 repetitions of this movement, and as you get used to it, increase the number of repetitions or add more weight.
Forearm training you can do at home (2) “Spination”
Spinning mainly targets the extrinsic muscles located near the elbow. The extra-rotator muscles support the outward motion of the hand and play an important role in our daily lives. However, the extra-rotator muscles are not easily hypertrophied, so it is important to continue training them repeatedly. It is also said that performing this exercise in conjunction with pronation, which is introduced next, will help strengthen the wrist and grip strength. Incidentally, this exercise also stimulates the biceps brachii.
Place your elbows on the pedestal and hold one of the dumbbells vertically. Slowly inward and stop for 1 second when you get to the point where you are parallel to the pedestal or floor. From there, slowly lift the downed dumbbell vertically. Breathe in as you lower the dumbbells and exhale as you raise them.
Forearm training you can do at home (3) “Pronation”
In contrast to spination, which rotates the forearm outward, pronation can strengthen forearm muscles such as the circular rotators, square rotators, and radial carpometacarpal flexors through forearm rotation. It is a simple movement and form is easy to stabilize, but it provides a different stimulus than other types of exercises, so if you want to have attractive forearms, you should definitely try it.
Forearm training you can do at home (4) “Wrist curl”.
The wrist curl is a typical forearm training menu. The method introduced here is a method that also loads the fingers, and is also called finger curls. While this method can train the flexor muscles of the forearms, it also places a heavy burden on the wrists, so please be careful with the weights you use.
[ Related article ] Build dependable forearms with wrist curls! Effective and correct method explained.
Forearm Training at Home 5: “Hammer Curl”
The hammer curl is a type of arm curl. It mainly trains the long head of the biceps brachii, the brachioradialis muscle, and the brachioradialis muscle, which is the key to the thickness of the forearm. Incidentally, of all the forearm muscles, the brachialis is the largest and most easily hypertrophied, so if you want thicker forearms, you should incorporate the hammer curl.
Stand with your back straight and feet shoulder-width apart, and hold dumbbells with the backs of your hands facing outward. From there, lift the dumbbells without moving your elbows. Hold for 1 second when your biceps muscles are tight, then slowly lower the dumbbells over a period of 3 seconds. Start with 3 sets of 10 repetitions and increase the number of repetitions as you go.
[ Related article ] Hammer curls are a good muscle training workout to get strong arms! Introducing everything from how to do it to tips.
You can do it with what you have at home! What is the easy forearm training?
Here is a forearm workout that doesn’t require dumbbells. You can do it with whatever you have at home, so please give it a try.
Forearm training that can be done with things you can find at home.
According to Mr. Taizan, the movements for training forearms, palm flexion and dorsiflexion, can be covered with towel squeezing. In addition, it also strengthens grip strength, making it ideal for developing grip strength. All you need is a towel, so give it a try.
Forearm training that can be done with things you have at home (2) “Stick Radial Friction”
Here is a modified version of radial flexion using dumbbells. Any stick-shaped object at home can be used, so golf clubs, baseball bats, shovels, brooms, clotheslines, and the like can be substituted. Needless to say, the weight of the stick as well as the length and the part of the stick to hold will affect the load, so adjust according to your own level.
Start by holding a stick perpendicular to the ground. Slowly lower the stick over time and hold it for one second when it is parallel to the floor. From there, slowly bring the stick back to vertical. It is important to keep your elbows and shoulders fixed, being conscious of moving only your wrists.
If you’re looking for some muscle training equipment, check this out!
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