Forearm Blast for 2004

For the past year I have had a flurry of e-mails and questions from body sculptors about "what do I do with my forearms?" After reviewing my past articles I thought it was time to write an article about the importance of forearms exercises.

Most denizens of corporate America could classify their forearms as vestigial muscles-tasks such as typing and surfing the Web pose serious injury risks to grossly underdeveloped flexors or extensors.

Even those of us who hit the gym regularly aren't training this key muscle group with any kind of focus or consistency. Sure, your forearms get worked pretty hard on back day when you perform any kind of pull-down, row or curl. And yeah, handling heavy dumbbells, barbells and weight plates will improve your general forearm and grip strength. But functional strength, the kind that actually improves performance and reduces the risk of injury, requires more focused effort. If you want to play better golf, tennis, hockey, baseball or basketball, or just improve your weightlifting ability, you need to target the muscles that flex, extend and rotate your wrist joints.

Whether you're trying to hit the 2-iron stinger off the tee on a windy day, extend your shooting range on the basketball court, or win a arm-wrestling match, powerful forearms will help.

There are more different muscles in your forearms than in any other large body part. These muscles are capable of exerting crushing grip force, or the delicate manipulations of a heart surgeon. For your purposes, however, we will deal with only three general categories of forearm muscle structure and function.

The first category is the forearm supinator muscle complex, a large, meaty muscle out the outer-upper part of your forearm. And in most cases, you will only be able to develop this muscle group to the maximum extent by hard, consistent training.

The second category is the forearm flexor muscles, which are a bundle of many small muscles on the inside of your forearm. When you have your arms down at your sides and palms facing each other, the forearm flexors act on the large group of muscles on the insides of your forearms. This group of muscles contacts to close your fist, or to flex your fist, as in wrist curls.

The final general category of forearm muscles is the forearm extensors, or the smaller bundle of muscles on the outer sides of your forearms. These muscles contract to extend your fingers from a position in which you have made a fist. They also contract to extend your hand in relation to your forearm, as is the case in reverse wrist curls.

Forearm Training Tips

Training forearms is a basic task with very few refinements. Therefore, there really aren't any secrets you'll need to know when building up your forearm muscles. There are a couple of tricks you should know, however.

When you train forearms hard, you will have difficulty in gripping weights for other exercises later in your session. Your forearm muscles will be so pumped up, in fact, that you won't even be able to write notes in your training log. So wait until the end of your sessions to train your forearms.

It is possible to overtrain your forearms. I recommend that you only train your forearms every other day. Complete the following routine twice a week, allowing ample rest (48 hours) between sessions. Try not to schedule these sessions the day before a sporting endeavor, as tight, sore forearms can decrease performance.

This workout consists of three basic exercises: wrist curls, reverse wrist curls, and forearm rotations. To decrease the time spent selecting a weight, you might want to have two sets of dumbbells, since you'll probably need a lighter weight for the reverse curls than for the wrist curls (you have stronger wrist flexors than extensor muscles). Take a one- or two-minute break between sets. You can complete this quick forearm regimen at the end of any session in which you have trained arms or done upper-body work. Your forearms have already been working, through not maximally, so they should be warm and ready to go.

Wrist Curl
Emphasis
Emphasis is on the Flexor Muscles.

Starting Position
Grasp a barbell with an underhand, close grip, and kneel forward with your forearms resting on the bench and your wrists and hands hanging off the edge.

Movement Performance
Bend your wrists and lower the weight toward the floor. At the bottom of the movement, slowly open your fingers and roll the bar out of your palms. Roll the weight back into the palms of your hands and lift the barbell as high as you can without letting your forearms lose contact with the bench. Repeat the movement for 12 reps and a total of three sets.

Reverse Wrist Curl
Emphasis
Emphasis is on the Extensor Muscles.

Starting Position
Grasp a barbell with an overhand grip, hands spaced 10 inches apart. Kneel forward and place your forearms across the bench palms-down so that your hands and wrists are unsupported.

Movement Performance
Bend your wrists as far forward as possible, then slowly bring the weight back up as far as you can without lifting your forearms. Repeat the movement for 12 reps and a total of three sets.

Forearm Rotation
Emphasis
Emphasis is on the Supinator and Pronator Muscles.

Starting Position
Grasp a dumbbell by its end (not the middle). Kneel forward and rest your forearm flat against the bench with your palm facing up.

Movement Performance
Slowly rotate your forearm until your palm faces down. Hold this position for two seconds, slowly return to the starting position and repeat for 12 reps and a total of three sets.

Remember to take the time to work out those forearms. Strong forearms complete a balanced body and prevent injury. Remember when body sculpting, "form," "resistance," and "breathe."

Rick Gusler is a certified personal trainer and diet nutritionist who serves his clients through Gusler Body Sculpting and Fitness Center in Central Denver. To schedule a free consultation or to learn more about the Gusler method of body sculpting please contact Rick at 303-860-7131 or visit him on-line at www.guslerbodysculpting.com.