Quickest Way to Bigger Forearms

Big forearms are the perfect capstone to a well-sculpted upper body. Containing more than 20 different muscles, the forearms play a crucial role in most of your hand and arm movements. Despite their importance, the forearms are frequently neglected by weightlifters rushing to tone their biceps and triceps. For quickest results, establish a regular weightlifting routine that includes both dumbbell and barbell workouts.

  1. Forearm Muscle Basics

    • Contrary to popular belief, the forearm actually contains more muscles than the upper arm, according to the Yale School of Medicine. While most forearm exercises target several of these muscles, the most common are the four outer muscles called the superficial muscle group, including the pronator teres, the flexor carpi radialis, the palmaris longus and the flexor carpi ulnaris muscles. For the quickest improvements in size, you will need to adopt a hypertrophic-intensive weightlifting routine based on sets of three to six repetitions. Unlike power-intensive lifts, which tend to involve one to two repetitions of very heavy weights, hypertrophic weightlifting uses slightly less weight and more repetitions to completely exhaust your muscles. When this happens, your muscle fibers split and eventually heal with a greater number, resulting in larger forearms.

    Free Weight Exercise for Forearms

    • One of the quickest ways to bulk up your surface forearm muscles is to train with free weights, such as dumbbells. These versatile weights allow you to access hard-to-reach angles with the help of curling techniques. For example, the dumbbell wrist curl exercise recommended by the American Council on Exercise lets you isolate a wide range of forearm muscles for maximum efficiency. Start by taking a dumbbell in each hand and kneeling down so your elbows are resting on an exercise bench. Make sure your elbows form a 90-degree angle with your upper and lower arms, and point your palms so they face each other. Slowly rotate your forearms in and down, until your palms face the floor. Hold this position for five seconds before slowly rotating your palms up toward the ceiling while keeping your wrists in a neutral position. For maximum effect, squeeze the handle of your dumbbells as hard as possible as you repeat the curls as many times as needed.

    Barbell Exercise for Forearms

    • Another quick way to build up your forearms is to try barbell exercises. Start by loading an EZ bar with weight and gripping your hands so they are shoulder-width apart. Make sure your palms are facing upward as you slowly lift the barbell toward your shoulders until your elbows form a 90-degree angle. Try to maintain this posture as you begin curling your wrists down and up as slowly as possible, creating a burning sensation throughout your forearms. Perform as many curls as possible before lowering the barbell back to the starting position. Unlike the dumbbell forearm curl, this exercise can be performed either sitting or standing.

    Safety Concerns

    • Needless to say, hypertrophic-intensive weightlifting can lead to a variety of injuries if practiced incorrectly. Always lift weights under the supervision of a coach, spotter or personal trainer, to help reduce the risk of injury caused by overweighting your dumbbell or barbell. Give your muscles at least two to three days to heal before returning to the gym. When in doubt, talk to your doctor to make sure you are physically fit enough to lift weights.