How to Train Forearms

The forearm can effectively be divided into two major muscle categories:

• Muscles that bend the fingers and wrist.

• Muscles that straighten the fingers and wrist.

Muscles that bend the fingers and wrist are called the flexors, and muscles that straighten the fingers and wrist are called extensors.

Training flexors or extensors involves the same motion - you bend and straighten your wrist!

What changes between the two?

The direction of resistance. That’s it.

Here’s an example of how to train the flexors:

And here’s an example of how to train the extensors:

The only distinction is how the direction of resistance changes relative to the forearm and hand. You need to turn the hands downward or upward to alter the stimulus you’re looking for.

Using dumbells is a fine choice to train the forearms. Still, there are many other variations that you can do, including wrist-bending motions with cables that train the flexors and extensors at the same time!

But I’ll save those motions for another email :)