Getting large forearms isn’t easy… at least not for most of us out there. Our forearms can come in all different shapes and sizes. Some people have forearms that are naturally thicker, while others have forearms that are long and thin. Having naturally larger forearms can be a great gift because that extra inch or two of length or thickness translates into a good amount of arm mass.
Even if you are one of the lucky few who were blessed with naturally large forearms, you probably still have some work to do to get them to where you’d like them to be. The rest of us will have to focus on our forearms to make sure that they’re not holding back some of our other muscle groups. I’ll explain what this means.
Most of the upper body exercises in the gym will use your forearms in some way or another. This is because the forearms are responsible for the gripping power in your fists as well as helping to bend your arms. So that means that any exercise where you need to grip a bar or handle will use at least some forearm strength.
Think of many of the back exercises. A good number of them place tension on your grip in a way that pulls your fist open and your fingers away from your palm. Think of exercises like the deadlift, shrugs, pulley rows, and lat pulldowns… each of these exercises requires you to use your forearms and keep your fist closed just to hold onto the bar.
Next, think of the biceps exercises. The forearms assist in curling your arm in these exercises. You’re probably getting a good amount of your forearm workout in as you work your back and biceps, but what would happen if your forearms wear out in the middle of your biceps workout? What if your forearms were too tired to keep curling until your biceps are pushed to the limit?
That’s the reason why you need to focus on your forearms from the very beginning. If your forearms are lagging behind your other muscle groups, they can quickly hold back your other exercises. Don’t let weak forearms hold you from having a good back workout because you don’t have enough grip to finish your heaviest set.
Also, you should always save you forearms for the end of your workout. That way, you won’t have trouble finishing a set of bicep curls when your biceps are still fresh. In fact, you probably won’t even be able to write in your training log after an intense forearm workout! Again, save your forearms for the end of your workout to ensure that your other muscles get the attention they deserve.
Let’s go ahead and jump into the details of the forearms and how they work. The forearm muscle group actually has more muscles than any other large body part. It includes large muscles with enough power to let you grip heavy weights without dropping them, and also smaller muscles that let you do things like writing or typing. These muscles come in three main categories.
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