Skinny Forearms
12 April 2007, 10:46 AM
#1
Scooby Regular
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Location: Location:
Posts: 2,848
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Skinny Forearms
How the hell do you build up forearms? My biceps are okay but now we're into short sleeves season, my forearms seem to be a bit on the slim side!!
Any advice??
Any advice??
I don't think that will work Sara - afterall he doesn't want to rip the damn thing off 
)
12 April 2007, 10:51 AM
#6
Scooby Regular
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: God's promised land
Posts: 80,907
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Reverse curls and hammer curls are the only direct exercises, but a lot of heavy lifting such as deadlifts will beef them out over time. However, you'll spend a lot of time making not much difference, the muscles here are pretty sinewy so if you're not naturally blessed to begin with you won't alter things dramatically. Add some sets in each workout for sure, but don't do it at the expense of the larger arm muscles.
Trending Topics
12 April 2007, 11:19 AM
#11
Scooby Regular
Join Date: Dec 2005
Posts: 511
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Wrist curls. Sit on a bench, backs of forearms on your lap with wrists hanging off the end of your knees.
With a weighted barbell in your hands, curl the bar toward yourself. Just like regular arm curls but only curling your wrists. Then do the opposite, inside of wrists on your lap with wrists extended out over your knees. Same bar in hand (may have to lower weight) bend your wrists back toward you.
This did wonders for me when i was younger and started training and had twig forearms. My forearms started out at 11" circumferance, and when i was at my biggest (granted, i had lifted a LOT of heavy weight over this time) they were 16" circumferance.
These are direct forearm excercises that will work, Just be ready for a nasty burn in the muscles cos they probably wont be used to any direct work.
Edit - These will also build up your wrist size as well. expect about 1/4 to 1/3 the size gain in your wrist that you get in your forearm.
With a weighted barbell in your hands, curl the bar toward yourself. Just like regular arm curls but only curling your wrists. Then do the opposite, inside of wrists on your lap with wrists extended out over your knees. Same bar in hand (may have to lower weight) bend your wrists back toward you.
This did wonders for me when i was younger and started training and had twig forearms. My forearms started out at 11" circumferance, and when i was at my biggest (granted, i had lifted a LOT of heavy weight over this time) they were 16" circumferance.
These are direct forearm excercises that will work, Just be ready for a nasty burn in the muscles cos they probably wont be used to any direct work.
Edit - These will also build up your wrist size as well. expect about 1/4 to 1/3 the size gain in your wrist that you get in your forearm.
Last edited by Dannybwoy; 12 April 2007 at 11:22 AM.
12 April 2007, 12:11 PM
#13
Consisting of multiple different individual muscles ( extensors and flexors) the forerams are a difficult and stubborn muscle group to build. They are constantly used in all major exercises ( legs notwithstanding) and therefore are used to a lot of intensity. The thing that may work for you ( eveyone is different) is shocking them with supersets of extreme intensity i.e until the weight literally drops out of your hand. Compound movements like deadlifts will also help ( as Telboy has said) and will improve grip strength too. Do two different exercises for each muscle group (flexor and extensor) and a couple for the brachiallis too. Use supersets and see if that yields any results.
12 April 2007, 12:31 PM
#16
Scooby Regular
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: Edinburgh (ish)
Posts: 8,089
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
12 April 2007, 12:38 PM
#18
Scooby Regular
iTrader: (1)
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: Yorkshire
Posts: 16,517
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
A super set would be a set of 6 reps at one weight for example then immediately drop the weight to lower normally and do some more reps.
That (in my mind) should be 24...
12 April 2007, 12:41 PM
#21
Scooby Regular
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: Edinburgh (ish)
Posts: 8,089
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
12 April 2007, 12:42 PM
#24
Yes I have been a little preoccupied lately. The flexors are those muscles that enable you to grip, they run mainly along the bottom of the forearm. The extensors as the name suggsets are the muscles that enable you extend and open your fingers. Each finger has it's own set of muscles (multiply that by ten and that's a lot of muscles
). The extensors don't really constitute much in the way of size to the forearm, that will come from the flexors and the brachiallis (the muscle that runs along the top of the forearm and up between the bicep and tricep). A rep or a repetition is one complete movement of any given exercise. A set is as the name suggests a set of a given repetions ranging anywhere from six to ten. A superset is a number of sets done concurrently without resting in between i.e a a set to failure then reduce weight and carry on. You can do up to six sets in one superset but beware it can be easy to overtrain using this method. It is normally used to shock the muscle.
Last edited by Maz; 12 April 2007 at 12:57 PM.
12 April 2007, 12:50 PM
#26
Scooby Regular
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: Edinburgh (ish)
Posts: 8,089
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Hello Andy Yes I have been a little preoccupied lately. The flexors are those muscles that enable you to grip, they run mainly along the bottom of the forearm. The extensors as the name suggsets are the muscles that enable you extend and open your fingers. Each finger has it's own set of muscles (multiply that by ten and that's a lot of muscles ). The extensors don't really constitute much in the way of size to the forearm, that will come from the flexors and the brachiallis (the muscle that runs along the top of the forearm and up between the bicep and tricep).
Yes I have been a little preoccupied lately. The flexors are those muscles that enable you to grip, they run mainly along the bottom of the forearm. The extensors as the name suggsets are the muscles that enable you extend and open your fingers. Each finger has it's own set of muscles (multiply that by ten and that's a lot of muscles ). The extensors don't really constitute much in the way of size to the forearm, that will come from the flexors and the brachiallis (the muscle that runs along the top of the forearm and up between the bicep and tricep). Andy
12 April 2007, 01:43 PM
#28
Perhaps not worrying about it would help, I dont think anybody will walk past and point and laugh at your forearms, they work so don't waste hours on trying to make them bigger, when you stop they will revert back to pretty much the size they were before anyway.
12 April 2007, 01:58 PM
#29
Scooby Regular
Join Date: Dec 2005
Posts: 511
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
As explained
Rep = One performance from start to finish of an excercise movement.
Set = A group of repetitions all performed at once, can vary from 6 up to 12-15 depending on bodypart or desired goal.
Drop set = Doing, say, 10 reps of bicep curls, then lowering the weight maybe 25% and performing another 10 repetitions.
Super Set = The usual definition of a superset is doing one set of reps for a body part, eg Biceps, then immediatley after finishing that set switching to a set of reps for a different excercise either for the same bodypart or a synergystic one ( e.g Bicep/Tricep, Chest/Back, Thigh/Hamstring)
The last two, Drop set and Super Set are advanced training methods to force as much blood into an area as possible and tear the muscle tissue down as much as possible in the shortest time. They shouldnt be performed all the time as you can easily overtrain using these methods, but periodically to shock muscles which may have become complacent with a specific routine.
Oh, and if you train 'Naturally' with no chemical assistance, you would be surprised just how much of your hard work you hang to once training is stopped for prolonged periods of time.
HTH, anything else, just ask.
Rep = One performance from start to finish of an excercise movement.
Set = A group of repetitions all performed at once, can vary from 6 up to 12-15 depending on bodypart or desired goal.
Drop set = Doing, say, 10 reps of bicep curls, then lowering the weight maybe 25% and performing another 10 repetitions.
Super Set = The usual definition of a superset is doing one set of reps for a body part, eg Biceps, then immediatley after finishing that set switching to a set of reps for a different excercise either for the same bodypart or a synergystic one ( e.g Bicep/Tricep, Chest/Back, Thigh/Hamstring)
The last two, Drop set and Super Set are advanced training methods to force as much blood into an area as possible and tear the muscle tissue down as much as possible in the shortest time. They shouldnt be performed all the time as you can easily overtrain using these methods, but periodically to shock muscles which may have become complacent with a specific routine.
Oh, and if you train 'Naturally' with no chemical assistance, you would be surprised just how much of your hard work you hang to once training is stopped for prolonged periods of time.
HTH, anything else, just ask.