One of the most difficult parts of the body to isolate and build up are the forearms.
That isn’t to say that building mass is easy for any particular body part, as building muscle is one of the most difficult aspects of weight lifting and is a confluence of effort, technique, planning, diet, and motivation, as well as genetics.
It is true however that some body parts are more difficult to build up than others, the calf muscle is one of the more well-known and often talked about examples.
Many people bemoan genetics and wheel even more ridiculous excuses as to why these muscles are so hard to train and build, however, there are ways to increase these muscles.
Forearms, in particular, are a very desirable muscle to isolate as they are on show a lot, and add a lot of aesthetic appeal particularly for men, as well as offering support to almost every exercise conceivable.
Interestingly, despite the importance and rather underestimated the aesthetic value of strong, defined forearms, many people don’t train them at all, or believe that these muscles are targeted naturally by the various other exercises weight lifters commonly use.
These myths all combine to leave many people utterly mystified about how to actually achieve bigger forearms, and this, in turn, leads to poor understanding, misconceptions, as well as wasted money and effort.
All of this is very undesirable, so in this guide we’re going to explain how to go about getting bigger forearms, explaining the main methods and tips as clearly and simply as possible.
Table of Contents
Target the Forearms Directly
This seems obvious, but it’s amazing how many people totally neglect this key muscle group. The forearms may not be the strongest muscles and they definitely fulfill more of a supporting role for most movements, however, this doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be isolated to help improve their capabilities.
After all, shoring up your supporting muscles is one of the best ways to break plateaus in performance and ensure that your body is able to train hard without sustaining injuries.
There are several good exercises you should be using to focus on forearms if you want to gain mass and definition, such as;
Wrist Curls
This exercise is one of the best ways to target the forearms and is a very intensive exercise for this part of the body, isolating it excellently. Make sure to use the correct technique, using a full range of motion.
Use an underhand grip with a dumbbell, and pull your wrist up towards your body, before lowering it carefully back down. This movement should be done using a bench to lay your arm on to keep everything stable and isolated.
There are various methods and variations, but this is a great place to start and will set you on the path to serious arm gains very efficiently.
Just remember to start slowly and don’t use too much weight to begin with to avoid injury.
Farmers Walks
Farmers’ walks are a great forearm exercise that can develop excellent grip strength and encourage forearm mass growth too.
All you need to do is pick up some heavy dumbbells and walk a certain distance with the weights held down at your sides. Take a number of circuits/paces before stopping to rest.
This is a very practical and simple exercise that creates functional strength and can also create arm definition.
Reverse/Pronated Grip Curls
If you want to try focusing your forearms more while also working out other muscles, you can tweak your exercises accordingly and see great results.
The best example of this is the reverse or pronated curl, which is a bicep curl like any other, except you hold the barbell or dumbbell with an overhand grip instead of an underhand grip.
This targets all areas of the forearm and can isolate the muscles well while also targeting the biceps very effectively.
You may not be able to curl as much like this so consider using this as a supplement to a standard bicep curl to avoid losing gains in this area.
Overload and Increased Volume
As with any exercise regime, overload and volume are very important.
Overload is the process of adding stress and additional strain to an exercise to force the body to keep adapting and this is why using a structured and regular increase in weight is the only way to actually develop and increase strength as well as muscular definition and size.
If you only lift the same weight each time you train your body won’t adapt and you will see a very slow or nonexistent increase in performance and mass.
Use overload and increased volume of reps and training to surge your performance at the right time and force your arms to grow stronger.
Eat More Protein
Getting the right nutrition is critical for any athlete or workout regime, as it is what gives you the energy to train, as well as the means to recover effectively.
Without adequate protein and fat your body will not be able to increase its muscle mass and will atrophy, which is why many people take protein shakes while weight lifting.
Access to a large amount of protein helps speed up recovery and lead to increased size and strength so don’t neglect your diet even if you’re on a dirty bulk phase.
Always get enough grams of protein, as without them your exercise will largely be wasted.
Get Plenty of Rest
Getting plenty of rest is also critical, much like eating correctly. Without good rest, your body will fail, and you will be prone to get injured and lose all your progress.
The body does most of its healing while asleep, so take time to rest often as this can actually accelerate your gains and lead to increased mass and strength.
Final Thoughts
While building up your forearms can definitely be difficult, it’s by no means impossible.
If you follow a good regime, eat correctly, get enough rest and stay consistent with a good workout regime you will see a transformation unlike any you thought possible and will eventually notice seriously impressive forearms either on your next date or when the next competition rolls around!
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