It is necessary to develop the muscles of the forearms and hands for 2 reasons: to increase endurance during power loads and for aesthetic purposes. Beautiful, sinewy arms are the first thing that catches your eye and makes a pleasant impression of your figure.
In addition, the productivity of training with heavy weights and work related to heavy lifting and manual control of complex mechanisms depends on the strength of the hand muscles.
You can develop muscles even at home using an expander exercise machine. How to choose equipment and pump up your forearms yourself - further details.
What is an expander
An expander is a tight manual exercise machine for working out muscles. Its main advantages are efficiency, lightness, compactness and accessibility. This thing can be kept at home or in the office and practiced in your free time.
Good to know: an expander is not only a productive exercise machine for strengthening muscles, but also a good stress reliever, especially for men. Exercises with this projectile during the day help relieve excess tension and restore working tone.
There are several types of expanders:
- A thick rubber ring or pear is the simplest and most inexpensive option; the essence is to compress the “donut” with a brush. Its strength range is 5-65 kg.
- A metal corner on a spiral is a more convenient and damage-resistant squeezing tool. Resistance force – 25-160 kg.
- Spring tongs are similar to a technical pistol; they consist of a handle and a movable lever connected by several springs. Resistance – 25 kg.
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The expander handles can be equipped with plastic or rubber plugs for easy grip. The material can be smooth or textured, which provides a massage effect and makes it easier to hold the projectile. Some models have grooves for the fingers, as well as built-in strength meters and stopwatches for recording training results. Such equipment is used by professional trainers to meet athletes’ standards.
Note: do not confuse a manual expander with a universal band - an elastic strip with 2 looped handles at the ends, which is suitable for training arms, legs and back.
There are expanders of different sizes on sale. Small models will be convenient for women and teenagers, whose hand sizes are smaller than those of adult men.
If the expander is not the right size for the athlete, the training will be ineffective and can cause injury. More often this applies to rubber rings and pears. Resistance bands with handles allow you to work all your fingers evenly, and the “donut” does not grab the little finger. You should start with simple projectiles with a thrust of 6-25 kg.
What kind of simulator is there?
Look at the photo of the wrist expander and see that in most cases it is a small ring made of cast rubber. This is the simplest, most affordable and durable mini-exercise machine, which has only one drawback - the inability to reduce or increase the load.
In addition to the rubber expander, there are other types of exercise equipment: spring, adjustable, as well as modern devices in the form of balls, springs and eggs.
The standard spring mechanism consists of two grooved handles connected by a tight metal or plastic spring.
The adjustable wrist expander is based on a similar spring mechanism, complemented by several load levels, which provides greater versatility, reliability and safe training.
Why use an expander
The hand trainer is used to develop, develop strength and endurance of the muscles of the hands, fingers, forearms and upper arms. Certain areas are involved depending on the choice of exercises.
It is necessary to increase the power of the hand press in several cases:
- if the athlete is engaged in strength training with a barbell, kettlebell, dumbbells and on exercise machines, performs handstands;
- if at work a person works with heavy equipment or a keyboard, when it is necessary to reduce fatigue and increase hand strength;
- for uniform body development in bodybuilding and fitness.
The simulator develops not only muscles, but also ligaments and tendons. Constantly working the arms, including not only the press, but also rotational movements, increases the elasticity and flexibility of the joints, making it easier to control the hands and preventing “clogging” (sluggishness) of the area.
Those who avoid regular training in the gym are wondering whether it is possible to pump up their arms with an expander. This sports equipment really makes it possible to qualitatively work out all areas of the upper extremities: from fingers and palms to biceps, triceps and shoulders. You cannot build huge “cans” this way, but lean, dense muscles are an achievable result with regular exercises with an expander.
Conclusion: exercises with an expander are useful for everyone who monitors their form. Weightlifters work more intensely with this apparatus and use a tighter model.
For shoulders
Shrugs with expander
If we want to have a large and developed trapezoid, then we cannot do without SHRUGS. This is a great basic exercise. And fortunately for us, it can be performed with an expander. At the same time, the load on the spine will be reduced. Which is very good for people who have injuries in this area.
Performance:
- Place the resistance band on the floor and stand on the middle of it with both feet.
- We bend down and take the edges in our hands.
- We straighten up completely, leaving our arms down. For greater stability, you can bend your legs slightly and lean forward.
- As we exhale, we raise our shoulders up, trying to touch our earlobes.
- At the top point, we take a short pause and, while inhaling, lower our shoulders as far down as possible, stretching the trapezius.
How to pump up your arms with an expander
There are several types of wrist exercises. They are aimed at building lean muscle mass, increasing endurance and working on the flexibility of the hands.
First you need to learn how to hold the projectile correctly to avoid injuries and calluses:
- It is necessary to round the hand, extending the fingers forward. A hollow will appear at the tubercle of the thumb. This is the first point of support.
- The simulator is placed on the tubercle and fixed with your fingers. Depending on which phalanx is used to grip, the active muscle group is determined: for pumping the hand and fingers - the upper one, for working the forearms and shoulders - the middle and lower ones.
- Compression is performed with the hands perpendicular to the body or the floor with the arms bent at the elbows, and in some exercises – straight.
For effective training, you need to perform a set of 3 types of exercises.
For the press
Performance:
- Secure the middle of the expander to the bracket or press it against the door.
- Get on your knees and grab the edges with your hands.
- Press the backs of your hands to your forehead.
- As you exhale, twist, trying to reach your forehead to your knees.
- After a short pause, we straighten up, but do not relax the abdominal muscles.
Do the exercise at a very slow pace. The main task is to feel the work of the abdominal muscles. This is especially important for beginners. Since their neuromuscular connection is very poorly developed.
As part of the article, we have discussed with you only a small fraction of all kinds of exercises. But even these will be enough for the full development of all muscles.
I suggest you watch the video; it lasts only 4:43 minutes. It shows 50 exercises with an expander at home:
Don't forget to WARM UP before starting your workout. To protect your muscles and joints from injury. Despite your prostate, working with an expander is considered strength. And during execution, the muscles experience the same loads as when working with iron. It is better to train with an expander in shoes. To prevent calluses on your feet and make your workouts more comfortable.
Good luck to everyone in your training!
Development of forearms, hands and shoulder muscles
The first exercise with an expander is active. The athlete performs a grab and begins to frequently squeeze and unclench the exercise machine in a bent arm, without resting his elbow on the body. The main load will fall on the forearm and wrist joint, and if you hold the simulator with the upper phalanges, the fingers and wrist will be more strained. If you raise your arm to the side by 45°, there will be additional stress on the shoulder. The exercise is performed 90 times per minute. Rest – 5-6 minutes. The number of approaches is according to the athlete’s capabilities.
To engage the biceps and triceps, while squeezing, you need to gently throw your hand forward, straightening your elbow and turning your hand palm down or slightly diagonally. This way, some of the tension from the forearms will go to the shoulder part of the arms. Frequency – 60 compressions per minute.
Important: it is necessary to monitor the area of tension in accordance with the goals of the lesson. If you always direct the locus of work to your shoulders, your hands and lower arms will remain insufficiently strong and strengthened. As a result of exercise, the strength and volume of muscles in the worked area increases.
Is it possible to pump up your biceps with an elastic band?
An expander (or fitness band) is one way to complicate an exercise, increase resistance, and stimulate muscle growth. Often dumbbells, barbells and other weights are used for this purpose, however, an expander can also help strengthen the biceps.
The difference is that an expander (unlike dumbbells) will not be able to provide you with strong muscle hypertrophy, but you can tone your muscles by training with it.
For quality biceps training with an expander, it is important to choose the right fitness equipment.
We asked Valentin Zinin to compose and show us a set of exercises for biceps with a fitness band.
Endurance exercise
To increase power in the hands, perform a long grip. To do this, the expander is squeezed tightly to the maximum of its capabilities and the position is fixed for a few seconds until the muscles begin to tremble and become numb. The exercise is performed in several approaches.
You can combine such a press with an active one: several quick compressions - one fixed one, after a rest - repeat the complex. As you train, it is important to increase the duration of fixation and the number of approaches.
For legs
Squats with an expander
When it comes to leg training, the first thing that comes to mind is SQUATS. This is a great exercise to target your quadriceps and glutes.
Performance:
- The beginning is standard for exercises performed while standing.
- We stand in the middle of the expander. We place our legs hip-width apart (slightly narrower than shoulder width).
- We take the edges. We bend our elbows and place them in front of us, so that the expander is behind our forearms.
- The back is straight, there is a natural arch in the lower back. The gaze is directed forward and slightly upward.
- As you inhale, move your pelvis back and bend your knees.
- We take a short pause in the lower position.
- And as you exhale, we rise from the squat.
Watch the position of your knees. In the lower position they should not protrude beyond the toes. While squatting, do not look at your feet. This will make you round up. Start squats with abduction of the pelvis, not bending at the knee.
Become traction on straight legs
Well, where would we be without STANDING ON STRAIGHT LEGS. This exercise helps develop the muscles in the back of the thigh. Which receive virtually no load when doing squats.
Performance:
- We stand in the middle of the expander and take its ends in our hands.
- As you inhale, we begin to move the pelvis as far back as possible, due to which the forward tilt will occur.
- Stretching the muscles of the back of the thigh as much as possible. Exhale and return to the starting position.
While bending over, do not bend your knees. This will shift the load from the thigh muscles to the gluteal muscles. Do not round your back to avoid damaging your spine.
Lunges with expander
This is a basic exercise that allows you to load the gluteal muscles and quadriceps. LUNCHES can be performed in different ways. Taking a step forward and back. This will load the muscles differently. We will consider the technique of only the classic version.
Performance:
- We stand with one foot in the middle of the expander, and move the other one back.
- We take the edges with our hands and bend them at the elbow.
- While inhaling, bend the leg at the knee joint until an angle of 90° is formed in it.
- After taking a short pause and exhaling, straighten your leg by contracting the quadriceps and gluteal muscles.
While performing the exercise, do not lean forward too much. Make sure that your knee does not extend beyond your toes.
