Author of the article
Andrey Belozertsev
Drawing up programs for effective muscle mass gain.
Why do you need to exercise the muscles of the forearm?
Firstly, the condition for a harmoniously developed figure is that parts of the body are pumped evenly and proportionally. If the upper part of the arm is pumped up quite quickly and easily, then you have to work with the lower part separately, otherwise it lags behind.
Secondly, pumped up forearms are an important condition for serious training with heavy weights. Weak arms cannot lift a heavy barbell without injury. Therefore, before you start hanging solid plates, you need to develop steel wrists and arms in general.
Thirdly, the special structure of the muscles of this part of the body requires attention: one or two exercises will not do. Therefore, a special set of exercises is needed to pump up the forearms.
Anatomy of the forearms
The structure of the muscles is determined by the shape and size of the bones: the forearm is formed by two thin bones, the humerus and the radius.
It is not so easy to attach muscles to them, so the connection points are higher and lower.
Main muscles:
- The brachioradialis muscle is located in the upper part, closer to the elbow. This is a large muscle that performs lifting of the arm at the elbow and rotation when raised.
- The extensor ulnaris and flexor carpi are a group of muscles responsible for various movements of the hand, and the extensor digitorum is responsible for the movements of the fingers.
- The pronator teres muscle is a short muscle located on the inside just below the elbow. Responsible for turning and flexing the forearm when turning the hand palm up.
Development for arm wrestling
How to effectively strengthen your hands for arm wrestling? Certain equipment and exercises with them will help in this matter:
- The apparatus is a dumbbell with one side. It rises only by bending the arm at the wrist joint.
- The same dumbbell rises back. The forearm is motionless. Movements occur in the same joint.
Dumbbells and weights: choosing equipment
The choice of scale depends on several factors: from the size of your wallet to the amount of storage space at home. But the main factor is still your level of training: if you have not played sports before, you need to start with the smallest weight, no more than 2 kg.
If you are not planning to set up a gym at home, you don’t have much space to store sports equipment. In this case, the optimal choice of dumbbells is a collapsible model with rubber plates. Rubber is more pleasant to the touch, it does not leave scratches on the floor and furniture, aesthetics also play an important role.
As for weights, there are also a number of important points:
- Choose a kettlebell with a large rectangular handle. This apparatus is very convenient: no matter how you take it, there will be no strain on “breaking out” your wrist, you can take it with both hands, performing a wider range of exercises. In addition, when lifting, the core of the kettlebell will rest on the forearm without injuring the wrist. Select the thickness of the handle to suit your hand: it should be comfortable for you to hold the projectile, lift it, and place it.
- The weight should have good stability. This will not only help with storage, some exercises like push-ups can be performed on such equipment without fear of injury.
- The rubberized bottom is not mandatory, but a very nice addition. The reasons are the same as for dumbbells, plus noiselessness is an important detail.
- The weight of the projectile depends on further targets. Just pump your forearms - take from 2 to 8 kilograms, seriously engage in kettlebell lifting - the optimal weight for it is from 16 kilograms. It’s definitely not worth starting with such a weight; first you need to strengthen your muscles. To do this, it is better to use a lighter weight of the kettlebell or even start with dumbbells.
Become a superhero with Thor
Exercises with a kettlebell have such a powerful effect on increasing the strength of an athlete that Chris Hemsworth, aka Thor, pays special attention to training with it. Just thirty minutes a day and you can significantly reduce weight if necessary and keep your body in great shape.
You may be afraid of this projectile, treat it with prejudice. Or worry about how awkward and awkward you'll look to other athletes who train in the same gym as you. But believe me, the kettlebell truly has some magical ability to build muscle in the body.
Feel free to go to the rack with weights, dust them off, and use them for their intended purpose. Even if you haven’t often met someone in the hall with this projectile in their hands, this is not a reason to pass by. Finally, commit to a smart workout, approved by Chris Hemsworth and his trusty teacher and fitness mentor, Luke Zocchi.
Plunge into the study of new, or rather, long-forgotten old equipment that will mold you into a superhero. Your efforts will more than pay off, and by summer you will be able to boast of your excellent shape. Besides, it’s much more fun than walking sadly from one exercise machine to another. Diversity is the key to success.
Warm-up
Warm-up is a mandatory, very important part of any workout. To warm up the muscles and the whole body, prevent sprains, and prepare the body for serious stress.
Warm-up takes 5-10 minutes, do not consider this time wasted. Thanks to it, the effect of training increases by one and a half times!
So, what does the warm-up consist of:
- Walking in place, running in place, jumping rope. This is a cardio warm-up: the pulse quickens, the blood begins to flow faster through the veins.
- Stretching the muscles of the whole body, including the part we will work with.
- Rotations in the joints: arms, legs, neck, spine must work so that all ligaments receive their share of nutrition and warm up.
- Preparing your fingers and wrists for training: stretching in different directions, kneading and bending your fingers until you feel a clear feeling of warmth in all parts of your hands, up to the elbow and above.
Finger development
In addition to his fingers, he also perfectly improves his forearms thanks to non-standard effects on them. This is its main advantage. And the arm muscles work at an original angle. This angle cannot be set when practicing with other equipment.
This Korean product uniquely develops the power of the fingers and restores them and hands after various injuries. It is also useful for those people who, due to their profession, print a lot. When they are overloaded, muscle atrophy and pain in the arms are formed. The exercise machine will relieve these sensations and improve hand condition.
Basic exercises
The set of exercises that you choose for yourself from those we offer must correspond to your level of training.
It should be difficult, but without strain. Any injury will delay the appearance of the desired result by months.
While increasing the number of repetitions even with a small load will give an excellent effect.
For beginners
You need to start exercising with dumbbells. Since the kettlebell has an offset center of gravity, it is too difficult for a beginner.
Put it aside until you become confident in performing all exercises with dumbbells.
With enough diligence, this moment will come quite soon.
The number of repetitions for you is no more than 10-15, to keep the tendons in a warm state, use wristbands.
Exercise with support on a table or bench
Place your hand on the support so that the hand remains suspended. Hold a dumbbell in this hand. Start lowering and raising the weight, moving only your hand.
Depending on how the dumbbell is rotated, different muscles are worked: flexors, extensors.
Perform the exercise slowly, feeling how your muscles tense and relax.
Don't let the pain mean that something is wrong or the weight is too heavy.
Farmer's Walk
Much loved by experienced athletes, this exercise is easy to perform even for beginners. Place two weights of the same weight on the floor and stand between them.
Sit down, bring your shoulder blades together, bend your lower back slightly. Grab the handles and stand up straight. Walk in small steps while holding the weights in your hands.
During the “walk”, keep your shoulders slightly raised, your knees slightly bent, and make sure to maintain a straight back.
Advanced
The exercises in the beginners section are suitable for advanced athletes. The weight of the projectile, the frequency of repetitions, and the number of approaches increase.
Exercise with support
You can perform the support exercise given in the beginners section using a kettlebell. Thanks to the complex direction of the load during the movement of the kettlebell, a wider range of muscles is worked out.
Because the arms are conditioned by long-term training, strengthening occurs rather than injury, even with increased weight.
Swing kettlebells with two hands
Grasp the kettlebell between your legs with both hands. At the same time, bend your legs, and also keep your elbows slightly bent.
Swing forward, gradually bringing the extreme position to chest height. This exercise stretches and pumps up the forearm muscles.
Swing a kettlebell with one hand
Perform the same swings while holding the kettlebell with one hand. When you get tired, change your working hand.
When working with only one hand, control over the weight weakens and it is more difficult to work.
You can make the movement even more difficult by taking steps back and forth while doing it.
Pro
Professionals already have a well-trained muscle base, as well as excellent skills in managing various weights without injury.
If you're a pro, you can move on to juggling a kettlebell or two.
Kettlebell juggling, which includes various throws, is even considered a separate sport - beautiful and dynamic.
The throws are as follows:
- Simple throws: the projectile is thrown forward and upward, and after turning towards itself, it is caught in the air.
- Reverse throws: turning the weight in the other direction, “away from you.”
- Oblique: the projectile turns towards itself in the air, while the handle is turned vertically.
There are even more complex variations in which the kettlebell performs complex turns.
Such movements go beyond pumping up the forearms, becoming a real sport.
What is important to know about shoulder training?
The shoulder muscles are the anterior, middle and rear deltoids. Each segment has its own exercises. Organize your training process to use them all. The shoulder muscles are actively activated when we work the chest, back, trapezius and other muscles. Therefore, it is very important to correctly distribute the training load and choose a day to pump the deltas so that they have time to recover. If your shoulders are constantly overworked, there will be no growth. A couple of workouts a week will be enough for you.
Photo: istockphoto.com
Cool down and stretch
After completing the main set of exercises, be sure to stretch the working muscles.
It is necessary to put them in their usual places, maintain elasticity, and eliminate the consequences of hard work.
To stretch your arm muscles, do the following:
- Pull the palms of your straightened arms towards you: fingers up, fingers down. Help with your other hand or rest your palm on the wall, gently stretching the muscles.
- Perform the same movements, turning your palm in the other direction.
- Perform slow rotations with clenched fists, trying to describe as large a circle as possible. Focus on stretching your muscles.
Cooling down is also a necessary part of the workout. Bringing your pulse, breathing, and relaxation back to normal is necessary for both the working muscle group and the entire body as a whole.
Cool down options:
- Light cardio: walking, including standing still.
- Gymnastics in a relaxed rhythm.
- Yoga.
Development of brushes for gaming disciplines
Powerful hands are required not only by representatives of fighting disciplines. This is necessary for everyone who is thoroughly involved in team sports where the ball is served or thrown by hand. This includes basketball, volleyball, handball, and water polo.
Their tasks are largely similar. Requires a strong throw or hit and accurate passes.
Most often, to strengthen the hands for volleyball, basketball and disciplines with similar tasks, the following series of exercises is used:
- Hanging on the horizontal bar.
- Push-ups on fingers.
- Squeezing a tennis ball.
- Special contact between two fingers: they grip powerfully and slowly pull away.
- Falling on the wall. In the final phase, the body is slowly stopped by the fingers. You need to stay in this position for 20-40 seconds, then push off strongly.
Advice from experienced bodybuilders
Experienced athletes consider the kettlebell one of the best equipment for pumping up their forearms.
At the same time, they give recommendations regarding the specifics of this tool in case you decide to train your forearms at home and not in the gym.
So, tips:
- When training with kettlebells, make room so that you can drop the weight at any time if something goes wrong. Remove breakable items, fragile furniture, and valuable interior items away.
- Since the weight increases by an order of magnitude when dropped, place something soft on the floor. Thick pile carpet or sports mats.
- Do not rush to increase the weight of the apparatus, especially if you are training with two kettlebells. Taking the next number, you will increase the weight by two, due to the pairing of weights. To pump up your forearms with kettlebells, a 16-kilogram weight is enough, then you begin to build up a lot of mass. Therefore, before taking the next weight, increase the number of repetitions and approaches with the existing one, only then, when it becomes easy, raise the bar.
Work on the horizontal bar
Often athletes, especially beginners, wonder how to strengthen their hands on the horizontal bar? You just need to wrap the horizontal bar with two towels. Or you can put a neck extender on it. In general, its thickness should increase. And exercising on such a machine will also help pump up your forearms, develop grip strength, improve posture, train your back muscles, and increase height for young people who are not yet 25 years old
Set the timer for 30-40 seconds. Take the jump. You should grab the handles of the horizontal bar with an overhand grip. Stretch your arms out. Hang the specified interval. You can hang as much as your strength allows.
The wrap of two towels is actually not reliable, it can fly off, so the best option for thickening is the specified expander. And towels are a budget option.
A horizontal bar can also be built at home. Seal the crossbar in the same way. And be sure to include this activity in your training schedule.
